The car's tasteful styling still looks good to me after three years of ownership. The exterior is subtle without being boring; the interior looks classy with a two-tone color scheme of light and dark beige.

The IP and HVAC panels appearance are a nice cross between performance and luxury. The controls on the dash board, steering wheel and signal/wiper levers on the steering column are all easy to see, reach and use without taking too much attention from the road. The automatic climate control is set by using an easy-to-find-without-looking dial to select a temperature. It does a better job of maintaining the temperature and sending the air right where you want it (floor, vent or windshield) than more expensive cars I have rented: Saab 9-5, Mercedes C-Class and BMW 3-series.

The front legroom is reasonable and the rear legroom is OK unless the front seats are all the way back. The seats are comfortable but not spectacular. Trunk space is excellent.

The car handles nicely with variable-assist steering and good suspension. Passing acceleration is excellent. The 3.5 "Shortstar" V-6, which was not shared outside Oldsmobile and is no longer made, is a wonderfully smooth engine with good power at all ranges. Unfortunately, the transmission is tuned (or its computer chip programmed) in a way that creates an almost turbo-like lag in acceleration from a stop (probably designed to help fuel economy). However, the transmission's 4 speeds do an excellent job keeping the car under control on hilly or mountainous roads.

I paid extra for the active control system that applies brakes or decelerates the engine when it detects oversteer or understeer. It has come on only a few times in three years, much less frequently than anti-lock brakes engage. I tested it on a snow-covered parking lot and saw it come on once while I was going way too fast on a freeway ramp. This limited experience tells me it works as advertised but that its high threshold to engage makes it an accident avoidance rather than performance enhancing feature.

The brakes are not as strong as I prefer; there is too much travel in the pedal before the breaking starts and I feel I have to push too far or hard, although once the brakes engage they are smooth and easy to control. Alas, this too is a GM tuning choice. I read this was GM's braking philosophy circa 2002 although they have changed to more European-style braking since. I wish it had the brakes of the German cars I have driven. They stop so fast you better be wearing your seatbelt to hold you in place.

The other thing on my wish list would be better sound insulation. Sounds from the car and its tires are not excessive, wind noise is average, but a car with luxury aspirations should have provided a little more isolation from the traffic noise.

I read an Automobile magazine review that called this car a Mercedes E-Class for half the price. I would agree that the car's aspirations are in that direction but that a more reasonable description is that the Intrigue is 60% as good as an E-Class for only 50% of the price, probably less than that used.
Amount Paid (US$): 21000
Condition: New
Model Year: 2002
Model and Options: GLS