Cobalt SS vs. WRX?? Which one to buy

askjeffro said:
I bought an '08 WRX, which as you mentioned the '09 has some nice improvements.



I like the car fine and was really my only choice as I had to have AWD in the mountains. I shortly debated betweent the WRX and the MazdaSpeed3 until coming to that conclusion.



Given this is a detailing forum, my biggest piece of information for you is the paint on the Subaru's absolutely sucks. I hate to dog the car, but because I do like it and the company, but the paint was far worse then I ever could have imagined.



My car currently has less then 7500 miles on it and it already has chips in the paint on the hood that are rusting, yes rusting. The chips went all the way to the sheet metal. For comparison, I have a Ford Focus (Another econobox car) with 110k in the same climate, no rust and no chips like I can already find on my WRX. Additionally we had a Jeep Cherokee with 130k (which we sold and got the WRX) who's paint was just fine on the same roads, weather, etc. (Albeit the Jeep is higher off the ground)



Anyway, don't take my word for it:

Subaru's awesome paint



Other then the paint, the car has been good to us. If you get an '09 you should be pretty good to go from a performance perspective, but there of course plenty of mods. If you can find an '08 on a lot you might be able to get a really solid deal. The '08s can be upgraded to similiar performance and feel of the '09s very easily. however voiding parts of your warranty)



Happy to answer any questions.
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Just quoting myself, my post got approved recently, wanted to make sure it was read. ;)
 
MASKDMARVL said:
Actually 42 and I do enjoy the muscle cars. That happens to be Elenor. I can enjoy a 69 Camaro, 67 Mustang, Judge, even a Corvair ! How about that ? These cars are money pits, Hobbies. Not the fast and furious, but I grew up driving a 73 Chevelle to school. can you imagine that ? Im not even interested in persuading Todd on what to buy, but more into the arguement over dom vs imp. I just find it difficult to see the Cobalt any different than the Cavilier, Sunfire. Its GMs attempt at the youth market !
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Newsflash! The car in your avatar is not "Eleanor".



MASKDMARVL said:
I also heard the Cobalt seats 4 comfortably. no ? Thats practical as hell.
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Its a compact 4 door car. What kind of people are you trying to fit in there?



Cleaning Fool said:
The Cobalts value will drop like an anchor when you drive it off the lot. Subaru, easy choice really..
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This is the truth, however if he is planning on holding onto the car for a while it wont make of a difference if/when he sells.



1985MB380SE said:
I've only read the 1st and last page, but did anyone suggest the VW GTI/GLI (GLI is a Jetta body version of the GTI)? Or the Mitsu Evo?



All the previous comparo's I've read have said the Evo is much more fun to drive than the STi (let alone the regular WRX) - and the new Evo looks so much better than the new WRX
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Out of the three I would go with the VW. I have driven a new Jetta and while it wasnt the high performance model, it was still fun to drive and had an overall nice feel to it.
 
GeorgesBlazah said:
Out of the three I would go with the VW. I have driven a new Jetta and while it wasnt the high performance model, it was still fun to drive and had an overall nice feel to it.
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Our Jetta was a miserable electrical gremlin, I wouldn't wish that on anyone. From anecdotal evidence and JD power ratings, this appears to still linger.



That said, had I not needed AWD, I likely would have got a GTi. Pick your poison.:hairpull
 
GeorgesBlazah said:
Newsflash! The car in your avatar is not "Eleanor".







Its a compact 4 door car. What kind of people are you trying to fit in there?







This is the truth, however if he is planning on holding onto the car for a while it wont make of a difference if/when he sells.









Out of the three I would go with the VW. I have driven a new Jetta and while it wasnt the high performance model, it was still fun to drive and had an overall nice feel to it.
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My fault your right You have it all figured out. My appologies.



Todd did you know the Cobalt SS came in a four door ? Im shocked ! Its true I heard it from a reliable source.
 
TH0001, If you do decide to go with the Cobalt SS, I sell cars in Bradenton Florida and have a black SS on the showroom floor. I will make it worth your drive, and work up a no bull***t deal on it for ya .
 
Go with the Chevy Cobalt SS . Has same engine as the as my hhr ss and also the sky turbo.....Hahn performance has a tune that adds as much as 100hp in low gears.... the seats and door panels are the same thing as the hhr ss...the instrument panel is different but the boost gage is in same location.....It is hard to get more than 10psi boost unless you absolutely nail the gas pedal on the hwy....the tune really opens up the car.....



