Review of GM Motor Club Roadside (Better than AAA)

Joined
Jul 29, 2012
Messages
100
Location
NJ and Florida
First, let me state that I have no affiliation with GM Motor Club and have NOT been asked to endorse them in any way. This is purely voluntary. Also, since I have gotten a lot of help on this forum, I figured I would give back some of that karma.

Here is the short version: GM Motor Club is AWESOME and has not only given me great service, but also gave me a peace of mind. GM MOTOR CLUB WEBSITE I have probably saved over $200 using their service. I guess that is another reason why I am writing this review, I do feel bad using them all the time so I want to bring them some exposure for how great they are.

Don't let the name, GM Motor, fool you. You do not need to own a GM car to be in the club. It is essentially the same thing as triple A but WAY better.

Here are some of their highlight:
~UNLIMITED MILE TOWING vs 5 miles for AAA Basic

~$61 a year for one person, $84 for a couple (this is the one I have), $99 for parent + 1 child, $114 for parent with 2 children.

~ GM Motor Club covers the DRIVER not the CAR. This is important because since it covers the DRIVER, all of your cars are covered. Also if you were sitting in someone else's car as a passenger and their car breaks down, their car will get all the benefits too since you are there.

Now my personal experience. Three years ago, my brother graduated and got his first job so he bought a new car. He gave me the 93 Civic and it was in decent shape. But since he wasn't a car guy, it needed some TLC. Also at the time, my wife had a 98 Camry with 200K miles.

So I started looking at a Roadside Assistance Club to join. Obviously, I have seen the AAA bumper stickers so i look them up first. I was shocked at how much the basic plan cost and how it only gave you 5 miles of towing. I needed something for if I break down on the highway, not when I'm in town where I could just call my buddies with a towing company to get me.

Then I came across a forum with same minded people like me, researching for something better than AAA. A lot of the other clubs have closed down or are only for a particular region. But I found GM Motor Club and it looks GREAT on paper. I was hesitant but I figured if they were really terrible, then I could always get my credit card company to refund my money.


MY EXPERIENCE: (finally I know)

First time I had to use it was about 5 month after signing up. I curbed my car because of snow and the sidewell of my tire ripped. I didn't have a spare so I called GM and they called a tow truck. Was there in 20 minutes and even took me to the walmart that was farther away since only that one had 13 inch tires in stock for my civic.

2nd time: 9 month after signing up, was packing up my apartment to move out for the end of school. In the hustle of things, I locked myself out. Went to get the spare key to find that it was put away in a box IN the car. Called GM motor, they sent out a locksmith in about 30 minutes.

3rd time: My wife was back in her hometown visiting her friends. Came out and found her tire was completely flat. Called GM and they sent someone right out. (It was a new tire and the person who put it on didn't put enough grease coating inside)

4th time: Was on vacation and in a brand new rental Avalon. Was confused about the automatic headlight on/off so I accidentally left it on all day. Came out of hotel to go get dinner and it was dead. Hotel guy comes by with his car to help us jump it. His puny jumper cable didn't work, in fact the car SHUT down on us and locked us out because the security system thought we were trying to steal it! So not only did we have a dead battery, we also were locked out.

Called GM Motor, told them what we needed and 35 minutes later, this minivan pulled up with the locksmith. He was able to somehow circumvent the alarm and get the car open. Then he took out a trickle charger and recharged the battery for about 10 minutes. I glanced at the bill when I was signing it and it was $160! GM motor club fee has paid itself 2-3 times over!

5th time: 2nd year with GM, wife picked me up from airport and we were on the freeway. It was around 11pm and dark. I saw some smoke but thought it was fog. Then the engine spluttered so I quickly pulled off into an exit. Smoke just POUR from under the hood. Wait for it to cool, then poured in 2 quarts of oil but could see it leaking right back out. Called GM and the tow truck took us right to our drive way.
 
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AAA gives you the choice of 5 mile or "very large radius" depending on if you spring for the cheap plan or gold. Would be like comparing Delta First class vs United steerage.

I had AAA basic a few years ago as a Xmas gift and never renewed. They send me promotional junk mail over and over with temporary cards that are valid for a month. I just bought a beater car with bad ball joint and called them... 9 miles, $3 a mile over the free five, got it towed to my house for twelve bucks.

They did not care that I was not with the car, nor that I had no license plates on it and could not even prove ownership.
 
I just signed up. Thanks for this information. I've been meaning to get AAA, and this was the reminder, so I went with GM instead. With all my old cars, I feel like I'm due for being stranded soon!
 
Even if you don't have old cars, AAA (or GM Motor Club) is the way to go. It saves you from scam tow truck or locksmith operations, plus it goes with you NOT the car, so even if you're in a rental or a borrowed car you're covered!
 
