2009 Cobalt SS is both sporty and economical

By FRANK A. AUKOFER

Though discouraged by the safety and responsibility bosses, there’s an evil satisfaction that comes with the 2009 Chevrolet Cobalt SS.

Except for a tiny rear spoiler of the sort that could be found on almost any subcompact economy car, the Cobalt SS four-door sedan looks like, well, almost any subcompact economy car.

So you’re sitting at a stoplight next to some smug driver of a slick sports car or an SUV with a honking big V8 engine, and he looks down his nose at your pedestrian conveyance.

Then the light changes, and you smoke him.

You can do that with the Cobalt SS. That’s because, under that economy-car bushel basket hides the light of an exciting engine, transmission and suspension system.

It’s a combination that provides superior handling and enough power to propel the Cobalt SS to 60 mph in slightly more than five seconds, with a top speed of better than 150 mph.

The SS has a feature called “no-lift shift,” which means you can shift the five-speed manual gearbox without backing off on the gas pedal. You simply keep your right foot to the floor and bang off the shifts. A computer controls the revs when you hit the clutch.

All of the punch comes courtesy of the SS’s 2-liter four-cylinder engine. Enhanced by a turbocharger, it pumps out 260 horsepower. Almost as importantly, it delivers 260 pounds-feet of torque, or twisting force, starting at just 2,000 revolutions per minute.

It means that the power boost arrives not far above idle speed, which virtually eliminates the dreaded lag that is a characteristic of some turbo engines.

There is a downside, however. Because the Cobalt SS is a front-wheel-drive car, there’s a good bit of so-called torque steer. When you stab the accelerator pedal going around a corner, the SS wants to forge powerfully straight ahead, so it feels as if the steering wheel is trying to jump out of your hands.

That straight-ahead propensity under acceleration is what engineers and race drivers refer to as understeer. Because it is safer for the vast majority of motorists, most cars are designed with that characteristic. High-performance race and sports cars are designed for better balance between understeer and oversteer, which is a tendency to keep turning. Yet despite its understeer tendency, the Cobalt SS can easily be tossed around tight corners.

The SS competes in a democratic (small d) world where enthusiasts on low budgets can buy some of the same high-performance excitement available to the big-bucks people. There are a number of other machines in this category, including the Dodge Caliber SRT-4, Mazdaspeed 3, Mitsubishi Lancer Ralliart, Subaru WRX, Honda Civic Si and Volkswagen GTI.

In a world that is increasingly sensitive to carbon emissions and other environmental concerns, the Cobalt SS, for all of its adrenalin-inducing performance, doesn’t leave a huge footprint. Its city/highway EPA fuel consumption rating works out to 22/30 miles per gallon.

And despite its stoplight drag-racing capabilities, the SS also works as an economy car. You can drive it in city traffic as if you were a European motorist looking for maximum economy, shifting quickly to the next-highest gear as soon as possible.

In addition to its snorting turbo motor, the Cobalt SS comes with sport seats that are both comfortable and supportive, with good lateral support, manual lumbar adjustments and suedelike cloth inserts that help to keep the torso in place around sharp corners. It also sports an attractive set of 18-inch alloy wheels that distinguish it from lesser Cobalts.

The base price tag is $24,095, which includes stability and traction control, antilock disc brakes, side-curtain air bags, tire-pressure monitoring, high-performance tires, speed-sensitive electric power steering, air conditioning, an audio system with CD player, XM satellite radio and Bluetooth connectivity and GM’s OnStar communications system — all in all, not much less than you’d find on some of the higher-priced spreads.

The test car also had a $495 limited-slip differential, USB and music-player connectivity for the audio system and a full-size spare wheel and tire, which brought the as-tested price up to $24,765. That’s close to the lower end among the competitors.

But the Cobalt SS is still a subcompact economy car, and it looks it both inside and out. When it first was introduced as a replacement for the unlamented Chevrolet Cavalier, there wasn’t much difference between the two other than styling. That remains the case.

Inside, although the controls and instruments have good ergonomics built into the design, most of the surfaces are vinyl and hard plastic without much to recommend them from an appearance standpoint. The steering wheel tilts but does not telescope, and the sun visors do not slide on their support rods for side protection from the sun. There are a couple of cup holders but no center storage console.

In the back, accommodations are tight for the outboard passengers and, although there’s a seat belt for the occasional center-rear passenger, it’s mostly suitable for Barbie dolls and infant seats.

SEE ALSO:Cobalt SS \ By the numbers.