Everybody thought General Motors was on crack when it launched the Aveo back in 2003. Not particularly attractive or powerful, it did exactly what it was supposed to do -- drive for cheap. Little did the industry know that gas prices were about to blow up, and the image of the B-car as a European oddity was to blow up with them.
According to the Detroit Free Press, so far this year, B-cars are up 43 percent over last. The Honda Fit and Toyota Yaris are being sold by dealers above MSRP -- yes, really. True, the little cars only account for a mere fraction of what big trucks and SUVs account for, but the increase in sales is significant.
Styling is also a key element in this rise, as analysts say that the Geo Metros of years past have nothing on the trendy Fit or the sharp Nissan Versa.
[Source: Detroit Free Press]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
TSW @ Sep 1st 2006 5:14PM
people buy what the market offers.
scenario: an impulsive guy wants to buy a new car. the guy goes to the gm dealership that he's always gone to. when he arrives, all he sees are trucks.
what is he going to buy?
DKB_SATX @ Sep 1st 2006 5:20PM
Reaction to fuel prices seems even to have affected rental car companies. In planning a trip to the Northeast, I found that Alamo is offering some sort of promo rate on "mid-size SUVs" (Equinox, RAV4, Escape, etc), offering them for significantly less than an economy-class car (Aveo). They're obviously offering the promo because they want to push these cars. My guess is because people aren't willing to rent them because of (irrational) concerns about fuel prices... when you're only operating the car for a couple of days, the difference isn't huge. Definitely not as big as the $20/day difference in the rental rate!!
Bill @ Sep 1st 2006 5:38PM
The Aveo sedan is handsome, it's a shame they didn't restyle the hatch. I agree with the first poster. It's good to have choices, and finally the market is offering them. (Mazda3 owner here, would have a Mazda2, VW Polo, and/or *any* B-segment diesel if they were offered here). Have always liked small cars, even when they were very uncool. Although nothing has come close to my 83 Civic 1300, a car which after 15 years I still deeply lament letting go.
Eric L. @ Sep 1st 2006 5:47PM
The new Aveo sedan is a nice looking little car. Too bad it doesn't offer side curtain airbags.
Joe @ Sep 1st 2006 5:47PM
"Although nothing has come close to my 83 Civic 1300, a car which after 15 years I still deeply lament letting go."
-LAMO, the only thing that car is good at is being a flower box.
Lithous @ Sep 1st 2006 5:54PM
"scenario: an impulsive guy wants to buy a new car. the guy goes to the gm dealership that he's always gone to. when he arrives, all he sees are trucks."
Sure, if he always went to a GMC or Hummer dealer. But many GMC dealers are attached to Pontiac/Buick and some Hummer to Cadillac.
Mark @ Sep 1st 2006 6:03PM
What's he going to buy? Well, assuming he's too stupid or lazy or whatever to shop around, he could always buy a Malibu, or an Impala, or a Cobalt, or a Corvette, or an Aveo. Or.. he could go elsewhere.
I don't buy this notion that companies decide what we will buy and them cram then down our throats. Companies respond to what consumers demand and the reason you see so many SUV's on all car lots anymore is because Americans really like them. And, frankly, when gas was $1.50, why not? Roomy, big, powerful; not a bad combo. I'm a car guy myself, but if I had a family, a big dog, a boat, well, I might be in that market, too.
TSW @ Sep 1st 2006 6:06PM
"Sure, if he always went to a GMC or Hummer dealer. But many GMC dealers are attached to Pontiac/Buick and some Hummer to Cadillac."
Oh yeah, when I think Pontiac, Buick, and Cadillac... I think small, modern, and fuel-efficient.
:)
Eric @ Sep 1st 2006 6:18PM
Anyone who always goes to the same GM dealer is lacking imagination, not to mention mental capacity.
Anyone who repeately buys a GM product is a little bit touched upstairs.
But in a way it's good. You see, there are people like that...people who buy GM repeatedly. The good thing about it is that they have 1 foot in the grave. These are the hard-working white trash loyalists who truely think GM will push the Japanese and now Koreans from North America.
It's kind of quaint, in a Middle-America sort of way. But their kids and grandkids all buy Toyotas and Hondas.
Only those who drool and shit themselves get excited about the new Chevys and Buicks.
(And GM to this day could never build a good B-car...they can only "buy" one. Witness they can't even build a C-car (Cobalt)).
Tommy @ Sep 1st 2006 6:20PM
The problem with the Chevywoos are the terribly dated powerplants. ~100hp tiny car only getting 37mpg on the highway and less than 30 city?
TSW @ Sep 1st 2006 6:34PM
"What's he going to buy? Well, assuming he's too stupid or lazy or whatever to shop around, he could always buy a Malibu, or an Impala, or a Cobalt, or a Corvette, or an Aveo. Or.. he could go elsewhere."
Malibu, big car, big V6, big thirst. Impala- same story. Besides, I thought they only sold Malibus and Impalas to rental fleets...
Cobalt: there's a better one. Reasonable size, more economical than the last two by far, and terrible build quality.
