You Won’t Lose These In A Parking Lot: 2007 Chevy Cobalt vs 2007 Ford Mustang

Good morning! Today we’re looking at two sporty-ish coupes that are so brightly colored, they’re practically visible from space. Lovers of beige and silver, avert your eyes; today is all about color.

The results of yesterday‘s Fox-body double feature surprised me. Not so much that the chance to own both of these FoMoCo classics didn’t appeal to more of you, but the fact that the cop-movie stakeout-mobile LTD took such a decisive win. The combo platter was a distant second, and even fewer of you wanted the Cougar by itself.

For me, I think it would come down to an undercarriage inspection. If the Cougar is still structurally sound underneath, then I’d fix the brakes, clean it up, and enjoy it. I’ve always had a soft spot for the Thunderbird Turbo Coupe, and while I prefer the Thunderbird’s fastback style to the bolt-upright rear window on the Cougar, you can’t see the styling from the driver’s seat. I’m afraid the LTD would just make me sad as it is, and as intriguing as the drivetrain swap sounds, I know me, and I know I’d never get around to actually doing it.

Today’s choices were inspired by two recent trips to the store. On one occasion, I was driving my old Chevy truck, resplendent in Forest Service Green – a color designed to stick out like a sore thumb. This made it easy to spot from across a Lowe’s parking lot. Not long after, I took my metallic-black Chrysler 300 to Target, and went down the wrong aisle looking for it when I came out. It just disappeared into a sea of dark-colored cars all parked in the vicinity. I finally found it when I spotted my bright orange Opposite Lock sticker in the window from two rows over.

These two, you could easily spot in a big-box parking lot. Of course, then you’d have to be seen driving off in one of them. It’s a trade-off.

2007 Chevrolet Cobalt LS – $2,995

Engine/drivetrain: 2.2 liter dual overhead cam inline 4, five-speed manual, FWD

Location: Longwood, FL

Odometer reading: 113,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives great

Yep–another GM economy car. What can I say? They have treated me pretty well over the years, and they have an underdog quality that I like. They’re plucky. And to GM’s credit, they really did get better from generation to generation. Yes, I know, the Cobalt was recalled a whole bunch of times for a whole bunch of reasons, but that’s all water under the bridge now. Right?

This isn’t the pocket-rocket Cobalt SS; it’s just a basic LS model, with a 2.2 liter Ecotec four-cylinder and a five-speed stick. It has only 113,000 miles on it, and the seller says it runs like a top. It’s being sold by a dealer, so we don’t have any history for it, but you could look up the VIN and at least make sure all the recalls have been done. One photo of the dash shows the car running, however, and I regret to inform you that both the check engine and the airbag warning lights are on. That will require some explanation.

It’s nice and clean inside, with no obvious wear and tear, and no weird stains. One of the advantages of a base model like this is that there isn’t much to go wrong; typically on a used car you have to worry about broken power gadgets, but this one doesn’t have any. The seller says the air conditioning works well, though.

The outside is in good shape, and oh so very yellow. There are a couple of blemishes, including a pretty good crack in the front lip, but for the price, it’s not worth worrying about.

2007 Ford Mustang “HEAT Limited Edition” – $4,200

Engine/drivetrain: 4.0 liter overhead cam V6, five-speed manual, RWD

Location: Boynton Beach, FL

Odometer reading: 220,000 miles

Operational status: Runs and drives great

Even almost twenty years later, I still can’t decide whether I like these retro-styled fifth-generation Mustangs or not. I think Ford did a good job of updating the old ’60s fastback style, but it’s also a little like a decades-old band still playing the same five hits: all it does is remind you how cool they used to be.

This is one of many special editions of the Mustang, one that I’ve not seen before. I’m assuming from the location that it’s a tie-in to the Miami Heat basketball team. The seller says it was built by Roush Performance, but I didn’t know Roush ever did any V6 Mustangs. As far as I can tell, it’s just a body kit and some special paint. Weirdly, it looks like this car started out yellow. The door sills have been painted, but the underhood area has not.

Under that hood is the overhead-cam version of Ford’s Cologne V6, which puts out 210 horsepower to the rear axle through a five-speed manual. This one has a lot of miles on it, but these are generally pretty reliable engines. They do have a truly bizarre timing chain arrangement, which sometimes causes problems, but otherwise they’re stout. It runs and drives great, according to the seller.

Inside, it looks like a Mustang with over 200,000 miles on it. A couple of seams are popped on the driver’s seat, and it’s sort of disheveled-looking. It may have started out as some special edition, but now it’s just a used Mustang.

Yeah, I know–they’re both kind of crap. But at least they’re colorful crap. And what were you expecting, good cars? Nope. Maybe tomorrow. Today, you must choose between the GM econobox and the cheesy Mustang.

(Image credits: Craigslist sellers)

The post You Won’t Lose These In A Parking Lot: 2007 Chevy Cobalt vs 2007 Ford Mustang appeared first on The Autopian.