GM LORDSTOWN Car name leaves some in area blue

First impressions color many folks' opinion of the name 'Cobalt.'
By DON SHILLING
VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR
Area residents are split on the name proposed for the next small car to be built in Lordstown.
The Chevrolet Cobalt is a name that some like and some don't.
"It's a short, catchy name," said Gary Singer, 60, of Boardman, who was one of those who liked the name.
He knew that Cobalt is a metallic element and called it "a clean name."
The nice thing about the proposed name is that it's different from Cavalier, the name of the car now built at the Lordstown Assembly Plant, said Diana Seydlorsky, 49, of Boardman.
"The Cavalier name was kind of hokey," she said.
Not everyone is eager to get rid of the Cavalier name. Mike Jankowski, 32, of Austintown, said he would rather the new car be named something similar to the Cavalier because of the history of the car and how much its production has meant to the Mahoning Valley.
He was chatting downtown Friday with Mary Kay Boerio, 39, of Austintown, who said she doesn't think Cobalt sounds like a car name.
"All I can think of is Cobalt blue," she said.
"It's kind of weird to think of driving a red Cobalt," added Jankowski.
They would be surprised to learn that Cobalt is associated with several other colors. Cobalt yellow, green and violet also are used by artists.
Cobalt blue is perhaps the best known, however. It is a pigment similar to royal blue and can be made by combining and heating aluminum chloride and cobalt chloride.
Outside of colors, cobalt is known for its use in alloys to make cutting tools, jet engines and high-strength magnets. An isotope, cobalt-60, is used in cancer treatments.
Element
Cobalt was named an element by Georg Brandt of Germany in 1735. He named it after the German word kobald, meaning goblin or evil spirit.
Brandt made the discovery to prove his theory that the blue coloring used in making glass came from a new element, rather than bismuth, an element often found in the same locations as cobalt. People had been coloring glass blue since the early Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilizations.
Chevrolet hasn't formally announced that it has selected the Cobalt name for the car. Dealers say, however, that they were told last month that the Cavalier's replacement would be called the Cobalt. The car is due out next year.
Art Huffman, 43, of Boardman and his son, Art Huffman Jr., 22, of Boardman weren't crazy about Chevrolet using Cobalt.
"It doesn't sound like a car," the father said. "It sounds like a tool."
His son suggested that perhaps the car companies are running out of names.
Poll results
In a poll conducted this week on The Vindicator Web site, most voters sided with the Huffmans. About 58 percent of the voters, or 204 out of 352, said they didn't like the name. Voting in favor were 84, or 24 percent.
Cobalt didn't stir many voters one way or another, however. Sixty-four voters, or 18 percent, said they had no preference.
Several people on the street shrugged when asked if they liked the name.
"As long as they're still making cars there, I don't care," said Dave Ashton, 50, of Liberty. "I like it OK, but I'm indecisive on this one."
shilling@vindy.com