Mike The Canadian

Hahaha I remember seeing this earlier this year. Freaking hilarious. Don't we hall have a cousin Ravi with a Civic?

Couple of weekends ago I did the plugs & wires on the Malibu...boo V6 engines and FWD! Back plugs literally took me like 6X longer because of these almost inaccessible clips GM put in to hold the wires. This week and weekend, I took the side skirts off the Bu and went to town sanding down the rust, priming, painting and clearing all of the stuff. Certainly not an amazing job but the best you can do with aerosol cans I think! Next week I'm probably going to work on the right side and if I have time the yearly gas-cap rust because GM doesn't know how to properly drain the rain/water/gas that gets in there!

Well I'd certainly expect the low-level Cruze to do better the that. The ECO has proven in testing that it can go beyond 40 mpg. The automatic should get higher in my opinion. After a tuneup I got 35 mpg on a trip to/from buffalo this past weekend (In the 3100 Malibu)

Maybe it's an assembly line problem? These are the same people that were doing the Cavalier's and Cobalt's

My first question is how the hell do you keep it so damned clean? Each winter kills my Malibu a bit haha

holy smokes you certainly have to pay to play. Didn't sound that bad until I read the writeup! Certainly something you do over a period of months or years I suppose

Yeah I'm going to miss them too. There's actually a huge aftermarket for them; They call the 3500 the indestructible motor on there. Although over there they only really touch the non vvt (LX9) models. You'd be surprised what these motors can handle! Personally I see nothing wrong with a low output,high mileage motor that's rock solid reliable. Now you either have a moderately powered 4 cylinder or a very high powered 6 cylinder. It seems that there is no middle ground.

I heard something about the 2.5 (I got in late) Have they mentioned the output?

Ahh okay, thanks guys

Isn't this thing supposed to be unveiled today? I've been craving more photos!

No disrespect - but you don't "know"; you have the word a "someone" you brother 'used to work with's say-so. None taken. I said myself that this could be way off or not what the person in question was talking about. No disrespect - but you don't "know"; you have the word a "someone" you brother 'used to work with's say-so. But when my sisters other brothers wifes boyfriend who knows a guy in Jersey that has a cousin in Youngstown who knows a guy at the plant who heard from the union rep that there was an issue it has to be true. It is a little soon to cry the sky is falling. The relation is much closer than that and this is a trusted person in our circle. I already said what I'm saying isn't necessarily a fact; I don't want to go in-depth, this is the internet. I'm just saying GM is a company like any other; I just hope they aren't a company like Toyota with regards to this $h!. I seriously hope its not true personally but who the hell knows

I don't think this is an isolated incident. Someone my brother used to work with told him to stay away from the Cruze because of an "outstanding safety issue". He told my brother to stay away from 1st year Cruze's specifically even though the Cruze's manufatured later don't have the problem. He specifically said there is a safety issue with the car with something that WILL fail. They knew about it, whatever it was. If this wasn't it I can't really imagine what it would be. This is not BS on my part, I don't know if this is what the gentleman was talking about; all I know is that there is (was) something wrong with the car and GM knows. If GM knew about this I'd REALLY lose a lot of respect for the company, somebody could have been killed. I'm not accusing anyone of anything, just stating what I heard and it could easily be false because its he said she said type of garbage. Gm better fix this and better make sure it doesn't happen again. There's a distinct difference between a dash rattle, an engine failure and say...your freaking steering wheel falling off

A quieter sports car makes a better commuter car and long distance road trip car. The horrific seats (or so I've heard) probably limit the ZR-1s daily driver usability. Both are interesting cars, though..wouldn't kick either out of my garage.. I would certainly never own any of these for the purpose of being commuter cars. Nor would I take it on long distance road trips where I get to crap my pants at rock chips beating away at my hood and bumper. I personally can't afford either, one can dream

No offense but who brags about the decibel level a sports car being lower? Have you heard either the 911 or ZR1? I certainly LOVE hearing them, and the more I hear, the happier I am.

Have you checked the fuel pressure regulator? Do you have any idle or starting problems?

It could also be an engine or tranny mount going bad. Does it smooth out in park or neutral?

