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2010+ Buick Lacrosse Interior

87 messages,  Last post on Aug 27, 2011 at 9:26 AM

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What is this discussion about? Buick LaCrosse, Sedan

Messages Page 9 of 9

#78 of 87 Lumbar support by e_net_rider

Apr 21, 2011 (4:39 am)

Another ding on my car. Since day one I've had issues with setting the lumbar support. It has made me wish the system was like in the Olds Aurora where there were two air controlled supports. It seems there is something wrong as I find it almost impossible to achieve a comfort point. Enough that I put it on my hit list for the next time in. Maybe I could get someone to explain the workings of it or even show me a picture of it so that I understand the mechanics of it, or so I thought.
Yesterday I was on the road for five hours and tried adjusting it several times only to find that a few minutes later it was uncomfortable again. It turns out the mechanism does not stay in the set position but slowly retracts back into the seat. I'd already had the feeling that it was moving in both directions, sometimes, when pushing a single side of the 4 way switch.
So, one more thing wrong on what is a long list. I'm beginning to think that to keep the number of complaining customers down, as they catch defective parts they save them and put them all on one vehicle.

#79 of 87 Re: Lumbar support [e_net_rider] by e_net_rider

May 21, 2011 (4:56 am)

Replying to: e_net_rider (Apr 21, 2011 4:39 am)
After having vehicle at shop 10 days, much of it was written off as they could not duplicate. Well the stink entering vehicle is obviously related to bad CAF design although it does not make sense if I run in recirculate all the time. Guess what, the loaner does it too. They wrote the falling shock boots off as no concern, the loaner has same problem, only 3800 miles.
As to seat memory and lumbar support they said no duplication, but it went to wrong position just after I turned in keys on loaner. And the lumbar support needed airing 5 times in the less than 10 miles home. I called GM Cussing service and they acted like they were concerned. He went into explaining how it was supposed to work, the memory, and had it all wrong as to what the memory buttons do compared to the auto memory of last position. I had to correct him several times shouting into the phone to get his attention and stop him. He excused himself and came back in a minute and congratulated me on knowing how well it was supposed to work. Most customers don't he said. He kicked it to the next level and they listened to some of my concern and said they'd monitor the situation while my vehicle was at dealer.
Thanks to those who posted new part number and info at GM tech link. When they said my car was ready in about 3 hours after dropping it off yesterday, I took a copy of that info with me.
When I got there, they rotated the tires, that was supposed to be done last visit with the balance. They reprogrammed the seat memory. I was suspicious and shoved that info to them. They acknowledged having found that but said there was an update to that which counter-manded the part about not reprogramming and to change. They said that mine according to RPO codes, has side blindzone alert, needed an update. I suspect that will be the case for all in the near future. The only differences would be that it remembers mirror positioning I'd think which might have to do with the aiming of the alert system. So the only difference in the program should be that it does not verify the correctness of that system.
Result, so far good. It introduced a 3 second delay and I only had about 1/2 second before.
The lumbar support, they could not duplicate. That is very disappointing that it is not fixed because if on a long drive and it won't stay, I'd compare that to being on the way to a wedding that you are part of and a tire blows. You are also in a dead zone for phone service and no other traffic. It sucks!
BTW, the GM rep that promised to call me between 1100 and 1300. I have no idea what time zone he was in because I'm still waiting.

#80 of 87 Re: Lumbar support [e_net_rider] by e_net_rider

Jun 04, 2011 (4:00 am)

Replying to: e_net_rider (May 21, 2011 4:56 am)
Update. They finally called after a few days and then waited to hear from dealer. I wrote elsewhere about the miserable ride, about 250 miles round trip where I adjusted that lumbar at least a hundred times trying to keep it inflated. My back is still tender and started spasming yesterday.
I made trip to southside of city yesterday. Lumbar did not act up at all, but regardless I planned on stopping at dealer for an update. After about a half hour in Home Depot I started back and the AC system was nuts. Set at 75 degrees it was fine when I shut down. Now it was blowing hot air. Hotter than outside air. Fan was only running at a low speed. Bumping down to 73, the fan sped to a middle speed. Dropping to 69 it ran fast, but still only hot air. By the time I got to dealer I was soaking wet with sweat. I got service writer and showed without shutting off in case it effected.
Note I had previously complained to them about wild temp swings that needed as much as a 10 degree adjustment after the vehicle was well stabilized. And it was always no duplication of complaint.
Dropping in without an appointment, they had no loaners left, so I sat with it. The diagnosis is a problem with the expansion valve, for which he quoted symptoms and said it suddenly fixed itself, but are ordering new one and appointment for Tuesday. I had already set my mind that it was something in the automatic control system and after leaving and giving more thought I believe they misdiagnosed. That is he was just getting into it with pressure checking when the problem went away. The pressures he read could be indicative of an expansion valve, but I think he forgot about my input.
There are the fan speeds I mentioned above. If the system was trying to work on the interior, it should have went to high fan speed without lowering the temp setting to lo which is around 60 degrees. It was 90 degrees outside. And even at that lo setting the air coming from register was only mildly cool feeling, like maybe outside air with nothing blended. Any AC input?
But it does not stop there.
Previous complaint about the difficulty to latch the steering column showed itself to the lady who was writing yesterday. She could not get it to latch. The manager walked up about that time and he could not either. New column on order.
It was written they had replaced the battery again, this time for leaking. A few days later I checked oil and that yellowish fluffy stuff that shows up at battery corrosion was all over under hood. When I drove to Charleston, I noted on the far end that some of it came out and coated the top of car. A taste showed it to be mildly acid.
And on that trip there, something with bluetooth started showing up. Did reprogramming of seat on last visit cause? Or maybe something with pushing the OnStar button on May 31 and telling them I want a new car?
Anyway, in the past the incoming call would be auto answered. If I don't push the on screen answer, the phone itself picks up and then I have to fumble for the phone. And in the past if I left vehicle all I had to do was open phone and the call transferred from car to phone. Now it will hang up.
 
