Junkyard Find: 2001 Oldsmobile Alero Sedan With Manual Transmission

General Motors built cars connected the N Platform and its derivatives from the 1985 done 2005 exemplary years, and five-speed manual transmissions were disposable connected assorted N-based machines passim that time. Very fewer American buyers of these cars were consenting to run 3 pedals by the dawn of the 21st century, but I person managed to find a five-speed-equipped Olds Alero successful a Denver self-service car graveyard.

By 2001, the lone members of the N-Body household (now renamed the GMX130 for its last generation) disposable with manual transmissions were four-cylinder-equipped Pontiac Grand Ams and Oldsmobile Aleros.

You could get a caller Alero with a Getrag five-on-the-floor each the mode done the demise of Oldsmobile successful 2004.

I'd been looking for a discarded 1999-2004 Alero oregon 1999-2005 Grand Am with a manual transmission for years, with nary occurrence until I spotted this car. Until today's Junkyard Find, the newest manual-equipped N-Car I'd recovered had been a 1994 Grand Am.

To get the 2001 Alero with a five-speed manual, you had to bid the entry-level GX exemplary (complete with hand-cranked windows and nary keyless entry) oregon the four-cylinder mentation of the much upscale GL2. Then you selected the manual transmission enactment and got a $785 recognition ($1,353 successful 2023 dollars).

Air conditioning and an AM/FM/CD vigor were modular instrumentality connected each 2001 Aleros. This car is simply a GX sedan, truthful its MSRP would person been $17,210 ($29,666 aft inflation).

The GL1, GL2 and GLS trim levels could beryllium purchased with a 3.4-liter pushrod V6 motor rated astatine 170 horsepower, but this 150-horse 2.4-liter Oldsmobile Quad 4 motor was required if you wanted to displacement your ain gears. Starting with the 2002 exemplary year, the Quad 4 was ditched successful favour of a 2.2-liter Ecotec four-banger making 140 horses.

I americium alert that immoderate members of the GM enthusiast assemblage bash not see the LD9 2.4 Twin Cam motor to beryllium a true Quad 4, but they're the aforesaid ones who contradict that the archetypal Cadillac Seville was related to the Chevy Nova. Feel escaped to statement these theological points successful the comments.

The 2001 Alero's siblings were the Chevrolet Malibu, the Oldsmobile Cutlass and the Pontiac Grand Am. The Malibu moved implicit to the Epsilon level for 2004, but the GMX130 mentation stayed successful accumulation arsenic the fleet-only 2004-2005 Chevrolet Classic.

The Oldsmobile Division was already known to beryllium doomed by the clip this car rolled disconnected the enactment astatine Lansing Assembly.

The last Oldsmobile built was an Alero, successful fact.

There's nary rust and the interior looks decent, though the overgarment is simply a spot faded.

We tin presume immoderate costly mechanical occupation sent this car here, though it could person been a tow-away that was illegally parked and wasn't worthy rescuing owed to the debased resale worth for cars with excessively galore pedals and the badges of a long-defunct brand.

Hug your kids. Hug the road.

Connect to the roadworthy similar a punch to the jaw!

[Images: Murilee Martin]

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