These Cavs are beasts...my brothers 2005 has 200K with nothing but oil changes, brakes and tires done! Hope you find your issue! A little suggestion from the grandam boards; Try not to let the fuel level get too low. The gas acts as a cooling medium to the fuel pump; so if your low on gas the fuel pump heats up for 2 reason: a: as mentioned above b: you know when your at the bottom of a McDonalds Coke? Its hard to get the last bit of coke? Essentially your giving the fuel pump a hard time in getting the last of the fuel. I try not to let my Malibu get below 1/4 tank (although I frequently do, I just try not to haha). Its not to say that draining it every time will cause your pump to go; but not letting it drain all the time will only help your cause.

I nominate dwightlooi!

To be honest, sitting in the passenger seat; it certainly didn't sound or feel like a turbo. I wasn't driving the car to feel any of the said "delay", but from my view there wasn't really any delay. However once again this isn't me driving and feeding the car inputs.

Thanks! For a base car I was pleasantly surprised with the options; I had no idea how little the base Corolla comes with. It's certainly more than livable. A bit of an update to this one folks. My buddy had a card from the autoshow as well. We went to another dealership and this time drove a 1.4 T. I didn't drive it but my buddy did; his family is actually going to be in the market in the next 10-36 months, depending on when their Corolla gives out. From the passenger seat, this car was still comfortable and quiet; even with the rear seat folded down and noise coming in from the trunk, its still quieter than most other cars. I felt that the 1.4 was far peppier than the 1.8; around town it seemed to get up to speed with some authority thanks to the low end torque. The mileage readout on this car was worse than the 1.8 we drove; this was 9.7 L/100 km, worse than my Malibu; however without driving one for say a week I can't make a proper judgment, it could easily be people test driving the car and beating the crap out of it. My buddy had many of the same comments I did with respect to the qualities of the car. He had one comment that really surprised me: "I can feel the turbo lag" the salesman commented that this isn't turbo lag; I can only guess that this is the transmission calibration that's been spoken about on this site in great detail. My buddy mentioned that when he hit it hard the car felt like it fell flat on its face before it really stated going. Can't really go more into this as we didn't talk about it in detail amongst each other or with the salesman. Here is where I became more impressed; we walked into the dealership and started talking numbers. A Cruze Lt with power doors, windows, mirrors, door locks, remote start, blue-tooth connectivity, USB aux input, remote start, cruise and power drivers seat came in at a mere $22 290. The Cruze tops out very easily, but such a low price for so much car here is fantastic! When my brother picked up his Cavalier I think it topped out at 21 000; yeah we got like 7 grand in rebates after that, but the msrp was close for much less car. This is especially impressive considering this is the 1.4 T we're talking about.

