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2009 Chevrolet Cobalt |
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| MSRP Price Range: | $14,990 - $23,425 |
| Invoice Price Range: | $14,540 - $22,371 |
| Price With Options: | 10 Trims Available |
| Rebates/Incentives: | Available |
Short Take Road Test: 2008 Chevrolet Cobalt SS
When it comes to doing Super Sport in size small, Chevy has never nailed it. Whether Cavalier or Cobalt SS, we've always found others to like better. But just in time for $4 gasoline, the GM Performance Division is starting to think more clearly in miniature.
The Chevy Cobalt SS is largely unchanged for 2008, except that supercharging and port injection have been replaced by turbocharging and direct injection. A subtle difference, you scoff. What's subtle about a 55-hp bump to 260, or a 60-pound-foot swell in torque to 260? Better yet, there's almost no torque-steer tug, and the power boils up evenly, maturely, without the typical rubber-band snap of big boost followed by a big, whistling blowoff.
If the front-drive Cobalt SS could apply all the turbo power on launch, it would prune a few 10ths off its 0-to-60-mph runs. Still, it's quick, at 5.7 seconds, with quarter-miles concluding in 14.2 seconds at 102 mph (the old car ran 6.1 to 60 and 14.6 at 99 mph). Also new: launch control and a "no-lift shift" mode. The engine computer limits revs and finesses the throttle for traction after the clutch dump. It also controls the revs between shifts, so you just keep the gas mashed and scan for cops.
The Nürburgring-fettled suspension, the sticky Continental summer tires, and the burly Brembo front calipers are assets to the cause, keeping the body stable, the corners alarmingly fast, and the decelerations sharp and fade-free. We can't wait till GM hitches its next little car to these bits.
Although the Cobalt is hot stuff compared with its predecessor, it's still not state of the subcompact art. There's work to be done bringing the plain interior up to GM's improving standards, to quiet the wind noise, to add life to the numb steering, and to fix that forks-in-a-disposal noise of the starter. We predict that SS size small still has its best days ahead of it.
Performance data:
C/D TEST RESULTS:
Zero to 60 mph: 5.7 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 13.4 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 24.6 sec
Street start, 5-60 mph: 6.2 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 14.2 sec @ 102 mph
Top speed (drag limited): 146 mph
Braking, 70-0 mph: 162 ft
Roadholding, 200-ft-dia skidpad: 0.92 g
FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway driving: 22/30 mpg
C/D observed 20 mpg
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