2006 Motor Trend COTY Contender: 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt
An Injection Short Of The Good Stuff
As the successor to the lackluster, long-in-the-tooth Cavalier, the Cobalt didn't have big shoes to fill. However, that doesn't diminish its significance in Chevy's lineup. With coupe and sedan body styles and four trim levels, the Cobalt is Chevy's premier small car, the brand's answer to such stalwarts as the Ford Focus and the Honda Civic. For this year's Car of the Year competition, Chevy sent us the all-new SS sedan, which complements the 145-horsepower LS and LT sedans and coupes, the SS coupe, and the 205-horse SS Supercharged coupe. The lineup's sportiest four-door, the SS sedan is motivated by a 2.4-liter, 171-horse Ecotec four-cylinder--the same engine used in the Pontiac Solstice--mated to a five-speed manual, a combo that produced respectable runs from 0 to 60 (7.1 seconds) and the quarter mile (15.6 seconds at 90.0 mph).
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As its "SS" badge suggests, the Cobalt gets a healthy dose of sport--stiffer suspension, 18-inch wheels, and a tasteful ground-effects package. The prescription works. On the track, the SS displayed a definite taste for the skidpad (0.83 g), the slalom (64.1 mph), and the figure-eight course (27.2 seconds), producing results on par with those of the Audi A3 and the Lexus GS 430. Track prowess aside, the SS sedan failed to impress us in several key respects, notably interior quality and ergonomics. For a sport compact that commands a nearly $20 grand price tag, the Cobalt SS's plastics were underwhelming to the look and touch; its back seat was low, flat, and hard; and its shifter seemed placed too far rearward. In light of the all-new Honda Civic, as well as the Hyundai Accent, the Cobalt ultimately lacked the competitive sophistication to be a real contender.
