1999 Chevrolet Malibu Base review from North America

Where do I start... I bought the car used. About a month after I purchased the car the alternator goes and the dealer wouldn't cover it. I should have known then that this car was going to be one big headache. Then two months after I purchased it the coolant light when off. So I filled it up with coolant. It went on every two months or so for the next year, then this past winter it got really bad. I was filling up the coolant every week. I have looked on many sites and read that this is a common problem with the Malibu and that it is the lower manifold gasket, which is a $1200 job just in labour. I have also had to replace the brakes, which are made completely wrong for the car. It should have a rounded edge on the inside of the brake pad, but instead it has a flat edge which rubs up against the rotor hub and makes a small rubbing noise. Then I had to replace the starter. I've now noticed that since I have put some sealant into my coolant system that I also have oil leaking into my coolant (Great, that's all I need). So now I have to get the head gasket fixed (it's a good thing I am friends with a mechanic) and soon before it blows. I've had to replace the tires, but that's to be expected. I've also had to replace the passenger side wheel bearing which isn't cheap because you have to buy the whole hub which is around $300, and now my other one is starting to go. I also have to get the strut mount fixed on the passenger side because it's decided that it wants to go now too. And don't let me forget the gas tank had to be replaced. The car is 5 years old and it needed a new gas tank already, give me a break. I had my Cavalier for 10 year and I never had to do any of these major repairs to it. It just goes to show you how bad manufacturing of cars are today. My Cavalier was a 94, and the Malibu is a 99. I have put more money into my Malibu in a year then I ever put into my Cavalier in the whole 10 years that I had it. Now I wish I would have kept the Cavalier. So far I have put about $3000 into the car and I've only had it for a little over a year, and I still have some major problems to fix on it. I still have a small coolant leak, the strut mount, and the head gasket to fix. Hopefully with the help of my boyfriend and my mechanic friend I should be able to save some money on labour because this car has definitely cost me way more than it's worth.

My comment about this car is don't buy it. It's a money pit and if I could go back and buy a car again I would have gone with a Honda or Mazda for sure. GM products just seem to be made too quickly and too poorly now a days and your more likely to put more money into them then their worth.