I've owned 3 LT1 f bodies and 3 LS1s (chevy & Pontiac), none were left stock. I now own an 04 GTO. I would never go back to one after owning the GTO for a week ...and I used to be quite proud of my f bodies.

The f body complaints.
1. Getting in & out of an f body sucked for me since I'm bigger than average.
2. The f body (especially camaro) leather was like cardboard compared to the GTO and the seats sucked.
3. I put window motors and or regulators in nearly every f body I owned.
4. Every t-top leaked a little sometime or another.
5. I lived in constant fear of breaking the 7.5" rear and even bought a 9" ford for my SS.
6. Oil consumption issues in 2 of the 3 LS1 f cars.
7. Rattles.
8. The ridiculous hump on the pass side floor. My 6'2" brother could barely sit in the pass seat and his knees were practically against his chest. He basically wouldn't get in my cars, it was an ongoing joke.
9. #8 spark plug but I eventually got good at getting to it.
10. Overall build and ride quality is better in a GTO.

Downside to the GTO

1. The door locks. Who puts power locks in a car and leaves out a power lock switch? Both my lock actuators have now been relaced (under waranty). The whole entry system and ignition lock is a joke... and not a funny one.
2. Lack of wheel and tire choices none of which are wide enough in the rear.
3. It seems like some mods are a tad more costly.
4. Lack of trunk space.
5. Strut rub. Why would you engineer a car with such a tight tolerance between the tire & strut then put such mushy suspension bushings on it. You should see the tire movement on hard braking with stock radius rod bushings.
6. The IRS could bum out drag racers but it doesn't bother me.
7. 2 piece driveshaft.
8. I don't like the radio much (in either car actually) but I'd rather have the wierdo Monsoon setup than this cars radio.
9. Power steering racks pretty much all leak. One out of 10 had a dry rack on the last suspension day I attended.
10. Carpet holders always broken.

All in all I find the shortcomings of the GTO easier to live with. It's a far superior car IMHO. I would never consider going back to an f body. Maybe that will change when the 5th gens are built.

 

GTO is the man, I call it a M3 for a lot cheaper....strut rub? big ******* deal spend 250.00 on mounts and it's fixed. I have the LS2 its a torquey bitch stone stock.

I've had literally 12 F Bodies and they are good for powersliding and hittin gears, F Bodies are uncomfortable as **** after an hour or 2. Sorry but F cars aren't even the bomb drag car, Fox Bodies and 72 Novas are.

 

ummmmmmmmm look over on the gto forums

anyways i like the car itself...just not the cheap build quality. i am going tobe honest and say it is one of the worst i have owned in the "quality department" i owned my srt for 3 years before and never once had to take it in for warranty work. not only that, but i ran the crap out of that car and it was modded to no end.

 

LOL, compared to an fbody the build quality is awesome. It may not be an AMG, but it also doesn't have the price tag. For the money it's one of the best built performance cars out there. LOL, also you must have had the ONLY dodge that that didn't have problems. Comparing a Dodge to a GTO, I'll put my money on the GTO having less problems more often than not.

 

+1

 

I've been on the other GTO forums before a GTO had even been shipped over here.

You are the only one I've ever heard of that said the GTO has cheap build quality. It has it over any car I've ever owned: Camaro and Firebird, Grand National, Cutlass, Malibu, and even a Chevy Truck. Not to mention a couple of Dodge's thrown in: Spirit R/T and Dakota V8.

 

Exactly.

Personally I like the 01-02 F-bodies but I like my goat better.

GM rehashed a lot of **** in the F-bodies. Example, turn signal/cruise control stalk. My 84 Cutlass had the same damn one but chome lol.

 

Here is my story....

had 2000 Z28, modded too much and unplanned....traded in for 04 GTO.....had it for three years, modded,.....missed my Camaro every day.....Sold GTO , bought 2000 SS.

The GTO was nice but just wasn't what my Camaro was.

I have found REDEMPTION !

 

You keep repeating how many problems you've had, but so far, you've only mentioned one - hard shifting

Having said that, I'll tell y'all my brother's story since he never posts ...
He bought a brand new 06 Brazen Orange M6 on the way home it developed a nasty rattle deep in the dash, the seat gave him a backache, and to top it off, he discovered the car had 400 miles on it ... the dealer had used it in some promo events.

Long story short, he brought it back. I convinced him to save his money and get a Firebird. He found a 02 Pewter M6 in AL and drove it all the way back to CA - no backaches. He's found it much more comfortable, loves the t-tops, it's just as fast ... he's never looked back.

