I totally understand that the problem should not exist, just wanted to clarify that the article was not referring to our issue but rather that the test driver could not operate the car correctly.
I purposely put the issue on record at my dealer with the hope that a solution will be coming at some point.
KartRacer, I understand now. Sorry for the confusion on my part.
ChrisJ said:
$12,700 out the door what year? Lets account for inflation.
Besides that, does your Cobalt even have ABS? Does it have 10 air bags? Does it even come close to meeting the same crash test ratings as the Sonic? Sure, I know that isn't important to you. It isn't important to anyone until the split second their lives depend on it.
I can live without ABS but one thing that I will not want to give up is how strong the Sonic is when it comes to crashes.
ChrisJ, I bought the car in March of 2009. This was at the height of the GM bankruptcy and they had a deal where any Cobalt that sat on a lot for more than 6 months was $5000 off. I actually bought one at a dealer and was going to pick it up after they fixed an SES light assuming it could be fixed then found another one for $300 more with cruise control and got that instead. I felt so bad for canceling as they were real nice. Lost a lot of sleep over it even though it was just business.
My 2009 Cobalt that was $12,700 out the door is an LT model (with XFE badging) with power everything and cruise control. It does not have ABS. (fun fact: I don't like ABS.) Though I kind of regret not looking for one with ABS after I had to make an emergency stop + lane change and made a flat spot on a tire. Wound up replacing the pair of them.
I do not like airbags. I'm a big guy and make my own padding. Besides, my buddy rear-ended a pickup truck in his Civic and wound up under the truck. Hit him so hard he lifted the truck into the air. (truck was stopped and he was watching these guys driving in a median rather than pay attention) He would have been completely unhurt if not for the airbag breaking his nose.
The Cobalt has been a truly great car. I only ever brought it in for the power steering motor recall thing. I had a speaker blow on it. Oh, the clutch pedal got squeaky and they replaced that. It's squeaky again but the warranty is out. Once a week I drive 240 miles to work (1 way) for 2 days and have been doing this since January. I have put over 25,000 miles on that car since then and have had no issues. I've got as much as 37.1 miles per gallon rolling into my parking space. I can almost make the round trip on one tank of gas. If not for security at work I'd bring a 2 gallon can and that'd be enough.
A comparison in MPG in my eyes is a trip to Myrtle Beach. In the Cobalt we rolled in after gassing up in Wytheville, VA to the resort in Myrtle Beach with an unexepcted 40.6 MPG on the Cobalt. We did the same in the Sonic and had 41.2. So they are close. Yes the Sonic is a much nicer car.
Part of it is sentimental, too. My mom borrowed the Cobalt for a 1200 mile trip to see old friends the summer before she passed and she loved the car. With her light-weight frame and grandma driving she got 40 mpg the whole way and could not believe it.
All of the post about gearbox grind? The only way that I get a slight grind is speed shifting 1-2. Are others getting a grind under normal conditions? I have only had to shift this way when pulling out onto highway feeling rushed to get after it. One time.
