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Sedans Chevrolet Cobalt Do Not Compare Cavalier with Cobalt
28 messages, Last post on Oct 01, 2009 at 12:32 AM
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Replying to: waterdr (Jan 18, 2008 7:47 pm) |
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Replying to: waterdr (Jan 18, 2008 7:47 pm) Could be that the same thing is happening to the Cobalt as the Equinox and Torrent. 2008 is suppose to be their last year also but they are going to be replaced by an almost exact european model with a different name ( I can't remember the names). I wonder why G.M. is doing that. For the Cavaliers, I remember the first years the Cavaliers were build, what a mistake but as the years went by they improved (not a masterpiece) but improved. My wife had a 1998 and it was pretty good. My sister has a 1998 and still has it and running fine.
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Replying to: grosloup (Jan 19, 2008 8:33 am)
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Replying to: poncho167 (Jan 20, 2008 5:52 am) I put 100k miles on a 2002 Suburban that never saw the shop besides one time in the first week for a major a/c issue (had to be replaced). 6 years and that was the only visit besides oil, tires, and brakes. First set of brakes lasted 65k miles too. GM is plenty capable of making quality products. American cars, such as the Cobalt, biggest problem is not quality, but depreciation values. American cars depreciate faster then then Japanese counter-parts, and that impacts the cost of ownership a lot. I undertsand that the US manufacturers are starting to take measures to prevent this such as curtailing production and reducing sales to rental car companies.
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Replying to: waterdr (Jan 20, 2008 8:36 am)
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Replying to: poncho167 (Jan 20, 2008 12:30 pm) I think if the manufacturers were smart, they would just shut-off the rental companu\ies, but unfortunately, I am sure they are afraid to walk away from the volume. Manufacturers have themselves in an interesting paradox. |
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In response to waterdr opinion about the Cobalts being dead in 2008. I just got off the phone with the guy who sold me the 08 Cobalt "Special Edition" and he says that they're NOT going to be DEAD, The Cobalt is the highest selling car. 
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Replying to: pjm16 (Jan 23, 2008 1:04 pm) Sales people can be good sources if information, but they can also be bad, especially when trying to sell a new car to someone. The last thing they want to tell someone is that a line is getting killed. In all honesty, it is really hard to see for sure what GM is up to. You will know for sure by next year at the auto show. |
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I had a Nissan 300zx that caught fire and bought a Cavalier in 1993 to replace it. It was a big step down, but due to insurance costs, had to do it. I do not regret my decision. Not only did I save money on maintenance , and insurance costs, that car is still running today with just basic maintenance. I sold it to its second owner when it had 130,000 miles on it. I bought a second Cavalier in 2001 and still drive it. I have low mileage on it, and the dash is starting to crack, the paint is coming off the rear scoop, but it runs like a charm. I have never regreted my purchase of either of these cars. I also own a Ford Excursion, and my cavalier has been my life saver with fuel costs the way they are! : 
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I drove a base model 5-speed 2008 Cobalt LS sedan this morning. I had just stepped out of a 2009 Corolla base 5-speed not 15 minutes before, so I was biased toward the new redesigned Corolla walking onto the Chevy lot. The Corolla felt extremely solid and easy to drive. The salesperson was cordial and the car was very impressive compared to the used 2007 Corolla CE 5-speed that I test drove earlier in the morning. I think Toyota did a great job with the new Corolla and I expect them to sell as well as the 2003-2008 model it replaces. On my way home I decided to stop in a Chevrolet dealer to see a Cobalt since I still have not driven one since they came out to replace the Cavalier in 2005. That said, I liked the Cobalt better. The clutch and shifter were better placed, had better feedback, and weren't as rubbery as the Toyota's. The Cobalt felt like it had more torque and was more difficult to stall out with no throttle application from a dead stop. Shifting 1-2 and 2-3 with no clutch was much smoother in the Cobalt. The Toyota shift knob felt notchy and out of place, like an automatic shifter, whereas the Chevy shift knob was shaped properly and the travel was just right. I like the information center on the Cobalt which gives instantaneous MPG, compass, temperature, oil life monitor, and it even tells you the individual pressures in each tire! The temperature gauge is a digital reading, exact to the degree, whereas the Toyota uses a needle gauge with only a "C" and "H". I like to sit high up and put the tilt wheel as high as it goes when I drive. I'll put the seat all the way up vertically, adjust the seat bottom travel (fore/aft) so my feet comfortably reach the pedals, then recline the seat back until two things happen. First, my hair must not be touching the headliner (and I have a buzz cut), and second, I must be able to rest my wrist on top of the steering wheel with my shoulder blade touching the seatback, so I may steer 360 degrees without having to lean forward at all. In the Corolla, I was able to acheive the proper seating position but the tilt steering wheel would not go high enough to allow me to see all the gauges. I had to lower the seat to see all the gauges. With the seat lower, the shifter was higher in relation to my arm and it was not comfortable to use the armrest while shifting. In the Cobalt, I got my seating position, the tilt wheel went plenty high, but there was no armrest for my right arm. This was fine because the shifter in the Cobalt is so low on the console that I could rest my right arm on my right leg when not shifting. This was surprisingly comfortable although I might look into the center console armrest as a dealer accessory anyway. Of course this is all subjective to my tastes. But what is not subjective is the price. No rebates on the 2009 Corolla. Best price negotiated at 3 Toyota stores came to $15,785, down a mere $700 from MSRP. $2000 rebate on the 2008 Cobalt. Best price negotiated at 2 Chevy stores came to $11,300, down $3210 from the $14,510 MSRP. Both cars are black, have AC, ABS, CD/MP3 with aux. jack, electric power steering, tilt wheel. No cruise, power anything on either. Both had floor mats as dealer accessories. Corolla had $295 of paint sealant was the only equipment difference and this $295 is NOT included in the prices above. If the Corolla and Cobalt were only a few hundred dollars apart, I'd consider the Corolla for its excellent reliability record, resale value, and better visibility. But for nearly $4500 difference, give me a Cobalt. Now as to the Cobalt versus the Cavalier, I will admit I have not driven an Ecotec-equipped 2003-2004 Cavalier to give a true comparison. But I did extensively drive a 1999 Cavalier sedan, automatic, with 103K on it, when I worked for a car repo company. The 1999 Cavalier versus the 2008 Cobalt is like comparing a late 80s Toyota Camry to a new Lexus ES350. Hello, night, I'd like you to meet my good friend, day. BUT the Cobalt IS the replacement for the Cavalier, and they are/were both built at the Lordstown, Ohio plant.
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