Also called Chevrolet Alero | Production 1998–2004 | |
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Manufacturer Oldsmobile (General Motors) Assembly Lansing, Michigan, U.S. Class Midsize family car
Compact car Body style 2-door coupe
4-door sedan | ||
The last of all Oldsmobile vehicles was the Alero. The sportish Oldsmobile Alero was a mid-sized family car/compact car that was produced by the American automaker Oldsmobile from 1998 to 2004. The Alero was introduced in spring 1998 as a 1999 model to replace the entry-level Achieva and Cutlass. The Alero went into production in April 1998. All Aleros were built in Lansing, Michigan. The Alero was Oldsmobile's last compact car as well as the last vehicle sold under the brand. Production ended in April 2004 along with the entire Oldsmobile brand.
Contents
History
The design of the Alero was originally previewed in 1997 with the Alero Alpha concept car, a V6-powered sport coupe that featured many design elements seen in the production Alero as well as some that were never meant for production. Its appearance was a revival of "coke bottle styling", popular during the 1960s and 1970s.
The Alero was sold either as a 4-door sedan or as a 2-door coupe. It shared its chassis and many parts, including engines, with the Pontiac Grand Am, the other compact N body 4-door sedans. All Aleros came in base GX, mid-level GL, or high-end GLS trim; GL trim was split into three levels: 1, 2, and 3.
The Alero experienced minimal changes during its 5-year run. Most of these changes were either in choice of engines or options. In 2003, the Alero's daytime running lights were changed from high-beam to low-beam.
The Alero was also sold in select countries in Europe and in Israel between 1999 and 2001 as the Chevrolet Alero, and was only available as a sedan. The car still featured its Oldsmobile badges even though sold under the Chevrolet brand. However, in Israel it featured only the Chevrolet badge. Since most European consumers would not recognize the badging, Chevrolet badges were added to the grille and rear fascia for the 2000 model year. Since the phase-out of the Alero, it was replaced in Europe, Israel and Canada by the GM Daewoo-sourced Chevrolet Evanda/Epica. In the Americas, it was replaced by the Suzuki Verona. The Verona was then replaced by the Kizashi. The Kizashi however continues to be sold.
The Alero's production ended with a special Final 500 Edition. These last 500 Aleros featured custom logos inspired by vintage Oldsmobile logos, dark cherry metallic paint, and a plate featuring the car's number out of 500.
The final Alero Final 500 Edition (#500 of 500), a GLS 4-door, also happened to be the final Oldsmobile ever built, and was signed under its hood by the employees of the General Motors Lansing plant and then given to the R.E. Olds Transportation Museum.
A preview of the planned replacement for the Alero was seen in 2001 with the unveiling of the Oldsmobile O4 concept, designed by Bertone. The car was an open top 4-seater with European styling but some Oldsmobile traits, and powered by the latest Ecotec I4 engine. The name had multiple meanings, including "Oldsmobile 4-Seater" as well as implying the year 2004 as a planned date for production.
However, the O4 concept was unveiled a few weeks after General Motors announced that they would be phasing out the Oldsmobile brand, meaning that production possibilities of the O4 would never be realized. Because of this, a second generation Alero was never built and the car was phased out with the Oldsmobile brand in 2004.
Trim levels
During its production, the Alero was available in four trim levels, all available in coupe or sedan body styles:
The GX was the most basic trim level of the Alero. It included such features as a 2.4L inline four-cylinder (I4) engine, 5-speed manual transmission, an AM/FM stereo (later, AM/FM stereo with single-disc CD player) and a four-speaker sound system, fifteen-inch black-painted steel wheels with decorative wheel covers, manual windows, power door locks, full instrumentation, air conditioning, velour door panel inserts, and cloth seating surfaces. The 3.4L V6 engine available on all other Alero trim levels was not available on the base GX trim level.
The GL was the midrange trim level of the Alero. It added the following features to the base GX trim level: an AM/FM stereo with cassette player (not applicable for later models), power windows, and sixteen-inch alloy wheels. The 3.4L V6 engine was available as an option, though was standard equipment on the GL2 trim level. The GL1 trim level also offered the V6 engine option.
The GLS trim level was the "luxury" trim level of the Alero. It added the following features to the already well-equipped GL trim level: an AM/FM stereo with cassette and single-disc CD players (later, an MP3-decoding single-disc CD player was added), an eight-speaker "premium" sound system with amplifier, keyless entry, power driver seat, leather upholstery and a security system. The 3.4L V6 engine was standard for this trim level.
Variant prototypes
General Motors commissioned the construction of Alero prototypes either for testing or to gather public opinion on possible future plans for the Alero. These variants include:
Safety
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) gives the 1999-2005 Grand Am (same platform as the 1999-2004 Alero) a Poor rating in its frontal crash test for its marginal structural integrity, a possible head injury, a potential right leg injury, and poor dummy control.
The following are 2003 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Crash Test Ratings.
Coupe
Sedan