GMC Sierra image from bidcars.com.
As I told in an earlier chapter, I had replaced my Lemon Law ’98 Chevy Cheyenne with a ’99 GMC Sierra. Staying within GM was a questionable idea after the Cheyenne experience. Yet, within 30 days of the Sierra ownership, we were very impressed. At the time, we had no idea how hard it would get used, or how quickly the miles would rack up, which was 61,000 in the first 3 years.
During that time, the only issue that arose with the truck was that one tire was out of round. For the first oil change, I asked that they be balanced and rotated, and that’s what the dealer discovered; a brand-new set from a local tire store solved that issue. Other than that, it just didn’t break, no matter how hard we worked it; towed the largest U-Haul trailer way full, loads of lumber, dirt, and rock to build a deck, etc.
That said, readers of my pieces know that I move through cars quickly. Eventually, what caused the Sierra’s trade-in was its gauge cluster failing. You didn’t know whether the information displayed was accurate or not. And the transmission didn’t shift as crisply, so it went. And we moved on.
GMC Safari Van image from the Cohort by Hyperpack.
I’ve written here about the time when my mom requested my wife, two kids, and me on her deathbed to move back to Ohio to help my youngest sister, who at the time was raising three children alone. Well, we wanted to do everything we could, and I guess in some ways I tried to fill in between their dad’s visits. So we bought a 1997 GMC Safari Van, and it was the perfect fit for Cindy to shuttle five kids back and forth to school, events, and the like. There isn’t much to say about that van, other than it just never broke. So, despite the ’98 Cheyenne episode, we were a GM family for the immediate future.
….
So, I will finish my thoughts on GM and brand alliance. Growing up, I had certain car styles, engines, and options on my cars. And I followed my dad’s lead, for the most part, as he was a GM man all my life. That is, until his last 9 years of life, when he drove a Toyota Camry.
So, I guess I was under the spell; the target demographic, the customer that every brand loves. I liked Ford for a while, especially for things like the Taurus/Sable (owned one of each), the Fox Mustang (owned two), and the Panther Grand Marquis (owned two). We later owned many more GM cars and trucks, and I did feel a bit of an alliance. You see, when they built the Fort Wayne assembly plant, they bought 75 acres of land belonging to a very close family of mine. Further, they told the family that they could keep their home if they wanted to have it moved, and the deal couldn’t have come at a better time financially for them.
Our 2024 Nissan Rogue, in a lovely two-tone black over blue exterior with a light oyster grey interior.
We decided on the SL AWD with the Premium package, one trim below Platinum’s top level.
But in June of last year, when my beloved 2018 ruby red Sierra SLT with a “big” 39800 miles began to have transmission issues, I was frustrated. After my mechanic tried for 10 weeks to find parts to repair it, there were none available. So on June 24, praying that the torque converter wouldn’t implode, I carefully drove away from seeing my father-in-law and pulled into the local Nissan dealership. I left in a brand new Rogue, against hearing good and bad. So far, 14900 miles in, no issues.
So I’ve learned. Best price, a vehicle that fits my budget, and dependability. I don’t shop thinking that I’ll own it 250,000 miles; I shop thinking about what issue it’ll solve. And, other than the Rogue, which may be my last new car, I’ve been finding decent used cars that do the job.
Chip, so tell us about your Nissan!
I have to say that I’m also fascinated by the deal that GM made with your family members in Fort Wayne. Did they actually move the house?! That seems to be the kind of thing that a deep-pocketed corporation could do, but nevertheless exceeds expectations. Interesting.
Hi Jeff.
First, the Nissan was a definite need, not a sought vehicle. But, we are actually very impressed so far. It is the first vehicle to have all the crash avoidance junk/extra special cruise control, etc! Joking aside, it saved us from a potentially terrible accident about three months ago. We were traveling on a 4 lane after dark in the rain. The limit was 60, which was what I was running, as I went to pass another slower car. Suddenly the Nissan began to brake with all the force it had and in a split second I saw why: a trooper blocking the lane due to an accident up ahead and around a corner. But he had no marking lights on at all, only his hazards which were barely visible in the rain.
The GM deal! A whole story so I’ll condense it. There were two families on this road out where GM is now. The story goes that a black Lincoln pulled up with two suits and explained to both families that the property was needed for a new railroad spur. GM was keeping Ft Wayne under wraps at the times.
Fast forward, the families hired an attorney who did all their negotiations.
Before long, strangers were coming into the woods behind the homes and poaching trees. At that point, my friend got a hold of the attorney to ask what was going to happen with the two homes and were told they would be bulldozed. They were then told that if the owners wanted their homes (which I understand to have been for as part of the property purchase) they had to have them moved by a certain date. Both families did just that!
I do remember standing with my friend one day many years later, looking out the kitchen window. He told me that he had looked things over and determined that approximately where the smokestack stood would have been where their living room was.
So, I suppose I held some stupid allegiance. But that has ended. I doubt if we will ever buy a new car again, but I’ll say for sure it will not be anything GM.
“Best price, a vehicle that fits my budget, and dependability.” DEAD ON!
I believe your ’99 Sierra was telling you its time was coming to an end with the gauge cluster and transmission, in a similar fashion to what my ’05 Astro did last year with its ECM and anti-theft system. Luckily the ’97 Safari gave you no major trouble, but then it probably didn’t have near as many miles as my Astro did when I pulled the plug on any more repairs (286,241 miles!). It was also nearly 20 years old and I didn’t want to take any more chances with random stuff failing at the worst possible time. It was good if not great while it lasted, but it was time to move on.
Can’t blame you on your decision to trade in the the 2018 Sierra for the Nissan Rogue. A then-6-year-old truck shouldn’t be having transmission issues with so few miles, assuming everything was properly maintained. The only major failure point so far with my 2016 Transit Connect was in the Hill Start Assist system (the ABS sensors were going bad) but everything else is as good as can be at 92k miles. Still have my daily-driver 2011 Ranger with 204k miles and it STILL hasn’t let me down! Besides basic maintenance both vehicles have been relatively trouble-free and I hopefully won’t need another new(er) ride for at least 10 years–time will tell! 🙂