My Horrible GM experience - Got no help from the court or the BBB - Still paying for a car I can't drive

On January 4, 1999 I leased a brand new 1999 Chevy Cavalier because I needed a reliable way to get to and from work and school.

Two weeks after leasing the car I took it in to the dealership complaining of transmission problem, namely the grinding sound as you shifted into reverse (it's a 5 speed).

As I went to pick up the vehicle I was told by a service rep. that they glanced at the transmission but didn't find anything wrong with it, in fact she went as far to blame me for the incident.

A few days later as I washed my car I noticed four large cracks in the front bumper but I did not hit anything. I take it to the dealership again, this time the body shop, and they pointed to a chip in the paint, which turned out to be mud, told me I hit something, and when it got cold it was normal for the front bumper to crack!

Of course they refused to pay for it so when I got home I called Chevy's 800 number as stated in the manual as they gave me a case number and promised me someone would come out to look at my bumper.

I complained to the BBB but Chevy failed to even respond. To this day, no one has come to look at my bumper and my bumper is still cracked with NO other marks (if something is strong enough to cause four large cracks, there would be evidence of a collision).

Later that summer as I drove from Ohio to California my spark plug wires fail in the middle of the mountains of eastern California. Now imagine driving an already weak car with only 75% of its power up a mountain!

I literally feared for my life. The next day I took my car to the dealership (Wheeler Chevrolet in Yuba City, CA) who, not only fixed my car, but washed it without me having to ask!

On the way home from that trip and in the same mountain range, my brake rotors warp! Now imagine driving down a mountain and you brakes shake violently.

During the last part of 1999 I took my car in several times for numerous spark plug wire failures, the parking brake going out four times, the heat shields on the bottom of my car kept making loud noises, and the aforementioned transmission problem.

It turns out that the dealership never entered my transmission complaints in their computer (more on this later).

A couple of miles before my warranty expired (for mileage) I took my car in to the same dealership and complained about my transmission and demanded that they enter it into the computer.

They did just that but they scan the engine and replace spark plug wires. Within the next 10,000 miles, my car's transmission fails.

I take it into the dealership and they refuse to pay for it. I decided to take the dealership to small claims court alleging they had numerous times to fix my transmission but failed to fix it.
I won and paid for the transmission repairs with a check assuming they would pay me the money I won at a later time, but the dealership gets GM's attorney who in turns claimed the problem was GM's fault and that I sued the wrong party.

They won on appeal so I put a stop payment on the check and complain to the BBB again demanding a repurchase under Ohio's lemon law; GM denied my request for an arbitration claiming I was taking legal action, so I did just that.

Several months later and after more of the same repairs (spark plug wires, parking brake, etc.) my engine will not start.

At this time I have ~64,000 miles on my car. I take my car in to the dealership and they refuse not only to fix my car but they try to hold it claiming I still owed them $2400 for the transmission repair, which I did, so I go in and talk to the owner of the dealership and told him I was going to pay him after GM gave me money from repurchasing my clearing defective car.

He released my car and told he didn't blame me for taking legal action against GM. I take my car to another dealership who told me that the head gasket was warped, that this was a normal problem with 2.2L Cavaliers, and that it would cost $3800 to fix.

I obtain an attorney and filed a claim against GM. 10 months later GM's only offer was $3500 and claiming that I abused, neglected, or misused the transmission and to top it off it seems that I got one of those attorneys who only want to settle because one day before trial he abandons me, forcing me to drop the case.

Instead of refilling the case, I write GM's attorney four times with very legitimate offers and he doesn't even respond.

Did I mention my car's engine still hasn't been fixed? I am 22 years old, I still live with my parents, I should be a senior in college, instead I am only a sophomore and that is when I go back, I have been paying $250 a month for a car I haven't been able to drive for the past 12 months, I have to pay an additional $350 to use someone else's car only at night to go to work, my credit is almost laughable, lost most of my friends since I can't visit them anymore and if it wasn't for my girlfriend driving 20 miles to my house, I wouldn't have a social life at all.

Do you think GM gives a d**n? Of course not, they rather lose a customer and make their life a complete misery just to save a couple of dollars.

All of this coming from a company to claims to pride them selves with customer loyalty and isn't strapped to cash. Maybe they think most people would give up pursuing them thus saving them money.

You would think that once a car was obviously a lemon that they would repair the car at minimum, at least making an attempt at saving that customer.

I have an uncle whose Ford F-150's engine failed twice and Ford replace his vehicle without any hassle or an attorney. This is what I call customer loyalty.

I thought I was the only person in this situation but after looking through previous lemon cases and looking on the internet, I am not the only person.

I would love to see one of GM's executives or their children put into this situation and I bet you anything they would fix the car.
hen again, I wouldn't wish this situation upon anyone. It has made my life a complete misery.

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