Hello people. First off this is my first post on this board.
My name is Allen and I was guided here through a close friend.

I am seriously looking into getting the new xlr-v ever since i had a chance to drive it a few days back.

What I want to know from owners here is their experience with the car. Is there anything I should know before purchasing this automobile.

I have driven it once for about half an hour and it felt solid and well built. It had that feel usually associated with european cars that I really didnt expect.

I want to know everything from dealership know hows to the owning experience and any reliability issues the car has.

Also I have never owned an american car before so this is a first for me and I dont want to come out with a bad experience.

First, on the American car issue: I can only relate my personal experience. I've had 11 American cars since 1984. My aggregate running costs have been lower than most of my acquaintences who owned various imports during that time, especially European. If there is or ever has been a generalized reliability problem with American cars (Ford & GM) you couldn't prove it by my experience. I had only one recurring poor experience and that was with a 1984 Jeep CJ from the waning days of AMC, and even then the dealer worked with me persistently to solve the problem. I know people who have been burned by Toyota, Nissan, Honda, BMW, Mercedes, Infiniti VW and Audi. The difference between the best and worst brand track records has seriously narrowed.

I have seen a much wider variance in dealer-to-dealer service treatment of customers in American brand car dealerships than those experienced by friends who owned Japanese brands. However, even this is disappearing fast, where I live. In SoCal, the major brand dealerships have mostly become very customer oriented with vast bay capacity and professionalized business practices.

My XLR-v is my first new car from GM, however. I have in the past had Corvettes I purchased used, and found them to be inexpensive to maintain compared to most high-performance cars, and quite reliable. So I didn't have any trepidation about purchasing this Cadillac. Certainly, it pays to buy from a dealer whose business practices and services you've vetted by reputation of your own gut read on how you're treated when shopping.

The Corvette platform on which the car is built is proven and well-sorted out. The primary vulnerability is the sheer proliferation of advanced electronics. The car is full of wiring, chips and software. Just the retractable hardtop alone necessitates a spate of connectors, switching, sensors and digital control. This is likely to be the main area of trouble if you have any. 3 days after I got my car, my trunk began to fail to open. It would unlatch but the moto-hydraulics refused to engage to lift the lid. The failures were intermittent with no discernible pattern. Similarly, the top would not retract or return with a single push-and-hold of the control button, per manual.

The trouble was traced, of course, to an inexpensive connector and was promptly replaced by the dealer. It all works now.

I have not experienced this, but some people have reported problems with the battery. The car has many power-draining circuits, and repeated opening and closing of the trunk when the car isn't running can drain the battery. After I bought the car, my dealer warned me not to leave it at the airport for more than a few days. He indicated that you have a good chance of requiring a jump if the car isn't driven for 5 days or more. I don't know if this is true, however. So far, I've only missed one day driving the car since I bought it. If you have to leave the car at an airport for an extended time, you might want to consider one of those high-current charge packs to keep in the car for when you return.

I have 2200 miles on my car as of today. My confidence in the car's build, operating availability and functionality is high, and my confidence in my dealer handling anything that comes up is commensurate to that. The fundamental goodness of the platform and the critical drivetrain components feels evident on every drive.

Phil

I drove one today. I love the way the exhaust looks at the rear of the car with the inside reverse bevel..

What do you think?

I doubt you would be buying the XLR-V for performance purposes, given your ownership of the Gallardo. Interestingly though, the Caddy has more peak torque than your Lambo. I think it might have something to do with V10, DOHC engine geometry, since the new BMW M6 suffers from the same problem.

I traded a Viper SRT-10 for my XLR-V, and although a downgrade of performance, I am extremely pleased my purchase. Having driven Vipers over the last six years it was time to drive something I thought would be a little less conspicuous. Unfortunately, this has not been the case, as the Caddy gets its share of attention. Also, it was an easy decision for me to buy this car, since I am a big fan of GM Vice Chairman, Bob Lutz, and American car culture in general.

This car is amongst the best of what America currently has to offer. If this appeals to you, in some way, then you wont be disappointed in your purchase.

WITH ANY CAR THE DEALER IS THE MOST IMPORTANT COMPONENT.:welcome:

With all the very similler and nice cars you have you should think about geting on of those permanently connected batery trickle chargers for all your cars since any car left undriven for long periods will have a need.

With the different driving dinamics of all the cars you own you have a car for every mood.

how has the reliability on that benz been.:eye::eye:

The dealer has been extremly professional till now. They contacted me about two weeks ago in regards with this cadillac and from then till now I am surprised how good their customer service is.

Actually I was thinking of replacing the SL with something else. I never would have imagined replacing a benz with a 100k american car. But the XLR V seems like a good car and ever since I drove it, I think its a better car in many ways than the benz.

I called my son over tomorrow so we can go check out the car once more before I put the money down.

Thanks for the help guys.

how has the reliability on that benz been.:eye::eye:

i think the problem with the benz it that it has too many systems for its own good.
I dont have too many miles on it so it hasnt give me any major problems yet but many friends who use SL's as their primary car have had some horror stories. This is another reason Ive decided to drop the benz.

And my car before the Lexus for a 5 series BMW from the same year. Again It had some problems with that a premier european brand shouldnt have hence the move to Lexus.

Dont think. DO. :D

I know of a place to get them cheap

c'mon, where...spill the beans

I know of a place to get them cheap
yes i am interested, too.
all your posts are selling cars cheap
you a dealer or something?

Also, examine the block for oil leaks and after taking a hard drive, check for radiator leaks. Rare issues but expensive, so nip them in the behind while the car is still new.