Paris 2012: Hot Or Not? The Chevrolet Code 130R In Bright Blue
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When we first saw the Chevrolet Code 130R on the 2012 North American International Auto Show floor, we were elated over its no-frills driving appeal. A rear-wheel-drive compact coupe from Chevy? Oh that would be something. In fact, we wrote a two-part opinion story as to why the 130R must be built. Even though red isn’t our favorite color. Blue, on the other hand… blue seems to always work better.
As it turns out, Chevy has a (grabber?) blue Code 130R on the 2012 Paris Motor Show floor this instant, courtesy of Chevy’s Facebook page.
As a refresher, the Code 130R is rumored to be a concept of what’s possible with the new Alpha platform, and features a turbocharged 1.4L Ecotec engine coupled with eAssist to produce 150 horsepower. It’s not much, but if (or when) the spritely Chevy is built, we are hoping to see more powerful choices under the hood.
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Dosnt look to bad maybe a darker blue like that on the cruze would look cool! Just not a big fan of the front wounder what the chevy cruze front will look like, maybe code 130r will get something like that? hope they build it ill be looking at it if they do!
BUILD IT!
I would lay down $25,000 to $30,000 for a loaded one today if I could.
For 25-30k wouldn’t you rather have a camaro?
this car needs to be 17-25k chevy wont build two rear dive coupes for the same price range not in this age.
I think the color was more to attract attention, and can’t see that coming to fruition except as a Hot Wheels. There are also more photos on the “Build the Code 130R” facebook page.
I agree with archangel, the price needs to start well under 20k for this to make sense and not encroach on the Camaro.
Yes, hot wheels…like a plastic toy…no way
If this was offered in black with the 2.0 Turbo from the Regal GS, I wouldn’t blink about handing over 25k-30k for a fully loaded Code 130R instead of a Camaro. I recently bought a Solstice, and it is a fun car to drive. These smaller read drive cars have a “go cart’ quality that I appreciate. I love a big cube muscle car as well, but their behavior in the corners are different.
Luke, I would be in the market for a loaded 130R. At $25-30k, that should be about right.
I was about to drop $65,000 on a CTS in Germany 2 years ago before catching myself and asking what the heck I was doing; I could get a V for that same amount in the States. Unfortunately, I will be here for another 5 years.
In my eyes, that’s too expensive. I still think the Scion FR-S is too expensive. $19k base, completely naked. Base crank windows, optional radio, rear seat delete, manual trans. Just give me light rwd chassis that I can throw around and tune if I want to. You old guys can have your fancy creature comforts and high sticker price
Yeah I don’t think the demo who can afford a CTS-V is whose attention Chevy is trying to get with the Code 130R. It’s supposed to be a millenial machine, and most of them don’t want to drop more than $20k said and done for a car especially when fewer and fewer people feel they need it (cities, or living close to work). Most millenials (I still don’t really like that term but it’s the most widely used) care more about what smartphone they have than what they drive, and if GM wants to stay relevant they need to have products that don’t get lost in the mix, because then they’ll lose the price battle to Hyundai, Kia, and anyone building vehicles in southern right to work states. The great recession put everyone back in their parents houses, and made frugality a virtue of necessity. If you build an aspirational car (corvette/V series – check) or an affordable cult classic (code 130R shooting brake?) then you might manage to stay on their radar – if we’re not all rolling in Google self driving cars in 10 years.
Manoli do you think your wish list is actually realistic? I completely understand why you want to do it, I just don’t see it coming to fruition. To get the car at a lower sticker without standard features, I think it would serve such a (relatively) small niche GM wouldn’t bother.
Going with what you’ve mentioned, most Gen Yers care about connectivity and technology over a car because most of us are so damn broke that we have to choose between the two.
I do believe this car will come to market in some form or another. It would be foolish for GM to turn away at such interest. Though it could just be to test the waters for how the market would react to a smaller, lighter, more agile Camaro. But I also believe that two RWD coupes can exist from Chevy if given enough differentiation (a small one like the FRS/BRZ and a large one, like the current Camaro or Challenger, or perhaps the sweet spot is where the Nissan 370Z, Hyundai Genesis Coupe and Ford Mustang currently dwell).
A theory I have is that as more people look for alternative transportation, it leaves us die-hard car lovers to absorb more and more of the demographic. Meaning that unless car companies want us fighting among ourselves for used Nissan 240SXs and E30 BMWs and to ignore their new products, they will have to continually quench our thirst for excitement. Just a thought…
Luke – I would be happier spending $25-30k on a 130R than $60-70 on a CTS-V. Just because I can get the V doesn’t mean I will. And the V came up just because I was looking at importing the CTS to Europe which would cost about the same as buying a V in the States. And the only reason I was looking at the CTS is because it’s the only RWD product from GM (Camaro wasn’t available 2 years ago and a Corvette in Europe is over 100,000 euro). So I really don’t want the CTS or the CTS-V but my options are simply limited.
So what I really want is a 130R. I rode in a GT/86 the other week. I was tempted to write a check and get a pair of winter tires to go with it. But it’s a Toyota and I’m an American in a foreign land. Can’t I at least have one RWD GM product without having to fork my money to the Germans like I do for everything else? I rent a car (Golf or Passat estate) every other week around here thanks to my having to drive on occasion. I would love to own a car.
