12th Mar 2007, 11:15

To 4.50.

Have you ever owned a Cobalt? Perhaps you've owned another model domestic brand you can berate for us. Or perhaps you know of someone else who's owned a Cobalt or other domestic brand that, according to you, was a horror story. I'm sure we'd all like to hear what you have to say. So what story will it be, make it a good one!

While your at it, think about why Honda installed bogus odometers in their cars that actually record higher mileage than actually driven. There's a class action suit in process, maybe you can still get in on it. Then again, you can think about unprecedented transmission failures in Honda Odysseys. There are many people who've been denied warranty by Honda to the tune of $3,300 a piece for transmission repairs because according to Honda, they've driven beyond the warranty coverage.

At least domestic manufacturers have integrity and don't resort to such shameful tactics. Shame on Honda!

12th Mar 2007, 13:19

To 9.10.

The Elantra is a 2002 model year. The Cavalier is a 2001 model year. For your information, it is year 2007. My son commutes 280k (kilometers) per day and his girlfriend commutes 200k (kilometers) per day. Do the math.

Yes, my driving habits may be a bit sedate compared to yours, but then again, I hold an AZ transport license and I've seem the results of what foolhardy self absorbed driving can do. I'm a responsible driver, take good care of my vehicles and, I know what true value is. Mature people know what I mean.

Just remember, stupid drivers die stupid deaths.

12th Mar 2007, 14:13

Proof please. They did the tests, posted the tests, so feel free to PROVE them wrong. Also remember that there were a few American cars in their Top 10 cars so OBVIOUSLY they are not paid by Honda.

The Fit is the perfect family car in so many ways, unless you must be a typical American and guzzle gas just to keep up with the Joneses. Most families in America are concerned with money (you appear not to be) so would appreciate the AVERAGE 33 mpg the Fit gets plus its ability to hold four or five people comfortably.

You have NOT driven the Fit by your own admission, so therefore cannot comment on its driving ability, so you shouldn't assume it can't drive well.

Plus, you have obviously never even sat in a Civic or Fit, as you would soon realize the tremendous amount of room they have in them.

12th Mar 2007, 14:16

Um, well, how many Mercedes taxis do you see? In Germany, half of all E Classes are sold as taxis.

Taxi sales are based on what deal fleet managers are giving the taxi companies, not which cars are necessarily better.

12th Mar 2007, 23:13

To 11;15, No, I've never owned a Cobalt, in the whole 2 year history of their existence, because I know enough about cars to not even consider buying one.

I personally have owned 6 domestic vehicles, and only ONE out of six didn't leave me stranded somewhere (a '95 Dakota that I maintained meticulously). The other 5, even with strict maintenance, were garbage. I've owned something from each of the Big 3. Never again.

I've since had 3 Toyota's, two of them during my college years, which I drove like I stole them, (gave THESE ones ZERO maintenance) and the '98 Tacoma that I now drive; and none of the 3 have needed ANY repairs, except for the new front tires I put on my '93 Tercel because I burned them off dumping the clutch and sliding around bends.

The quality of the Toyota Tercel, by the way, (any model year), fully embarrasses any car the Big 3 have ever made.

The domestics broke down even with careful maintenance, (with the lucky exception of the Dodge), and I can't even imagine how fast they would have fallen apart had I driven them like I drove all my Toyota's.

That's another issue, incidentally, I always drove my Toyota's MUCH harder than the domestics, because they are a lot more fun to drive; (I rev the hell out my current Tacoma also, but I actually maintain this one). I couldn't keep my p.o.s. Ranger and Malibu running even had I had a magic wand, and I can't kill the Toyota's even if I drive them like I have all the money in the world to repair them.

That's Toyota quality, and it's the reason the Big 3 are suffering; because Toyota and Honda are building WAY better vehicles. More and more smart consumers are buying them, and wisely steering away from the pitiful "Big 3".

15th Mar 2007, 06:56

14:13 "Fits" are Kiddie cars not family cars. The Cobalt is a true family car, reliable, reasonably priced and easy to own and operate. Take your "Fit" to the track and watch a Cobalt peel the skin off of it.

Like the other poster said, some people believe anything just as long as it suits them. Really, a "Fit" superior to a "Ferrari", my god, how symbolistic!

15th Mar 2007, 12:42

Having driven both cars I can well assure you the Fit will wipe the tarmac with any run-of-the-mill Cobalt. And you obviously haven't sat in a Fit (or probably even know what one looks like) since it has MORE room inside than the Cobalt.

15th Mar 2007, 12:59

6:56 If you could actually understand what you read, you would know that no one said that a Fit is superior to a Ferrari; what was said is that it beat a Ferrari through a certain type of road course, probably only because the Ferrari had too much power to negotiate it without burning the tires off.

I've said this before, but here goes again: the Cobalt is not reliable. Why? Because the definition of reliability means will the car be trustworthy over TIME. Time is the only test of reliability, and the Cobalt is too new for anyone to know this yet. However, being as GM produced it, it's a safe bet to say that it will be unreliable like most of their other cars.

The Cobalt is a redesigned Cavalier made to look like a Nissan or some other import. I'm not impressed, and neither are most car buyers according to the sales numbers.

The Fit however, is a great car, and smart consumers know this and are buying it, and leaving the Cobalts to gather dust on the sales lots.

Whether you think it is a kiddie car or not makes no difference to people who know what a great car it is. It has taken many recent awards, and is another rock solid, fun to drive, charismatic vehicle from Honda.

The Cobalt is a boring redesign of another boring car.

The Fit is about 10 times better than any Cobalt, and it costs about the same or less.

15th Mar 2007, 15:04

I guess this is Toyota-owner logic: "Only time will tell if the Cobalt will be reliable, but since it's too new to evaluate, we definitely know it can't be as reliable as a Toyota." Enjoy your fantasy.

15th Mar 2007, 21:54

I traded my new Fit for a new Cobalt LS. Why? The Fit was in the shop for transmission problems the same week I bought it. The techs didn't know how to work on it. They (eventually) replaced the whole transmission, but the car didn't drive quite the same way after that. An aberration, perhaps, but I won't buy another Fit. Why did I trade it in for the Cobalt? I had to rent a car while the Fit was in the shop, and the rental place gave me a Cobalt. The power difference was substantial, and the ride was much more comfortable. I test-drove an Xa, Xb, Corolla, Yaris, and Focus to compare, and I settled on the Cobalt, as it was the most powerful and comfortable. I've had it for 8 months now, and it has not had to go to the shop for anything. The interior of the Fit was nicer and more modern, but that's about all I miss about the Fit. All you image-conscious kids can have your riced Hondas; I'll take my bland Cobalt and beat you off the line any day.