CTC Review: 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt LT

[Blueprint]

GM changed the name, but they should have changed the looks, too.  Both coupe and sedan look like Cavalier evolutions.  Montreal is small-car country, and nearly all Cobalt / G5 sedans I see have rental stickers on them.  Coupes seem to have some private appeal, but non-fleet sales seem awful (recent news item : 45% of Pontiac sales in the US are to fleet operators...).

GM buyers still expect Cavalier pricing (the Tempo-to-Contour syndrome), and it seems they embraced the smaller / cheaper Aveo quite well, ditto the Optra, a direct Cobalt competitor.

[banfield]

Because the car is styled very attractively and its features sound good on paper, I test drove one (base model with air and automatic).   I was shocked by the cheap and flimsy interior and a general feeling of coarseness and cheapness as noted above by Traum.

[G5 Pursuit guy]

I am the owner of a 2006 Pontiac G5 coupe, and I am pleased to say that this is a great car. The 2.2 litre with the 4 speed automatic is a great engine combination which delivers smooth power, and great fuel economy...in my case 6.4L/100km (at 105 kmh and air conditioning on). 

I just wanted to note that while its easy to compare and contrast vehicles with competitors in their car class, many other factors are often overlooked.  A few of these things include interest rates, and insurance prices.  I compared the G5 with a Honda Civic coupe when I was car shopping, and while the interior quality was much better in the honda, for me it came down to price (the typical scenario in this car class).  Honda was offering 7.5% interest, while GM was offering 0%.  Insurance wise, the Honda was double the price (and yes I shopped around).

[jww]

I thought cobalt was a rebage of some european opel. probably rumors after all.. 2.2 ecotec.

Don't believe so - to me this is still just a replacement Cavalier - which never impressed me at all.

The Cobalt may share some aspects of the Astra (like the line around the rear of the back doors), but that's about it. Watch out when the Saturn Astra shows up on our shores - it will be serious competition in this segment.

[Scaerio]

I rented a Pursuit in the summer of 2005.  It was a nice enough car, and had a 4 door hatch/wagon been available, I may have bought one instead of the Aerio.  Last year, my sister and her husband bought an Optra wagon.  What really struck me was that the quality of the Optra interior materials was better than that of the Pursuit.

While everyone dumps on the GMDAT cars, everyone seems to forget that the original company, Daewoo, is quite young, while GM is among the oldest makers.  It is unexcusable, in my mind, that old established brands like GM and Chrysler cannot get their acts together and at least design a nice interior using quality materials.  I read a review of the GMDAT-built Opel Antara (upcoming Saturn Vue) in a German magazine, and they praised the high quality of its fit and finish...

Like KIA and Hyundai, I can see GMDAT making great strides in the future...

[sirAQUAMAN64]

Seems that the options on your LT are pricey, especially for a domestic vehicle. I expect an auto to be $1,000 or not more than $1,200 (when talking an econo car), and ABS and wheel covers for $1,165?!  Should be more like $400-500.

If someone is optioning like that, they should really go for the Cobalt SS in sedan or coupe, or the G5 Pursuit GT, as I think the 173hp engine really provides the value and power this car deserves.

The coupes look much better to my eye (SS sedan with skirts isn't bad either), mostly because of the sedan rear end's curvy high bumper and little puny exhuast.

Don't think these are bad cars necessarily, but with the competition really turning up the heat, they're not exceptional in any way.

[DoubleClutch]

I am the owner of a 2006 Pontiac G5 coupe, and I am pleased to say that this is a great car. The 2.2 litre with the 4 speed automatic is a great engine combination which delivers smooth power, and great fuel economy...in my case 6.4L/100km (at 105 kmh and air conditioning on). 

I just wanted to note that while its easy to compare and contrast vehicles with competitors in their car class, many other factors are often overlooked.  A few of these things include interest rates, and insurance prices.  I compared the G5 with a Honda Civic coupe when I was car shopping, and while the interior quality was much better in the honda, for me it came down to price (the typical scenario in this car class).  Honda was offering 7.5% interest, while GM was offering 0%.  Insurance wise, the Honda was double the price (and yes I shopped around).

Your comment just goes to show that the GM products (in general) are still playing catch up. They can't sell their cars unless they are undercutting the price of the competition.

[Stuff]

I'm pretty much the exact same situation. The car I wanted was a the Civic Coupe. But in the end due to the price and the price only I ended up getting a G5 Coupe instead. The price difference may have only been $3,000 or so but I had a price limit and that was it. 

Combined with the fact that my previous 2 Pontiac's, both used were gems. I had no problem buying this car over the a civic.

I am the owner of a 2006 Pontiac G5 coupe, and I am pleased to say that this is a great car.

I just wanted to note that while its easy to compare and contrast vehicles with competitors in their car class, many other factors are often overlooked.  A few of these things include interest rates, and insurance prices.  I compared the G5 with a Honda Civic coupe when I was car shopping, and while the interior quality was much better in the honda, for me it came down to price (the typical scenario in this car class).  Honda was offering 7.5% interest, while GM was offering 0%.  Insurance wise, the Honda was double the price (and yes I shopped around).