Technically, I fit the Millennial market on the older side of the scale… but that’s not even the pont.
Cars like these don’t sell in high volumes and don’t make that much for the manufacturer financially. So they need to appeal to as wide an audience as possible. To say that the 140R is limited or in some way restricted to the Millennials is shortsighted, as it pretty much kills all chances of the car breaking event let alone being profitable. This car can’t be selective and needs to be as appealing to everyone and anyone as possible. That’s the only way it has a chance.
Manoli’s stripped idea might work on a track-specific version… but the Genesis Couple with either the 2.0 turbo or 3.8 engine and the Track trim would disgrace it in sales.
It reminds me of an old Celica notch-back, and why does the side mirror look like it came from 1995? If you picture it with the production 14 inch hubcaps, I think it will lose a lot of fans. (Styling is subjective, don’t be ‘hatin on me)
First off, build it…second my guess the Camaro will go up market in its next gen role so this will fit nicely under it. So here are my thoughts on pricing: 130R $19,800 – $26,500; Camaro $24,800 – $40,000, Stingray $36,800 – $52,500, Corvette $65,000 +… That’s right fools Stingray…
Doesnt make much sense to me to built two cars off the alpha platform which is what ibwould assume the 130r would be built off of. The next gen camaro is switching from zeta to alpha. Not to mention that alpha is a premium platform i doubt it would make much financial sense for gm to build it
Here’s the thing: while the Alpha is indeed an expensive architecture, spreading its costs around multiple models would balance out the hefty overhead. There’s nothing wrong with having 2, or 4, or 6 or 10 Alpha-based models. They will all be distinctively different, while retaining wold-class driving characteristics. There is no sense to have multiple, overlapping platforms anymore. Hence why Zeta and Sigma are on their way out. The flexibility of Alpha replaces both of them.
It makes perfect sense.
Manoli – why is Alpha an expensive architecture?
The way I see it, the architecture has no unique characteristics: no expensive weight-saving aluminum or some kind of a special requirement in manufacturing that makes it expensive to procure materials or manufacture. It’s just metal bits, unlike Audi Space Frame design with aluminum all the way around and through. And even if it did have aluminum, it can always be “cheapened” for Chevys and non-Cadillac vehicles by replacing the expensive stuff with cheaper materials. I say bring it and as many variants of it as possible. Just make the differences among luxury and non luxury vehicles distinctive enough.
Other than that I totally second the move to one RWD platform. Sigma and Zeta were redundant.
Alpha is expensive because of the materials used to make it so. There is actually an extensive use of aluminum, and even magnesium, and the suspension is all-new and quite complex. Take the ATS, the entire front clip, hood, strut towers and suspension is aluminum. Replacing all of that with cheaper steel I suppose is plausible, but that may ruin the the balance and feel of the chassis that was designed to have minimal unsprung mass.
not to sound like i dont know what im doing but what does “alpha” “zeta” and “sigma”?
what is it? lol
Someone else can be probably explain better but ill give it a go…
Cars are based on a “platform” or “chassis” which are basically the underbody of a car, you can think of it as kind of like a foundation of a building. They can be RWD or FWD and mostly describes the suspension and frame of the car.
Alpha, Sigma, and Zeta are just the names of their respective platforms.
Alpha is the new platform that will underpin the new ATS, the next gen CTS and camaro, and others.
Sigma is an old platform that started with the 2003 CTS and 2004 SRX, the current SRX is not on sigma.
Zeta is an old mainly austrilian platform that underpins cars like the Holden Commodore.
All three are RWD.
Hope this helps
I think GMA did an article on platforms, maybe someone can post a link.
YOU MEAN THIS ONE?! CAPS LOCK! http://gmauthority.com/blog/2011/10/what-is-an-automotive-platform/
I knew it existed, read it almost a year ago, I have good memory, if I must say so myself, just couldnt find it!
i wanna see a black one. oh and yes build it gm, now.
You never find that color in my garage.
Color looks like Petty blue to me. Perhaps it is a little too bright for the general public. But a welcome addition to the color palette of dirt and rock colors of late.
That’s Petty blue, No?
This car is sooooo awesome!! Build it, blue, red, green, whatever! Just build it!!! Please
don’t care for the color (although i’m all for crazy colors and options so i say offer it!), but i love the 130R. the Toyo-Buru twins are selling like hot cakes. GM could definitely one up -at best- or carve out a chunk of the market with a well executed, properly supported entry into the compact RWD performance market.
the market has literally been starved for over a decade, and Toyota will be the only ones with a purpose built product for it. if GM can produce a 130R with a price and performance directly on top of the FR-S/BRZ, they will have a winner on their hands.
GM just needs to realize that this is a marketing/building customer base exercise for the future. it’s not about market saturation. it’s a rolling marketing campaign to recapture the youth market!
Time to ditch the front end. The Chevrolet family styling is getting old. It even looks old on the new Malibu. Need to make it appeal to the younger crowd if you want conquest sales
The front clip of the Impala will be Chevy’s look going forward. So if this car is built in some form or another, look for it to ditch the dual port grille.
PRETTY AGGRESSIVE
needs more than a 150HP though with that kind of fascia!
Alpha refers to a platform designation, the chasi or frame structure or architecture that supports the rest of the car…
Ya, what Babersher said….