New to the forum, might be buying a 07 Cobalt Ls manual

BGreen

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Hello, I totaled my mom's car so i give her mine, Saturday i'll be looking at a black 07 Cobalt Ls manual with 156k miles for $1800 obo and i want to know what i should look out for. Seller claims to replace the clutch a year ago and oil change in November and only put about 50 miles since. its the 2.2l according to the vin, (L61 i think), first chevy since my dad's el camino when i was 9 so i know nothing about them, would be the newest car i bought behind my 04 galant.
 

SideShow Bob

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As with any used car purchase, check for fluid leaks before and after driving it. With a Cobalt and it’s associated recall for gas leaks, after driving check for gasoline odors in front and behind the drivers and passengers rear wheels, set the parking brake and out of gear and running while doing this, also look underneath for dripping gasoline.
When test driving accelerate to highway speed 65 or faster and radio off, you are checking for wobble, vibrations & unusual noises from the front end. Also drake hard at speed to see if your front discs are warped or suspension vibrates.
In a empty parking lot and at a safe speed do a steering wheel stop to stop (completely to one side then the other)
There should be no clunks, sticky spots or weird things happening. Check the air conditioning, heater and blower for functioning, when you first turn the key on with out stating you should not hear a clunk, clunk, clunk...... sounded you do it has a bad HVAC damper door motor driver, this is an expensive repair.
Check for loose and or miss-aligned front clips or rear plastic panels, an indication of a self repaired accident.
There are a multitude of other thing to check, and I am sure someone else will mention them.
And always remember “Let the buyer beware”.
And get any verbal Guarantee in writing and ask for any receipts for “replaced parts”.
 

BGreen

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Thank you, seller said they replace front bumper and driver side headlight due to the son scraping a brick wall, ill check for sign of a collision just in case. How would i check trans fluid?
 

SideShow Bob

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A manual trans/axle should have a fill plug somewhere, the gear lube should be at the fill plug level when the plug is removed.
 

BGreen

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Ok thank you, one last thing, is a 07 LS with 156k miles and with fresh clutch (a year old) and oil(6 months, 50 miles) worth $1800
 

SideShow Bob

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Do a car fax search for your local area to see what is valued at. And consider body, interior and drivability conditions. If you think it is worth, buy it.
 

1/4 million

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I have a 2008 LS coupe w/5 spd with 351809 miles. it has the original clutch, spark plugs and timing chain; it is worth more to me than $1800. I am afraid to buy a new car for fear it will not be as reliable as my cobalt. Now I would not claim that every Cobalt is worth that. But if the one you are looking at has good clean interior and exterior and has no signs of being flooded (look for rust under the seats or behind the dash, or look to see if the lights have water in them) Then it is probably worth it. Worst case you can get a used 2010 2.2l motor for about $400-$600
 

ChanChan

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I have a 2008 LS cobalt with 225,000.. im the original owner though so thankfully it has lasted this long. I take care of what the Lord blesses me with. Original timing chain, original clutch, original alternator on mines
 

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