SONIC vs. COMPETITION

[regfootball]

CAR AND DRIVER did a hot hatch or subcompact comparo.

Sonic, Fit, Yaris, Rio, Accent, Versa (where the hell was the SX4 sportback)

1. Fit

2. SOnic

3. Yaris (sport)

4. Accent

5. Rio

6. Versa

I may have the Rio and Accent mixed up, but anyways, if i do i will correct it. article is not online yet.

Yaris makes a surprise showing.

Sonic gains praise but barely still loses to Fit.

Versa is trashed and new Korean twins are underwhelming.

First showing out of the gate and the Sonic does well.

[Robert Hall]

I read the article the other evening...IIRC, they left the Fiesta and Mazda 2 out because the Fit beat them in the last comparo.

[ocnblu]

What, no Spanish party?

[pow]

I still prefer the Spanish party to the Fit. The Honda is almost too involving, and it never really settles down like the Ford does.

[A Horse With No Name]

CAR AND DRIVER did a hot hatch or subcompact comparo.

Sonic, Fit, Yaris, Rio, Accent, Versa (where the hell was the SX4 sportback)

1. Fit

2. SOnic

3. Yaris (sport)

4. Accent

5. Rio

6. Versa

I may have the Rio and Accent mixed up, but anyways, if i do i will correct it. article is not online yet.

Yaris makes a surprise showing.

Sonic gains praise but barely still loses to Fit.

Versa is trashed and new Korean twins are underwhelming.

First showing out of the gate and the Sonic does well.

SX4 is essentially third world market automobile...a useful upgrade from a 125cc ten year old motorbike, but just barely. Not sure they can sell it in rural China as the jury is still out on whether or not it is an upgrade over a water buffalo in terms of transportation.

Versa and Rio are pretty much rolling trashcans....Yaris is not much better. Calling these cars hot hatches is sort of like putting a less attractive, hevier version of rosanne bar in Playboy...ugh.....

[A Horse With No Name]

But not having seen the Sonic I'd pretty much say that the fiesta and Fit are the only viable players in the group....other than the Hyundai Velostar, which is a decent little car and priced well.

[A Horse With No Name]

I still prefer the Spanish party to the Fit. The Honda is almost too involving, and it never really settles down like the Ford does.

I can understand that, although I am in the minority here and like both the Fit and the Fiesta...and the Velostar is along the lines of what Gm should b e building. Too bad they couldn't have kept up and grown with the creativity of the original Corvair line....lots of interesting original Corvair variants built by GM...

[ocnblu]

When I drove a Fit (current gen), it was fun to drive, but... it was like being inside a 55-gallon drum, the echo. Fiesta is much quieter, much less road noise. Of course, I haven't examined a Sonic.

Cannot believe the heft of the Chevy, and the crash test scores are no better than the lighter competition. BUT, if it means a more solid feel over the life of the car, it might be a fair trade-off. Remains to be seen.

Seeing the Yaris, I am reminded that Toyota still cares enough to provide a 3-door hatch bodystyle... if only it were available with the SE package... the meaner look of the Yaris, and the more serious dashboard make it more appealing than the old, imo.

The Koreans are hoping to trade on looks alone, it seems.

SWEET 'Vairs, Horsey!

[Satty]

The SX4 is barely worth being called a car.

[A Horse With No Name]

The SX4 is barely worth being called a car.

And here you and I would agree...looking through one of those buying guides at the library yesterday they rated the SX4 at a 2 on a scale of one to ten, and the Grand

Vitara at a one....

Pretty much the SX4 claim to fame is that it is much, much, much more effective than the AMC Gremlin at being the automotive form of genital herpes....

Actually, I'd much rather drive a gremlin now that I think about it.

[A Horse With No Name]

Hot hatch...apparently...according to Car and Driver logic...saw this in a parking lot the other day, haven't seen one in forever...

[ocnblu]

It appears to have pissed itself when that big, tough Silverado with 20s parked near it.

[A Horse With No Name]

LMAO...yes it does!

[regfootball]

What, no Spanish party?

The Mazda2 and Fiesta yes should have been part also.

[Robert Hall]

What, no Spanish party?

The Mazda2 and Fiesta yes should have been part also.

Their rationale was that the Fit beat them in last year's comparo, so why bother..though it would have been interesting to see where they ranked relative to the newer models.

As far as 'hot hatches', the only models in the NA market today that fit that label IMO are the Mini JCW, Mazdaspeed3 and VW GTI.....the cars in the C&D comparo are more 'lukewarm hatches'.

Will be interesting to see how the Focus ST and Fiesta ST turn out.

Edited October 9, 2011 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[regfootball]

CAR AND DRIVER did a hot hatch or subcompact comparo.

Sonic, Fit, Yaris, Rio, Accent, Versa (where the hell was the SX4 sportback)

1. Fit

2. SOnic

3. Yaris (sport)

4. Accent

5. Rio

6. Versa

I may have the Rio and Accent mixed up, but anyways, if i do i will correct it. article is not online yet.