[sirAQUAMAN64]

RunsinLight, did you test drive the Civic Coupe on the highway? Comparison in power/overall to your G5 GT?

[Stuff]

I drove the 4 Door DX-G in automatic because all their coupes were manual and I couldn't drive one at the time.
That was at the point where the the interior was still kind of odd looking to me. So I really didn't notice anything beyond "Do I Like This"

I imagine comparing a Civic DX-G to a G5 GT would be like comparing a G5 GT to a Civic SI. Not even close.

RunsinLight, did you test drive the Civic Coupe on the highway? Comparison in power/overall to your G5 GT?

[Blueprint]

Just a side note : the Cobalt SS / G5 GT came up in Car and Driver's top-10 quickest cars under 20,000 us$.  They said the 2.4 / automatic pair is a marriage headed straight to divorce court 

The quickest "cheap" car btw : Mustang coupe V-6 manual, 0-60 in 6.5 s 

[Winklovic]

the sandstone metallic paint makes it hard to find the car in crowded parking lots

That's not the fault of the car: that's a sign that you're driving too many cars. 

[kimchipig]

I had a Cobalt as a rental for two weeks here in Vancouver. It was an LT with auto, air, keyless entry and one touch power windows, which is how about 90% of them will go out the door. First of all, I hated the silver colour. The light grey interior was a dirt magnet, especially since I have little kids. I found the stereo very weak. On the good side was an excellent drivetrain, plenty of power and no rattles and squeaks. It handled very well. The driving position, with the standard height adjustable seat, was very good and all the controls well laid out.

The interior was a little crappy and cheap but you can drive away in one of these for for $18,800 right now and with GM willing to deal I am sure you can even beat that down to $17,000 on the road (plus tax, of course) if you try hard enough. That is at least $6,000 less than a comparably equipped Corrolla or Civic. This includes a 10 year 160,000 km powertrain warranty with courtesy transportantion and roadside assistance, none of which Toyota or Honda offer past three years. Believe me, this is a big factor.

Six grand is a big chunk of money for a working stiff like me.

[kimchipig]

I might add that a drunk totalled my 2006 Pontiac Wave 5 head on and I walked away from the wreck, frazzled, stiff but othewise fine. I was stopped at an intersection, turning left and the drunk, in an old Dodge Stratus, hit me at an estimated 60 km/h after crossing the centre line.

The five star crash rating is for real folks. It took two weeks to sort the insurance out and now I have a 2007 Wave 5. The Wave is a better car in every way than the Cobalt in my humble opinion.

[Shemp]

I find the Cobalt sedan in SS trim to be quite attractive. Yes the interior needs to be improved and with the strides GM is making I'm sure it will be. Hell will have frozen over before I pay the extra for a Civic.

[Dan Braun]

I've test driven a Cobalt base coupe, and I personally think they're little better than what the Cavalier is in some ways. They drive decently, acceptable refinement, but the lucks are definitely not modern or good-looking.  It looks like it was designed in the 90s for the future. Very rental-car looking.
Only dodge really has a good domestic sub-compact, and thats because they took risks. Some of the materials are cheap, but its a good design, that needs a little refining.
And the imports are leagues ahead. They have style, refinement, good equipement levels for relatively cheap, and they have designs that are more classic.

[The Mighty Duck]

I really liked the Pursuit GT (Cobalt SS) I tested, and would encourage anyone looking in this class to take the dive and move up to that car.  IIRC, it's about $23 000 without sunroof, but adds a more powerful engine, alloys, an upgraded stereo (that I was rather impressed with), sportier suspension, as well as the usual power window, air, etc.  With a little GM discounting and negotiating, I think it would make a very good value purchase.  I also drove a Pursuit base model, and it was much less impressive.  IMO the extra $3k is worth it for what you get out of the SS or GT trim.

[Blueprint]

Since everyone is bringing up the cost issue over Civic / Corolla, I recently spent a week with a loaner Mazda 3, a new 2007 GX with manumatic, air and power group.  Msrp is around 19,800$, and the 3 is quite a driver's car for the money.  My 3 daughters even fit in the back, and that includes 2 child seats !

Point is, imports are still the value champs when incentives aren't factored in.  Cobalt / G5 are leagues ahead of Cavalier / Sunfire, but '90s looks and high retail prices mean they're still fleet queens.

The Caliber, with its edgy design, is showing a strong retail presence here in Quebec, as well as in fleets, proof that you can hit both targets with a domestic product.

[bwhiting]

Blueprint Says:

Yesterday at 07:46:42 AM
 Just a side note : the Cobalt SS / G5 GT came up in Car and Driver's top-10 quickest cars under 20,000 us$.  They said the 2.4 / automatic pair is a marriage headed straight to divorce court 

The quickest "cheap" car btw : Mustang coupe V-6 manual, 0-60 in 6.5 s

any links to this article?

[Snowman]

The Quickest Cars of 2007: Less Than $20,000

http://www.caranddriver.com/features/12843/the-quickest-cars-of-2007-less-than-20000.html