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autonews.com wrote:SS safe for Chevy under Reuss's watch
November 20, 2009 - 10:47 am ET

From 1960s Chevelles to modern Camaros, speedy Chevrolets have always been identified with two letters: SS.



But does the tradition-laden performance designation have a future in the new General Motors, which is under pressure to cut costs, make money and meet stricter fuel-economy regulations?

“Absolutely,” Mark Reuss, GM vice president of global engineering, told AutoWeek.

In fact, the SS line could be better -- or at least more clearly defined. Reuss envisions cars outfitted on a case-by-case basis, rather than somewhat generically adding horsepower and red-letter stitching to Chevys across the board. Or as he put it, “Not trying to peanut-butter SS for everything.”

“If you look at Chevrolet's heritage, it's important to remember where SS was,” he said.

Reuss recently took over as GM's top gearhead after leading its Holden operations in Australia -- the origin of the company's enthusiast-oriented rear-wheel drive underpinnings.

That platform, called Zeta in GM speak, is also safe under his watch, and the company is at work on a sedan in Australia that's expected to return impressive fuel economy in that market from a 3.0-liter engine.

For rear-wheel drive to have broader applications, and possibly play a larger role in GM's U.S. lineup, Reuss said the cars need to get stellar gas mileage and have reduced weight.

Though the performance of these cars can be enjoyable, he's adamant about the need for RWD to be usable and relevant to modern realities. The underpinnings for the Camaro and the Pontiac G8 came from Holden.

“We strove to make Zeta, rear-wheel drive in Australia, relevant to the rest of the world,” he said.

Truckweb wrote:C'est juste que de nos jours, le "SS" ne veut plus vraiment rien dire. Quand on parle qu'une simple Cobalt a l'option "SS", c'est grave.... C'est utilisé à toutes les sauces maintenant.

Imprez wrote:

Truckweb wrote:C'est juste que de nos jours, le "SS" ne veut plus vraiment rien dire. Quand on parle qu'une simple Cobalt a l'option "SS", c'est grave.... C'est utilisé à toutes les sauces maintenant.

T'oublies de dire que la "simple Cobalt SS" est la voiture ayant le record de piste pour un FWD sur le Nordschleiffe du Nurbürgring...
Et que la même simple Cobalt SS mange tout-rond les muscle-cars du temps sur circuit et les accote presque sur le 1/4 de mile ...

PT TURBO wrote:

Imprez wrote:

Truckweb wrote:C'est juste que de nos jours, le "SS" ne veut plus vraiment rien dire. Quand on parle qu'une simple Cobalt a l'option "SS", c'est grave.... C'est utilisé à toutes les sauces maintenant.

T'oublies de dire que la "simple Cobalt SS" est la voiture ayant le record de piste pour un FWD sur le Nordschleiffe du Nurbürgring...
Et que la même simple Cobalt SS mange tout-rond les muscle-cars du temps sur circuit et les accote presque sur le 1/4 de mile ...

Il parlait peut-être de la Cobalt SS avec le 2,4L N/A de 171 hp et non de la version T/C.

PT TURBO wrote: Il parlait peut-être de la Cobalt SS avec le 2,4L N/A de 171 hp et non de la version T/C.

In fact, the SS line could be better -- or at least more clearly defined. Reuss envisions cars outfitted on a case-by-case basis, rather than somewhat generically adding horsepower and red-letter stitching to Chevys across the board. Or as he put it, “Not trying to peanut-butter SS for everything.”

lemarin wrote:Moi ce sont les Aveo SS que j'ai vu qui m'impressionnent.....

blackeyes wrote:Mais il faut pas juste acheter un model comme SS ou R/T, il faut regarder ce qu'il y a sous le capot. Souvent ce n'est qu'estétique la différence. Chez Dodge c'est le SRT le top alors que c'est supposé etre SS chez GM, mais ils ont bluffé les consommateurs et en paye le prix je crois.

PT TURBO wrote:C'est le genre à s'acheter un Chihuahua en croyant s'être acheté un Grand Danois...