I will check to see if I got a pushed update to phone and try repairing with vehicle. If that don't fix, add another complaint.
One other possibility, although not intuitively directly connected, I have been using iPod lately on USB port. iPod is loaded with HQ music and I've learned how to convert HQ and lossless music to Apple lossless. It displays nicely on screen, but is weak in fast-forwarding. Unlike the iPod, it does not fast-forward by moving finger along the play bar on screen. It has to be done by switches and will not jump forward or backward. You just have to wait for it to scroll to the desired point. Also I added a carpeted trunk mat and definitely effects sound. I'll try plugging those speaker holes into trunk next.
Rattle in exhaust is getting louder when it happens. I could hear it when I remotely started from across the parking lot.
And with that lumbar issue, I hope to convince them to do something when the car goes in. Change the seat if necessary, that is the whole dang thing.
All for now because I need to put new wheels, picked up yesterday, on my pressure washer and blast some of grime away.

#81 of 87 Re: Lumbar support: Too finicky perhaps? [e_net_rider] by bwia

Jun 04, 2011 (5:38 am)

Replying to: e_net_rider (Jun 04, 2011 4:00 am)
I don't mean to be rude or insensitive but with so many complaints I must assume GM sold you a lemon or you are an impossible customer to please. If the car is indeed a lemon why didn’t you return it under the 60-days no questions asked money back guarantee and buy something more to your liking?
 
With every purchase we have to make comprises especially with mass produced goods. In other words, we have to take the good with the bad so long as the product is not defective or fraudulently marketed as being something other than what it is. If the CXS is not right for you then you should cut your losses by dumping it and buy something else rather than be miserable with complaints ad nauseam.

#82 of 87 Re: Lumbar support: Too finicky perhaps? [bwia] by e_net_rider

Jun 04, 2011 (8:08 am)

Replying to: bwia (Jun 04, 2011 5:38 am)
A) That 60 day thing had ended by the time it was delivered.
B) Things are showing up over time.
C) Dealer can't always duplicate.
D) If this was a computer or a refrigerator I had bought, it would have been returned and money back demanded.
If you've read my posts of the last couple of days, things are still showing up or showing up in such a way they are verifiable by the dealer.
GM really needs to step up quality and fixes or this will be the last GM anything I ever own.
Two bad batteries in a seven month old car.
Defective oil filter from factory.
Cabin air filters will not work as advertised because of the manufacturing process.
Three trips alone for the seat memory issue.
Three so far for the AC acting up and taking it in for the parts they ordered will be the fourth trip. And I'm quite sure they misdiagnosed the reason so that will be at least five trips.
Three so far for the lumbar issue. Dang thing won't act up for them.
Three so far for the exhaust rattle upon start. Again it has not done it for them. But the last few times for me it was getting louder.
Twice so far on the boots falling down on rear shocks. Waiting on GM response.
I'm going to push this darned head rest issue again. It may be as I wrote months ago to others that are complaining about them, "It is because of NHTSA." I see the same issue in nearly all new cars. I watched as a lady drove off in her new BMW. She had that seat inclined so far that the airbag and seat belt would be nearly useless in a really bad crash. In that position the G forces would not slam her heart against the chest but instead pull it toward her abdomen, almost certainly ripping arteries loose. So if you like that position of being reclined, think it over. And it is not like NHTSA would not have data. There are lots of cases where the front passenger was riding/resting in that position and their outcome was far worse than driver.
I have absolutely no idea when GM will get the cabin air filters fixed. I have no idea when they will fix XM reception issues.
The list is way too long for any vehicle. And I'm going to add some more over in exterior.