Hahn RaceCraft Homepage



With rebates and incentives u should be out the door for less than 22k and the dealer still makes decent cash



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ChevyTravis said:
TH0001, If you do decide to go with the Cobalt SS, I sell cars in Bradenton Florida and have a black SS on the showroom floor. I will make it worth your drive, and work up a no bull***t deal on it for ya .
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Todd's a detailer, don't hold your breath on him getting a black daily driver. ;):D
 
Todd: 3 months ago, I would've laughed off a Cobalt SS. I just love the WRX, but the reviews out on the SS are almost unbelievable. The car has such high praises. Why can't GM build ALL their cars to have a desire like that, the Vette, CTS-V, and the Escalade?
 
TH0001- Any closer to a decision?



Much as I love AWD (and generally dislike FWD), I dunno which way I'd jump on this one.



Both my Subies were *VERY* trouble-prone (OK, I got the only two lemons they ever made) and our local Subaru dealers were *UTTERLY* incompetent. My local *Chevy* dealer, OTOH, is great. The differences between the dealerships is so extreme that it'd be a huge factor in which I'd rather live with.



And to be honest, mywife and I found we simply didn't *like* my Subarus...hard to verbalize the reasons why but they weren't the right cars for us :nixweiss
 
I don't have time to read through this whole thread but Subaru is blowing out 08 STIs for $7-8k off list. You could get a sweet deal on one and even justify it to the wife cuz it's a 'wagon'.
 
I went with the Subaru, got a 07 WRX last winter, and its high on the fun factor, everytime i get in it and drive, It's fun.



The new STi as mentioned will be 8K off the list price, but thats because the 265hp WRX is probably a better deal still. With it making almost as much power as the STi.



Now I don't know a lot about the Cobalt, but to me, I don't like the style of them, just reminds me too much of the old cav's which I wasn't fond of. Plus being up in Canada with a bunch of snow, the AWD system is nice to have.
 
WRX Easy answer. Way, Way better of a car. I can't even begin to explain how awesome of a car mine was..... until I sold it for a lot, lot, lot more than I paid for it. You will only understand once you drive and compare them. It really won't be much of a comparison. Oh, and skip thinking about a new one just go for an 07 sti.

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finalfinish said:
WRX Easy answer. Way, Way better of a car. I can't even begin to explain how awesome of a car mine was..... until I sold it for a lot, lot, lot more than I paid for it. You will only understand once you drive and compare them. It really won't be much of a comparison. Oh, and skip thinking about a new one just go for an 07 sti.
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Does the fact that the Cobalt SS is faster, handles better, has a better warrenty, and costs less factor in at all in your statement that the WRX is a 'way' better car?
 
A little update...



I test drove both models and here are my limited thoughts...



Driving experience- The Cobalt has a better steering feel and seems to respond 'quicker' to changes in direction. The Subaru doesn't respond slowly, it just seems slightly dead on center compared to the Cobalt. Both cars beg to be driven aggressively, but neither are "fast". Quick is more like it, that said the Cobalt feels more powerful everywhere, and feel like a larger engine at low RPM. Very tracable at low RPM. By comparision the Subaru feels more like a turbo engine with (VERY slight) lag you can feel it really pick up as the RPM climb.



I thought the interior on both was equally cheap on both sides, but the Subies is a nicer, more livable cheap.



I had a chance to punch both of them from a stop. Both lauch pretty quick but the Subie is defiently quicker off the line because of the traction advantage. The Cobalt SS I drove had the limited slip differental, and in combination with the lauch control system on, left quickly with little drama (though a little bit of torque steer). The Subie had a slightly better shifter and was easier to power **** by a slight amount (I never missed a gear in the Cobalt, just felt a little looser). While neither is fast, the Cobalt feels more powerful and feels quicker. Around town this is more apparent as the engine feels torqueir.



After driving both the truth is that I didn't fall in love with either, so I am going to look at the Mazda Speed (which I doubt I'll like) and the Mitsu...
 
Awesome to hear you are taking the time to drive all the cars.



Word of caution on the MS3, Mazda is releasing a new redesign for the Mazda3 later this year, so if you pick up a MS3, you will be dealing with a generation older platform immediately. May affect resale if that is a concern.
 
MS3 carpet is garbage. Just vacuuming it is a huge chore.



Just FYI, the Cobalt SS already has a plethora of performance parts available since the Sky Redline and turbo Solstice have had the same engine for more than a year.
 
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