Well its about that time for me to buy a new vehicle as my current car is on its last legs (or wheels). Anyways its between the cobalt ss/tc and the CSRT4. So I figured I should take them both for test drives back to back on the same day. Here are some of my impressions.

*the cobalt ss/tc feels like the bigger of the two cars (in fact it is the longer) and while seated in the drivers seat, you have plenty of room to move around. The CSRT4, on the other hand has more of a cockpit feel to it and I liked it. The combination of the seating position, shifter location, and arm rest worked surprisingly well and was very comfortable. Again, since I like the cockpit type feel, I thought that the CSRT4 was winner here.

* while driving, the CSRT4’s shifter felt short, firm and precise, the cobalt’s less so, but not by a large margin. But the real difference was in the clutch petal. The CSRT4 has a very firm clutch petal unlike the cobalts which feels very very soft. The combination of the shifter and clutch petal made shifting the CRST4 a blast …the cobalt less so. If I had one major complaint against the cobalt it was that clutch petal. It took me a while to get used to it and never did feel very comfortable.

*the CSRT4 does have torque steer, but it was by no means as bad as I had thought, given the complaints I had read about it. in fact I kinda enjoyed it. All I have driven is modified cars so im used to the tug of the steering while. Besides, I like the feel of the car reacting to the power, it feels as if the car is going faster. The cobalt ss/tc steering on the other hand does not give you very much feedback at all. It does not even feel like your going fast till you look at the speedo. The cobalt ss/tc seemed to have the quicker pick up, while I was surprised by sluggishness of the CRST4. maybe this is due to the smaller turbo in the former, but at lower rpm, it took a while for the CRST4 to take off. The cobalt ss/tc on the other hand took off as soon as you hit the gas, and I was very impressed with its pick up. The cobalt ss/tc also felt like the ‘firmer’ of the two vehicles, road noise was very minimal (my wife’s mazda 3 makes far more noise) potholes were not a problem and its steering felt more precise.

*While the seats in the cobalt ss/tc look better, the CSRT4 actually hold you in place better around the turns. Though neither interior is great, the cobalt ss/tc is more aesthetically pleasing. It has two tone door cards, ss badging and an integrated radio. By contrast, the CSRT 4 is all boring black plastic and its radio looks, well, quite dated and out of place. Rear visibility is very very limited in the cobalt ss/tc (especially with the high rise spoiler), as opposed to the CSRT4. I let both cars rip and hit the brakes hard. Neither cars brakes felt overwhelmingly better than the other, though I would give the advantage to the cobalt ss/tc, but of course that might be due to the ‘brembo’ name.

*I enjoyed driving both cars, and I think I would be happy with either but I think im ultimately going with the cobalt ss/tc. Why? Two reasons tip the balance in its favour:
1. dodge does not offer a power train warranty on the Csrt4. all you get is a 36/60 000 new vehicle warrant WTF? I find this to be unacceptable. Regardless, which ever car I buy has to last me a while, so I cant afford to buy one without some peace of mind.
2. since I am financing the vehicle, the lower rate the better. Here in Canada, you can finance the cobalt ss/tc for 1.9%, while the rate on the CSRT4 is 6.99%. Though the cars are similar in price, this interest rate makes a big difference.

 

thanks for the writeup, good luck with your decision. but you missed one point, the cobalt looks soo much better

 

Dodge performance wagons are comical at best, screw performance an SRT4 is 5 times the grocery getter a cobalt is

 

how tall are you?
that made some of the difference for me choosing a cobalt over the caliber.
I found the caliber to be way to small for me, even though I am only 6' 185 lbs.

 

i am 5'8. im sure if i was much taller the CSRT4 would have felt a little two tight for my liking. To tell you the truth i was suprised not only by how small the driving space in the CSRT4 was, but also by how small the hatch space in was... i mean for a hatch i was expecting more. and i was also suprised by how big the cobalts trunk is..... lots of room in there ...i think you could fit a couple of bodies in there....only if you wanted to do that of course

 

haha
a lot of people say that

my mom has the sxt caliber, i can't stand it, much too small for me
my head is near the ceiling, sometimes over bumps i brush it.

it has suv style seating in a sedan sized car

 

I'm 6'4"... I've never even SEEN a CSRT4 yet. lol But the Cobalt has good room for me. Granted the seat is all the way back, but the only car I've been in that the seat wasn't all the way back was a 2007 Camry.

Rear visibility is poor in the Cobalt but that's the case with most sports / sporty cars.

My absolute biggest complaint is this. Although the trunk is big enough to hold a couple bodies.... how the hell would you get those bodies in through the tiny opening? Grr.. bugs the **** out of me.

 

cmon dood haven't u heard of Tetris??

 

Too easy of a decision:

1.) Just take a look at all the posts on here and see just how incredible the SS/TC is responding to mods. Every tuner's dream is a car that puts down more power for very little done. We've got TC's in the 12.99/13.00 range already!!

2.) I've raced both with the same mods done to my car. The TC stayed right beside me, the SRT4 fell behind and there was nothing he could do but wave and watch me walk away.

SS/TC without a doubt.

 

totally agree the tiny trunk opening is the worst part of the cobalt as far as grocery getter options

 

True...but the trunk is huge if you can fit the stuff through the opening!

 

Think about it for a while, then test drive both again and make your decision. That's what I did. I thought the Caliber felt faster, stock, and had a better sound system. That's about it. The comfort, warranty and fuel economy pushed me towards the Cobalt. Plus I really hate 6-speed close-ratio trannies. Ultimately you just gotta feel it out.