Well as a part of the autoshow GM was handing out brochures to take to the dealership to get 25 dollars in free gas and to test drive a Cruze. The heater core hoses in my Malibu were rotting out so I had to pass by the dealership anyway to pick up a couple of new ones. I got into a blue Cruze LS. The First thing I notice is plenty of interior space; much different than the last compact GM car I drove. My brother owns a Cavalier, and when I enter that car I'm touching the dashboard with my knees, the steering wheel etc etc (Its cramped!). This car felt much roomier, no intrusions from the dash, door, wheel etc. Outward visibility was great. The car came with power windows and automatic headlights; however, no power mirrors. This was one of my gripes; however its not exactly a high charge option. I pull out of the dealership and one of the first things I notice is the usual thud thud over the bumps is now a more refined sounding and feeling thump thump. The ride was firm yet smooth. The dealer encouraged me to push the envelope with respect to the handling limits of the car throughout the test drive. The car held corners great with minimal body roll; I especially loved the control over bumps on the curve; I wouldn't DARE try those things in the Malibu. The ride was very quiet throughout the entire trip; I certainly felt like I was driving a much more expensive car. Everything in the dash was laid out thoughtfully and easy to reach. The dash was of high quality and the fit and finish was superb. Steering feel was great throughout the entire drive at all speeds. I was a bit disappointed that the car was sitting at around 2500 RPM's at a mere 110 km/h; the Malibu sits around 1900 RPM's at this speed; I figured with a 6 speed it shouldn't be this high. The average mileage read out was also 9.1 L/100 km; the salesman assured me that the car starts from 99 and then works its way down. I attributed it to winter + not being broken in as well personally. That, and I wasn't necessarily to kind to the car as far as driving habits; doubt the other drivers were any better (although I never reached WOT). This was a great car and I would be happy to own one; it felt like I was in a much more expensive car than I was. My only gripe was the 1.8; I would have liked to have driven the 1.4 but that's not part of the test drive deal. The 1.8 under regular driving conditions is completely adequate; it never felt bad in and around town just driving normally. However when the salesman told me I could have at it, I buried the foot to around 1/2 or 3/4..I was very unimpressed. It felt breathless; the car certainly felt like it was more powerful than it is under normal driving conditions. When you get on it is when you realize how gutless the car really is. The 2.2 Ecotec is certainly more powerful, and it was certainly a far-cry form my Malibu. However the Corolla and civic aren't any better in base form and it will be competent enough for most drivers. People mention transmission "weirdness" with this car. I didn't really witness or experience anything that would turn me off of the car. There were times when slowing down to a stop where there was a weird "lull" as it downshifted; however nothing to turn me off of the car or think that something is wrong (maybe its because I've driven the Sebring and know what a real bad transmission really is?). The response from the transmission was also more than quick enough for me when I wanted to accelerate. Overall a great car and a good entry into the segment from GM. I was very impressed. I took the same route with my Malibu on the way home. I probably took the highway on ramp at half the speed and was able to merge at 120 km/h at about the same throttle positions in my Bu. The 3100 quickly roared into action and brought me up to a nice speed which made me smile and be happy to be back in the Malibu. However as she shifted into overdrive and the engine quieted down, I was now missing the quiet refined space known as the Cruze interior. The autoshow brochure with the free gas and test drive is a great way to get people into showrooms. It's certainly great because who doesn't like free gas? People are motivated to stop by and go for a drive.

A cool, I had no idea; although I don't have anything anywhere near that new; its good to note and know as I'll be in the market sooner than later.

Well folks, as I do every year I went to the metro convention center in downtown Toronto to check out the CIAS. I'm sorry I have no pics this year, as I wanted to save time and to be honest I've never looked at pictures after taking them; so this will be soley text based: Firstly, the disappointment: No test drive program from GM this year as in last year; last year I got to test drive a Lacrosse CXS, GREAT experience! Although I don't blame GM here, it was just fun. Negatives: -The old Aveo was there, why oh why GM would you do this when the Sonic is right next to it? -The Orlando looked and felt cheap...I guess that's because it is, but still. -Anything Scion, these things looked cheap, felt cheap and were simply not worth the money. -The "New" Corolla...wow.... -The "New" Civic -Regal, sorry but for the price I'd take the Lacrosse, maybe I'm just old-school like that -Chrysler Seb....I mean 200 Positives: -The Sonic, great for its perceived price-point -The Cruze was wonderful inside and out, the trunk really impressed me and my buddy (Corolla owner) was very impressed with the rear seat room for the size of car -The new Accent -The new Elantra looked great -Verano looked great -Charger, lookes great, roomy and nice engine -Ditto the 300, looks very upscale! Sorry if this was very brief, just felt I'd summarize a couple of things and what I thought; if anyone wants specifics into why feel free to ask. One thing I really liked from GM was they had a room upstairs; if you present your GM keys, its your ticket into the room and you get free beverages, coffee as well as tags to put on your keys. You register it online and if you lose your keys they can be returned to you or GM gives you a new set (There's gotta be a catch here, your telling me GM will give me a new ignition cylinder, keys etc etc if I lose my keys and no one returns them?). Either way, it was nice that they made us feel special. They also gave me a card to go my local dealership and its a ticket to test drive a cruze ls (ls only I think?) as well as a 25 dollar gas card! Great stuff!

Another thing to take into account is the temperature I think. I was averaging 28 mpg in the summer; ever since it got cold I'm getting around 21 mpg..that or something is wrong with the Bu. Given that it's probably could there (considering you mentioned snow) that doesn't sound too bad. How many miles on the engine? If it's not broken in, it's bound to get better

I think this car will do fine if priced correctly. Specifically, it would be great in Canada. I know many people who bought a CSX (and before the CSX the Acura EL which resembled a Civic even more closely than the CSX does) just because they wanted something "better" than the civic, even if it really doesn't offer much more; where this car really does offer more than the Cruze.