Corvette: the flagship. Excellent economy considering it's enormous powerplant. World-class fit and finish, dominating performance. The ultimate halo car.
Then back to the Aveo. The only B-segment car available by GM that's sold in the US.
Jaimie B @ Sep 1st 2006 6:38PM
#9:
Eric, you obviously have taken truth serum. Every word you said is correct.
Steve @ Sep 1st 2006 6:45PM
Hey Eric #4 go to the Chevy web site and look over the options
....Side air bags...your bad. And to the other Eric #9 I think you
may have touched yourself a bit much. You sound retarded saying GM
can't make a good B-cars, just go to Europe and they have plenty. It
just
took Americans a little longer to want them and they brought
one to market in 2003, it may not be what you want but its not bad.
And don't think that both Honda and Toyota are not loosing cold hard
cash on each and every one,this is why they import them from Japan
where the yen is lower then the dollar and they get help from the
government to keep it low.
ChromeWaves @ Sep 1st 2006 7:41PM
@TSW, you stupid troll:
Malibu 3.5/A4 - 22/32
Impala 3.5/A4 - 21/31
That's hardly thirsty!
JB @ Sep 1st 2006 8:11PM
Go to a Chevy dealer. Sit in an Aveo. Fool around with the switchgear. Adjust the vents. Move around in the seats, fold 'em, push on em, move 'em back and forth. Look under the hood. Then go do the same in a Cobalt. Daewoo builds a better rig than Chevy.
Mark @ Sep 1st 2006 8:18PM
re Malibu, big car, big V6, big thirst. Impala- same story. Besides, I thought they only sold Malibus and Impalas to rental fleets...
Cobalt: there's a better one. Reasonable size, more economical than the last two by far, and terrible build quality.
Thanks for the auto reviews. My point is that Chevy sells a lot more than trucks and if one MUST by a Chevy or GM, you have a lot more choices than 12 mpg trucks. Not actually advocating anyone buy one, but you could probably do worse.
AZMike @ Sep 1st 2006 8:19PM
Eric,
guess I must be one of those "white trash GM loyalists".
if you expect GM and Ford to just disappear, you are more than a little touched.
I'm 52, and (hopefully) far from crapping my pants. I've owned over 150 new cars since the first one back in 1974. I keep good count; I have every window sticker since then.
I've owned just about everything there is out there, and they were far from being all domestic products. I base my judgments for purchasing on price and reliability. that's why I'm back to driving domestic products. I've had the imports, and now I've grown up.
anyone who is going to talk about superior resale value of imports is not really connected with reality. it's not what the book says, folks; it's what the dealer gives you.
examples: a 1990 Lexus LS400. I drove the car from Los Angeles to south Florida. by this time, I was ready to burn it. certainly was designed by people who hate cars. it was six months old, 6,800 miles, MSRP was $40,270; best buy bid was $24,000, and that was from a Lexus dealer.
#2: 1991 Mercedes-Benz 350SDL: traded 8/94; best buy bid (from a Mercedes-Benz dealer) was $10,000 BELOW wholesale. by the way, the warranty repairs on this car (47,000 miles) were over $27,000. this was traded on a new deVille Councours that had not one problem of any kind in the next three years. must be the white trash that built it, huh?
I just bought a new Buick Rendezvous last week. the sticker price was $26,265; the dealer had a sale for $10,000 off the MSRP. gee, I got a REAL car (3.5L V-6)for the price of a shitbox CR-V, and get the same fuel economy to boot. by the way, the much-vaunted JD Power survey shows that white trash Rendezvous is more reliable and liked much better than any Honda model.
there is much-to-do right now about these little teeny cars, but they will be chopping the roots from them in just a few months when gas prices drop below $2.50. I'm old enough to have seen this in 1975, 1979, and 1983. history will repeat itself again by the end of the year.
if you look back into the 80's, a subcompact car weighed about 2,300 pounds. just about all of them would easily acheive over 40 miles per gallon with ancient carburetors.
a modern subcompact car today weighs in at an average of 3,500 porky pounds. it seems rather pathetic that we are willing to risk our lives in one of these teeny death traps (and over MSRP at that)to get another 4-7 MPG over what a midsize V-6 sedan would acheive.
Mike
Michael Karesh @ Sep 1st 2006 8:40PM
More like 2,500 pounds now, 2,000 then.
Honda Civic sedans (among the lightest):
1984 - 1940
1988 - 2039
1992 - 2275
1996 - 2319
2001 - 2421
2006 - 2449
Looks like the big jump in this case was back in 1992.
Michael Karesh @ Sep 1st 2006 9:15PM
I appear to be out of touch with what younger drivers find stylish. I like how my Protege5 looks, and I also liked the looks of the five-door Focus SVT. So I definitely find some older small car designs attractive. Yet, to my eyes, both the "trendy Fit" and the "sharp Versa" are visually unappealing.
AZMike @ Sep 1st 2006 9:15PM
Michael,
you might want to check the weight of ALL the teeny cars; a Dodge Caliber weighs over 3,400 pounds. this is about the same as a mid-90's Buick Park Avenue.
Mike