To be honest I've found little use for a auto club membership. I have it on my car insurance for a lot less than what the GM insurance is although it probably doesn't cover near as much, but it does cover changing a flat tire or jumping it at a min. However I've haven't had a need for any service in several years. Maybe lucky, but to be honest it seems like most of the problem was simple locking yourself out or not carrying a spare tire.
 
Originally Posted By: dishdude
Even if you don't have old cars, AAA (or GM Motor Club) is the way to go. It saves you from scam tow truck or locksmith operations, plus it goes with you NOT the car, so even if you're in a rental or a borrowed car you're covered!


AAA has 30% discount at lenscrafters, 7% off at NAPA, 10% off at ACME auto (New England chain), numerous discounts at local museums and lodging.

Pays for itself even if my car doesn't break down...
 
"AAA has 30% discount at lenscrafters, 7% off at NAPA, 10% off at ACME auto (New England chain), numerous discounts at local museums and lodging.

Pays for itself even if my car doesn't break down..."

That used to be AAA selling point but not anymore. Nowadays, you can find WAY better rates online or using USAA (which is free). The AAA discount isn't some special discount, many places just use any old discount that is available on the internet and just apply the same thing as the AAA discount.

Especially for things like hotels, you can find better rates using Kayak or any number of travel sites

Also, I talked to some of the people that gave me a tow and they said that AAA reimburses them the least amount of money so they get the LOWEST priority. You hear horror stories of waiting for 2-3 hours for a tow. Ask any friends you know that works at a towing place and they will tell you the same thing.
 
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Was the car you bought in the driveway? Because i know they have a policy of not towing any cars from a residential location (driveway or garage) so many people would just push it out onto the side of the street lol and then call for a tow.

Originally Posted By: eljefino
AAA gives you the choice of 5 mile or "very large radius" depending on if you spring for the cheap plan or gold. Would be like comparing Delta First class vs United steerage.

I had AAA basic a few years ago as a Xmas gift and never renewed. They send me promotional junk mail over and over with temporary cards that are valid for a month. I just bought a beater car with bad ball joint and called them... 9 miles, $3 a mile over the free five, got it towed to my house for twelve bucks.

They did not care that I was not with the car, nor that I had no license plates on it and could not even prove ownership.
 
The catch. I have 10 miles towing with auto insurer HOWEVER it reads "When your car breaks down, or you get into an accident, we will pay to tow your vehicle to the nearest repair facility "

The problem I ran into was the insurance company wanted to tow my car to local Subaru dealer which was 5 miles away instead of my trusty independent who is Subaru specialist 9 miles away. I had to pay the 4 miles extra, not much but still. My repair issue was a broken power steering belt. Subaru dealer wanted $100 to fix it. My independent did it for $33 and had me on the road in 15 minutes.

Unlimited is just to nearest place they can find. I guarantee this is what GM does too.

At least with my insurance towing it covers all the intial towing charges to show up get car. So you just end up paying the price/mile of towing the vehicle. I will stick to my Progressive Insurance one that costs $24/year two vehicles.
 
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Originally Posted By: rjundi
The catch. I have 10 miles towing with auto insurer HOWEVER it reads "When your car breaks down, or you get into an accident, we will pay to tow your vehicle to the nearest repair facility "

The problem I ran into was the insurance company wanted to tow my car to local Subaru dealer which was 5 miles away instead of my trusty independent who is Subaru specialist 9 miles away. I had to pay the 4 miles extra, not much but still. My repair issue was a broken power steering belt. Subaru dealer wanted $100 to fix it. My independent did it for $33 and had me on the road in 15 minutes.

Unlimited is just to nearest place they can find. I guarantee this is what GM does too.

At least with my insurance towing it covers all the intial towing charges to show up get car. So you just end up paying the price/mile of towing the vehicle. I will stick to my Progressive Insurance one that costs $24/year two vehicles.


No, I know that GM Motor Club does not have that catch. There are tons of other businesses that have "roadside" assistance, I would know because I checked and read all the fine prints *My cell phone provider, my Visa, my Insurance. All of them have mileage restrictions or amount restrictions.

From my own experience, the only catch that GM Motor Club has is that if you decide to tow it a place other than a repair shop, they won't tow it to a repair shop the second time. Which is very fair in my option.

When you call for towing, they ask you where you are and where you want it to be towed. In my previous post, I mentioned how I wanted to get towed to a Walmart that was like 10 miles away because they had the cheapest 13 inch tires when there was a Monroe Tire and Brakes two blocks away.

When the Camry gave out ( my last experience on my original post), I just had them tow it to my driveway because there was no way I was going to pay to fix it. It had 240K, a bad strut and back door damage from a crash a month earlier. Ended up selling it for $1000.
 
