Chevrolet Cobalt SS

At $22,995 the Cobalt SS is a lot of bang for the buck. More than a straight-line charger, the SS has a level of refinement that will appeal to a broad spectrum of drivers.

The Cobalt SS pours fuel on the fire that is youth. The car hits the high notes in styling, amenities and price, but offers balance that few other entry-level performance cars can attain. The Cobalt SS delivers a swift kick in the rear when the hammer drops but reacts almost instinctively as the g-forces climb. The more we drove the SS, the more it’s under-$23K sticker seemed like a misprint.

Trim Choices
The SS, developed by GM’s Performance Division (GMPD), is the top of the Cobalt food chain. One of the more attractive shapes in the sport compact segment, the SS version of the Cobalt is offered only as a two-door coupe for 2008. The General plans to add a four-door variant in ’09, which should broaden the car’s appeal.

Standard is a specially developed, short-throw 5-speed manual transmission from GM Sweden. Also standard are 18-inch wheels, sport seats with suede-like inserts, and four-wheel disc brakes featuring Brembo calipers and vented rotors up front.
Under the Hood
The turbocharged Ecotec engine bumps output by 55 horsepower compared to the previous supercharged version of the Cobalt SS. The 2.0-liter plant features a Borg Warner twin-scroll turbo, direct injection, coil-on-plug ignition and variable valve timing. This force-fed mill pumps out a prodigious 260 horsepower at 5300 rpm, and 260 lb-ft of torque at 2000 rpm.

GMPD took an innovative approach to the gutsy four-cylinder. Instead of tuning to a prescribed boost level, the ECU targets a constant torque number using a variable boost strategy. Ambient air temperature and absolute air pressure are two of the main tuning parameters. So on a cool night with dense air the turbo may only need to produce 13 psi to hit the mark. But on a hot summer day it will unleash up to 21 psi in its efforts to deliver the goods.

Inner Space
For the most part the SS cockpit is clean and logically laid out. The cluster is easy to read, and GM added an integrated A-pillar-mounted boost gauge and steering-wheel-mounted buttons for the audio system and cruise control.

For the new SS, GM designed its own seats but we prefer the previous Recaros. The new buckets don’t let you settle into the seat cushion. The seats and door panels can be accented by either Ebony, Light Gray, or Victory Red trim. The shifter is slick with shorter throws than the tranny from the supercharged version.

On the Road
The SS is one of those two-faced propositions that can be a competent commuter one moment and a tire-shredding thrill ride the next. The car’s FE5 sport suspension does yeoman’s work taming road irregularities and providing a civilized ride. Ask the turbo for boost, however, and the SS’s underpinnings can effortlessly keep pace in the hills or on the track.

The suspension gets help from GM’s multi-faceted traction control that provides two innovative features. First is launch control, which allows the driver to floor the accelerator and then release the clutch in a normal fashion. The ECU holds engine revs at 5100 rpm, generating an aggressive launch despite the pedestrian pedal work. * Message board: Will this turbocharged Cobalt catch on faster than the previous supercharged version?

Once on the rampage, the car can be “no-lift shifted.” The driver works the clutch like a normal speed shift, but you can do this while keeping your right foot buried on the accelerator. The SS responds by electronically interrupting the throttle, the results being quick shifts accompanied by an authoritative exhaust pop and a slight tire chirp. Best of all, this behavior is covered under warranty.

Unleashed on the Buttonwillow road course near Bakersfield, California, we were impressed with the SS’s intuitive traction control system which would pulse the rear brakes to resist the understeer we were purposely trying to induce. Instead of plowing like many front-wheel-drive machines, the SS rotated at the apex and looked for open track. This is one seriously fun ride.

Right for You?
The Cobalt’s appeal to youthful lead-foots will be its striking design, impressive power numbers, and the technology GM has invested in the sleek turbo coupe. But it’s the SS’s overall refinement that will be the key to appeal beyond its boy-racer, 18-to-25 age demographic.

A big part of the Cobalt SS’s magic is its ability to generate 130 horsepower-per-liter yet yield 30-mpg highway performance. This have-your-cake-and-eat-it quality should ping the target audience radar. Anyone foraging in the $23,000 range and looking to tickle their adrenal glands would do well to put the free-revving 260-horsepower Cobalt SS on their test drive list, giving the car a chance to sell itself.

Evan Griffey served as an editor of Turbo & High Tech Performance, a pioneering publication about sport-compact tuning. Today Griffey freelances for Import Tuner, Sport Compact Car, Car Audio and Siphon.