[fierodeletre]

Well you DID say in a CAR, but Honda has made several excellent V4s for motorcycles.

Here's what the article said:

"As for the base car's V-6 (which makes almost as much hp as the V-8 in the Mustang GT), it's now reported that a new, less expensive engine will join the lineup. One possibility is the new direct-injected 255 hp 3.0 L V-6, but there is another option; a turbocharged direct-injected 2.4 liter I-4 from the ecotec family as an alternative to a plan that was rejected a year ago involving the 2.0 liter turbo Ecotec from the solstice GXP. Currently, this engine is not turbocharged, but it could be. The fact that the block was strengthened over the older non-direct-injected engine leads us to believe that it was designed for a forced-induction application, and a turbocharged 2.4 would supply ample torque, fuel efficiency and performance for a base camaro. So, would buyers prefer a 255-hp 3.0 L V6 or a 260-hp (I think it would be higher if it was the 2.4, closer to 300 hp -me) 2.4 L turbo I-4?"

The base camaro crowd is the more open minded one. V8 people are often those who grew up in the original muscle car era (not always), and for whom the layout of the cylinders in the engine is much more important than the actual specific output or efficiency. As this forum shows there is a big contingent of camaro fans who don't need/want a V8, and for those people, either of those proposed engines would be welcome I would think. Although, if GM's looking to do this in order to be cheaper, I can't see a turbo engine of any kind being less expensive to produce, and if I had to bet, I'd put my money on GM using the smaller V6. I myself would prefer the turbo, just because turbos are cool.

Also, ricers are people, not cars. I think the cobalt SS is a wicked cool looking car. (I think people who automatically knee-jerk react and scream "rental!" don't really appreciate the car's lines. well, as long as it's a coupe I suppose, the sedan's a bit blorpy.) The only and I mean ONLY thing that makes me think twice about it is it's layout. I hate front drive cars. Apparently this FWD car handles pretty dang well though, so maybe I owe it to myself to test drive one. You want a chevy coupe with more horsepower and slightly fewer mpg than your civic? look no further than a 25K Cobalt SS.