2009 Chevy Cobalt LS Coupe XFE

[cfg83]

Jammer -

Yup, Saturn used that very same Fiero plastic panel tech in their design.

CarloSW2

[Jammer]

Frank: Now I wold not go as far as what you said. I got a feeling you have been around hills and mountains... But you had a very valid point. Normally, it would seem that people like us doing every trick in the book to save every drop of fuel that we can would never need to worry about speeding. But, as my story shows, I learned just yesterday that it's all to easy to gain too much speed down a steep incline and get clocked by the police, and I really doubt they would buy the argument of saving gas. And if a cop even suspected a driver turned off their engine on purpose while driving I bet these state boys would not hesitate to find a law to write a ticket up. That's a big reason I make darn sure all my lights are on at night time when in EOC, even a blink of the lights might give the false impression that you are trying to get someone's attention- just like driver's that blink their brights when they are driving the opposite direction past ya, most figure there is trouble ahead of some kind. It's just a situation on the road that is best avoided.

cfg83: I had NO IDEA about the same plastic molding ideas and whatever being used in The Saturns! I have often wondered why GM never used the same idea for other cars, because it was a good idea when used on a well constructed frame. It was the small oil pan that got them in legal trouble (not on the non-GTs 4-bangers, they drove slow but fine except in bad weather). The only problem I had with my 85 fiero was the plastic still had a plastic look to it. I have pictures, heck my friend and I even made a professional VIDEO of the car to a song of (*gasp-cough*) Phil Collins. My video engineer friend worked at a large TV station and we could borrow their expensive video gear long before camcorders became popular. So I can look at the video and the photos and my car never had that waxed down glowing look of modern cars. But I bet they can do it now with newer technology and better paints etc.

One of the biggest drawbacks for me on the Fiero GT was not only the price of car insurance costing me MORE than my actual car payment, but the fact the car could not drive on snow one bit- I lived in Michigan, it snows there!! Even in heavy rain this car would spin off the road. I had many close calls with it due to lack of traction of the tires. It seemed the car was only good for nice dry weather days.

[Unforgiven]

Nice to see you getting good numbers on the XFE. Sad thing is GM should have been able to make the car do even better. (see good stats on Impala, a much larger, heavier, auto trans vehicle that I have had good luck with when I drive it).

I had seen a G-5 w/manual here in town, but not able to get it. Other car I am tempted about is the 6sp 4cyl Malibu which shows some good numbers. I miss having a stick to stir as I drive though...lol. Good luck with your XFE, and happy fuel savings.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by Unforgiven

Nice to see you getting good numbers on the XFE. Sad thing is GM should have been able to make the car do even better. (see good stats on Impala, a much larger, heavier, auto trans vehicle that I have had good luck with when I drive it).

I had seen a G-5 w/manual here in town, but not able to get it. Other car I am tempted about is the 6sp 4cyl Malibu which shows some good numbers. I miss having a stick to stir as I drive though...lol. Good luck with your XFE, and happy fuel savings.

Yea, thanks man.

I think most of us can agree that historically General Motors has been likely the SLOWEST company to make changes in the entire world! We HOPE that the NEW GM will finally get it right, because if they don't the American taxpayer will have one giant debtor on the hook for more than there worth. Chrysler went through something almost the same in the 80's, as what GM has been though in 2009, and they managed to pay off every cent of their loans, with interest if I'm not mistaken. I remember people then saying it was a government bailout and they could never repay their loan etc... But they did, and they did it before their due-date! But today's economy is a lot worse for most everyone. It's amazing how political it can get when discussing the taxpayer loaning money out to a company many feel will never be able to repay. I like to think they can and they will, mainly because I have read every page of their 2009 UAW-GM Contract SUMMARY and if they keep on this road I feel that just maybe the company has seen the light and will pull through this alright. From what I read EVERYONE at GM is taking hits, some people taking very large hits, such as the UAW and the Bond Holders. Then because of politics the previous CEO's head was demanded before any government loan was approved, thus re-enforcing the longtime held belief that GM has been mis-managed for many decades.

No doubt the 2010 Malibu and Impala are two of the best cars they have made in a long time. I came close to getting either one myself, but I figured I was placing MPG in the top Three things I wanted in a car. After that was when I read stories of other drivers getting 44 miles and more per gallon in the Cobalt XFE's and it really help sell the car to me.

In mid 2010 The Lordstown Ohio plant is expected to convert over to building a car that appears a lot like the Cobalt, and it's name will be: The Cruise. The Cruise as told by Chevy, will get an EPA of 41MPG (or it might of been higher) and this would place the burning car in the same ballpark as the Ford Focus HYBRID. At next comes The plug-in charge car called Chevy's The Volt which is very controversial and Chevy makes a claim of 230 MPG. It is a reverse Hybrid in that it's primary engine is electric running off of a sole battery. As the batter gets depleted a very small gasoline burning engine charges the battery back up. Over night it is supposed to be able to take an 8-hour charge, and this is where the math gets real fuzzy. On The Volt's own site they claim the over night charge can cost 75 cents to over $2.50.$2.75 a full charge from 110 volts AC and next the car can drive for a full 40 miles before it ever needs the gasoline engine to kick in for a charge. Now take those numbers......

If it really cost the amount they claim for a full charge, it is very close to what a gallon of gas has been selling for in this part of the country for months. That comes to 40 miles a gallon- because if you pay as much for the charge as a gallon of gas and you go 40 miles before it starts getting a dead battery, then you have drove for the same, or close to the cost of a gallon of gas that took you 40 miles. Somehow Chevy claims it gets 230MPG. I dont know, maybe if you drive MORE than 40 miles a day the recharging from the gas motor reduces the cost, we will have to wait.