Yaris makes a surprise showing.

Sonic gains praise but barely still loses to Fit.

Versa is trashed and new Korean twins are underwhelming.

First showing out of the gate and the Sonic does well.

SX4 is essentially third world market automobile...a useful upgrade from a 125cc ten year old motorbike, but just barely. Not sure they can sell it in rural China as the jury is still out on whether or not it is an upgrade over a water buffalo in terms of transportation.

Versa and Rio are pretty much rolling trashcans....Yaris is not much better. Calling these cars hot hatches is sort of like putting a less attractive, hevier version of rosanne bar in Playboy...ugh.....

of course you would say that, not having actually driven one. but faster, more solid and secure on the road, better 4 wheel disc brakes, better build, and quieter not tinny like the fit...for less money....of course you wouldn't know that....

http://www.autoweek....VIEWS/100519984

the fiesta wasn't even included, and the fit is not that great to begin with. how does the fiesta lose to the Fit? and to the mazda2 for that matter?

Edited October 9, 2011 by regfootball

[hyperv6]

I saw this a little while ago. I think the Sonic will suprise many like the Cruze. The Honda has no soul it is just an applicance. No matter if you like the Sonic styling or not it is more than just a uninspired box. It looks as it it was styled by a man with no fingers.

They the Sonic may have more weight it will give it a ride the others will lack. It will be interesting to see what performance options will be offered next year. I hope they do something on scale with the GM Performance tuned cars.

[regfootball]

What, no Spanish party?

The Mazda2 and Fiesta yes should have been part also.

Their rationale was that the Fit beat them in last year's comparo, so why bother..though it would have been interesting to see where they ranked relative to the newer models.

As far as 'hot hatches', the only models in the NA market today that fit that label IMO are the Mini JCW, Mazdaspeed3 and VW GTI.....the cars in the C&D comparo are more 'lukewarm hatches'.

Will be interesting to see how the Focus ST and Fiesta ST turn out.

yeah it would have been nice to see how the rio and yaris compared with the 2 and fiesta.

[ocnblu]

Seent a new-style Rio hatch today at the dealer, a silvery-beige colour, LX with wheel covers and autotragic transaxle... over $18k. Clearly not worth it.

[ocnblu]

The Sonic LT hatches I've seen at the dealer (white and orange) are decidedly sedate looking in the flesh, except for the glaring eyeballs and detailed taillights. The dash doesn't look to me to be as cheap as I'd feared. Of course I didn't rub any appendages over it, all I did was put a nose mark on the door glass. I'm glad the little F-350 King Ranch Captain's Chair fold-down armrest carried over from the Aveo, that's a space-saving way to do it.

Haven't seen an LTZ yet, or one with foglights. I'm surprised how small the aluminum rims look on the LT...

[CanadianBacon94]

I saw this a little while ago. I think the Sonic will suprise many like the Cruze. The Honda has no soul it is just an applicance. No matter if you like the Sonic styling or not it is more than just a uninspired box. It looks as it it was styled by a man with no fingers.

They the Sonic may have more weight it will give it a ride the others will lack. It will be interesting to see what performance options will be offered next year. I hope they do something on scale with the GM Performance tuned cars.

CarAndDriver says the Fit is the best handling compact and that's why they give it the win usually

[dwightlooi]

The Sonic has three glaring problems:-

• ONE: It's fuel economy is actually 1 mpg WORSE than the larger Cruze*
  
• TWO: It is ALMOST THE SAME PRICE than the CRUZE despite an smaller interior volume
  
• THREE: You CANNOT get it with a 1.4T and the 6-speed Automatic
  

* Probably because not substantially lighter, while trailing edge drag of its hatchback layout is worse.

[Z-06]

^ Autotrajic is coming in Spring 2012.

[Satty]

I saw a silver sedan the other day that was quite dull in appearance. It didn't look familiar so I glanced at the decklid and sure enough it was a Sonic. If GM does it right, they could have a replacement for the late-90's Civic here, if its solid, reliable and boring to look at, people will flock.

[hyperv6]

The same complaints here of too expensive, to heavy, styling and too poor MPG are all here just as the Cruze. May be it will fail as bad as the Cruze has?

From the way the test went it sounds as if it is a good very good car and once people drive it they will see how good it is.

I think we will hear the same things on the new Bu too but I think this trio will do very well ont he market. The Cruze was the key to unlock the door and will get people to look at the others and find even with the small complaints they are looking at the car as a whole and in many cases will give up 1 MPG and will find they will be priced at the dealer to sell.

Edited October 10, 2011 by hyperv6

[hyperv6]

I saw this a little while ago. I think the Sonic will suprise many like the Cruze. The Honda has no soul it is just an applicance. No matter if you like the Sonic styling or not it is more than just a uninspired box. It looks as it it was styled by a man with no fingers.

