I'm puzzled on that one. I've seen a lot of things in the Chebbie biz, but I've never seen a troublesome Malibu...ever. Those cars will take use, abuse, and neglect for seemingly ever and still come back for more.

If it's getting that kind of mileage, it's got to be throwing codes out right and left. Depending on the delivery date and miles, whatever's causing that could well be under warranty.

re: Contours and Mystiques. From MSN:

Occasional problems with this vehicle are failure of the Variable Camshaft Timing Actuator and Sprocket, 2.0L only, the Flex Plate, 2.0L Automatic Transmission only, and the Water Pump, 2.5L only. The cost to repair the Variable Camshaft Timing Actuator and Sprocket is estimated at $300.00-$900.00 for parts and $195.00 for labor. The cost to repair the Flex Plate is estimated at $110.00 for parts and $650.00 for labor. The cost to repair the Water Pump is estimated at $125.00 for parts and $97.50 for labor. All prices are estimates based on $65 per flat rate hour and do not include diagnostic time or any applicable sales tax

A periodic problem on this vehicle is failure of the Antilock Brake System (ABS) Hydraulic Control Unit (HCU). The cost to repair the ABS HCU is estimated at $2,700.00 for parts and $175.50 for labor. All prices are estimates based on $65 per flat rate hour and do not include diagnostic time or any applicable sales tax.

I think the word "avoid" applies here.

 

I had a 4 cylinder auto Contour. I bought it REAL cheap because of body and interior damage.

Soon after buying it I had to have the auto trans rebuilt. That brought my cost back up to where I could have bought a nicer one.

Working on that car was a NIGHTMARE! It was amazing how tight it was under the hood. I dreaded oil changes because it took my at least a half hour to change the filter. I finally started taking off the right front tire to get to the filter.

The ABS light was flashing when I bought it. With the cost of fixing that system, a piece of black tape took care of the flashing light.

When it threw a rod a few weeks ago I was relieved. the junkyard picked it up and gave me $100.

I have had good luck with '92-'95 Taurus. I'm on my second one now because the wife totalled the first. They are dirt cheap, and as long as you get the 3.0L they are easy to work on and reliable. I'd stay away from the 3.8L because it is crammed into the engine bay and they had A LOT of head gasket problems.

 

I've been very happy with the car I inherited from my grandmother, a 1990 Plymouth Acclaim with the 3.0 V6 (engine is made by Mitsubishi). It is fuel injected so it runs smoothly, had lots of room and a very nice ride, the engine makes plenty of power and I get about 25-27 MPG, which is acceptable for me. I can easily work on this engine with no problem, it is an ODB-I, and you can access the codes without a reader by switching the ignition on and off three times quickly and counting flashes on the "check engine" light. There are a few known issues with the engine and the car, but nothing serious. Valve guides generally need replacing at about 80K or you can ignore if you don't mind a little smoke on startup (conversely alot of these cars get dumped for almost nothing when they start smoking, and a little head work is all they need!), and you want to check that the odometer works--often the plastic gears driving the odometer will break and it stops tallying miles. If you don't mind how it looks, the paint will probably be in bad shape (peeling problem on lighter colors), and the headliner is usually sagging, but mechanically I have found it to be a great car.

 

I got my OBD-II code reader for $40USD on E-Bay brand new It works good.

 

Wickymustang:

Jeff is correct - earlier Saturns can be acquired relatively inexpensively. The SL and SL-1 models with the SOHC engine are a little simpler than the SL-2 with the DOHC.
Do not discount a reasonable Escort as they too are relatively bullet-proof however a little harder to work on than the Saturn.

Youngest son has a 1993 SL-1 that we have had for 4 years now. Paid $2000. for it and have replaced two tires and the timing belt tensioner. Seems to average around 28 - 30 mpg combination city/freeway. Most of the body panels are some kind of a polymer and really resist denting and chipping. Only gripe I have is that it is low and somewhat difficult to get out of if one is not real agile.

As far as the OBDII - do not let that frighten you away. As Roushians states the OBDII code readers can be obtained very reasonably and will point you in the right direction much faster than the "old shade tree" and "well let me see here" methods.

That said, we wish you luck car shopping.


Russ

 

That shocks me. At 70 MPH, my 1984 Oldsmobile 98 gets 21-23 MPG, and it's a feedback carbureted RWD V8 powered tank. Is that a combined figure? Because I know that around town, you can watch my gas gauge plummit like the economy. Fortunately, I do mostly highway driving.

 

As for the Malibu being a POS, it is a 99. Warranty is gone. We are on the 7th set of brakes, 2nd water pump, about 40th injectors on 1,2,4 cylinders. And all the plastic/rubber lines are going to h*ll in a hand bag. Are the saturn sl and sl1 reliable with autos?

 

We are on the 7th set of brakes (?) , 2nd water pump (?) , about 40th injectors on 1,2,4 cylinders (!) . And all the plastic/rubber lines are going to h*ll in a hand bag. Are the saturn sl and sl1 reliable with autos?

Emissions warranty is 5 yr/100,000 miles. It includes things like fuel injection systems, computers, and related hardware/software. Depending on the delivery date and miles on it now, it could still be in warranty.

Here's the kicker- the Saturns are extremely reliable- but they share a number of components with that Malibu.

 

The only thing i have heard and had problems with is the original Waterpumps. if they have been changed then their is usually no concern for other things going wrong.

 

Wow. I have never had a problem with my mystique except the Waterpump. i paid 3 grand for my 96 mystique with 70,000 miles. it was well maintained and I dont have a problem working on it. Sounds like your car was beat to crap. I am the only person that works on my car and took 3 years of shop class in High School. Everybody thinks its wierd for a "GIRL" to work on her own car but i get everything done with little to no problems on it. As for the engine in the Mystique it sits sideways and i find it easier for me to work on then and the plugs are easy to get too

 

That's OK- the thread was started by the story of the only problem Malibu I've ever heard of. I firmly believe the condition and history of the individual car mean more than the actual brand name. the older they get, the more true that becomes.

 

My mom uses it to drive to and from work, to go to the store and the occasional trip to grandma's. Only she drives it, and since buying it there are just over 150,000 miles. This is not the only malibu that has had brake issues, both my cousins and sister-in-laws are on their 4th set and they are the same year.

I know that who drove the used vehicel and how they drove it affects it as much as anything, but I am asking if there are any design flaws. I know things will need to be replaced and repaired, but I'm talking weak points in the design of anything.

 

i havent had any problems with my mystique. i think its a nice little car to get around in and it's not too big but not super small either. I can fit my daughters carseat in the back with no problems and i can sit back there comfortably. as far as design flaws. I havent had any problems with the exterior. i've seen a few wreck and they seem to hold up pretty good. i let my sister drive it and she hit a deer in it. the hood slopes down and it scooped the deer up and threw it off to the side of the road. All it did was pulled my front licence plate out and i have a small hoof print in my hood that is hardly noticable. it broke the deers legs and it had to but down.

Another car i looked at and once had was a Thunderbird Supercoupe. She may not want the supercoupe as they are hard to maintain but a regular T-bird LX is nice. they have plenty of room and are nice vehicles to drive. The 94 to 97's are nice. but you can find 89-93's also at decent prices.

 

Just avoid the 3.8 in the T-birds like the plague. Ditto Taurus's.

 

yeah thats whats in the supercoupes. 3.8 V6 Supercharged the only reason the supercoupes have problems cause of all the torque and stuff plus the heaadgaskets cant hold up with the superchargers. They are fun cars to drive but gotta watch them carefully. The v8 tbird are nice though. if i got one other then a supercoupe it would be the v8.