2012-15 Chevy Sonic Review

Chevrolet's New Small Car is Pretty Good, But it Could be Better...

Fun and quirky styling can only make up for so much.

First off, this is a nice little car from Chevy, much better looking than the Aveo it is replacing. But what is this car and where does it actually come from? Well, to start off, its only called the Sonic in North America and a few other countries. In every other country (besides Australia) its called...the Chevy Aveo. Yup, its essentially the same old car, still being made in Korea and now in Russia as well. So even though it may still essentially be the same old car, it has received a face lift and is now a fun and quirky budget economy car.

So here they are:

And here is the Hatchback:

Different Styles:

The Chevy Sonic came to North America in 2012 as both a sedan and hatchback. It first came with only a 1.8L 4 cylinder engine with either a 5 speed manual or a 6 speed auto. In 2013 they added a 1.4L turbo as an option on the upper trims with either a 6 speed manual or 6 speed auto. Interesting fact, the hatchback is technically a subcompact in size, while the sedan is a compact and they should be compared to cars in each of their respective classes.

Styling and Comfort Impressions:

Both the cars are almost identical, the only notable difference is the hatchback version has a slightly higher roof-line. 
These are actually pretty cool little cars. I like the look of the big lights in the front and back, and the over sized wheels actually fit well. The super blunt nose may not look as sporty as other cars in the class, but the overall shape and accents keep it fun. 

The windows are a little small for my liking but I do like how the hatchback incorporates the door handles into the upper window side. 

Now for the inside, both the sedan and the hatch have the exact same styling:

Up front it looks quite cool for a car this small. Mostly hard touch plastics but the "stainless steel" around the radio, air controls and on the wheel makes it look sorta futuristic. The motorcycle style dashboard might take some getting used to, but once again, pretty cool looking. I would like a more normal layout of the dash, but this one works fine, nice and bright too. The front seats are nice and supportive, an armrest for the driver is a great option. Even though the cars are quite small, they are relatively high which helps with headroom, that being said, even with pushing the driver seat almost all the way back and mostly all the way down ( a comfortable driving position for this car) my hair was basically touching the roof. 
The sound system sounds good, and there are many options for the radio and media in the middle of the console. There are a very impressive number of features and colors that this car can come with. Like a 'brick' color, sorta makes it feel like a football, especial in leather. 

Now lets move to the back seat. And it all goes down hill from there. First off, I cannot fit behind myself driving. Im not talking about being uncomfortably tight, like I literally just could not get my legs and feet into the tiny space that was left. Now, if the seats are pushed mostly forward ( not a comfortable position up front for anyone) then you can fit back there and its not that bad, lots of headroom and enough room for 2 people definitely. This is more of a major issue when you consider that the sedan is technically in the compact car class and the lack of room is ridiculous. The hatchback has a slightly larger feel to the inside due to the higher roof line in the back. The trunk in the sedan is adequate, not the largest in the class, but ok. The hatchback is slightly shorter, but once again, the gain in height makes up for it. 

Overall visibility is ok, the sides come up quite high and due to the dash being high and the slope of the hood, you cant really see where the front actually ends. Visibility is slightly better in the hatchback but large rear head restraints don't help.

Driving Impressions:

Now the Sonic can redeem its self a bit. The Sonic comes with either a 1.8L engine standard, or the optional 1.4L turbo. The later is the one you want for a few reasons that Ill get to in a bit. 
First the 1.8L engine with the auto trans. Its surprisingly good around town, not too loud, not too rough. It seems to have enough power but once you get onto the highway its another matter, it just sorta runs out of steam. It seems like the trans has enough gears, but the engine just doesn't have enough power. 
How about the 1.4L turbo you ask? Nice. Its just that simple, around town you have plenty of power, not too much turbo lag, a nice sound coming from it ( usually has a more sporty exhaust), and once you get onto the highway you still have plenty of power. Is it a bit louder than the 1.8? Of course, its a smaller engine, but with the added bit of fun, its worth it, unless you will be doing a lot of highway driving, then the drone might get a bit much. But a few more nice things about the turbo are that you don't need premium fuel even though it is a turbo, and that you actually get better MPG than the 1.8L, even though you have a better performing engine. 
Now the rest of the car while driving. Due to it being such a small car is has great handling, not a lot of roll in the corners, its a tad louder than other cars in the class, but most of that can be from the different wheels you can get with it, and depending on the trim, it may have a stiffer feeling ride. 
Due to its small dimensions it is very easy to park.
Take note, the 1.8L comes with a timing belt, while the 1.4L turbo comes with a timing chain, another reason to go with the 1.4.

Overall:

There are only a few reasons why I would like this car. It looks cool,  the interior is cool looking with lots of options and colors ( same with the outside), but it looks a bit cheap as well. It also drives quite nice for such a small car. If I knew that 99% of the time it would only be me or 1 other passenger, this would be a fantastic car. But if you have more than 1 friend or family member then these cars just wont work for you. There just is not enough room in the back seat for 2 normal sized people unless tiny people are up front, and its not wide enough to fit 3 people, even kids. 
Add the fact that it is still the really cheap Aveo, and this may not be the best car for you if you need this to last a long time and be a people mover as well. There are other options out there that have a bit more room and wont fall apart as quickly. This is not a top pick in my books.

Facts/ Figures:

Sedan:

Price ( for mid trim level): $19,000+

FWD

MPG (approx*): (1.8L: 24 city, 34 highway) (1.4L Turbo: 25 city, 36 highway)

Cargo room (approx*): 14 CuFt

Length: 173''

Width: 68''

Tank Size (gal): 12.2

Miles on one tank (using combined MPG figures): 378

Average used price with 60,000KM or less: $13,000+ **

Hatchback:

Price ( for mid trim level): $20,000+

FWD

MPG (approx*): (1.8L: 24 city, 34 highway) (1.4L Turbo: 25 city, 36 highway)

Cargo room (approx*): 19 / 48 CuFt

Length: 160''

Width: 68''

Tank Size (gal): 12.2

Miles on one tank (using combined MPG figures): 378

Average used price with 60,000KM or less: $14,000+**

* when I say "approx" I usually am using the numbers given by the actual manufacturer or Consumer Reports, minus 1 to be a bit more realistic. 

** its is noticeably harder to find a used model with the turbo engine at such a low price.

Links:
Chevy USA
Chevy Canada

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J.K.