Chevy Aveo?
 

I'm looking for a replacement for my SC2. I just can't stand having only 2 doors and it being so small. I know an Aveo isn't much bigger, but at least it has 4 doors. I've heard many different things about Aveos. Edmunds.com rated it pretty good, but I've also heard they are cheap, rebadged daewoos. I don't know if they are good or not. I've also heard of people getting 35+ mpg and then others claim less then 22. It is the only new car I could afford ATM. Opinions appreciated.:)

Why not look at a late model used car? I searched on Edmunds.com and the Aveo started at 13,500. I searched Carmax.com for sedans, 2007-2009 in the $12,000 to $14,000 price range. Many cars came up, and among them were several low mileage Ford Focus(es) (Why do people say focuses? Isn't the plural of Focus Foci?) and Chevy Cobalts. There were also a couple of Saturns in the mix, and Kias, but I'm not fond of Kia.

I say buy a 1 or 2 year old used car and let someone else take that first hit of depreciation.

-Jay

for the same money, you could get a yaris. well the same money depending on options.

the aveo is dirt cheap if you get it completely stripped, power nothing and definitely test drive one. they are dogs, no power. the yaris is a better solution. also if you are going to get a new one, check into ordering one, that way you don't pay for unwanted options that cost you money.

also consider the used market. just remember, people think a lot of their good gas mileage cars these days.

I'd buy a Kia Rio before an Aveo. They often have a cash deal on for the stripper, like 9995.

The Hyundai Accent is the same as a Kia Rio. I love mine, but it's a hatchback. Check my numbers in the garage area. I'm getting 40mpg with no mods on the highway.

A Cobalt can be had for around the same price and the same fuel economy, with more power and better quality.

the aveo is horribly underpowered even for a econobox car. My 90 hp 4 banger pickup has more acceleration when I'm carrying 1000lbs in it. as a whole It just feels like a cheap POS compared to anything else, even more than any hyundai/kia I've ever been in. if it got 50-60 mpg bone-stock like a tercel I could understand people living with the cheapness/lack of power but it doesn't get close and you can't fit jack in it.

I briefly considered an Aveo, but I was always leaning more towards the Accent. Since I was going to end up with something Korean either way, the Accent won since it felt to be overall a more polished package. The Rio should be similar since they're on the same platforms. You can pick up a 4-door Accent manual now for $12,145 after the $1,000 rebate they're running right now. The Accent is a great car for the money - well built, reliable and decent FE if you drive them right.

Mom has a stripped down Aveo with an automatic, it hasn't been a bad car for what it is. It actually seems quicker off the line than my automatic Accent but runs out of steam sooner. The Aveo had a few nagging issues when new - came off the boat with a bad alternator and several interior bits missing or not installed properly but once those were repaired it's been a decent car for what she needs. The few times she's logged it, it's been low 30's on the highway. A guy at work bought an Aveo when they first came out, it hasn't been terrible in the reliability department and gets in the low 30's for him too. FE, refinement, or quality of workmanship/materials isn't spectacular, the main thing it has going for it is that it's just a cheap set of new wheels.

If you want to stick with Chevy, do check the Cobalt. A friend of mine is getting 37 MPG highway with basic hypermiling tactics, nothing extreme. I believe the XFE comes in 4-door trim too, so you could probably do better than that. :thumbup:

Or there are a lot of good used cars you could look into like what was mentioned... Good luck to you!

My next car will probably be a Cobalt XFE manual sedan, so I am biased towards that. :D I bought my mom one last winter (non xfe, automatic) and she sees 32-34 mpg mixed driving. They are fairly nice cars for the price.

so d k what did you do? i really hope you didnt get the aveo...

I have had my '08 Cobalt XFE for about 600 miles and am averaging about 41 mpg.

I paid $14,170 for mine and that was the out the door price.....car, taxes, tags, the works.

It may cost you about $1,500 more but they are better made and get better mpg and will be worth it in the end.

You will regret buying a Aveo.

my wife likes the look of the 4 door hatch (5-door) and not to get off the subject, but what are y'all with the fits seeing as far as gas mileage.

also, she isn't really willing to go with the manual trans.

