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Times Have Changed
It’s March 2008, and the buzz for the new 2008 Cobalt SS, which won’t be out till the end of the year, is already making tremendous noise! This is the car that the tuner world has been waiting for from GM. Keeping to its roots with FWD power and FINALLY the turbo setup we have all been dying to have! Well ECOtec fans … as you may have already known, the wait is soon to be over with the new 2008 Cobalt SS.
Recently we held a media event and invited all kinds of media. Hot on the list were our friends and partners from the Tuner media world, which were some of the first that we invited to this 2008 Cobalt SS meet and greet! Stories are already circulating online and will soon be in print as well.
- “At the recent media debut for the 2008 Chevy Cobalt SS, we were somewhat surprised to hear that General Motors, mega-corp. parent of Chevy, among many other automakers, is still exceedingly pleased with the winning performance of its Cobalt SS at the Toyo Tires Time Attack in November of 2005 (see bottom). Some two-and-a-half-years after the fact, in a market that they could easily overlook (like Ford kinda did when it forgot to provide its Focus line with a performance variant), the feat is still a source of pride for GM reps.”
- “And why shouldn't they be proud? The Cobalt SS is a kick-ass ride, and the company gratefully and graciously accepts any bit of legitimacy it earns.”
- “On our winding trek through abandoned oil fields, we found the GM Performance Division-developed car to be very well balanced. There was nothing harsh about power coming from the 260-horsepower turbocharged 2-liter ECOtec under the hood, nothing the F35 5-speed manual gearbox with 3.82:1 final drive ratio or optional limited slip diff couldn't handle, which our car had. It also didn't hurt that there was Continental ContiSportContact 2 summer rubber at each corner, or a FE5 sport suspension that includes specific stabilizer bars, spring rates, and damper tuning working to keep the SS planted but agile and completely stamp out torque steer.”
- “The e-throttle and tune seem to respond favorably regardless of pedal position. The steering was super precise, Cobalt's EPS system completely flawless.”
- “It was a telling morning cruise, as the SS seemed to want more the further we pushed it. We had a blast.”
- “The cockpit of the car was also appointed to skew tuner, and in some ways improved because of it. In addition to their sharp looks, the two-tone, "SS"-embroidered front seats boasted improved bolstering over non-SS and even previous generation SS cradles. Short-throw shifter, 160mph speedo, sporty steering wheel based on the 'Vette's, and an Autometer A-pillar boost gauge all come standard.”
- “We never had the chance to drive the supercharged, 205-horsepower previous generation of the Cobalt SS, and without that frame of reference, at best we probably expected it to perform respectably. Imagine our surprise when the car, under the duress of being flung repeatedly through hot laps around Buttonwillow, not only came to life, but proceeded to dismantle the track.”
Photo of the Week
Erica Nocita burns rubber in her ECOtec-powered Chevy Cobalt at Irwindale Raceway.
