2.0L LSJ Performance Tech 205hp Supercharged SS tuner version. 200 lb-ft of torque.

Why are these cars so darn hard to drive?

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Old May 17, 2007 | 08:42 PM
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Why are these cars so darn hard to drive?

God! Some days I just can't seem to drive my car right. I always have to pull out slow and try not to ride the clutch, bog, or burnout. I've never been in a car that drove like these before. Is anyone else having some problems adapting to pulling out smooth in these? I've had this car for like 3 months now and still have problems. It's like I have to have the radio down really low so I can hear the engine rev a little when I gas it before I go cause the pedal has kind of like a dead spot in it. It sucks! I hate that damn electronic throttle. Sorry, just had to vent a little, this thing pisses me off sometimes.
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Old May 17, 2007 | 08:43 PM
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quick revving, blown car with fwd and a shitty clutch?
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:06 PM
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That's the thing, I'm wondering if the clutch is that shitty or if it's just so darn hard to pull out with that it dies.
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:09 PM
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I think you need to invest in the driver mod 2.0
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:09 PM
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lol ya first gear in this car is a pita... if you even try to take off from the light at the same pace as the other cars it sounds like your racing
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:10 PM
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Originally Posted by 8cd03gro
quick revving, blown car with fwd and a shitty clutch?
still better than a v6 mustang
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:13 PM
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Originally Posted by blueta
That's the thing, I'm wondering if the clutch is that shitty or if it's just so darn hard to pull out with that it dies.

I can get smooth take off; but you're right in the sense that you have to concentrate more than on some cars.

The main thing IMO that cause this behavior is the fact that our engine has to turn the blower (Unlike most 4 cylinders) which puts more strain on the engine (not much but some). On top of this we have fairly light flywheels from the factory to combat the fact that the supercharger is already going to make it hard for the 4 cylinder to get up to speed. With an engine that has to work to turn an extra component and does not have alot of weight in the flywheel for momentum, once you apply the clutch it's more added load. Since we have the setup that we do you have to give it a little help in maintaining a good rpm for take off.

I do not consider this a problem or a nuisance, it's just the nature of the beast.
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:16 PM
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Originally Posted by Mattman6
I think you need to invest in the driver mod 2.0
Me and a lot of other people. These things are seriously rediculous. My gas pedal is so light I can't even feel if I'm pressing it a little or not, then all the sudden it goes to 3k rpm . I know someone who has been driving stick for 10 years in seriously probably 15 different cars (all manual) throughout that time and never had a problem. He just got an 07 and says the same thing, these things are just weird leaving the line. BTW, his gas pedal is very hard to push. Gotta love gm consistancy
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:17 PM
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never had that problem...rides smooth to me
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:17 PM
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It took me the last year to get used to it. I'm not sure if it just broke in better or if I'm just used to it now. From the get go though, I didn't mind it; however, everything you do with it is very subtle. Even the slight vibrations you get letting it out take a few months... I had to keep turning down my radio too at first lol.

I am yet to be able to hit reverse without riding the clutch though. It likes to just take off, which is fine if you have open road behind you.
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:20 PM
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Sport clutch, its got a quick catch, what I do is just let the clutch out till it bites, hold it there to 2000 rpms, then let it all the way out and go about my business, no bucking or peeling out.
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:24 PM
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Originally Posted by blueta
God! Some days I just can't seem to drive my car right. I always have to pull out slow and try not to ride the clutch, bog, or burnout. I've never been in a car that drove like these before. Is anyone else having some problems adapting to pulling out smooth in these? I've had this car for like 3 months now and still have problems. It's like I have to have the radio down really low so I can hear the engine rev a little when I gas it before I go cause the pedal has kind of like a dead spot in it. It sucks! I hate that damn electronic throttle. Sorry, just had to vent a little, this thing pisses me off sometimes.
I think the cobalt was easy to drive from the first time I stepped into it. Now launching the car is a entire differant story. Every day driving is great, but when your full blown racing its not the same. I don't know, I think it gets better with time. I'm running stock clutch with no issues and plenty of passes at the track. 13.6 all day long with stage II, intake, exhaust, and Ingalls TD. Practice makes perfect. Hell, just get a AWD car if you want to be able to launch with ease. AWD is training wheels for people who can't launch their cars.
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:25 PM
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Originally Posted by Red2.4SS/SC
still better than a v6 mustang
http://videos.streetfire.net/search/...e4016946bd.htm



seems that is on a stock clutch...actually its on a totally stock tranny/block. Good luck with that on your balt buddy! oh and can't wait for your infraction to get to ya!

Originally Posted by R&C_rallySS
I think the cobalt was easy to drive from the first time I stepped into it. Now launching the car is a entire differant story. Every day driving is great, but when your full blown racing its not the same. I don't know, I think it gets better with time. I'm running stock clutch with no issues and plenty of passes at the track. 13.6 all day long with stage II, intake, exhaust, and Ingalls TD. Practice makes perfect. Hell, just get a AWD car if you want to be able to launch with ease. AWD is training wheels for people who can't launch their cars.
true but those are some fun ******* training wheels. ever launch an evo?

