People who know me are wondering why I have this curious American people mover in my fleet.
Professional suicide?
Revenge?
Hypnosis, perhaps.
A dealer, who I consult for, had one on his lot with an odd noise that was unresolved. After some investigation I found the source of the noise and as a result of driving this van I was impressed that it rode well, was very fuel efficient. (28 mpg highway) The van was under a year old and had 7000 miles.
It has taken me years of training to avoid making rash decisions, so I pondered, about a month, and then purchased this Silhouette. In two years of use it has been back to the dealer twice. One power window switch failed, and the headlight seals were leaking and fogging up the lights. The headlight assembly replacement took a little more effort than I would expect, as there was no mistaking that this was a defect, but a letter to the proper GM service people took care of the mess.
What to love: the eager 3.4 V6 with 185hp gets this van moving quickly and the engine has a great throaty sound. A trip down the interstate barely gets the tach warm, 1900 rpm gets you 69mph, so for highway cruising it rolls effortlessly and with relative silence.
What to hate: Rear seats are not designed for real adults, factory tires are very poor, slider door on driver's side has an annoying little rattle, (secondary roads) huge wipers are noisy and should clear the glass better, for their size. Braking seems less than adequate. Do not attempt panic stops at high speeds you may fall asleep at the wheel and the brake pedal effort seems hard.
If you are considering a mini-van but you want it to have some tigerish qualities this makes for a good choice. In fairness to the Mini-van Genre I did drive the competition’s offerings and most of the other non-GM vans did not come close to the Oldsmobile.
As of today the miles are at 30,510 and still no additional trips to the shop! As snowfall is imminent, I have decided to refit the van with new all-season Michelins, and a softer set of brake pads. A quick trip to nada.com reveals the current retail price as equipped to be $17525.00. Wonderful, 19 months of ownership, no significant repairs, and at least worth what I initially paid for it. Imagine if I sold it now I would have to pay a capital gains tax.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 17100
Condition: Used Model Year: 1997 Model and Options: Long wheel base GL,Power everything,Alloys,Sunscreen glass,trip computer etc
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