Our hottest shoes can execute a gearchange in half this time, so it's not hard to meet the time limit. You have 3/10ths of a second to complete your shift while maintaining 95-100 percent throttle otherwise, you experience a normal upshift with an interruption in boost. It manipulates the engine's variable cam phasing and retards the ignition timing so the cylinder contents burn later in the cycle than they usually would, creating more energy to help the turbocharger maintain boost.
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GMPD created a "No-Lift Shift" software algorithm that kicks in when you're at full throttle and press in the clutch. Also, you can upshift in the SS without lifting. The Chevy's main advantage is that it weighs 200 pounds less. In fact, the '08 Cobalt SS is, for the moment, the quickest car you can buy under $25,000.Įven the Mazdaspeed 3 can't keep pace with this Cobalt, as the two examples we've tested posted quarter-mile times of 14.2 seconds at 100.1 mph and 14.5 at 98.7 mph. This is a night-and-day improvement over the supercharged Cobalt SS, which couldn't break 7 seconds for 60 mph and ran a 15.2-second quarter at 95.6 mph. The 2008 Chevrolet Cobalt SS uses up just 5.8 seconds accelerating to 60 mph, and it goes through the quarter-mile in 14 seconds flat at 103.6 mph. Better acceleration numbers are possible with a less dramatic launch between 2,000 and 2,500 rpm that minimizes wheelspin. The engineers also did 600 launches on a single test car to verify their work.įor all its entertainment value, launch control is not the quickest way off the line, largely because it can't perfectly match wheelspin to actual surface conditions. To ensure the clutch has a shot at surviving the five-year/100,000-mile powertrain warranty period, the GMPD engineers tell us that they installed the largest, most robust clutch that would possibly fit and even downsized the flywheel to accommodate it. Get it right and the Cobalt SS makes a getaway with enough authority to churn the contents of your stomach. But you can't side-step it you have to release it progressively but quickly. The Cobalt's computer will immediately rev the engine to 5,100 rpm, and all you have to do is work the clutch. At this point, the DIC (GM's awkward way of saying "Driver Information Center") flashes the happy message: "Launch Control." You put the clutch in, select 1st gear and push the gas pedal to the floor. You pull the Cobalt SS onto the drag strip and switch the stability control into competition mode.
You can tell, because other than the 2008 Chevrolet HR SS, this is the only car under $25,000 that has launch control. The people who built the 2008 Chevy Cobalt SS just want to go fast. The car's final-drive ratio is also taller, now 3.82:1 versus 4.05:1.
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The Cobalt SS is available only with a five-speed manual gearbox, and we suspect that the six-speed manual isn't up to the torque loads. Larger driveshafts and wheel bearings have been fitted to cope with the upgrade.ĮPA estimates say the '08 Cobalt SS gets 22 mpg city/30 mpg highway. Compare this to 205 hp at 5,600 rpm and 200 lb-ft of torque way up at 4,000 for the supercharged Ecotec in the '07 Cobalt SS. The 2.0-liter turbo develops 260 horsepower at 5,300 rpm and 260 pound-feet of torque at only 2,000 rpm. The output gains over the former supercharged Ecotec are substantial. This turbocharged, intercooled Ecotec with direct fuel injection is the same engine introduced by the 2008 Chevy HHR SS. In addition, the 2.0-liter Ecotec four-cylinder gets continuously variable timing for its intake and exhaust valves this year. Of course, then we go poking around under the Cobalt's hood and find the turbocharger that engineers from the GM Performance Division (GMPD) have secreted away in the back, which replaces the supercharger that used to be under the SS's hood. The only hard visual evidence that we're driving a 2008 Chevrolet Cobalt SS is a set of new 18-by-7.5-inch wheels (0.5 inch wider than before). But give this 2008 Chevrolet Cobalt SS Coupe an hour of your time on a good road and it takes you somewhere completely different.
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It's an odd feeling, because with that familiar Chevy face and Pro Stock-size rear wing, you wonder if you're getting behind the wheel of last year's car.
It's an old-school touch in a car full of new-school kit, and you realize there's quite a bit going on with the 2008 Chevrolet Cobalt SS. The sounds are distinct even to the distracted ear, and they refuse to harmonize. We hear the euphoric sigh of the turbocharger, followed by a throbbing exhaust note out the back. Instead of savoring the moment, we get back on the throttle. Perhaps most surprising of all, it gives the impression of being happy to do it. It turns into a tight left-hander with the haste and hunger of an import sport compact. We come to our first serious corner on Glendora Mountain Road, and the 2008 Chevrolet Cobalt SS Coupe delivers the unexpected.
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