The youth of America is looking for muscle, and Chevrolet is pumping iron in style so the seekers can find it adorned with a bowtie (Chevy badge).
In the day, American muscle cars were heavy Detroit steel cars, weighing close to two tons. They needed muscle, in the form of high-horsepower V-8s, to smoke down the drag strips, or thunder down the streets. Today, “muscle car” has come to mean any cars, including lightweight tuners that have some punch. Today’s car-speak allows for inline-4s, V-6s and even 5-cylinder engines that give drivers the ability to smoke some tires or easily pass cars on the highway to carry the brawny sobriquet.
That new-age American muscle is embodied in the 2007 Chevrolet Cobalt SS Supercharged Coupe, a car that seems perfect for youthful sport compact enthusiasts who view their cars as canvases for personalization. Targeted Cobalt buyer/drivers are generally in their early 20s who are looking for performance and style; and from its throaty engine to its upgraded sound system and the spiffy rear spoiler, the Cobalt seems to be flawlessly niched.
At home on the race track as well as the street, the Cobalt SS earned a solid rep by having its suspension modified and tuned at Germany‘s Nurburgring racetrack. Assembled in Lordstown, Ohio, and built mostly with American parts (82 percent) and a Swedish transmission, the Cobalt is a two-door compact, though the EPA rates it as a subcompact.
The Cobalt came into being in 2005, succeeding the Cavalier in Chevy’s line-up. Built on the GM Delta platform, the Cobalt features an athletic design and youthful demeanor that includes speed, fuel efficiency, interior upgrades and an air of excitement.
At the heart of Cobalt is a 2.0-liter supercharged I-4 Ecotec engine (boosted by an Eaton M62 supercharger), replacing the standard 145-horsepower 2.2-liter I-4 in the ’06 version. This powerplant packs 205hp and 200 lbs.-ft. of torque under the hood. Two hundred horses may not seem like a good flexing of muscle, but in an aerodynamic 2925-lb. vehicle, with supercharged boost when you need it, it’s enough wallop to blaze down the track with pride. My test runs yielded a 6.8-second gallop from zero-to-60mph, en route to a 15.3-second quarter-mile. And I felt every mph in my Sport Red Tint Cobalt SS, which is a perfect situation for its target audience of young thrill seekers.
The vehicle is EPA rated at 22mpg in the city and 30mpg on the highway, but surprisingly, my test runs produced a startling 32.4mpg average, and I was not shy about stepping on it when I wanted quick acceleration.
The SS accelerates like a jet, and when you shift the 5-speed manual short-throw stick into first and pound the pedal, you get an exciting and acceptable amount of of torque steer. When the turbocharger engages, you can tell by looking at the boost gauge, but you don’t feel any lurch, as the turbo simply adds smooth power to the ride. The engine purrs when it is engaged, and its throatiness is enhanced by its GM Performance Exhaust System, a T-304 stainless-steel muffler with mandrel-bent tubing and highly polished chrome exhaust tips.
The 180-inch long street machine is 55.7-inches high with a width of 67.9 inches. That provides a balanced ride with a low center of gravity, and allows for comfortable interior space of 38.7 inches of front headroom with 35.7 behind; 42 inches of front-row legroom with 32.2 inches in row two and 53 inches of shoulder room for driver and passenger, with 49 inches for the rear row occupants.
The Ebony interior is engineered with quiet-steel laminated sheetmetal to reduce interior noise, yet a substantial amount of engine noise still permeates the cabin. For a street racer, that is acceptable, and I would suspect that most young buyers will have their sound systems cranked up anyway. The rear spoiler is low on the deck and doesn’t block a great deal of vision, but it DOES interfere a bit with sightlines.
Interior appointments include a round gauge on the A-pillar that shows boost readings from the supercharger, air conditioning with air filtration system, AM/FM stereo CD player, 7-speaker Pioneer high-performance audio system with three months of XM Satellite radio service, heated, leather-appointed front bucket seats, manual lumbar support in the driver’s seat, split, folding rear seats, driver information center, leather-wrapped tilt steering wheel, cruise control, power door locks and windows, rear window defroster and remote keyless entry.
Cobalt SS safety features include an antilock brake system, 4-wheel disc brakes, dual frontal airbags with passenger sensing system, theft deterrent system and a battery rundown protection. The Cobalt received a 4-star driver and 5-star passenger frontal crash rating from the NHTSA, along with 3-star (front) and 4-star (rear) side crash test evaluations and a 4-star rollover score.
The bottom line on the Cobalt SS Supercharged is a base price of $20,925, which is smartly stickered for the niche. My test vehicle, which included OnStar, 18-inch wheels and additional safety items went for $24,115. Young muscle … Cobalt SS has it and shows it.
Visit www.CarlisleEvents.com for more on the automotive hobby.
Mike Blake, former editor of KIT CAR magazine, joined Carlisle Events as senior automotive journalist in 2004. He's been a "car guy" since the 1960s and has been writing professionally for about 30 years.
Related Items:
