Chevy, Ford rate #1, #2 among 2009 midsize affordable cars

[Casual Fan]

Best Affordable Midsize Cars - Best Cars & Trucks - U.S. News Rankings and Reviews

Malibu 1, Fusion 2.

If GM can hang on (I think Ford will make it)...they've got some good vehicles out there.

 

[limegrass69]

I think building the better car was the easy part. The hard part is to convince the car buyer that the quality is indeed better, and undo all of the damage done in the mind of the consumer.

Companies like Honda and Toyota have done a great job building a reputation as quality car builders. With a few exceptions, Detroit has more or less put out sh*t since the 80s. It takes time to recover from that.

I sincerely hope Detroit pulls it off!!

 

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

I really like my Pontiac G5.

 

[semipenguin]

I sincerely hope Detroit pulls it off!!

I do, too. They need to work hard with the union, too...

I really like my Pontiac G5.

I like Pontiac. I hope they manage to keep the brand...

 

[Vargas]

My company car that I've had for the past 6 or 7 months is the 09 Malibu and I do have to say it is a really nice car.

It is only a 4 cyl but you'd never know it.

Also, on the highway I can get about 31-32 mpg. Around town I usually get about 22-24.

Can't argue with that.

 

[flap_jackson]

If I was looking for a car in this class, the Malibu would be right up there... That's the car that convinced me American cars weren't that bad... expecially from Chevy:bigthumbup:

 

[HecticArt]

That's good news for sure.
I hope they can come out with some good hybrids / electrics pretty quickly too.

I've always had great luck with my Fords, and I'd dedicated to buying American as long as I can.

 

[TX WJ]

I have had both a Malibu and Fusion as company cars. The Fusion was ten times the car the Malibu was. My Malibu had steering issues (as did several of my co workers cars) and a electric gremlin that they could not find. If you did not start the car for 2 days it was dead, better keep jumper cables handy.

This time I did not go the company car route and bought a car instead. I bought a Camry XLE V-6 (my first Toyota) and it has been great. It is quite, rides well and the 260+ HP V-6 is very fast. I have gotten 28.12 MPG over the 38,000 plus miles I have put on it so far.

Ford wil be fine, they build good cars. I have never been a fan of GM, but I wish them the best.

 

[Jon]

I wouldn't mind having the new F-150 personally.

 

[Vargas]

I have had both a Malibu and Fusion as company cars. The Fusion was ten times the car the Malibu was. My Malibu had steering issues (as did several of my co workers cars) and a electric gremlin that they could not find. If you did not start the car for 2 days it was dead, better keep jumper cables handy.

This time I did not go the company car route and bought a car instead. I bought a Camry XLE V-6 (my first Toyota) and it has been great. It is quite, rides well and the 260+ HP V-6 is very fast. I have gotten 28.12 MPG over the 38,000 plus miles I have put on it so far.

Ford wil be fine, they build good cars. I have never been a fan of GM, but I wish them the best.

Not sure what year your Malibu was but I haven't had any of these problems with the 2009 version. But this is the only Malibu, actually the only Chevy I've ever had.

My other choice for company car was a Ford Fusion and I looked at it and it was really just too small. The 09 Malibu has a bigger trunk (important) and is just a slightly bigger car.

 

[SpaceKitty]

I really like my Pontiac G5.

It's basically the same car as the Cobalt. I have a Cobalt SS/SC and a Cobalt LT.

 

[MAJ Badmotherfarker]

American car companies still have a ways to go to convince me. I've had waaay too many issues in the past. A buick that blew up at 80,000 miles, a ford at 100,000 miles and a whole litany of electrical issues in just about every American car I've owned.

 

[IdRatherBeSkiing]

American car companies still have a ways to go to convince me. I've had waaay too many issues in the past. A buick that blew up at 80,000 miles, a ford at 100,000 miles and a whole litany of electrical issues in just about every American car I've owned.

My G5 came with a 160,000 km warrentee (100,000 miles). If you had bought the same Buick today, that blow up would be under warrenttee (assuming GM survives of course).

 

[Casual Fan]

One of the volunteers here at my office just bought a new Ford Escape hybrid, complete with all kinds of tax credits. Good time to buy.

No one should fear GM, Chrysler, or Ford not backing up warranties. Even if the company dies, somebody will buy the guts of the business and keep things going. (And not have to deal with all the union bullshit, the bondholders, and the pension funds. )

 

[TheScionicMan]

Backing the warranty isn't my concern, it's having to use it. I need my car everyday and don't really have time (or $$) to spend screwing around at the dealership service dept, and getting rides or rentals, etc. My Scion and my last 3 Toyotas combined have spent less time there than my wife's Dodge van, and its only got 44K on it.

Let's see if they can prove it with sales numbers, or if this is like a movie getting great critical acclaim but flopping at the Box Office...

 

[HecticArt]

My Ford is 10 years old, and (knock on wood) I haven't had any serious problems with it. (I hope I'm not jinxing myself) No tows, no major repairs for 75,000 miles. I've had tie rods done once, serpentine belt once, breaks once, and there was one pipe on my exhaust that I just had replaced the second time, but the main exhaust system is still factory.

From what I've heard, Ford's quality has only gotten better since I bought mine.

I'm only holding out for a new car till the American manufacturers are doing better hybrid/electrics. I can get 32 or 33 mpg on the highway right now, if I mind my lead foot, so I don't see the point in going backwards.

 

[Casual Fan]

I'd love to hold out for an all-electric. At worst, I'm buying a hybrid. Nissan has an electric that gets 100 miles to the charge right now coming to the US in 2010, and that range may increase by roll-out time. Chevy's Volt gets 40 miles to the charge on all-electric, but it's actually a hybrid that only engages the gas engine to recharge the battery, not power the vehicle.

Scionic: I agree, the proof will be in actual repairs, not projected. JD Powers rates the new GM and Ford cars highly in initial quality for what it's worth.

 

[semipenguin]

Looks like Pontiac is getting the axe...:shock:

GM to pull the plug on Pontiac car brand - Apr. 24, 2009

 

[TheScionicMan]

They need to trim the overhead and selling the same thing with 3-4 different brand names doesn't do that. When I worked for a Jeep/Eagle dealership, they had a car called the Eagle Summit. It could also be found as the Dodge Colt, Plymouth Colt and from the actual manufacturer as the Mitsubishi Mirage. The cars rolled off the boat in a generic state and they came with an emblem pack and instructions on where the nameplates had to be stuck on. No difference in the cars except the price...

 

[HecticArt]

My bet is that the couple of good selling models that they have will make it over to the GM label and the rest will disappear.