 

just look at car and driver's LL issue,


nuff said


CSRT4 is not even in the same league with the SS/TC.

 

Really? Because I'd rather have a 6 speed than a 5 speed. I guess I was just spoiled with my 2004 SVT Focus and 2001 Camaro SS Although 1st gear in the ss/tc is already very short with just the 5 speed.

 

It amazes me people begrudge the TC cause it doesn't have a six speed. It's geared very well and in every track review that's been noted. Highway cruise rpms and mpg are excellent.

 

better get in fast.

GMAC has upped their credit score minimum to 700

not in the same league? i cant stand the visuals of the caliber, but lets keep it real here shall we?

the ss/tc was not conceived by god and a GTO.

 

I know for a fact my next car will be another cobalt. I love this thing already. 260HP with 32Mpg? Thats just shy of old evo numbers..... without the cost of insurance

 

How about 11.7 @ 120 mph??

Also, stock CSRT4 doesnt see full power till 4th gear. U race him past 110 mph?

Please dont try and say the turbo in the SS/TC is better than the turbo in the CSRT4. The fact of the matter is the turbo in the CSRT4 is much larger, and has TONS more potential than the little dual scroll in the SS/TC.

Perfect example, I ran a 13.9 @ 106.6 with just a DP and drop in filter. I was trapping higher than the camaro in the next lane running a 13.2.....
This was also my first time at the track.....

thank u anom.

 

Wildercard- Have you looked into the Mazdaspeed3 at all? It's up there in the same catagory with the SS/TC and CSRT4, just something to think about.


Btw, nice writeup.

 

1.) Any SRT-4 is pretty damn badass!!!
2.) They do not look the best, but they will get up & go the fastest.
3.) They do not handle like the SS/TC does, but
4.) What exactly are we looking at? (Looks, performance, handling)?

 

If anything, the MS3 is the closest competitor to the SS/TC for the simple fact it is a very good twisties *****.

The CSRT4 is, well, not as good at that, but a drag queen.

 

QFT

Cobalt SS/TC, Mazdaspeed3, CSRT4 are all in a league of their own, for the price nothing else comes close to them. Anyone who tries to say that one of the three isn't in the same class needs a reality check.

Oh, and I set out with the intention of test driving all three. I drove the ss/tc, then went to testdrive the mazdaspeed and the dealer had his nose so far up his own ass that they wouldn't let me test drive it.

The poor fuel economy (relatively!) of the caliber and MS3 really turned me off. I enjoyed the cobalt on the testdrive and scored a good deal on one, so I bought it and haven't looked back.

 

I totally agree, I mean for the price, you cant beat either one of these cars.

Yeah I thought about it. My wife has an 2007 mazda 3 sedan and she loves it and I know the speed got great reviews. It is however about $3000 more than the CSRT4 or the cobalt ss/tc. However, the big issue I have with the speed is the way it looks. Don’t get me wrong I think it’s a good looking car, however I think the speed looks too similar to the regular 3. I know they changed the front and rear fascias, rims, spoiler, in addition to the hood and fenders if I am not mistaken, however I still think it looks to similar. And since everyone and their grandmother owns a 3, I would rather have something a little different.

Yeah maybe I try them again when I talk numbers with the dealerships. What did you think of the CSRT4’s shifter and clutch petal as compared with the cobalt ss/tc?


I don’t know, I like the look of both cars. I think the CSRT4 just looks mean, and it definitely does not look like anything else that is on the road. I think ultimately the CSRT4 will end up being the faster of the two vehicles but that is just a guess. Not sure if anyone is aware here, but in a few weeks mopar will be releasing the stage 1 kit for the CSRT4. it will produce 310 hp and 300 ft-lbs. the kit also supposedly changes the throttle petal calibration for improved response, so maybe the car wont be as sluggish. The problem is that a lot of reviews have stated that one of the major problems with the car is its inability to put its power to the payment (limited slip anyone?), so increasing the hp and torque isn’t going to help that. The kicker though, is that the stage kit will void your warranty. Hopefully we will have some news about the cobalts kit soon and whether it will void your warranty.

What am I looking for? = fast, cheap, small and reliable. Something I can take to the track every now and then and use as a daily driver. As was pointed out, the speed, CSRT4 and cobalt ss/tc are in a league of their own when it comes to this. A warranty is really important to me, so the cobalt looks like its going to win out. Plus, from a reliability standpoint, based on the forums, it looks like the CSRT4 people are having more problems with their cars than the cobalt ss/tc. I just don’t want the cobalt’s shifter to fall off (y plastic GM?)

 

Although they are all technically in the same class, meaning the FWD performance variants... to me when comparing a 2dr 2+2 to a 5dr hatchback/wagon and a mini "SUV".... I'll always stick with the 2dr 2+2 coupe regardless who makes it...

The MS3, definitely can get pricey... like $26k+ U.S.D which for a turbo 4 4cyl car is way too much in my opinion. I know the Caliber SRT-4 also sticker around the SS/TC base, but I just saw a 08 Caliber SRT-4 going for $27k U.S.D... WTF?

Stock vs stock, they all perform VERY similar. The Cobalt SS/TC seems to be finally getting some respect from the car magazines because it's definitely one of the best performing and handling cars out there for its price*.

Anyways, I think all three are great cars, but it just comes down to what you want... Each of them have something to bring to the table it just depends on what you want.

 

Nice Write Up
But Really A Caliber?
C'mon Dude I Think The Cobalt Looks Better