Chevrolet Aveo

I bought my Aveo 1.4L base variant in Ivory Gold color, from Triumph motors Delhi in November 2007. The car has done 32K Kms today, with no serious faults or parts replacement.

Also note, Aveo is a global car designed by one of the best Italian design companies and you will find the same interiors with only different engine sizes around the world.

I have listed down the points based on my observation & use of this product. Let me also state, that today, its not just all about the engines or mileage any more.

All the cars more or less do good with their engines & overall reliability factor (unless the vehicle is abused beyond its design limits) Its the comfort, looks & the feel good factor that really matters in a car today & of course, the service center’s competency to service your car to factory standards.

1. The paint job - Compare any Aveo especially the Black color with any other brand on the road & you will know the lacquer is really finished n treated to high standards.

Even after 3 years, my car looks as fresh as it was new. No one in the segment gave 3 years warranty on the paint & body when I bought it - though I am not sure who else is offering these days, but its a very bold commitment which tells a lot about the detailing & quality of the product .

1. Seating/Comfort - Although the car appears compact from outside, but the seating is very spacious & comfortable for long drives. I have done Delhi - Bangalore - 2500 KMs, Bangalore - Belgaum - 1200 Kms, Bangalore - Goa - 1600 Kms and a couple of Bangalore - Mysore - Ooty trips. I don’t think if driving wasn’t fun, I would done all these trips on it.

The rear seats can take 3 people without any discomforts. The boot has loads of space. If you are moving on from a Maruti & Hyundai, then I would say congrats - you are now going to experience driving a real car.

1. Interior - may appear a bit dated as compared to lets say Vento or Cedia (i feel Vento is the only new car which has a very good modern interior - Verna, Linea, SX4, Ford & new City still look cheap with their styling & materials), but trust me, this dash is never out of style.

Its very subtle & the dual tone dash with matt contours has a very refreshing feeling & touch of an expensive car.

1. Stability/body gauge - the car has one of the best body gauges & one of the reason’s why it is very heavy.

Its a plus when you go on the highways and hit 140 kmph, the car stays on the road without moving an inch to the sides. It may also be a negative point for city conditions as it reduces the mileage for people who are very critical about it.

1. Power Band/pickup - You need to understand the fact that this car has a VGIS system which opens the bigger air intake manifold only after you hit 2200 rpm.

It was anticipated by the design engineers that moving the car on first 3 gears under 2200 rpm would be sufficient under city driving conditions simultaneously giving decent city mileage. Some of you may find the engine sluggish/un-responsive because it is designed like that.

If you go on the highway and shift gears at 3500 rpm, you will find that the car accelerates a lot faster & its a fun discovering that it has become a true highway car. The torque is spread to 6200 rpm so there’a lot of room to rev it up.

1. Steering - its a little harder than Honda city’s but if you do a lot of highway driving, then a harder steering is recommended as it gives a more confident feel & keeps the car stable even at extreme speeds.

You will get use to of it & it is not painful like the SX4 which has 16inch 205 mm tires adding to its cramped seats.

1. Cabin noise - The cabin is really silent & it is indeed a well engineered car unlike Fiesta or Verna or even SX4. You can barely make out the engine idling.

Listening to music is good experience as you have virtually no noise from outside.

1. AC/defogger - its really powerful. Very quick, very effective & the thermostat works quite precisely around its position. The defogger is also very efficient & works very well in Bangalore weather.

   
   




2. Shockers - they are not the softest ones around but if the tire pressure is maintained as per the recommendation, its quite soft & it will also reduce the cabin noise by a bit.

   
   




3. Ground clearance - Its decent. You need to be careful while you are on a pointed type breaker with 4 people inside - I have hit many breakers in the past so the best way for any car for that matter is to go one tire on the breaker at a time.

   
   




4. Mileage - In Delhi I managed 13 kmpl, & now in Bangalore its only 10 kmpl considering there’s a stopage every 200 mtrs and you hardly go beyond 2nd gear. However, its a lot more dependent on how you drive it & how much do you rev it.

   
   




5. Gear Shifting - Aveos have a partial drive by wire technology. Its not very great & driving enthusiasts may find it lifeless/notchy as compared to hydraulics. Its not that bad either but if you compare it to Honda City, Verna or SX4, its not very good.

   
   




6. Reliability - Well Aveos have pretty reliable engines and I have seen cars done 1.5Lack kms without engine issues or rattling at start ups.

   
   

As far as driving on highway is considered, I have never had any breakdowns, over heating or starting problems. Over the last 3 years, only the fan belt/tensioner was replaced last month as sometimes I am traveling and the car is not driven for many weeks.

1. The tires - I am not sure if the new Aveos still come with Goodyear Eagle NCT 5 or Apollos. Goodyear is good for the first year I would say, for the fact that the same tire comes as stock on all Mercs.

But the problem is that their treads keep getting harder with time & the friction between the road n tires reduces thereby increasing the chances of wheel locking even at slightly harder breaks.

I changed mine at 25K kms as the wheels were locking quite often. I recommend you change to a premium asymmetrical tires to do justice to this car.

1. Breaking - Aveo is a heavy car, thus breaking seems a little inefficient. I would rather attribute it to the bad Goodyears so may be my breaking habits developed accordingly.

I moved to asymmetrical & they are brilliant. Breaking is completely safe. I would also recommend cutting down gears while breaking.

1. Service intervals/cost of repair - well I had this offer which said if you spend more than 16K in 3 years, GM will bear additional cost. Well I guess I have spent close to 10k on all servicings, including 3 oil changes, labour and belt/tensioner replacement (3K alone).

If you do only city driving 15K interval is fine or else 10K. Its a notion that maintaining GM cars is expensive. Get over it!

1. Product overall quality - unlike the competition, maruti, hyundai, tata, mahindra, honda, GM has given quality products to India. Their every product is well thought off and made with utmost detail.

When I go to a service center, I get to see other models, newer one’s like Beat, Cruze or Captiva. They all speak quality first. Most of the parts are made in Korea and shipped to all the 120 countries where it is sold.

1. Service Center’s competency - Although GM has a very wide coverage of service centers across India but I guess, the competency level of a service engineer still needs a lot of hard work to match the product standards.

But by the time your car will really need a service, I feel this would not be a question at all!

Thanks for reading through & good luck on your purchase!