elemental; Cobalt is just the element Chevy needs.(News)(Chevrolet Cobalt SS )(Product/Service Evaluation)

Byline: MARK VAUGHN

So there we were, driving along in a Chevy Cobalt SS with road racer John Heinricy sitting in the passenger seat, when it occurred to us, "Why is road racer John Heinricy sitting over there and an amateur, apex-missing schlub driving?'' We were, after all, snaking along some very interesting, twisting mountain roads. So we asked Heinricy if he would like to drive.

"Sure,'' he said.

Heinricy was up to the task and would, in fact, be driving in the Grand-Am finale only a few days hence. In addition to race victories too numerous to list, Heinricy is a career engineer at General Motors, spending most of his time with Corvettes and Camaros, and now wears the moniker, "Director of High Performance Vehicle Operations.'' That may be the most fun you can have at GM without embezzling from the pension fund.

Heinricy went right to it. He was obviously much more comfortable seeking the handling limits of this front-driver than we had been, probably because he had helped set those limits. Our Cobalt SS was the supercharged, top-of-the-line Cobalt, aimed at the fast-growing sport compact segment formerly owned by Honda/Acura. Chevy is attacking that segment with formidable hardware on this model, throwing the parts catalog at the Cobalt in much the same way Dodge is with its SRT-4 and Ford did with its splendid SVT Focus.

The Cobalt SS uses the same Ecotec powerplant as the Saturn Ion Red Line, a 2.0-liter supercharged four-cylinder that makes 205 hp and 200 lb-ft of torque and drives the front wheels through a five-speed manual. Normally that much power going through the fronts means torque steer, but in addition to equal-length halfshafts, our car came with the optional limited-slip differential, a rarity among small front-drivers and worth its weight on the option box. All SS models get 18-inch wheels (we remember when the Corvette got 16-inch wheels just about 15 years ago!), 215/45 tires and Recaro seats so grippy we felt like a hardball socked into a baseball glove. The SS stickers for just $21,995.

For several miles on the twisty road Heinricy let the tires slip into a little understeer here, a little oversteer there (more under than over). Nailing the throttle out of each corner, he described an arc through the corners that seemed obvious to us only when he expertly threaded it. The SS has a high entertainment value.