I like the G8 so much, I assume Pontiac had been looking at my diary before they built it. It is a very good car. It's taken me a looong time to find something I dislike - and it comes down to this; exposed rear view mirror wires. As I pass the car to the left, about to open the driver's side door, I get a very unflattering view of the G8 - perhaps the only one. It's not a deal breaker but the exposed wires that power OnStar, and the auto-dimming mirror look cheap to me. The tinting at the top of the windshield almost hides the mirror, almost - not quite. A simple plastic cap would be nice.
Brian Moody, Road Test Editor
dragonflight says:
02:11 PM, 10/ 6/08
If it bothers you that much, stick some black duct tape or electrical tape over it and it'll blend in.
A pretty small niggle, compared to most complaints I've seen for domestic and cut-rate imports (ragged plastics, plastics falling apart, things just not lasting). You know, like every post of the Focus mentions.
joefrompa says:
02:13 PM, 10/ 6/08
Little electrical tape will take care of that. I'm actually surprised, I think most Mfr's use a woven, flexible plastic sheathing for this type of stuff.
Joe
sellaturcica says:
03:49 PM, 10/ 6/08
Wow. That would the bother the heck out of me. That looks so bush league it's not even funny.
moparbad says:
04:01 PM, 10/ 6/08
It is the details that separate success from failure.
banhugh says:
05:03 PM, 10/ 6/08
the problem with the exposed cables is that in a couple of years they will become fragile/brittle from the sunlight and when you try to adjust the mirror, you will end up braking them. Other than that I don't realy care so much about it.
stovt001 says:
10:56 PM, 10/ 6/08
I've never noticed that on any other onstar equipped vehicle. You sure this isn't the obligatory piece that falls off of every LT vehicle?
sgude says:
04:10 AM, 10/ 7/08
This is not a showstopper. The G8 is still on the list as the next car for the wife. Now I just need a wife.
joefrompa says:
05:56 AM, 10/ 7/08
Sgude - Wive's are easy to find. Finding a wife that appreciates cars is like finding a trustworthy mechanic, a job that pays you more than you put into it, or a health insurance company that's generous.
And don't think you can train them to love cars.
Joe
P.s. My wife and I went to go see Nights in Rodanthe (yes, I just said that). Richard Gere drives a Jaguar XK. Now, bear in mind that the XK is not distinctly a jaguar from 100 feet. It's got some aston in it, it has no prowling cat jumping from it's hood. So I turned and asked my wife what type of car it was when it first appeared. I got teary eyed when she said Jaguar. :)
dougtheeng says:
05:59 AM, 10/ 7/08
That looks hideous and I'm surprised it was designed with no cap. Surely a piece must have fallen off.
crowb says:
07:42 AM, 10/ 7/08
Joefrompa,
-1 for seeing Nights in Rodanthe.
+2 for having a sharp eyed better half who knows her cars.
the_big_al says:
09:11 AM, 10/ 7/08
I would go check other G8's and for that matter, other Onstar equipped vehicles and see what is used there. If other G8's are the same way, but other Onstar equipped vehicles are not, then I would say this is a small oversight, hopefully to be corrected down the road. If other G8's are not the same way, then something happened to yours somewhere.
If all Onstar equipped vehicles are like this, then I say serious design flaw not in line with Lutz's mantra of improving GM vehicle's fit and finish details...
the_big_al says:
09:19 AM, 10/ 7/08
Okay, so this got me to thinking about the mirrors in my GM equipped vehicles and while they are not Onstar equipped, they are new enough vehicles to have map lights and so will have a wire harness running to them. So I went and checked to see if I could find something similar.
On my truck I had to really look, but I was able to see where the harness connects to the back of the mirror and instead of a black harness, a white harness is used, in similar fashion to the G8, but it is BARELY noticeable. I really had to look to find it. On my wife's car the harness is black and has black tape wrapped around the end of it hiding most of the wires, but still same design. Again however, it is barely noticeable. The harness is also tucked away where it would be under the tinted portion of the windshield if viewing the back of the mirror from a standing position outside the car.
joefrompa says:
11:39 AM, 10/ 7/08
Crowb - Just to make sure, I'm up a net of +1 there? :)
My wife points out Porsche's for me, has a pretty good eye for cars now, and has a photo of a GT3 from the car show (to which she responded "Wow that's a sexy car") on her cell phone.
In ~1 month, we're going to modify her car's suspension and put in some synthetic fluids to help smooth out her agricultural 5-speed shifter.
Life is going in the right direction...
Joe
P.s. Nights in Rodanthe was dissapointing. I do not recommend it.
sgude says:
12:26 PM, 10/ 7/08
Joe,
There is one with potential -- I let her drive my 325i manual/sport package and damn if she didn't drive it even more smoothly that I ever have! She said, "Now I know why people like these cars. It's so nice to drive."
She wouldn't take it above 3,000 rpm until I convinced her it would not hurt the car. She ripped it up to 6,000 in two gears and couldn't stop grinning.
She is already calling it "her" car. To which I reply, "Sure, when I get my M3..."
I have not had to do the chick flick yet -- the last one was "Eagle Eye." Kudos to you for choosing a woman who gets the hots for a Porsche. My lady appears to like the new Jag XF -- we saw one on the road and she described its design with her hands, like a racer describing Eau Rouge. I was rather happy to see that, needless to say.
1487 says:
05:57 AM, 10/ 8/08
I never noticed it before but my car has the same issue. You really have to be looking to see that.
jkp1187 says:
07:33 AM, 10/ 8/08
Wrap it in some electrical tape and call it a day. Bound to be some rough edges in a discount 5-series like this.
briancam says:
07:27 PM, 10/ 8/08
At the end of the day, I say this is still one helluva car and I'd gladly own one.