They the Sonic may have more weight it will give it a ride the others will lack. It will be interesting to see what performance options will be offered next year. I hope they do something on scale with the GM Performance tuned cars.

CarAndDriver says the Fit is the best handling compact and that's why they give it the win usually

If I recall win was by 2 points as MT usally does. Normally they use Ergo to pick their choice and on this one they could not get away with that.

[regfootball]

The same complaints here of too expensive, to heavy, styling and too poor MPG are all here just as the Cruze. May be it will fail as bad as the Cruze has?

From the way the test went it sounds as if it is a good very good car and once people drive it they will see how good it is.

I think we will hear the same things on the new Bu too but I think this trio will do very well ont he market. The Cruze was the key to unlock the door and will get people to look at the others and find even with the small complaints they are looking at the car as a whole and in many cases will give up 1 MPG and will find they will be priced at the dealer to sell.

it's almost never that a shopper comes in talking curb weights.

while it matters in a small car how porky it is, the engine makes up for it.

the mpg is an issue sure, but let's find out real world mpg too.

the LS and LT aveos are decently priced. I don't see any issues there. The Fiestas I have seen are more overpriced.

[Drew Dowdell]

The FIT's interior and NHV are the letdowns.

[dwightlooi]

The FIT's interior and NHV are the letdowns.

GM needs to stop making excuses though and start tackling the weight problem. I can guarantee you that the Sonic is not 400 lbs heavier because it is carrying 400 lbs of sound deadening!

[Drew Dowdell]

I mentioned nothing about GM in that post. I find ALL Hondas to be far too loud inside from road and engine noise.

[Robert Hall]

The FIT's interior and NHV are the letdowns.

GM needs to stop making excuses though and start tackling the weight problem. I can guarantee you that the Sonic is not 400 lbs heavier because it is carrying 400 lbs of sound deadening!

Probably heavier steel in the platform and suspension compontents to absorb the shock of Michigan's 3rd world road conditions?

Edited October 10, 2011 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[hyperv6]

The FIT's interior and NHV are the letdowns.

GM needs to stop making excuses though and start tackling the weight problem. I can guarantee you that the Sonic is not 400 lbs heavier because it is carrying 400 lbs of sound deadening!

Probably heavier steel in the platform and suspension compontents to absorb the shock of Michigan's 3rd world road conditions?

That and they also may have gone to more light weight steel but I am sure they are still using enough regular steel to keep the cost down to still build them in Michigan.

I do agree that the GM cars often may have more weight but they also last a lot longer on the poor winter beaten roads here in the north. We have few old Honda's here but we have a lot of old Heavy Chevys. Sorry I had to use that as I just saw a nice red 71 yesterday.

I bet any Fit on the road today here in Ohio will be long gone and used up in 8 years.

[regfootball]

The FIT's interior and NHV are the letdowns.

!!!!!!!!!!!!this

I mentioned nothing about GM in that post. I find ALL Hondas to be far too loud inside from road and engine noise.

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!thisx2

[regfootball]

The FIT's interior and NHV are the letdowns.

GM needs to stop making excuses though and start tackling the weight problem. I can guarantee you that the Sonic is not 400 lbs heavier because it is carrying 400 lbs of sound deadening!

Probably heavier steel in the platform and suspension compontents to absorb the shock of Michigan's 3rd world road conditions?

That and they also may have gone to more light weight steel but I am sure they are still using enough regular steel to keep the cost down to still build them in Michigan.

I do agree that the GM cars often may have more weight but they also last a lot longer on the poor winter beaten roads here in the north. We have few old Honda's here but we have a lot of old Heavy Chevys. Sorry I had to use that as I just saw a nice red 71 yesterday.

I bet any Fit on the road today here in Ohio will be long gone and used up in 8 years.

or the salt eats them away

http://www.insideline.com/honda/fit/2007/honda-recalls-2007-08-fit.html

[A Horse With No Name]

Seent a new-style Rio hatch today at the dealer, a silvery-beige colour, LX with wheel covers and autotragic transaxle... over $18k. Clearly not worth it.

Sounds like they were stoned to me!

The Sonic has three glaring problems:-

• ONE: It's fuel economy is actually 1 mpg WORSE than the larger Cruze*
  
• TWO: It is ALMOST THE SAME PRICE than the CRUZE despite an smaller interior volume
  
• THREE: You CANNOT get it with a 1.4T and the 6-speed Automatic
  

* Probably because not substantially lighter, while trailing edge drag of its hatchback layout is worse.

Smaller cars often fare worse in fuel economy...and since fewer people want them, they are not as profitable, hence the higher price.

Sonic has no interest for me, actually.

The FIT's interior and NHV are the letdowns.

And the resale value...they loose a lot compared to a Civic. Bigtime. Not to mention real world safety and fuel economyh are much worse than a Civic.