But, look for The Cruise by Chevy next mid year. It might be closer to the car your thinking GM can build. Only time will tell.

[cfg83]

Jammer -

Originally Posted by Jammer

...

cfg83: I had NO IDEA about the same plastic molding ideas and whatever being used in The Saturns! I have often wondered why GM never used the same idea for other cars, because it was a good idea when used on a well constructed frame. It was the small oil pan that got them in legal trouble (not on the non-GTs 4-bangers, they drove slow but fine except in bad weather). The only problem I had with my 85 fiero was the plastic still had a plastic look to it. I have pictures, heck my friend and I even made a professional VIDEO of the car to a song of (*gasp-cough*) Phil Collins. My video engineer friend worked at a large TV station and we could borrow their expensive video gear long before camcorders became popular. So I can look at the video and the photos and my car never had that waxed down glowing look of modern cars. But I bet they can do it now with newer technology and better paints etc.

One of the biggest drawbacks for me on the Fiero GT was not only the price of car insurance costing me MORE than my actual car payment, but the fact the car could not drive on snow one bit- I lived in Michigan, it snows there!! Even in heavy rain this car would spin off the road. I had many close calls with it due to lack of traction of the tires. It seemed the car was only good for nice dry weather days.

I always loved the look of the Fiero but it didn't meet my MPG standard and it was out of production by the time I could afford a new car. I heard that the engine fires were fixed but the stigma was there to stay (ha ha, Fiero *does* mean fire, after all). It was a 2 seater with a 2600+ curb weight. It was definetly safe, but too heavy for good MPG. My 4 seater is 2400 lbs.

Autoline on Autoblog with John McElroy — Autoblog

The cars themselves weren't that great. They were designed using a space frame construction covered with plastic body panels, a technique that General Motors had perfected with the Pontiac Fiero. The idea was that the plastic panels were so much cheaper to tool that Saturn would be able to do more frequent styling changes and that would keep it ahead of the competition. But that's not what happened.

There's another frequent complaint about the gaps in the plastic being too wide, which implies low quality. But the plastic expands/contracts more than metal, so large gaps were needed.

My hope was that the Kit Car crowd would adopt Saturns the way they adopted the Fiero, but it never happened.

CarloSW2

[Nevyn]

Thanks for the info as far as cold MPG. The car I was in SAID the tires were 31/32 front, 28/30 rear. I bet that made a big difference.

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by Nevyn

Thanks for the info as far as cold MPG. The car I was in SAID the tires were 31/32 front, 28/30 rear. I bet that made a big difference.

Nevyn: You may find this interesting. It was about 50 degrees today when I traveled a short distance on a 70MPH interstate, from a cold engine. I had the chance to run in EOC going east and keep the speed around 60, so I did that for a mile or so. Then after I picked up my antibiotics for a bad tooth I promptly took a lesser traveled road home, some would call it a shortcut full of hills and curves. My Avg Gas MPG is NOW 1/10 higher, and this is going back to Day#1 of me picking up the car brand new at the dealership with 25 AVG MPG on the odometer. My Tire pressure needs to be raised a couple pounds now the colder weather is slowly creeping in. My tires were from 37 to 39 PPSI. I prefer to have them at 40ppsi cold.

Please jump up a page or two to see my most recent AVG MPG, which is a little bit better than this one.

Also, please forgive the dust on my dashboard. I do not smoke and I clean my car almost everyday. I could not see the dust until the picture was taken. The picture reflects my all time high AVG Mileage from the day I first bought the car last July and doing every trick I know to raise the mileage.:


45 and 1/2 miles per gallon. I must tell you this last tank of gas sure has lasted me a long time. My goal is still to get an AVG MPG of over 50 MPG, and I have yet to get my first oil change, roate my tires, and some tell me the car will get even better mileage after 10,000 miles- I sure hope it does!

[MadisonMPG]

What is your trip like? (i.e. is it good for MPG or bad?)

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by MadisonMPG

What is your trip like? (i.e. is it good for MPG or bad?)

Some parts are bad, such as any part on the 70MPH zone- but sometimes it saves many miles than the options offer, and large parts of my trips involve rolling hills, some will go down and down to the west, while going east will often go up and up. I live in the foot-hills, which is generally a higher elevation than when I drive to the larger cities to the bluegrass areas in the central part of the state. I visit friends that live at the very top of the highest mountain of this county, I lose a bit driving uphill, but it seems I gain all that back with a little more to add to the plus side on my way back down... go figure, I can not explain that. Typically I tend to avoid many red lights and stop signs. I go out of my way to try to lay out a route in which I do not have to stop for many red lights or stop signs, and if it is a red light I use the hypermiling skill of slowing way down in advance of the red light so by the time I do make it to the intersection the light is green and I can roll on thought without needing to stop.

But then the curves are fairly bad here so one has to take into account what is a fast speed, given the weather to take certain curves. I find a GPS is a big help when I am driving in an area I am not sure of, especially after dark.A GPS can be a great aid in adding to your knowledge of timing your hypermilling skills, and I feel it deserves it's own sticky thread. Sometimes I do not know how the road lies ahead of a curve because I can not see it yet, one quick look at my GPS and I know if I can start some hypermiling skills after the curve or wait for a better time. It's difficult to put into words, but I find a GPS helps to save fuel in many ways.

Tonight it is in the 40's here and my cold tire pressure is about 37 on average- I plan to add 3 pounds in each tire maybe tomorrow.

May I ask what sort of drives you make in your car?

[gone-ot]

...I know it's a "...barn door's already open..." statement, but IF ONLY:

1) GM had had the good sense to implement the XFE option a year earlier, BEFORE things went to hell in a hand basket!

2) if NOW they'd make it applicable to automatic cars too!

3) duh! GM duh!