Last edited by 8cd03gro; May 17, 2007 at 09:25 PM. Reason: Automerged Doublepost
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:26 PM
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Originally Posted by BlackyK
Sport clutch, its got a quick catch, what I do is just let the clutch out till it bites, hold it there to 2000 rpms, then let it all the way out and go about my business, no bucking or peeling out.
I was actually doing that exact thing for a while and it seemed great. Then it got really hot (over 80* ) and it was bogging a lot. Had to adjust. It's really not as bad as I am making it seem, it just gets annoying to me sometimes if I want to listen to the radio loud or make a bold move into traffic smoothly. I'm sure I'll get used to it (I'm a LOT better then when I first got it). Oh well, just wanted to vent a little. I guess it's a combo of all the things listed above.
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:27 PM
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I don't know Ford don't got to much to boast about these days...especially dealing with V6's and V8's
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:28 PM
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what infraction would that be?
taking a shot at someones car....who just took a shot at his?

looked pretty harmless to me
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:30 PM
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From: Newport News, VA from Pittsburgh, Pa
^^^^
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:30 PM
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C'mon guys, lets not make this into a ford vs chevy thing. I actually love/hate GM. Power windows that always fail (BRAND new vette at the dealer with a bad one lol ), cheapy interiors, weak transmissions, very inconsistant with everything. But I can't get away from them! I've owned 13 cars and EVERY one was a gm. This is only my 2nd FWD one, other being a GTP. But lets keep this clean, I don't want to delete my thread
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:32 PM
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Originally Posted by an0malous
what infraction would that be?
taking a shot at someones car....who just took a shot at his?

looked pretty harmless to me
this whole damn site complains about the ss clutch, i was just saying what is probably part of the cause. His clutch is probably going, but obviously i can't say what half of you were thinking right when you read this thread because my car is half a sec slower than yours

The clutch is one of the biggest weak points on your car and people have had problems with them stock or very close to stock. I am just pointing out what could be a major part of the problem. Sorry i don't respond to threads asking questions with worthless comments that do nothing for the thread starter.
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Old May 17, 2007 | 09:47 PM
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i never though my ss was bad to launch... Then again i also used to drive my friends 82 supra with a custom turbo kit we built that had a 7 year old clutch and 20 year old suspension... talk about a handfull... but what i found helps if your tryin to launch into traffic or against someone feathering the clutch works well to stop wheel hop/spin.. until it rains...
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Old May 17, 2007 | 10:51 PM
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Originally Posted by denny
**** man I tough it was in my head. This is so true. The more power the worse it gets.
I either take off really slow or burnout.....
exactly! if i take off at the same pace as the other cars im chirping the tires for sure at least on the painted strips.
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Old May 17, 2007 | 11:10 PM
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Originally Posted by cblt12
lol ya first gear in this car is a pita... if you even try to take off from the light at the same pace as the other cars it sounds like your racing
Originally Posted by denny
**** man I tough it was in my head. This is so true. The more power the worse it gets.
I either take off really slow or burnout.....
No kidding, sometime the person in the next car would think "game on" and takes off, then I have to catch myself as I mash the gas pedal. Luckly it doesn't happen too often. First gear is definalty something to get used to.
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Old May 17, 2007 | 11:13 PM
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Originally Posted by 8cd03gro
this whole damn site complains about the ss clutch, i was just saying what is probably part of the cause. His clutch is probably going, but obviously i can't say what half of you were thinking right when you read this thread because my car is half a sec slower than yours

The clutch is one of the biggest weak points on your car and people have had problems with them stock or very close to stock. I am just pointing out what could be a major part of the problem. Sorry i don't respond to threads asking questions with worthless comments that do nothing for the thread starter.
not the whole damn site bro.
just the people having trouble learning to drive stick
or the ones who are used to driving stick in cars with <100 ft/lbs of torque.

we have a very young driverbase in these cars. and a clutch is the first part of a car that will hurt from that.
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Old May 17, 2007 | 11:25 PM
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ive never fully learned how to drive stick.
if i grab an SS, think itll be hard for me to learn?
If the stock clutch sucks, should I just buy an upgraded clutch right away?
(gonna try to buy the stage 2 power thingy too when i buy the SS)
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Old May 17, 2007 | 11:29 PM
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Originally Posted by an0malous
not the whole damn site bro.
just the people having trouble learning to drive stick
or the ones who are used to driving stick in cars with <100 ft/lbs of torque.

we have a very young driverbase in these cars. and a clutch is the first part of a car that will hurt from that.
MANY members here have complained about having problems with the clutch very early in the life of the car, that is not the norm in the automotive market and you know it. I have not seen as many problems with the clutches from any other new cars and it seems to vary from car to car here. Some have problems right away with normal driving, some never have problems beating the **** out of it so it could be a production flaw or something in early models who knows, but you and many others know there have been many many complaints about slipping clutches on almost new cars. I am just saying, his clutch could likely be part of the problem, and it isn't uncommon for the ss/sc to have clutch problems. I am not trying to rag on your car at all, most cars have something shitty about them. I have a 7.5" rear end which blows.
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