Originally Posted By: rjundi
The catch. I have 10 miles towing with auto insurer HOWEVER it reads "When your car breaks down, or you get into an accident, we will pay to tow your vehicle to the nearest repair facility "

The problem I ran into was the insurance company wanted to tow my car to local Subaru dealer which was 5 miles away instead of my trusty independent who is Subaru specialist 9 miles away. I had to pay the 4 miles extra, not much but still. My repair issue was a broken power steering belt. Subaru dealer wanted $100 to fix it. My independent did it for $33 and had me on the road in 15 minutes.

Unlimited is just to nearest place they can find. I guarantee this is what GM does too.

At least with my insurance towing it covers all the intial towing charges to show up get car. So you just end up paying the price/mile of towing the vehicle. I will stick to my Progressive Insurance one that costs $24/year two vehicles.
I'm not sure that a broken PS belt is a tow item for a reasonably able bodied man
 
Originally Posted By: L_Sludger
I'm not sure that a broken PS belt is a tow item for a reasonably able bodied man


The alternator was driven by same belt too. Driving a car without power steering working that is it is actually not a great idea. It is very slow and difficult to turn and in a rare chance of avoidance of something IMHO too slow. It is not like a car with manual steering that is quite easy to steer(similar to PS) while in motion.
 
I've thought of getting something like this, but part of me thinks I'll just jinx myself....

I've needed a tow once, and I was in the middle of PA after stopping for gas off I-81. I didn't even remember I had tow coverage through Progressive, I was just happy to find someone in the phone book at the gas station that would come. Thankfully he was just a decent guy running a business who informed me there was a Honda dealer in town and towed me there. The charge wasn't too outrageous. The Honda dealer was a winner too. I didn't arrive until 3PM and I was back on the road by 6:30.

Don't some people say with these that you can just call and sign up when you need a tow? That they really don't care? I think that was AAA, but wonder if GM would be the same way.
 
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To all those people who are raving about GM Motor Club, things are not
as ROSY as some are saying.

I have had this service for 5 years for my spouse and I.

Last night I needed the service for the very first time and got a BIG
surprise! I later called them this morning to confirm this information
below; so call yourself if you do not believe me. Long story short:

-- GM Motor Club is NOT UNLIMITED MILES to a repair facility: Try
calling them AFTER business hours to their Roadside Assistance hotline
and tell them to setup a tow truck for you to a repair facility OVER
20 miles away. They will tell you that you get up 20 miles, and if
more miles are required, you have to give them a credit card number to
go farther. This morning customer service again says it is 'unlimited'
to the nearest repair facility [of their choosing], but when you need
the tow truck at 1am, the story is DIFFERENT! I spoke to the call
center manager at 1am and confirmed this 20 mile limit. They would not
budge without a credit card number. Also, the repair facility is OF
THEIR CHOOSING!


https://www.gmmotorclub.com/compare.jsp
"No other major club offers you unlimited towing miles"


https://www.gmmotorclub.com/ataglance.jsp
No mileage limits on towing. Unlike any other major motor club, we'll
tow you to the nearest qualified repair facility, no matter how far it
is.


-- GM Motor Club is NOT UNLIMITED CALLS: Someone else mentioned this.
When I signed up, the friendly agent said I would get UNLIMITED CALLS.
This is not true, and YOU MUST PRESS them on this to get the true
answer and it is buried at the VERY bottom of their FAQ! You only get
4 calls per year; so use them well.

https://www.gmmotorclub.com/faq.jsp
 
Both times I have had to use AAA they had no problem towing to my shop of choice.

The first time, the driver was a bit confused when I asked him to tow my Jeep 45 miles out of the city for brake lines. But he did it anyway.

Same thing the second time - the driver knew where it was, but was trying to have me bring it to the garage for which he works.
 
Originally Posted By: VicVinegar
Don't some people say with these that you can just call and sign up when you need a tow? That they really don't care? I think that was AAA, but wonder if GM would be the same way.


They (AAA) put a stop to this a while ago.
Now, you CANNOT just call and join and ask for a service call on the same call.
They may even make you wait 24 hours after joining before granting you a service call, depending on the region.

The longer tow, almost twice the cost, Plus membership benefits do not take effect until 7 DAYS after joining, but yes, you get the short 3 miles free tow until that benefit kicks in.

They've also wised up and will not tow you all around the place on the same service call (must be at least a couple of days apart in time), and will NOT tow you from one repair facility's lot to another (OR even home), maybe not even from the street in front of/near said repair facility.
frown.gif
 
I will take that into account, I do think al vehicles over 10 years old like mine are suspect, specially this year of being practically parked and most working from home.
Betzy
 
I used AAA to tow vehicles home twice, and it was on the same weekend. The joy of owning older vehicles! One needed a head gasket and the other needed a crankshaft position sensor. Good thing I had another vehicle to drive. Neither occasion was much of an issue other then the wait. The vehicle with the defective crankshaft position sensor was a coupe of blocks from home, and they did show up in a reasonably time frame, which was good since I was blocking someone's driveway.
 
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