There's no temperature gauge, however, not even a little light that goes off when the engine reaches operating temperature. Motorcycle, mom, not a Schwinn.) A large, hooded tachometer is flanked by a digital display for the speedometer and odometer, which also takes up fuel gauge duty, and communicates other relevant stuff like a compass andįuel economy. So slipping behind the wheel you're presented with an instrument panel that looks like it was plucked straight from a sport bike. This is a car meant to be taken seriously by people who enjoy driving. While it does an excellent job of making the Sonic seem like a sportier three-door, little kids will find it hard to reach.īut Chevy isn't building the Sonic just for economically strapped families anymore. So too does the clever rear door handle, hidden in the black C-pillar, Chevy Beretta-style. They will no doubt prove hard to keep clean, but fashion exacts a price. The Sonic has the best looking front fascia we've seen on aĬhevy in years, with oversize fog lamps complimenting the projector-style headlights, which are wrapped in a black bezel to make them appear even more recessed.
![2012 chevrolet sonic engine 1.8 l 4-cylinder (1ls · 2ls) 2012 chevrolet sonic engine 1.8 l 4-cylinder (1ls · 2ls)](https://s1.cdn.autoevolution.com/images/gallery/CHEVROLETSonicHatchback5Doors-4314_50.jpg)
Its design is aggressive, leaning purposefully forward thanks to two character lines running from the front wheel well towards the rear of the car. While nearly $20,000 for a subcompact that in a previous life was the cheapest car sold in America seems high, the Sonic hatchback looks and feels like a quality product from the start. This is the top-of-the-line Sonic, which is why its MSRP was so much more expensive than the $14,635 (plus $760 destination) starting priceĪdvertising. Our test vehicle was an $18,690, five-door LTZ. We'd even be willing to call it great if GM would work on a few of the details. So it's no wonder the "new" GM doesn't want us talking about the The company sold some 48,000 Aveos in 2010, over 28,000 in 2011, and stragglers onĭealer lots continue to find new homes even as you read this. Rental car fleets where they would have even greater opportunity to reflect poorly on GM. Hundreds of thousands of Aveos have been dumped here over the years, often into Instead, the Aveo was famously named the "Least Satisfying" vehicle of 2007 in a If GM had marketed the Aveo as a disposable product, meant to be driven hard and left for dead, it might have disappointed fewer people. New car that you can use and abuse and care not a whit about. Some of us actually developed a modicum of affection for the little piece of junk. It was enough of a pitch that the car sold – and stuck around. But it was available as a five-door hatchback, one of the few on the market at the time, and its starting sticker price was under $10,000.
![2012 chevrolet sonic engine 1.8 l 4-cylinder (1ls · 2ls) 2012 chevrolet sonic engine 1.8 l 4-cylinder (1ls · 2ls)](https://www.theautochannel.com/news/2012/02/02/023364-2012-chevrolet-sonic-turbo-bowtie-pocket-rocket.1-lg.jpg)
A product of its newest subsidiary,Ĭhevrolet Aveo had few charms. GM decided to import a cheap, crummy little econobox from Korea. An Aveo By Any Other Name Is, Indeed, Sweet