# The new Chevy Cobalt - Opinions? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 28, 2005, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998 "2005-08-28T18:23:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/1 "2005-08-28T18:23:06Z")
Chevrolet has produced an uppper-end economy car that I like the looks of. Has anybody bought one of these, or had any experience with one, or know somebody who has? We would be looking at getting a five-speed manual transmission sedan. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/2 "2005-08-29T00:45:46Z")
[On a budget? Get a Cobalt](http://www.detnews.com/2005/autosconsumer/0501/05/G01-50272.htm) [2005 Chevrolet Cobalt Review](http://www.automotive.com/2005/12/chevrolet/cobalt/reviews/) ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/3 "2005-08-29T00:55:06Z")
The coupe evokes images of a modernized early Camero. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/4 "2005-08-29T04:03:39Z")
Yup, the consensus in the auto press is that the Cobalt is a fine car. ---
**Author:** ![Wearia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/13edae/32.png) [@Wearia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wearia)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/5 "2005-08-29T05:18:36Z")
A friend of mine got one as soon as they came out. So far he is quite happy with it. Its a good mix of style and economy. He needs it for transit to and from university which for him is about 60km a day. Currently it goes to his work and back about 40km a day and he hasn’t complained. I haven’t ridden in it yet, so I can’t say anything about the ride, but it should be a fairly safe bet. ---
**Author:** ![ParentalAdvisory](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/53a042/32.png) [@ParentalAdvisory](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParentalAdvisory)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 9:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/6 "2005-08-29T09:50:14Z")
I’m renting a brand new four door model (automatic) while I’m out here in Phoenix for 9 days. I’ve driven it for about a week now, and I’ve found it to be a fine car. Plenty of room up front for us taller folks too. I took it to the Grand Canyon and it drove nice for the 7 hour round trip. Pretty good on gas, and it’s pretty comfortable. Plenty of acceleration for going up the hills here in Arizona. And I don’t even like small cars. But if I were to get one, it would be this one. ---
**Author:** ![Lsura](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7993a0/32.png) [@Lsura](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lsura)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 10:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/7 "2005-08-29T10:00:59Z")
My mother bought one earlier this summer and is really happy with it. Plus, my dad has enough room when he’s in it, a challenge since he’s a big guy. ---
**Author:** ![Lips\_Obsession](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/bbce88/32.png) [@Lips\_Obsession](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lips_Obsession)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 3:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/8 "2005-08-29T15:02:29Z")
When I was looking at new cars, the Cobalt wasn’t out yet. I would have considered it, but of course that wasn’t possible. My only real concern is I’m usually reluctant to buy a car in it’s 1st model year. There’s usually some bugs to be worked out… Other than that, it looks like a very nice car… ---
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/9 "2005-08-29T16:50:04Z")
I rented one this morning. It’s a nice looking coupe. My only real complaint, for the first 15 miles I’ve driven, is that the rear window and mirror seem to be a bit small and give limited rear visibility. The ride is very smooth for such a small car but still has decent road feel. Electronics and controls seem fairly easy to figure out. Styling is good/very good. Seats are comfortable, particularly for the size car. There is some very small noise/rattle coming from somewhere near the front passenger floor. ---
**Author:** ![brianjedi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3be4f8/32.png) [@brianjedi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brianjedi)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/10 "2005-08-29T17:11:24Z")
The Cobalt is basically just a redesigned Cavalier. Cavs generally were pretty solid cars, although they can be a pain to fix when they do break. If Chevy made a hybrid version (and I had the money,) I’d buy one. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/11 "2005-08-29T19:47:20Z")
> [@brianjedi](#): > > The Cobalt is basically just a redesigned Cavalier. Cavs generally were pretty solid cars, although they can be a pain to fix when they do break. > > If Chevy made a hybrid version (and I had the money,) I’d buy one. I read a review on the Cobalt, and apparently it’s a little more than a re-designed Cavalier. Rumour has it that they tried to fix all the flaws with the Cavalier, with the rationale that it’s cheaper to build a better car than have all the recalls and such. Good point about the first model year, **Lips**. We may lease it rather than buy, which might be a better idea with an unproven model. ---
**Author:** ![NAF1138](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naf1138/32/3245_2.png) [@NAF1138](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NAF1138)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-new-chevy-cobalt-opinions/318998/12 "2005-08-29T20:18:16Z")
I am driving a rental cobalt right now and so far I like it a lot. It has good pickup, is roomy and comfortable inside, it handles like a dream, and has a turning radius that you wouldn’t believe. Personally I am a little disapointed by the gas mileage (I got about 200 miles out of my last tank, and my sentra usually will give me about 325) and I don’t like the side mirror at all, they are too small and I dont feel like I can see behind me very well. On the other hand it has automatic headlights which are fairly nifty. I would recomend it overall as a nice driving car, but I still like my car better.