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Chevy Cobalt vs. Ford Focus
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Comments
Focus is really great in fast turns, it keeps the line no matter what. But it is too bouncy (again, I am talking about a used wagon here), so I ordered a new set of shocks. Cobalt is very supple, it ride is not too stiff, not too soft, it drives along the potholes with ease and does not bounce. I really like its suspension setup, at least on straight line, I had not have a chance to drive it fast in curves.
I like original Focus interior design, still looks good and airy, better than boring redesigned panel. Cobalt is ok, large dials are easy to read. Cobalt's turn indicator lever is horrible, it is of "electronic" style, the same as on Opel Astra (same parts bin, Opel Astra rides on the same platform as Cobalt and even looks similar). So you don't know where your turn lever is, and you cannot easily turn it back to neutral.
Cobalt has electric power steering and it shows, the feel is somewhat artificial, Focus is much better in this department.
Cobalt is sedan/couple only, no hatcbacks or wagons, so there is no real comparison here. Focus hatchback looks best and drives great, Focus wagon is functional. Cobalt is neither here nor there, just another small sedan.
My biggest complaints of the 2006 Cobalt: ">
1) The seats give very poor body support. The headrests are permanently tilted forward. You have to recline the seat quite a ways back to have the headrest in a vertical position (not an option for me, because now I can't reach the steering wheel.)
2) This car has ELECTRONIC power steering. Be warned that if you have a habit of "dry steering" - turning the steering wheel when stopped - the system can get screwed up, making it almost impossible to turn the steering wheel. This problem may occure sporadically and self-correct, or may require a trip to a mechanic. Note: I dry-steer only when I park on a steep hill, which is every day, and had this happen to my car.
3) The "auto" headlights feature is awful. On a very dim and rainy day, it only activates the parking lights. This could get a driver a traffic ticket, or worse - an accident.
Switching to "manual" headlights is equally disappointing. The headlights activate, yet the instrument panel lights are still activated only by the photosensor on the dashboard. It must be VERY dark to activate the instrument panel. I covered the photosensor with a piece of electrical tape so the "auto" lights and the instrument panel are always illuminated.
4) The turn signal lever is overly sensitive - it is too easy to accidentally activate high-beams, and can be difficult to manually return the signal to the neutral position.
Other Cobalt complaints: Cheap little tires, and wheels that make annoying little clicking sounds; a rear window that likes to open on its own about a quarter of an inch every few weeks; cheap little sun visors; very poor interior lighting; cheap seat fabric and carpet ("hairball" effect.)
The 2001 Focus that I used to drive gave much better body support than the Cobalt, but I would still rate it only as "OK". I never felt safe driving that car at highway speeds or in the rain/snow. It felt a bit out of control in those conditions. The cheap little tires had much to do with this problem. The Focus was always in the shop. It had lots of problems with the engine.
My final recommendation: Buy something completely different.
Good luck!
It also came with Pirelli p6's, which aren't exactly cheap tires. I do admit that the sun visors are a bit cheap. My girl friend always complains that the mirror doesn’t come with a light so she can do her touch-ups of make up at night.
And the car came with leather, so I don't have that "hairball" effect. And the radio and pwr steering controls on the steering wheel is a plus.
If you're going to get a cheaper version of the cobalt, of course it won’t come with much of the good stuff. Even fully loaded, the car still sells at a good price. It’s a great car to own but my advice is...spend a little extra, for the extras.
PS: mosfetman - Please consider using punctuation. I wanted to read your post but it was nearly incomprehensible as I am unable to decipher a 300 hundred word sentence.
:sick:
CR had their big apology not to long ago about their outsourced child safety seat debockle. Seems the company that tested the seats gave 8 out of 11 bad ratings when it turns out their testing procedure was flawed.
It would follow CR when it comes to toasters, lawn mowers, or DVD's players, but for auto related information I would go to companies who that is their specialty like Car & Driver, Motor Trend, etc.
Chevrolet's recent dash glove box recall on the HHR because it may open during a crash is part of the reason why some cars/trucks don't rate as good with such minor part failure. It's not like the vehicle isn't going to start in the morning which some people corrulate with a reliability study when it has no barring. I will take a GM product against any vehicle made for longevity and the ability to get me to my destination any day.
The subscribers of CU tend to be more environmentally conscious than the average person and that may affect their opinions on cars and other products. Motor Trend and the other car magazines admire and test cars that I have no interest in for the most part -high powered sport coupes and so on. Their comment on the Cadillac DTS is 'Elvis would love it but he's dead". This is patently ridiculous on a car that gets 28-30 mpg on the road, is capable of hauling 5 or 6 people for days at a time with no back strain, and rides "like a Cadillac". They much prefer Corvettes and Challengers. I totally ignore car magazines and I learned my lesson on the Solara. If I can't drive the model of car before I order it I won't order it until I can.
As far as consumer reports : BUNK. They are human beings. They have biases just like any of us. While I agree the cobalt will fall apart on short order because it is the way gm (God's mistake) does things.... it sure isn't because CR said so!
Earlier this year I saw a first generation Cavaliar still on the road and running fine. It believe it was a 1984 model year.
In the Midwest where I live, Chevy is known as a long lasting car. Buy a Chevy and it may be your last car purchase. My 1992 S10 p/u is still running strong but is rusty.
http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/WebX/.ee9e813/1976