Sonic Reviews

[Z-06]

Chevrolet Sonic Reviews

Car and Driver

This is not the second coming of the Volkswagen GTI, but the Sonic turbo injects some serious fun in a segment that usually puts performance on the back burner. Chevrolet had a Honda Fit and a Ford Fiesta on hand for comparison, and the Sonic held up well. In lap times, all the drivers present went almost two seconds quicker in the Sonic than in the next-fastest Fit, but some of that is surely due to superior acceleration at higher speeds. The Honda, which is geared shorter, feels better at low engine speeds. And the Ford offers less body roll. But the Sonic looks as though it would acquit itself nicely against the Fit and Fiesta, as well as the Mazda 2.

We’re not quite ready to break out the “super” prefix for the Sonic, but it does appear to mark the return of the American small car, and not just in name. As part of GM’s restructuring, the Sonic will be assembled in Lake Orion, Michigan. The good news for Chevy, however, is that the Sonic appeals on its merits as a car and not as a piece of flag-waving patriotism.

[Z-06]

Autoblog

Our first chance to drive the 2012 Chevrolet Sonic was limited to a handful of autocross runs designed to demonstrate just how much work that the company's engineers have poured into the vehicle's chassis and suspension development. In total, 60 percent of the Sonic's body structure is comprised of high-strength steel, which not only aids in crash protection, but also creates greater chassis stiffness for a sharper driving feel. Those familiar with the mashed potato dynamics of the compact's predecessor will be relieved to hear that GM has crafted an incredibly sharp machine – at least for dodging cones. Check out the Short Cut below to see how the Sonic performed.

Even with its front-wheel drive configuration, understeer is minimal, and with traction control off, it takes just a few manipulations of the steering wheel to induce a little polite rotation. In fact, the Sonic is every bit as engaging to drive as the Honda Fit, and the Chevrolet routinely generated lap times that were a second or more quicker than its Japanese rival.

Judging from our short stint behind the wheel, it's clear that GM is finally taking the segment seriously. With a targeted 40 mpg highway from 1.4-liter, six-speed manual-equipped models and a genuinely engaging driving experience, the Sonic has the bones to be a legitimate competitor. If its on-road manners and production interior hit the right marks, the Sonic could easily muscle its way to the top of subcompact buyers' shopping lists.

[§carlet §wordfish]

I kinda like it in that trim above. Just glad to hear it's not a complete turd.

[loki]

the red trim on the grill looks cheesy to me, and i'm not really a fan of colored rims (chrome, black, or polished please)

hope it's successful, i could see many of these driving the roads in the next few years if it's done well.

[Drew Dowdell]

Hey, if Honda and Driver can admit that the Sonic could possibly be better than the Fit, that's a really good place to start from.

[Z-06]

Motortrend

Getting straight to the point, Chevy rounds us up in front of the cars sitting on the damp asphalt circuit and tells us that the Sonic was designed to be the most fun-to-drive 40-mpg vehicle sold in the U.S. The collective ears of our assembled group perk up.

All Aveo Sonic models, even the most entry-level version, are given alloy wheels as standard. To put it another way, you cannot buy a Sonic with steelies, even if you wanted to.

Ergonomics are good, with a nice-feeling steering wheel, comfortable driving position, and superb visibility. Rear seat room was very good for this 6-foot-tall scribe, with ample headroom and satisfactory legroom in both sedan and coupe. Controls are easy to operate and identify for the most part, and center console storage is reasonable for a car of this size. The cargo area in both variants also looked deep and uniform in shape, lacking much of the irregularity that often makes stowing larger, non-conformable objects difficult.

The Sonic goes on sale later this fall, where GM expects the sedan to slightly outsell the hatchback with around a 60/40 percent spilt. Should the hatch prove more popular, a trend that GM says isn't out of the realm of possibility, production is flexible to produce more of the five-door version if necessary. Whatever the split, we expect the Sonic as a whole to provide its fair share of competition on the sales boards against Ford, Honda, Hyundai, and Nissan.

[Drew Dowdell]

I think at this end of the vehicle spectrum, the hatches are more popular than sedans. I rarely see a Fiesta, Yaris, or Versa sedan. They're almost all the hatch.

The Aveo was different. I see about equal sedans and hatches.

[Croc]

I think at this end of the vehicle spectrum, the hatches are more popular than sedans. I rarely see a Fiesta, Yaris, or Versa sedan. They're almost all the hatch.

The Aveo was different. I see about equal sedans and hatches.

I honestly don't understand the sedans at all in this segment--WHY eliminate all that storage space and headroom??

[Drew Dowdell]

Stigma

[ocnblu]

All these quotes... and one word sticks in my head after reading them all... "coupe". Are you serious?

[hyperv6]

I got to spend some time in the 5 door and 4 door last Feb. They look better in person and loads better than the Aveo. The interior is interesting with the Motorcycle like dash. Fit and finish on the preproduction car was good but the materials felt cheap in the door panels etc, but everything in this class feels cheap for the most part. The doors shut and sounded better than most Kia's.

I am glad to see they like how it drives as I got to play with the car but not drive it myself I was wondering how it drove. It sounds as if they gave it enough turn in and handling to make it fun but not enough to lose a kidney.

The press gushed over the Cruze too but many 6 month later are not gushing as much. This is a trait with the press on GM for year. I hope this car can break this trend and they are still looking favorable at it by the time it comes to market.

In this class the hatch has the usefulness down but Americans like trunks always have always will. I still think in a car this small the hatch will not be that far behind the sedan in sales. Small hatches are generally better accepted as often it is the only way you can haul anything in these small cars.

[PurdueGuy]

A 3 door would be hot. At any rate, I could see myself in a used turbo 5dr in a year or so for the right price if I don't go with an HHR sooner.

[hyperv6]

A 3 door would be hot. At any rate, I could see myself in a used turbo 5dr in a year or so for the right price if I don't go with an HHR sooner.

The larger HHR would give you more room and right now a cheaper price on a low mileage used one. The Sonic would have better MPG and a little better quality since it is newer.

I would like to see them let GMPD so the tuning on this car and see what they can get out of it. No need to call it an SS or what ever but a real good tune on this car would be interesting.

The graphics on the one above with brown metalic paint would sell in Cleveland as the Browns edition.

Edited June 3, 2011 by hyperv6

[PurdueGuy]

A 3 door would be hot. At any rate, I could see myself in a used turbo 5dr in a year or so for the right price if I don't go with an HHR sooner.

The larger HHR would give you more room and right now a cheaper price on a low mileage used one. The Sonic would have better MPG and a little better quality since it is newer.

I would like to see them let GMPD so the tuning on this car and see what they can get out of it. No need to call it an SS or what ever but a real good tune on this car would be interesting.

The graphics on the one above with brown metalic paint would sell in Cleveland as the Browns edition.

Yeah, the HHR is the more useful vehicle, but I'm in a quandry where a regular HHR won't have enough fun factor for me, so I'd keep my SC2 to autocross & tinker on. Part of me wants to get an HHR SS or something else that's autox worthy and not have one more vehicle. It would also let me take a car that's vinyl'd up for my biz & advertise with it by autoxing it. Given a bit of time for there to be some used Sonics (say, late next spring), I could probably get one cheaper than a good used HHR SS.