Exceeding Expectations

What is (sort of) big, yellow and has a pretty large wing span? No... not Big Bird. It's the new 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt SS in "Rally Yellow" paint. And

The Chevy Cobalt SS is a pretty sweet ride. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

just like Big Bird, it is recognizable from a distance, brings smiles to small children, and once seen it's hard to forget.

I'll start off by saying that the Chevy Cobalt SS is a pretty sweet ride. I'm also going to be totally honest and say that I wasn't expecting much. Why so harsh? I suppose I'm basing my opinion on one of GM's other "tuner" models, the Saturn ION Red Line. I really didn't think that the Red Line was the cats meow. It drives well, but it is hardly put together very well... or at least it doesn't feel like it's put together very well. And while based on the same chassis architecture and powered by the same drivetrain as the ION Red Line, the Cobalt SS has been an entirely different experience.

As many of you know, the Cavalier's epic, yes I mean EPIC tale finally came to an end, making way for an even better plot-driven vehicle, the

With its bright yellow paint job and its rear deck-lid aero wing, it just screams TUNER. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

Cobalt. I have not yet driven the new entry-level Cobalt sedan, but have spent a week with its Pontiac Pursuit sibling, which is basically the same vehicle, and I liked it. But as I mentioned, I had my reservations.

Going back to the Saturn ION Red Line, perhaps its lack of appeal was its not-so-exciting exterior styling, the rattling shutter that followed when closing any of its doors, and high gloss, hard plastic surfaces everywhere, low rent switchgear.... it was just so blah. While it handled impressively, offered plenty of power and a nicely gated short-throw five-speed manual and well-weighted clutch pedal, and had some nice touches here and there, like the clamshell-type rear access doors, this chapter in the GM saga was a yawner. Even though the content was decent, the whole story just didn't tickle my fancy. The SS however, is a page turner.

Judging from the Cobalt's exterior, with its bright yellow paint job and its rear deck-lid aero wing, it just screams TUNER. So do the P215/45R18 all-season performance tires on 18-inch aluminum rims. Its exterior styling fuses together tastefully, without yelling boy-racer overkill. Besides, what's a tuner car without it being lavishly decked out? No pun intended.

Inside, it's also decked out with a 7-speaker premium enhanced sound system including a 228-watt amplifier and 10-inch rear subwoofer with AM/FM stereo and CD/MP3 player. Again, a tuner isn't a tuner without a good source for tunes. Good thing the Cobalt SS had a great stereo

The Cobalt SS is decked out with a 7-speaker premium enhanced sound system including a 228-watt amplifier and 10-inch rear subwoofer with AM/FM stereo and CD/MP3 player. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

system, otherwise I would have been stuck with all treble and little bass for my excursion up to a local ski resort. The hour and a half drive never sounded so good.

I know it's not ski season yet but I had more important things to take care of, well not things but kids. I decided that I wanted to spend as much time behind the wheel of the SS as possible, so the hour and a half plus drive to my gremlin-sitting gig was a prime opportunity to put the Cobalt to the test on the curvy Sea-To-Sky highway up to Whistler. It's rigid but sporty front independent strut-type suspension, with a stabilizer bar, and rear semi-independent torsion beam set up, also with a stabilizer bar, was adequately nimble to handle sharp turns yet comfortable enough so that I wasn't feeling every chunk of gravel that had been spewed onto the pavement by previous corner cutters. So if I'm going to continue using the story analogy - as I've been doing so effectively throughout - it would be like the Princess and the Pea, only that I'm a queen and I wasn't asleep at the wheel!

During my drive up, the weather was overcast but the roads were still dry, enabling me to really test out what the SS has to offer. Like the ION Red Line, it handled fantastically. The leather-wrapped steering wheel is comfortable to grip and the power rack-and-pinion steering system made tackling turns easy, while the all-season performance tires did a good job of gripping the road. On my way back home, the continuous rainfall made

The leather-wrapped steering wheel is comfortable to grip and the power rack-and-pinion steering system made tackling turns easy. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

the roads quite slippery. Regardless of the less agreeable weather condition, the Cobalt handled well. And when putting the 4-wheel disc brakes with ABS to the test, they too performed well.

