SEMA Show: Chevrolet Sonic is Set to Blast Off in Las Vegas
By Greg Migliore
Sick of watching diminutive import cars grab the lion's share of attention from the tuner market, Chevrolet is throwing its full weight into customizing small rides in elaborate fashion.
That will be on full display this year at the SEMA show in Las Vegas when nearly 20 Sonics in both hatchback and sedan guise will grab the spotlight at the Chevy stand. They will be reinforced by 10 Cruzes, plus the usual array of Camaros and Covettes (more details on those coming closer to the show).
“This is an opportunity to really focus on our small cars,” said Jim Campbell, vice president of performance vehicles and motorsports.
It's all part of General Motors' strategy to capitalize on the multibillion-dollar automotive aftermarket. SEMA draws about 115,000 industry observers and insiders and is the largest trade show if its kind in the United States.
Chevy is using the big stage this year to fortify the launch of the Sonic, which is arriving now, and the Cruze, which has been on the market for about year. Both will get customized with accessories from the Z-Spec line, with some production in intent, and others simply will be conversation pieces that could be added to the aftermarket lineup.
The highlights include:
The Sonic Z-Spec 1 gets ground effects, a spoiler and a graphics package. It's colored a bloody shade of torch red and gets chassis upgrades.
The Sonic Z-Spec 2 is shaded white, with torch red accents, and it gets similar upgrades to the body and suspension.
The Sonic Z-Spec 4D concept is clad in a new shade of ashen gray that will be used on production cars and gets interior, body and graphic enhancements. Chevy says this is meant to convey a touring-car theme.
Both the Sonic and the Cruze will be accessorized in Dusk treatment, which adds dark paint, ground effects and an upscale vibe, Chevy claims. The Cruze Dusk is a personal favorite of GM design vice president Ed Welburn.
Another Cruze will get Z-Spec customization, with a unique grille and wheels.
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this car is way bigger than a aveo.
if you get 40 miles per gallon while the sticker in the window claims 35 mpg i will endorse obama for another term!!!!!!!
if it is trouble free for two whole years and turns out to be a good reliable car i will consider.
(i just saw them at the local chevy dealer)
why do these dealers always have all the bells and whisles on there cars at the lot?? who wants them...phooooooey.
Y'know... ZL1s weren't exotically infamous because of their "torch red accents." It was their two black stripes that got attention.
If Gummint Motors wants to be taken seriously as tuner meat, then the cars/"product"/"brand" have to match or undercut other makers' hardware... AWD, rods and gaskets that'll stand up to more squeeze, and shifters, turn & stop controls that help rather than hinder. Get serious, not styled.
Actually, the SS Cobalts & HHRs, Soltstice, and even the blower Saturns are strong stock, and well worth playing with further.
Just try and find out technical specs on the new lil' turbos, however, and there's a void of info. There are digital "tuners" with some peppy dyno sheets... but no reliability record (yet). Let's hear what's inside these motors, and see some track numbers for streetably modified cars.
A lot of us like an underdog, but with Camaro & Mustang 6s running over 100 MPH 1/4 miles, the standard has been pushed around a little. Even a tiny/funky 90 MPH car is fun if it's well-behaved. An American hot-rodded Cooper-squasher would be welcome, and if it's as useful as a GLH or a PT GT then that's even better!
Can you at least build a Sonic that'll give a GTI (without a 300 HP chip) a running scare? Maybe for under $20K? Will it be a torque-steering squirrel, or a reliable friend in the rainy corners? Does it still get 30 MPG? Will the insurance on it kill the market?
P.S. I dig wagons, but where's the coupe???
Have you driven a lot in Korea?
Yes, I have. You didn't use the word exotic, you used the term "exotically infamous," which again makes no sense. I'm aware of what a paragraph is, and I am also aware it takes 3-5 sentences to make a correct one, not 1-2. You can divide it up all you like, it isn't going to make what you have to say any more interesting.
Y'know... ZL1s weren't exotically infamous because of their "torch red accents." It was their two black stripes that got attention.
You know, nobody can read the rest of your post because it's rambling garbage, where every sentence is a new paragraph. "Exotically infamous" doesn't even make sense.
The Sonic is a crap car engineered for South Korea. I wouldn't expect much to come of it, since it's really just another Aveo.
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