Toyota >>> Daewoo

Just my opinion. I was really thinking on getting a Yaris. but I got a used Honda EP3 instead.

I saw where the interest has come back up with the hatchback SIs. those things are bad (awesome) I didn't think they were fuel efficient thought. at the same time, I never really looked into it. are those 160hp? a lotta tail in a little package.

I'd get the yaris, handsdown.

I drove the hatch and the sedan, VERY surprised and pleased w/ both. Was making plans to finance the sedan when someone put a bug in my ear about learning how to hypermile.... next thing u know, I end up here, have achieved over EPA highway rating for the yaris in my SL2... and I'm learning more and more each day. Not to mentioned, not buying the car helps my overall cost in a huge way since I only have about $1,500 tied up in my Saturn and the Yaris was going to cost me about $15k

Does anybody have an opinion on the Versa? My brother just bought one and loves it, but I don't really respect his opinion. I never seem to hear it mentioned as an option when discussing newer vehicles. What does anybody think?

I looked into it recently (the versa I mean) the EPA mileage on it isn't very good but we know that EPA isn't always right.

I am a little biased though, not a big nissan fan.

Well, after reading your gaslogs for the Saturn I'm very impressed! You've resparked my interest in fabricating a WAI for The Beast.

-Jay

The EPA estimates are usually an accurate way to compare one car to another; they very accurately reproduce their conditions when testing each car. So, if you normally get 20% less than EPA in one car, then you can expect to get 20% less than EPA in any similar car (maybe not in vastly different cars, depending on your driving style). However, if you're looking at automatics, keep in mind that the Versa has a CVT, and I'm not sure if it affects the EPA tests or if the EPA has accounted for that.

Don't get a Chevy Aveo. It's a rebadged poorly performing econobox.

Get an ACTUAL Chevy Malibu Maxx. Gets better mileage, WAY more performance, and it's got more cargo room than a Jeep Liberty. They stopped making them 2007 model year unfortunately, but get a Certified Used one and you'll be happy you did.

I'm in the market for a new vehicle as well. With gas prices the way the are, I think everyone is wanting something fairly inexpensive with great mpg.
My father is a mechanic & he has advised against the Aveo, very strongly in fact, he as also advised against Hyaundis, Kias, which fit in the same class as the Aveo - Cheap. Cheaply put together, made & not efficient. The best thing that he suggested was something like a Toyota Camry or Corolla with low liters. Most of these you can watch the mileage if buying used, just have a mechanic check out because the time belts can become a big issue. Especially with lots of miles on the engine. Good Luck & let me know if you find a great, inexpensive car, I wouldn't mind the tip.

holy cow, CVT kinda sucks for FE because if you take your foot off of the gas then it slows down like you are breaking. at least that is what I have been told. it was an option on the hondas at one time and a guy around here had one and it drove him crazy. thanks for the heads up.

cthrondson, I personally have been looking at the yaris and the fit along with the smart but we may have an addition to our family so the 2 seater may be out. also the vibe and the matrix for good FE for their size. maybe just some ideas.

Based on statistics I see, my observations and reports from drivers, Hyundai has really picked up the slack and is now as good as any other manufacturer.

Parts are still overpriced as hell due to having to come from overseas.

I'll agree they've picked up the slack, but I wouldn't say they're as good as any other manufacturer. You simply cannot compare Hyundai/Kia to Honda/Toyota in the small commuter car class.

It may drive some people crazy the way CVT works, but, generally speaking, CVT is better for FE than a conventional automatic, and sometimes even better than manual. The reason is that a well built CVT allows you to keep the engine at its most efficient RPM while accelerating/driving at any speed. The key is that the CVT be well designed (I assume Nissan's is, as they generally make quality products, and they have been doing CVTs for a while now), and that you learn how to drive it. Some people probably hammer the gas with a CVT because they are used to shifting and variable RPM--if you want higher RPM in a CVT, you must push the pedal harder--the RPM won't increase due to shifting, because there is no shifting. If you let your foot off the throttle, then you should slow down a similar amount to what you would if you did the same thing in a regular automatic.

