while I was at the dealer yesterday, getting the check engine light issue resolved, I saw they had 3 cobalt SS in stock - all 2 doors & all stick shift. the 2009 show the engine is built here, but the 2010 shows the engine came from germany. what gives?

 

My 09 HHR SS was over 80% made in Mexico. I forget the exact numbers. So much for an American company.

 

Mexico or not, i think its a well made car.

 

I "think" that I read somewhere that the engine was designed in Germany, in
partnership with Opal. And, that the tranny was designed in Italy. But, I have been
wrong before....LOL

 

That could very well be the case!

When someone gripes that we should be buying American products or brands they are just uninformed.

America has and will take the best designs from around the world and create unique and affordable cars and trucks. No other country in the world has our diversity of automobiles.

For instance the Ford Modular V8's design is taken directly from the old 2.3 4cyl Ford motor...designed and first produced in Germany. The current Mustang's chassis design is from Volvo.

The primary reason I bought my HHR SS is the motor and it would not surprise me at all if it were of German origin.

 

German quality is very high. Higher than the U.S..
I live in a country without modern automotive industry. Therefore, I have great experience in the operation of European, Japanese and American cars.
Indeed the U.S. market vehicles is very diverse, but with the Japanese market it does not compare. The Japanese are simply amazing.
As for European cars, including the German cars, I can say the following:
The build quality is very high - is a virtue.
Consumer quality is also very good.
Disadvantages: limited resources (5 - 7 years), expensive maintenance and repairs.
In Car class "no premum" frequent poor equipment, "strangled" engines for fuel economy and environmental cleanliness.
When GM began to make their engines in Europe, this is done for the sake of improving quality. I think the engines produced at plants Opel, owned by GM. Restrict engines will not be, because the end user - it is the Americans. Everyone knows that you guys like to push the pedal to the floor. These Americans and Russian are similar.

 

These Eco-Tec Motors are also referred to as GM's "global motors"

It seems obvious (imho) also there is some German influence in the design.. DOHC / VVT & BMW style oil filter cartridges, etc.

 

The Turbo Eco engines I last saw were built in Spinghill TN. The Auto trannys were also built in the states and is an old design. I also believe the 5 Speeds were also built here.

The Eco was a Opel based engine and the Turbo Eco was also engineered with the help of Lotus and Saab. Lotus did a lot of the engneering work and the improved castings were done using the casting meth Saab used as it is stronger than the other Eco castings. The racers have been using the Saab heads just for this reason for a long time.

Get used to it as we are now in a Global auto market. Cars like the Buick Lacrosse were styled in China, Engineered in Germany and Detroit. The Camaro was designed in Detroit and Austrailia.

The point is all new cars will have a world connection. How well they are built is not dependant on where it was built but who designed it.

GM will build Regals in Germany this yeat but next year they will be coming out of Canada. Both plants will use the same plan in building and one will be just as good as the other.

the crock that the cars built in Germany are better are false. Today you have South Carolina BMW's, Alabama Benz and Mexican VW's. Many of the acclaimed German cars on our road have never been close to Germany. Even Porsche is now building outside Germany.

GM is making an effort to move more production here with the new Aveo and Cruze. The Aveo which is nothing like the old will be built in MI and the Cruze will be built in several plants in the states as is is the Malibu and other GM cars.

The same people who design these cars are the same no matter where they are built. The assemlby metheods are set up by the same people too. I know a couple who have to travel a lot since they now set up plants around the world for GM.

As for the carteridge filter it goes back a long way. They were a bolt on option in the 30's on a Ford flat head that had no filter in the first place. Also the first Chevy small block had this in place of the screw on too. What was old is new again.

 

hyperv6 certainly right.
Nevertheless, my experience tells me that there are national peculiarities.
One time I worked very closely with Toyota dealers. They sold and repaired Corolla Japanese, English, and Turkish assembly. Dealers noted the difference of quality (the creaking door panels, corrosion of electrical junctions, the problem of suspension). But the most reliable Corolla were right hand drive imported into the country not officially.
The same can be said about BMW. In Russia, selling German and Russian cars (building Kaliningrad City). Kaliningrad cars starts to fall apart soon after the end of the warranty. The German machine is kept for another three - four years.

 

Actually... the parts are made in Canada and the US, and assembled in Mexico. That's different from being made in Mexico.