#84 of 87 Re: Lumbar support: Too finicky perhaps? [bwia] by crankeee

Jun 10, 2011 (2:31 pm)

Replying to: bwia (Jun 04, 2011 5:38 am)
bwia: I agree with the comment about mass produced goods. We just went thru the drill with a bad ice maker control on a fridge and after a month of delays and excuses from the extended warranty company, the retailer took back the unit and provided a replacement due to inability to repair.
A $30-$40,000 automobile that is less than a year old is a different level or situation in my world when major components fail. The manufacturer has the right to R&R to correct the problem(s). Failure to correct real problem(s) raises the issue of what is done next. I hope I am never there with a new car after having to go nuclar (as the man said) when the fridge could not be fixed. In Alabama when your new A/C goes out you go nuclar right away and esp. when it is your house system or your new car.
Good luck with the repair Rider.
Crankee

#85 of 87 Re: Lumbar support: Too finicky perhaps? [crankeee] by e_net_rider

Jun 14, 2011 (6:38 am)

Replying to: crankeee (Jun 10, 2011 2:31 pm)
Update, I got a call at 0730 this morning, one of the exceptionally few times that I was still sleeping then, and answering machine got it.
My car was dropped at dealer a week ago yesterday and that was an appointment they set for expected arrival of parts.
Customer service may have forwarded the FAX I sent them to the dealer and they might be trying to get most things from that hit list. The message said, "Thank you for your patience. They were waiting on muffler system for exhaust rattle."
I will drop by later today, I hope. And there may be an item I did not have on that list, the door seals breaking apart at the factory splice point. And maybe I'll learn what they have done.
I did get a phone call from Buick customer service a day or so after I dropped vehicle. I really chewed her and then apologized for being indignant. Not her fault, but hoped to light a fire under her so that I did not become just another lost in the crowd.
Yes, building an automobile, assembling all those parts is something. But to start with bad parts?
I told her, "GM could not even make parts that have been around for many years. A defective oil filter (missing anti-drainback valve), two bad batteries, and defective air filters from bad design are just the beginnings of issues."
 
The one thing I was told repetitively was, "If it was designed that way there is nothing we can do."
I smell manure. That is the last thing any customer wants to be told, which translates to "we are intentionally building crap and there is nothing you can do about it."
I mentioned elsewhere they put me in a new Regal. It has the same lumbar system it seems, at least how it is controlled. There is no way you can adjust the upper and lower portions separately which is just plain dumb.
But it does seem to be a bit more comfortable in the Regal. The Regal seats are a bit smaller and the impression I got is that they use the same bag parts or same size. It is like the engineers had the CAD people just enlarge the seat from the Regal. And then re-position the bags slightly to accomadate the larger seat. Bad move, which GM has been guilty of repeatedly. That is their newly designed vehicle is not from the ground up, but often uses parts from totally discontinued vehicles. Taking axles from trucks, suspensions from a 90's Bonneville, updating an engine from AMC, and throwing new sheetmetal around it does not make for well designed vehicles.

#86 of 87 Seat Memory by e_net_rider

Jul 10, 2011 (2:41 pm)

May be option on some levels.
I thought I found the way it was supposed to work when in a CXL loaner. It was so much better. A full five seconds to get in. Also it did not do the stupid "move the seat" if driver door was open and D/S rear door was opened.
 
I got mine back and it is as before or worse. I often went to the far side of vehicle so the seat would not move ahead when putting or retrieving something from the vehicle.
The dealers answer, or really GM's answer, is to make them all alike, stupid or not. According to dealer, the tech is told to compare to a newly received vehicle and then go from there according to their directions. Yes GM, the idiots who made it stupid in the first place.
The worse? Yesterday, upon arriving at our destination, my wife got out and just as I got out, she opened rear door on passenger side and my GD seat moved ahead. In what world could anyone think that proper? So of course when I get back in I have to fool with buttons to position it. GM SUCK

#87 of 87 AC not cooling like it was? by e_net_rider

Aug 27, 2011 (9:26 am)

Check your CAF first. I have not been driving any dirty dusty areas. By 10K I noticed that the airflow was diminished with full automatic setting. There is a dusty looking area covering the center of the filter and that is apparently enough to restrict flow.
Perhaps there are better filters on the market that use more media, surface area.
I like the idea that they decided to filter the inside air, but it will require far more filters than they suggest. I usually set mine to recirculate manually, so of the 10K likely at least 8K were recirculated air, unless there is some sort of defeat when using heated air or defrost.
If driving dusty conditions, I'd say you need to consider 3K a change point. That is unless you consider an early death of the fan motor insignificant. GM had some notice involving restricted air flow and motor.
Also I would consider it paramount when checking AC system. If you are not getting full flow across evaporator, you can not get correct readings.
BTW, pressures are not the correct way for charging systems with expansion valve which I'm told this vehicle has. There are two methods, weighing in the exact amount of freon, and what is called "approach temperature". The "approach temperature is determined by the system manufacturer and works best at temperatures approaching maximum outdoor operating temperature. The proper amount of freon is reached by adding the approach temperature to the ambient temperature and then measuring the temperature of the liquid line after the condensor. The expansion valve will operate mainly according to the temperature at the evaporator. That is it should be putting the best amount of freon into the evaporator to maximize cooling.

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