 

^LOL, he had the seat adjusted wrong and he didn't look at the odometer before buying it. Sounds like the dash rattle is the only real complaint

 

I have never in my obsession with all things GTO have heard a complaint about the seats....unless your BMI is well above 25.9.

I have only owned Toyota/Lexus or Honda/Acura products my whole life. The GTO has been as reliable as the best of that bunch....even with a blower, drag racing, and burnouts.

 

you people are cracking me up....the list is way to long for me but ill post some issues I have had with these cars.


power seats
seat stitching splitting (twice)
strut rub
cheap paint (door handles and front bumper resprayed)
exhaust welds broke
slave cylinder
clutch pedal rod broke
cruise control stopped working
door panel suede coming off
cd player stopped working
radio volume randomly goes up to full blast
hard shifting
FRC's rubbing hole in fuel line
rear end whine
gauge cluster
gas cap
carpet clips
junk *** clutch
super slow windows
door lock actuater/key fob?
etc etc etc etc

these are all complaints of mine....plus some


and no i have owned a few dodges and all have held up great with almost no warranty work. and i ran the previous one real hard. i was at the track almost every weekend and street raced on a regular basis. by no means do i hate my GTO, i just think there are way to many complaints about them and too many "common" problems being what its supposed to be.

 

i love my gto, and i dont even have an ls2... the best way i can sum it up is this:

99% of the speed of an ls1 f-body

150% of the comfort

good game.

 

I bought an 04 GTO in 12/04 and kept it for about two years. It was a great car, loved driving it, but I never thought it looked all that good. I am back to an f-body.....2000 WS6 with all of the issues other people have stated. I just like f-bodys better. If the GTO was a better looking car I would still have it.

 

How many of these are pet peeves rather than actual faults with the car:?
super slow windows
door lock actuater/key fob?
gauge cluster
gas cap
carpet clips
hard shifting

 

super slow windows....sometimes the drivers side will barely even move
door lock actuater/key fob? doors dont always unlock/lock and car beeps
gauge cluster...replaced
gas cap...replaced
carpet clips...replaced...broke
hard shifting...worse than all the other T56 cars ive driven..

 

Sounds like a lemon. Not the common occurance you're making it out to be.

 

I've never owned a car that didn't possess at least one trait I did not like. And I've owned every thing from 60s and 70s muscle cars to LT1 and LS1 Fbodies, to Toyota Supras to BMWs to Thunderbird SCs, among many G-body Monte SS and Grand Prixs.

The GTO is no different. I love mine to death but hate the locking/unlocking system, even on my '06 with the lock/unlock button. But after three plus years with my '04 and '06, I like them better than any other car I've owned.

F-bodies are fine for what they are, (low cost, good reliability, and easy to make fast), but they are not even in the same league as the GTO. The only issue with either of mine is with the HVAC system. Haven't taken it in yet but I can't seem to get the air directed to the floor setting regardless where the selector **** is set. That is the ONLY issue on my nearly four year old 2004.

 

whaaaaaa ? 1) low cost ? go try an get yourself a low milage SS and see what you pay, about the same as a GTO whosomever the 04's @15k.

Even when new the fbod was pushing low 30's fully dressed with SLP.

so i don't get what your saying...

2) Same League ??? They have basically the same motor, only real major diff is the IRS, and don't give me this bull of build quality,

Having owned both I will speak the fact that stock for stock- 00-02 FBody will outperform an 04 on all fronts. The seats are a bit more comfy in the GTO though, As far as an 05-06 GTO they will be close in acceleration, but the fbdoy will handle better with less body roll and sharper edges.

My biggest dislike with the GTO was the drivers position......In the Camaro I felt I was sitting in it, in the GTO I always felt I was sitting on top of it.

In the GTO I never liked the A pillar bieng sooooooo close to my head and felt that that thing would crush my skull if struck in the side.

GTO Backseats are nice but are usless unless you are under 4 foot,b/c you cannot get in and out of them. Go Try it.

Air Scoops for show, non functional, kinda o downer.

lack of Gauges, strut rub, eats tires worse than any other car I had


I spent three plus years in a GTO, and it is a fine car. But it is not in any league of it's own man. The GTO is a bit more refined on the inside but not all that much. Each Car brings it own special something to the table and for my tastes the Camaro has a better drivers feel to it. I liked my GTO when I had it, But I love my Camaro z28 SS.

 

I've had my stock GTO for almost 6 months, and since I bought it I have hardly even looked at my TA, even though it has one more liter and almost 200rwhp more and more money in mods than the goat cost outright.