As the owner of a 2007 2.4L Cobalt SS coupe, I really think its one of the most underrated cars in the class.
I'll start with the good...
The brakes are phenominal, this has been well documented so I don't think I need to elaborate.
The handling is nothing short of amazing 90% of the time, the other 10% of the time I wish the car had both a LSD and an independent rear suspension. At high speeds around corners the rear can give the feeling that its going to break loose as it hops over midcorner bumps.
The engines across the entire board are strong compared to other cars in the class. My car ran a 15.375 @ 89.994MPH with just an intake, which is almost Si territory. A good friend of mine has an Si and his best run is a 15.2, however he does have 18s.
The coupe looks very good, especially the SS models. I also like how the SS models are differentiated from the lesser models, whereas on a Civic you get a tacky i-Vtec sticker and a wing to let people know you have an Si.
The 7 speaker Pioneer stereo is fantastic and one of the best stock systems I've heard, that said the subwoofer could be slightly punchier. If you have ever looked at the speakers up close you will see they are not a paper cone as most stock systems run.
Finally and perhaps most importantly, we come to price. I can't speak for American prices, but in Canada the Cobalt is substantially less expensive than any comparable model. The APRs are also much lower, my lease is at 1.4%, good luck getting less than 5% on a Civic.
Now the not so good...
For a car that is so quiet at idle, the wind noise at highway speeds and up is too loud. This is personally my biggest complaint with the car.
The e-brake, what was GM thinking?!?! You can't use it with the armrest down, its huge, absolutely hideous and you can see the mold lines on it. This is by far my biggest complaint with interior of the car.
The electric steering is maybe a bit too heavy, I noticed this more when I first got the car. I would much prefer a hydraulic unit, maybe just on the SS models?
The panel gaps are good, but if you look closely the doors don't seem to line up very well with the rest of the body work. On my car the passenger is really bad, at first I thought the door wasn't completely closed.
If you close a vent or two and have the fan on 3 or 4 the closed vents whistle, forcing you to open them very slightly.
My overhead interior light vibrates at certain high bass levels. Hasn't happened very often, but when it does its annoying, turning the volume down fixes the problem, but I shouldn't have to.
The doors are huge, enough said.
The cup holders aren't deep enough so if your drink isn't totally full they often tip over if you get the gas.
Trunk is big, but the opening is tiny. I can't get a cooler into my trunk.
Other random thoughts...
The interior on the 07s is much improved, the old steering wheel was really cheap as was, but to a lesser degree, the radio. The little things really do make a huge difference, now if only they would fix the e-brake. The interior isn't nearly as bad or cheap as everyone makes it out to be, it may not be class leading but its definetly competitive.
If I could have any one option it would be automatic UP and DOWN windows for both windows.
The sedan is definetly not a looker, even in SS trim.
Whoever suggested dumping the LS model and moving the Cobalt upscale should just stop talking...
NAV and HIDs would be awesome, but are they really needed? What would the % take be? Leave the upscale stuff to Saturn.
Why are they dropping the SS/SC and not replacing it?
Resale value is fairly terrible at 40% after 4 years.
There are a lot of little features I'd like to see added: Bluetooth, automatic climate control, no wing option, auto up and down windows and so on
bowtie dood, have you ever priced out a Lancer GTS?? And you get what a totally awesome 152HP? Yet the Cobalt needs more power, but its best features are its powertrains?