![]() ![]() ![]() How good could the bow-tie version be?Īs it happens, it's astoundingly good-an Olympic long jump for GM, from dead last to the head of the class, right up front with the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic. The Cobalt shares General Motors' front-drive Delta platform with the Saturn Ion, the sensational belly-flop of model year 2003. After 23 years of building the Chevy Cavalier, GM's small-car credentials could stand a little hardening, too.ĭuring a recent lull in California's monsoon season, Chevy allowed a press gaggle to turn miles in 2005 Cobalt models, including the 145-hp, 2.2-liter sedan and base coupe and the 205-hp supercharged 2.0-liter SS coupe (a 175-hp, 2.4-liter engine option comes later in '05). Chevy probably chose the name because cobalt is used as a hardener in high-performance alloys such as those found in aircraft jet turbines. It's nature's industrial rust belt, the Lower Cuyahoga of the atomic scale. 27 on the periodic table, sandwiched between iron and nickel on a working-class street that's also home to copper, zinc, and manganese. Analoggrotto The readers of TTAC deserve better than a bunch of Kia shills posing as journalists.Cobalt resides at No.(And Hybrid Max products don't seem to be all that constrained, so far.) It would likewise be easy to build again, there's nothing exotic in the Hybrid Max powertrain. Not sure why, as there's nothing exotic in it.A Camry with the Hybrid Max powertrain would be bonkers, easily the fastest thing in segment. But for whatever reason it seems like that powertrain is capacity challenged. ![]() Sadly, the buttery V6 is toast.A Camry with the Highlander/Sienna PSD powertrain would be basically competitive in the sedan market, with the slow death of V6 and big-turbo options. MaintenanceCosts I think if there's one thing we can be sure of given Toyota's recent decisions it's that the strongest version of the next Camry will be a hybrid.Tassos screw the fat cat incompetents.Tassos Government cheese for millionaires, while idiot Joe biden adds trillions to the debt.What a country (IT ONCE WAS!).Which is where the firm, fade-free Brembos come in handy. But make no mistake with this much power in a 2,975-pound coupe, the Cobalt SS is very quick, and it’s easy to end up well over the posted limit. This refinement isn’t all for the best: the Cobalt’s 2.0 doesn’t deliver the midrange punch of the larger turbo fours in some competitors, and as a result the car doesn’t feel as quick as it is. Boost comes on smoothly, with a clearly audible whistle but no sudden surges and little lag. From the engine, there’s none of the on-off behavior that once defined high-pressure turbos. (Much more livable than a late model Evo or STI, though.)īut who buys a track-tuned 260-horsepower compact for grocery runs? Go for big numbers on the goofy-looking but addictively entertaining pillar-mounted “Performance Display” and good stuff happens. Road noise is on the high side, and the ride can get busy. But smooth shifts aren’t effortless in casual driving. The manual shifter is better than GM’s usual stick-in-a-bucket-of-balls. Get on the throttle, then change your mind, and the engine gives a little kick when the boost you requested a second ago- but no longer desire- arrives anyway. This isn’t the best engine- or car- for doing what most Cobalt’s do best: toodle around town.
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