20th Feb 2008, 23:20

A steering wheel cover and a dashboard carpet mat will solve the interior cheapness problems on your $12K Cobalts easily and for way under $100. That's a lot less money than buying a Corolla for $16K to $20K. I'd rather spend $100 upgrading a Cobalt interior than waste $4000 to $8000 on a Corolla just to get softer interior bits.

10th Jun 2008, 20:48

I've read every single Cobalt review, and all I hear is that the interior looks "cheap". What are you expecting, wood grain and leather wrapped steering wheels? It's a economy car. This is just an attempt to bash a good car.

I drive cars for a living, I'm a car hauler; the last thing that ever came to my mind about the Cobalt was the interior.

12th Jun 2008, 18:34

I don't know WHERE people get this "cheap interior" stuff from. ALL cars have pretty much the SAME interior. I rode in a co-worker's new Lexus recently and was surprised to find the entire door panel was "cheap plastic". The car DID have a little fake wood on the dash, but it, too, was "cheap plastic".

I'm a car enthusiast and I drive many different cars to check them out. I've driven the Civic, the FIT, the Corolla, the Scion Tc, the Cobalt, the Hyundai Accent and the Chevy Aveo (to name a few compact/subcompacts). There isn't a dime's difference in their interiors. They are as alike as peas in a pod.

The latest edition Sport Compact Car magazine PRAISES the quality of the Cobalt SS interior and calls it "The best front drive car".

We own a plush SUV, a sports car and a GM compact. There is virtually ZERO difference in the interior quality except that the seats are not leather in the GM compact. GM builds some of the best cars on the planet. Oddly, sales of the Corvette OUTSIDE the U.S. are up THREE HUNDRED PERCENT since 2000. It amazes me that our own citizens try to destroy American industry, while Europeans are waking up to the quality of our cars.

15th Mar 2009, 00:41

I've driven the Cobalt as a rental and both my Dad and step-mom have Chevy HHRs, which are basically Cobalts with a different body and interior styling. There is evidence of interior cheapness. The dash is NOT padded, which is a joke in this day and age. However, I think GM did a good job with the texture, which makes it look less cheap and in my opinion, fairly good. I've driven my father's HHR to Florida and back twice and I'm very impressed. It's exceptionally smooth and quiet for a small, cheap vehicle. It has plenty of zip with the 2.2L 4cyl. Gas mileage is pretty good, but seems better with the Cobalt. I was pretty set at buying an older Volvo, but I'm really liking the idea of a newer Cobalt now. It's affordable, safe, and efficient. When you're used to driving older cars like me, the Cobalt seems pretty exceptional for it's quietness and ride quality. It's as refined as any luxury car from 10 years ago. It's a heck of a lot more refined than my '97 Mercury Tracer, that's for sure!

14th Jun 2009, 15:24

I think you just need to sit in a Cobalt to understand what we mean by cheap. It's not only cheap feeling, but ugly as well. I have a Chevrolet Prizm which is in no way a beauty, and the material is definitely cheap, but it's laid out a lot better than the 07' Cobalt which I also have. The interior is just a sore sport on this car, I can't describe it, but it's way ugly and feels cheap.

I agree that the Cobalt fails to live up the Cavalier name, which isn't saying much because I hated my Cavalier as well. The Cavalier at least functioned properly for most of the time.

It's a cheap car yes, but for maybe a couple hundred bucks, GM could have used it to make a nicer dashboard and door panels or something and prevent a whole lot of people complaining about it. If there are this many people complaining about the car, you know it's not just a lowly bitter Toyota lover.

And yes, GM sucks, aside from the Silverado. I've been through several cars like the Grand Am, Sunfire, Cavalier, Cobalt, Prizm (I know it's a Toyota) and I must say, they feel cheaper than anything else I'd owned. I can only feel like they don't care about any of the cars they make.

28th Nov 2009, 16:04

I just purchased my second Cobalt, a 2010 LT1 Sedan. The LT package really does a lot for making the Cobalt a better car overall. The seats are larger, you get the power equipment that is not available in the LS. It is a very comfortable car, with a great smooth ride. I had no problems out of my previous Cobalt and I am looking forward to the same dependability out of this one.

As for the interior, yes, the LS interior does look a little cheap, but so do most cars today. Interiors are not what they used to be. My new Cobalt has black interior that when armor-alled up looks really nice.