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Does the Pioneer make that much of a difference? The stock Delco's are usually pretty good.
How does the Cobalt handles in snow driving? Might buy a "coupe" LT next year. When winter season arrives, you drive on 4 seasons tires or change for winter tires? Good traction in snow? The car's ground clearance is not to low for big snow storms?
I like the looks and performance of the Cobalt but its when winter comes along what will it be like. Need someone with winter experience with a Cobalt.
It's all about personal preference and is only useless for those that have no use for it.
Not even a month later, and the smell is starting to return.
Is there a better fix for this? I don't remember seeing anyplace in the sales literature or owner's manual that the air conditioning would require this type of maintenance once or more a year, and I surely don't want to be paying for evaporator deodorizing every summer for as long as I own the car. My Uplander is three years older and shares the same garage space and does not do this at all.
Let me suggest some things to check, because I can tell you have tried to analyze where things have gone wrong.
Are you in a relatively humid climate? I'm not, but I started running the blower on high with the AC compressor off the last couple of minutes driving before I parked the car. I sprayed Febreeze into the air intake with the blower on. I sprayed Lysol (the smell for a few days was oppressive) in the intake.
I parked the car outside with the sun shining hard on the windshield and firewall area during hot season with the windows open some. I hoped the heat would dry up stuff. I also leave windows open when parking in the garage. I love opening the windows during dry season and letting the air on a windy day blow through the heater box and the windows to dry out things.
Does the AC drip readily on humid days? Or is the water being held back by something in the drain tube out the bottom of the AC box?
Are you in an area where tree leaves, needles, maple flower bits, or other organic material gets into the cowl area and into the intake? I suspect the problem is not material on the AC evaporator tubes, but rather is organic material and moisture elsewhere inside the box.
In an HHR discussion someone mentioned a problem with an area of the air intake having a plastic cover that lets water leak into the heater if it warps or something. This water caused the resistor pack for heater speed control and the blower motor to go bad. I have been tempted to take the cowl off my Cobalt to see where this area is. I wonder if that cover gives visual access to get closer to spray mildewicides and other things more directly into the box.
My suggestion to you would be try some sprays that suggest they kill mildews. Leave windows open. Park in wind (I left windows open on the lee side so that the suction would pull air through the AC box. Leave in hot sun to try to dry area.
I'll post the link when I can find the post.
Edit: found it. http://townhall-talk.edmunds.com/direct/view/.f1d1639/0#MSG0
Notice in the discussion it says that the water hits the cabin air filter. A wet filter would be a great place for fungus et al to rot and give a smell. Did your scent abate with the new filter for a while?
Have you checked the floor mats for moisture?
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
I am from GM Customer Service. Can you please email more information about your concern with your vehicle, so I can look into the situation further? You can access my email by clicking on my name. Thank you,
Mariah GM Customer Service
If you find a resolution from your discussions with Mariah, please report back to those of us reading here what you learned? Please?
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
Your dealer would be best to figure out and explain why this is happening. I would recommend speaking with them.
Christina
GM Customer Service
I see a 100K/5yr powertrain warranty, 150,000 MILES
15-Year Emission Select State Component Ltd Wty*, 150,000 MILES
15-Year PZEV Emission Limited Warranty*, and a 150,000 MILES
15-Year Emission Limited Warranty listed in my On-Star list of warranties.
I would ask the dealer if that is a covered item. The owner manual may explain more of what is covered under each of these warranties.
2014 Malibu 2LT, 2015 Cruze 2LT,
between this car and my chevy venture, to Ford or Dodge I will go!
thanks for the replies, I'm on my own with this.
2010 Chevrolet Cobalt LT Sedan – Purchased new August 2010
End of June 2011 we started to have a fowl interior smell. For the next 2 weeks we tried Frebreeze, car deodorizers and boxes baking soda under the front seat. Did not help.
Complained to the dealer and made an appointment to take the car in for inspection.
July 12, 2011 we dropped the car off for the dealer to take a look first thing the next morning.
In the morning the dealer took trunk and back seat apart to check for smell then Ozone procedure was done on the car.
Picked car up before service closed on July 13, 2011.
The smell was worse, not only was there the smell that had been stirred up but also the smell of the Ozone? This did tone down a little after about a week, the smell was still there.
I reported this to the dealer smell was still present; August 10, 2011 they told me they would check with GM. Turns out they had to order a special deodorizer kit from GM.
Returned the car to the dealer August 19, 2011 for first kit cleaning. # 10953503 -*80c Picked car up same day.
The smell was worse, not only was there the smell that had been stirred up but also the smell of the cleaning kit. This did tone down a little after about a week, the smell was still there.