If you look at the EPA ratings for the Versa, the CVT is rated higher than the manual:

2008 Nissan Versa:
CVT 27/33
Manual 26/31
Automatic 24/32


All that having been said, it is based upon research I have done into CVT, and reading about cars with CVT, but I have never driven one. If I had $15k-20k to buy a new car right now, I would strongly consider one with a CVT, personally.

I am a little confused about the versa. I would have thought that just the size of the car would warrant mid to high 30s as far as MPG and the fact that their manual gets the worst mileage out of their entire lineup makes me wonder about the gearing that they are using.

CVT is new to me, though I understand the concept, it is still hard for me to understand how there isn't constant wear and frequent replacement of parts just by the way it has been described to me. there again maybe my understanding is wrong.

If you look up CVT on Wikipedia, HowStuffWorks, etc, you can get some pretty good descriptions & a lot of details. There are lots of other sites too. Google turns up some good stuff.

One thing to note is that old CVTs could only be used in low-duty applications (like really small cars, e.g. Ford Fiesta), but there have since been developments that allow CVTs to work even in very high-duty applications (like some kinds of large construction vehicles). Oh, also note that the How Stuff Works timeline is a little wrong about a few things (like Ford not using CVTs before 2004).

Oddly, the CVT in the 2008 Jeep Patriot that I test-drove seemed to have been programmed to simulate a normal transmission, letting the RPM rise and fall. I thought that was a bit weird. I assume it was done to make people comfortable with buying unfamiliar technology by making it feel more familiar...

it may have a couple gears, but there is variation with each gear....

This is exactly right. CVTs have not been popular, so the auto manufacturers give you the option of (or sometimes, require) having the CVT "shift" like a normal automatic. I believe the one in the Maxima behaves like a Tiptronic, allowing you to "shift" it yourself, but I haven't actually seen one in person. If I had a CVT, I would want to be able to put it in "maximum MPG" mode and to heck with shifting.

My wife wanted a new car & was looking at an Aveo. Then she saw 4 Aveos broken down next to the highway & she stopped looking at Aveos.

She got a 2008 manual tranny Hyundai Accent. It got 33MPG thru a hard winter, & tough commute. She let me take Accent for 3 day trips over 1400, 3000, 4000, & 5500 mountain passes into e. Washington & near Mt. Rainier. Feather footed gas tanks went 41.5, 42.6, & 45.1 MPG. Again, this wasn't on a flat highway, but in the mountains. Accent runs 100% & not one squeak, creak, or rattle. The short-shift 5 speed is the 2nd best clutch-shifter combo I've ever used. Nice low (0.31) coefficient of drag. A few months ago I saw Accents selling for $9000 with the 100,000 mile warranty.

I have a Dodge Caliber with CVT tranny. Jatco, owned by Nissan made the CVT. So Versa's CVT is much like Caliber CVT. The 2007 Versa has the worst toxic off-gassing interior of any car. However, the 2008 Versa's off-gassing has improved a lot. Go to HealthyCar.org for info on all cars, a very good website.

I love the CVT which gives motion like auto transportation always should have been. Its magic carpet elegance at its best.

Lots of people don't get good MPG with it. When driven hard, the CVT's internal hydraulic pressure approaches 1000 psi to allow the smooth shifting operation to function. However, I drive with a feather foot & avoid high pressures. My 3000 pound auto CVT Caliber averages 31.4MPH with a highway high of 35.6MPG. I am most proud that my CVT Caliber averages 33MPG on trips over 4000 foot mountain passes, providing a seamless plush ride through the mountains. The CVT takes all the jerkiness out of stop & go traffic.

In the past CVTs that relied on rubber belt drives were not reliable. That is why I stayed away from them for 16 years. The Jatco CVTs for Versa & Caliber use a carbon impregnated steel process(4 times stronger than normal steel) for a pushing mechanism CVT that has made the CVT reliable. Reliability data from Consumer Reports & Michael Kiresh's TrueDelta, indicate that this is true.

If the Nissan CVT Versa had the same good tuning as my Caliber, I probably would have averaged near 34MPG with a highway high of 39 to 40MPG with the Versa. The 6 speed manual Versa tranny is geared low for performance. That is why the CVT Versa gets better MPG than the manual Versa.

I have a CVT in my Ford Awd Freestyle and have manage 32mpg on it. Not bad for a 4200lbs car.