Back to the gremlins, and I don't mean to conjure up any long lost memories of AMC's Gremlin or to suggest that there are any gremlins in the Cobalt's ointment, but rather shuttling kids around is only a given when taking care of them. And the Cobalt SS doesn't make the job of transporting young 'uns from A-C to point D. Even though all the kids are under ten, they still felt, and I quote, "cooped up" in the back. The joke got old very fast. The coupe configuration is ideal for me, myself and my purse, and sometimes another passenger. I wouldn't attempt to cram anyone adult-sized that I liked back there, if this were my car, but wouldn't have much opportunity to anyway. It comes down to priorities. Chevy offers a sedan version of the Cobalt that does a good job of swallowing up rear passengers. The abbreviated rear seating area in the coupe is the price paid for riding in style. So while the back seats are cramped, it was nothing that a little ice cream bribery couldn't fix.

Sometimes though, riding in style can be a little hard on the joints. I'll explain. Every Thursday we have a sports night and a group of us get together and you guessed it, play sports. Dodgeball was the game of choice when I had the Cobalt SS. Because I rarely exercise my upper

I enjoyed romping around town in the peppy yellow SS with its 16-valve, DOHC, supercharged 2.0-litre, ECOTEC four-cylinder. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

body, I'm a runner or an elliptical trainer kinda gal, I wasn't used to using those muscles. And what do you know? I was completely sore the next day. I was so sore that I had to use two arms to put the car's short-throw shifting 5-speed manual into reverse. No, I'm not a wimp, I just rarely play dodgeball.

Pain or no pain, I enjoyed romping around town in the peppy yellow SS with its 16-valve, DOHC, supercharged 2.0-litre, ECOTEC four-cylinder. It produces 205-horsepower at 5,600 rpm and 200 lb-ft of torque at 4,400 rpm, decent power for a compact car. The chrome-tipped exhaust note isn't too throaty, like the overly aggressive Dodge SRT-4, so it's not attracting unnecessary attention. In fact, the Cobalt SS exhaust system has a nice note when inside the car, but outside it's quite subtle. I think this balance works quite well, because the car itself is anything but.

Other aspects of the Cobalt SS weren't so great. I've already mentioned the lack of rear seat room. I also found that the deck-lid spoiler was directly in my line-of-sight when looking out of the rearview mirror. It's almost like it cut everything in half. Mind you, I sit lower than most drivers

The wingspan was in my way and the rear end is angled up quite high, so visibility out the back was a challenge. (Photo: Alexandra Straub, Canadian Auto Press)

because, well, I'm not tall, so not all who drove the SS would experience the same vision obstruction. Furthermore, I could barely see where I was going while parallel parking this puppy. Again, the wingspan was in my way and the rear end is angled up quite high, so visibility was a challenge. Of course, I don't think there's a coupe on the market with great rearward visibility.

In the end, I'm glad the 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt SS exceeded my expectations. It would have been hard not to, what with its healthy dose of performance, sporty looking exterior and leather-trimmed cabin. And that engine, in its supercharged glory, and the car's nimble suspension system? It's a winning combination. GM did a good job on this one and should be applauded.

Specifications:

Price Range (MSRP): $24,995
Body Type: 2-door coupe
Layout: front engine, FWD
Engine: 205 hp, 200 lb-ft of torque, 2.0-L, 16-valve DOHC supercharged I-4
Transmission: 5-spd manual
Brakes (front/rear): disc/disc with ABS
Curb Weight: 1,273 kg (2,808 - 2,806 lbs)
Acceleration (0 - 100 km/h): 6.5 seconds
Seating Capacity: 5
Cargo Volume (trunk): 394 L (13.9 cu ft)
Fuel Economy (city/hwy): N/A
Warranty (mo/km): 36/60,000 comprehensive - 60/100,000 powertrain
Direct Competitors: Dodge SRT-4, Ford Focus ST, Honda Civic Coupe Si, Hyundai Tiburon GT, Mazda3 GT, MINI Cooper S Works, Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart, Nissan Sentra SE-R, Saturn ION Red Line, Subaru Impreza / WRX, Toyota Corolla XRS, VW GTI
Web Site:www.gmcanada.com