Decent Review: Chevy Aveo5

[nadepalma]

Sorry if its a repost - didn't see it anywhere else.

I thought that this was a pretty honest - and good - review for what it was:

Source: LeftLaneNews.com

Quick Spin: 2009 Chevy Aveo5 LT1

Tahiti. The mere mention of this rhythmic word conjures up images of picturesque beaches hopefully devoid of obese, Speedo-clad French tourists. Someone at General Motors’ downtown Detroit offices in the Renaissance Center must have been lost in a dream vacation one dreary winter day when he or she decided that the diminutive Chevrolet Aveo5 should come in bright colors with exotic-sounding names like Tahiti Green.

We have no qualms with Chevrolet’s attempt to make the smallest model it sells in the United States a cheerful little box. Small cars have long been considered throw-away devices for urban commuters, pizza delivery “professionals” and cash-strapped college kids who relish the new car smell. Thus, Chevrolet offers the Aveo5 in all sorts of festive hues ranging from Summer Yellow to Victory Red to Blue Moon – and, of course, Tahiti Green.

That color namer (we imagine his or her business card reading “Chief Aveo5 Color Naming Person”) must have been feeling the winter blues a bit more when it came time to select a name for the tan interior scheme: The final decision was “Neutral.” So our test vehicle was a Tahiti Green on… Neutral 2009 Chevrolet Aveo5. What about Bora Bora Beige? Or Beachside Brown? Or even Tanning Oil Dripping Off of the Fat French Tourist in a Speedo Tan?

What’s notable?

Colors aside, the Aveo5 is a pretty traditional subcompact car. One of the smallest vehicles in the U.S. market, the Aveo5 is a three-box Aveo sedan with the rearmost box removed and replaced by a vertical hatch, making the Aveo5 more than a foot shorter than its cousin. Designed by GM Daewoo in South Korea, the Aveo5 has been subject to considerable marketing in the U.S. ever since gas crept above a couple bucks a gallon because of its economy car status.

Buyers might be a little shocked by more than just the color names when they look at the window sticker on an Aveo5. Highway fuel economy is just 34 mpg, only one mile per milk jug of gas more than the much larger and more powerful Saturn Aura we drove recently – and that’s with the fuel-saving five-speed manual transmission on the Aveo5.

That’s more a testament to the Aura than a slam of the Aveo5, which features about class-average fuel economy and, to be fair, the Aveo5’s 27 city mpg bests the Aura by five mpg.

With low rolling resistance 14 inch tires and a rather unsophisticated MacPherson strut/torsion beam suspension setup, it’s no surprise that the Aveo5 isn’t a track star. Driven within its limits, the Aveo5 provides a comfortable and absorbent ride thanks in part to its especially stiff structure. It feels more substantial than its sub-2,400 lb. curb weight would imply.

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[91 s-10baja]

The new car is certainly a huge inprovement on the previous car. BUT, stylistically I am not sure if the new front styling is going to work. Here is what I mean... w/ the pontiac G3 you get the traditional front vertically split grille. Works. W/ the Chevy and it's newly re-discovered horizonally split grill, and the bowtie applied to the painted portion, and license plates required (mostly), it does not look right? Anyone else agree?

[FenwickHockey65]

Originally Posted by 91 s-10baja

The new car is certainly a huge inprovement on the previous car. BUT, stylistically I am not sure if the new front styling is going to work. Here is what I mean... w/ the pontiac G3 you get the traditional front vertically split grille. Works. W/ the Chevy and it's newly re-discovered horizonally split grill, and the bowtie applied to the painted portion, and license plates required (mostly), it does not look right? Anyone else agree?

Yeah...if Pontiac HAS to have the G3, then kill the Aveo5. Keep the Aveo sedan for Chevy, in all honesty, it doesn't look half bad. But the whole "I'M GOING TO EAT YOU" grille on the Aveo5 is just horrible.

['Vette Dude]

Yeah, not a big fan of that big fish mouth grille. I like the G3 better.