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Picture Information
URL: http://riceornot.ricecop.com/?auto=94690
Submitted by: DiRF
Comments: 18  (Read/Post)     Favorites: 0  (View)
Submitted on: 04-22-2016
View Stats Category: Car
Description:
My new job includes a "general use" car for anyone in my department... I've used it for a few mail runs and a trip to the City's wastewater treatment plant so far...
http://photo.ricecop.com/pics/ccc02.jpg

KW: Chevrolet Malibu


   Comments

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#1
4-22-2016 @ 08:33:52 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
I know this gen Malibu gets a lot of flack, compared to the previous generation... I actually have no experience with the generation prior to this, so this car seems decent enough. The driver's compartment does feel a little cramped, though... and some of the materials may be "soft touch" but they look cheap as hell.

When I did an internship for this City ~5-6 years ago, their "general use" car was a decade-old base Dodge Caravan that was falling apart. This is obviously a massive step up.

The Fusion next to it isn't the City's. It's for the Sheriff's Precinct on the opposite side of the parking lot. (The City disbanded their police force in the late '70s and has been contracting with the county for local law enforcement ever since)

Our department also has access to another City vehicle, a base Jeep Patriot... it's meant for another department, but we have a spare set of keys for it. I doubt I'll ever have the opportunity to drive it.


#2
4-22-2016 @ 09:42:37 PM
Posted By : ricerocketboy Reply | Edit | Del
#1, How tall are you? I'm short, and I found the drivers' area a bit too cramped, even for me. My biggest ergonomic complaint was rearward visibility. Biggest actual complaint? The car isn't better than the model it replaced.

#3
4-22-2016 @ 09:48:20 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
Oh God, yeah, the rearward visibility... I swear that tiny rear window is warped, as well.

I'm 6' even, but with a long torso. Headroom is fine... but I don't like being "cocooned"... the Mazda2 has a surprisingly airy passenger compartment.


#4
4-22-2016 @ 09:52:58 PM
Posted By : ricerocketboy Reply | Edit | Del
#3, My problem with this, and the last-generation Grand Prix is the fact that car gets taller as you move back. If it had a sloped trunk, it would be fine. Or at least, a lower trunk.

#5
6-22-2016 @ 06:36:32 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
I've now taken it on two 2+ hour round trips... the driver's seat sucks, and the ergonomics are way too much on the "cocoon" side for my tastes... it has a slot in the console for a smartphone, but it's far too shallow to allow for stability; the phone does better in the cupholder. The infotainment system is alright... not the best graphics. The front airdam is too low, it scrapes on the curb whenever leaving a parking lot.

That said, I love the functionality of the cruise control and the sound deadening is fantastic.


#6
1-19-2017 @ 05:25:47 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
So, apparently, there's a reason why we went with the Malibu... we have an employee at City Hall who is exceedingly tall. Even with my tall torso, I have to raise the seat up to be at a comfortable height... if I get into the car after this guy drives it, it feels like I'm falling into a cavern.

#7
4-21-2018 @ 08:56:42 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
#1, Driven the Patriot a few times... it's actually surprisingly pleasant to drive... but, yeah, definitely feels, looks and sounds extremely cheap in every regard. But not to where it's "bad" to drive.

#8
9-13-2018 @ 11:03:42 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
...and the Malibu has been loaned to a different department that has had their own "fleet" thinned out a bit... but this now means I'm regularly driving the "backup" vehicle...

...which is a 2016 Ford Focus Electric. It's... different, but not terribly so. The "brake off" forward movement that replicates the feel of an automatic is tuned pretty well, the brakes feel relatively normal and "foot off gas" deceleration feels pretty normal, too. Thought driving an EV would be a radical change.

The one thing to get used to... the IMMEDIATE nature of the power when you press the gas. Not good when pulling out of a parking lot with a gravel-strewn entrance/exit.


#9
9-13-2018 @ 11:05:37 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
#5, Well, the airdam is no longer a problem... because it's no longer there. Too many scrapes and it started falling apart... so we just removed it entirely. Not the front bumper, just the matte black airdam.

#10
9-14-2018 @ 01:10:17 AM
Posted By : wannabemustangjockey  Reply | Edit | Del
#8, Focus do hug burnout!

#11
6-26-2019 @ 11:13:51 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
...and I've driven a few other vehicles from the fleet in recent months... a '12 Chevy Colorado and an '06 Ford F-250 Super Duty... Colorado has lived a hard life, and the F-250 was just flat-out scary to drive, especially with my lack of depth-perception.

Our fleet recently expanded with the addition of two 2019 Toyota RAV4 hybrids... doubt I'll get a chance to drive either in the near future; pretty much to be used by departmental directors and inspectors that are in the field most of the day.


#12
6-29-2019 @ 05:11:32 AM
Posted By : ricerocketboy Reply | Edit | Del
Speaking of how new cars drive versus their predecessors.

The new RAV4 is really nice. Only other one I drove was a first year of last restyle 2WD and it was slow as shit. New one feels solid, and drives better.


#13
12-11-2019 @ 11:50:13 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
http://photo.ricecop.com/pics/cityhallvehicles.jpg We have quite a motley crew of vehicles. I've also now driven the Silverado which COMPLETELY surprised and impressed me. That thing is niiiiice to drive. Still haven't driven the RAV4, and the newer F-150 belongs to another department, which, for certain legal and financial reasons, no other department is allowed to use.

#14
5-20-2021 @ 07:56:42 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
Well, from what I understand, this car is now borked. They've been recently eyeing more "green" cars for the fleet, so there's a chance this thing will get replaced with a Leaf or a Bolt.

#15
6-26-2021 @ 10:50:03 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
#14, Spoke too soon. No longer borked. The department that oversees the fleet hired a new admin assistant last year. She had experience as a fleet manager for a much MUCH larger organization, and has straightened out maintenance and repairs across the entire organization. This car essentially got a partial engine rebuild, and everything else freshened-up and/or replaced as needed.

I trust this new person in charge of the fleet... and I'm glad I do, as I'm taking it on a 400-mile round trip this week.


#16
6-27-2021 @ 07:24:52 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
#15, Spoke too soon too soon. I, uh... made it on the first leg, but the car is still, indeed, fucked. Not looking forward to the trip back in a few days.

Check engine light came on, and the engine now stumbles at low revs. Seems to do ok once up to speed. I had to fill it up, and it was under an 1/8 of a tank. I'm wondering if some cruddy old gas got sucked into the intake.


#17
6-30-2021 @ 06:14:55 PM
Posted By : DiRF  Reply | Edit | Del
200+ miles in a car that has to have numerous attempts to get the engine started, have to keep the revs up at all times, is about 50% down on power and the cruise control and windshield wipers are both broken (went through a few heavy showers)... that was a very stressful 4.5 hours.

Oh, and it has a tracker on it, as well, so I get reported if I speed. How fucked the electrics are, wouldn't be surprised if I was speeding at various points throughout the trip.

Worst case scenario for speeding in a company vehicle, I get a black-mark in my record and banned from using a fleet vehicle. After today, that would actually be a blessing.


#18
12-11-2022 @ 03:02:45 PM
Posted By : ricerocketboy Reply | Edit | Del
#17, sounds like normal Malibu driving experience to me :/ I hate these and new ones so much.

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