Shortly after this I received an online survey from GM asking about my last visit. All the questions as usual were staff and facility related. In the comment box I asked why they never ask questions about the vehicle. I mentioned that I was very unhappy with my stinking fowl smelling Cobalt. Shortly after I received a call from GM customer service.
Discussed the problem, made arrangements to take the car back for another cleaning.
Returned the car to the dealer September 16, 2011 for second kit cleaning. # 10953503 -*80c
I received a message from the GM Rep a few days after a cleaning asking how the car was and each time I would wait about 2 weeks to call back. I wanted to give ample time to see if they had fixed the problem. They haven’t.
Between Sept. 16 and Oct 4, 2011 I was told by both the dealer’s service advisor and GM’s customer service rep that the next step would be REMOVE THE DASH.
I told both; I did not like the idea because it wouldn’t go back together the same way. I was assured it would and I agreed.
On October 4, 2011 the dealer removed the dash and replaced the core, also cleaned with third cleaning kit # 10953503 - *80c. Found nothing.
Also replaced cabin hepa filter. I paid.
I received a message from the GM Rep a few days after a cleaning asking how the car was and each time I would wait about 2 weeks to call back. I wanted to give ample time to see if they had fixed the problem. They haven’t.
Guess what, I was right. They didn’t put the dash back together properly.
I picked the car up before service closed, same day. I couldn’t leave the dealers lot, I had to return to the service area, wipers and heater did not work. A few days later I was vacuuming the vehicle and found a trim washer meant to stop a screw from going through plastic trim and a short bolt with its own washer!!! along with noticing the steering wheel had not been put back level.
When I mentioned the steering wheel to the service advisor he told me I was wrong because the steering wheel could only be put on one way due to the design of the shaft and steering wheel. I do understand the concept and told him I would re-check. It’s off, 22-23 degrees low on the right side
Arrangements were made to have a dealer’s tech. drive the car for 4 days Oct. 20 – 24, 2011 to check the smell. The dealer ended up cleaning the car with 2 different kits # 88861437 and 992878 - *80c
GM rep called, I only waited a week to call back. I called on November 1, 2011 a left a message, I want something done. On November 2, 2011 GM Rep called me back, I said no more cleanings, and they hadn’t fixed a thing. I want out of the vehicle. The GM Rep said they would check with management.
November 4, 2011, GM Rep calls back and offered us $750.00; I was told they might be able to get us $1000.00. I had already figured out it would cost us 10,000 to 15,000 to get out of the car (depending on trade-in value). My parting remarks to the GM Rep, I don’t think all the chemicals, ozone and the moldy mildew smell was good for our health.
Things changed after mentioning the chemicals and ozone.
Had to keep calling to get a return call GM Rep.
At the dealership, everyone was really nice, almost too nice, and as you can see from below, told to say and do nothing.
In mid October when I realized GM wasn’t going to be able to fix the car I mentioned to the lady in the cashiers office that I thought I was missing an invoice, she offered to print them all off going back to July 12-13, being a nice guy I said I would let her know which one I was missing, stating it was a waste of her time and paper to print them all. In mid November when I asked to get a copy of the July 13, 2011 invoice I was told no paper work had been created so there was nothing to print.
Funny how I have the invoice #
THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME I WENT ON-LINE, TYPED IN “SMELLY COBALT” AND WAS I SHOCKED.
GM has had this problem with the Cobalt since the first model year. 2005. Yet both GM and the Dealer led me to believe they hadn’t heard of the problem.
A few days later it dawned on me, the car has 35,000 km’s of bumper to bumper warranty remaining, this is their problem and they should fix it.
Called the GM Rep. and left a message, we want the car fixed if GM doesn’t want to help us out of the car. 1 week went by no answer, called again and left message, it took over 2 weeks to get an answer, the excuse they used, voice mail was down for over 2 weeks!!!
At that time I was told I would have to make the car available so a GM person could look at it. On December 13, 2011 car was left over night so they could look at in the next day, Dec 14th. I thought it would be an engineer, turned out it was the dealers Rep.
On December 20, 2011 I was told by GM the file was closed and throughout this 5 month ordeal not one person from the dealership or the Rep himself smelled anything.
Well, my wife has 2 friends; one refuses to ride in the car because of the smell, and the other starts to gag and would throw up if she stayed in the car.
Plus my neighbor is a license mechanic and new the first time he smelled it what it was. Of course there can be a number of reasons causing it.
Since the arrival of the cold weather the smell has definitely eased, since December 20th we’ve had 3 warm spells a day or so long and each time the smell starts to return, this leads me to believe when the warm weather returns so will the smell.
And that’s where it stands.
I do have a number of questions for anyone who may be able help.
1. What is the pro
thinking of getting dealer down to $8,500. what do you all think. carfax report said everything was ok.
thanks