The Loaner

The loaner car is like the Rodney Dangerfield of vehicles. Not quite good enough to sell but good enough to loan out. I'm on my second one recently due to my actual car having major engine problems. Without the these loaners I'd be stuck  for getting around for work and errands so I am thankful for them.

They've both been 2007 Chevrolet Malibu's. If any car fit's the loaner/loser car shoes it's these. The first one was plain white with an even blander tan color. It smelled of stale cigarettes and covered in crap on the outside cause it had been sitting under  tree. I felt yucky just driving it. First stop before home was a car wash. It was a little better afterwards. The inside was clean but smelled of cigarettes and old socks. I finally dosed the inside with Febreze which made it more tolerable. It wasn't in bad shape but had seen better days. 

The Good: It had a quiet smooth ride. It had that big car feel. The dash has an easy to read layout although dated. Spacious and comfortable. Not Cadillac quality but nod bad. Power and acceleration were surprising given it was powered by an economy sized 4-cylinder engine.

The Bad: Door locks worked when they felt like it. Even when manually locked I'd come back ot later and find all four doors unlocked. Good thing I don't live or park in wrong neighborhoods. I did worry a bit sometimes when I had to leave stuff in car while I was working or other errands. One time while driving around the door locks just clicked by themselves. Like a ghost was inside with playing with the lock button.

The interior design seemed clunky and clown like. It had a cheapness about them. The LED on the radio was unreadable in sunlight. The CD player was inoperable and had no way to plug my iPhone jack anywhere. 

It also had this rattle noise that would show up occasionally while driving at highway speeds. It was like something was stuck in a plastic fan. It was up front where the windshield meets the dashboard. I looked in the vents and even checked outside the car where the wipers but could not find the source. Not loud but enough to be annoying. 

The Ugly: A diaper with butterscotch poop inside reminded me of the white exterior and tan interior. Just could not get used to the interior color. Just not a color combo I'd. Had the same color as a Saturn I test drove and part of the reason I didn't pick it was this bland unexciting color.

I eventually got my car back but it didn't last long. Began overheating a few days later with an engine litle. With a diagnoses of "Internal Engine Problems" the dealer is going ahead and replacing the whole engine. Not kidding. So home I go with another Malibu, same year different color and a little nicer.

Unfortunately as I'm driving home from the dealer I hear a familiar rattle from the dash......sigh.