Sold the soul to the devil - new pics pg 3

[potownrob]

I got mine back in December...[...]... I got it because for the first time in my life, a manufacturer built a car the way I would...[...]... Besides all that, the car feels very "European" with regard to build quality, power, fuel economy, etc. It reminds me of how brand-new VWs felt 10 years ago...[...]... I didn't buy my Sonic because of peer pressure, I bought it because I knew what I wanted in a car, I drove it, and liked it.

quite possibly one of the most thoughtful and well-composed posts i've seen on here in a while

[AHTOXA]

Hey, its Tinton, remember me? We have the same car . I bet you don't like knowing we share the same tastes

I got mine back in December, when there still wasn't an option to get a slush with the 1.4T. I'd never liked new cars and wasn't even planning on buying one, in fact I'd only gone out to test drive a Veloster because a friend said they were good. It drove like an appliance and the Chevy dealer was right next door so I said "what the heck" and went over to see what they had. Ended up driving a 1.8 5-speed, the brakes/handling and clutch/shifter sold me on the car instantly. I'm not someone who buys on impulse so I went home and did research and saw the 1.4T got better gas mileage and was only offered with a manual. That sold me right there , I went back to the dealer the next day to get them to deliver a car from N.C.

I got it because for the first time in my life, a manufacturer built a car the way I would. Small efficient turbocharged engine mated to an economy 6-speed with 3 overdrive gears, small car with short overhangs (easy to park in the city) but a big interior that's cheap but doesn't look cheap. Doors that *thunk* closed like a Lexus or VW, a ride that doesn't compromise comfort for handling. Sharp handling with excellent turn-in, very little understeer and it holds driving line very well (drives like its on rails). It'll get 30 mpg even if you go WOT for a full tank, and will reward you with 42, 45, etc mpg highway if you're kind to it. The turbo and 6-speed also make it very fun for a FWD . I could go on and on about how awesome the car is, I even moved most of my stuff to my house with it and it seemed like everything would just "fit" like the car was engineered to have just the right amount of space. I can haul my bike in the back with no problems, too. Besides all that, the car feels very "European" with regard to build quality, power, fuel economy, etc. It reminds me of how brand-new VWs felt 10 years ago.

Tony, I never thought we'd own the same vehicle, that's just weird. And you sold everything else too? Damn. Anyways, it sounds like you like it . I don't know too many people who like the Sonic, you go on any forums or anything and people just say its a pos and the Fiesta/Focus/etc are better. You get much hate yet? For me, I still own my '88 Fiero so I'm used to people not liking the car I drive . I didn't buy my Sonic because of peer pressure, I bought it because I knew what I wanted in a car, I drove it, and liked it.

No hate at all that I've seen. Many automotive forums really like the Sonic, but generally in the 1.4T 6MT combination only.

I love mine, but I seem to suffer from one particular 1st model year-type problem. I'm having a front end clunk issue. It was combined with a blown front strut, which was replaced. I still have the clunk and it's fairly reproducible. Taking it to the dealer tomorrow morning and suspecting sway bar endlinks. Many Sonic owners ended up with replaced endlinks to cure front end clunk and I may be one of them.

[SonicHKS]

Hey, its Tinton, remember me? We have the same car . I bet you don't like knowing we share the same tastes

I got mine back in December, when there still wasn't an option to get a slush with the 1.4T. I'd never liked new cars and wasn't even planning on buying one, in fact I'd only gone out to test drive a Veloster because a friend said they were good. It drove like an appliance and the Chevy dealer was right next door so I said "what the heck" and went over to see what they had. Ended up driving a 1.8 5-speed, the brakes/handling and clutch/shifter sold me on the car instantly. I'm not someone who buys on impulse so I went home and did research and saw the 1.4T got better gas mileage and was only offered with a manual. That sold me right there , I went back to the dealer the next day to get them to deliver a car from N.C.

I got it because for the first time in my life, a manufacturer built a car the way I would. Small efficient turbocharged engine mated to an economy 6-speed with 3 overdrive gears, small car with short overhangs (easy to park in the city) but a big interior that's cheap but doesn't look cheap. Doors that *thunk* closed like a Lexus or VW, a ride that doesn't compromise comfort for handling. Sharp handling with excellent turn-in, very little understeer and it holds driving line very well (drives like its on rails). It'll get 30 mpg even if you go WOT for a full tank, and will reward you with 42, 45, etc mpg highway if you're kind to it. The turbo and 6-speed also make it very fun for a FWD . I could go on and on about how awesome the car is, I even moved most of my stuff to my house with it and it seemed like everything would just "fit" like the car was engineered to have just the right amount of space. I can haul my bike in the back with no problems, too. Besides all that, the car feels very "European" with regard to build quality, power, fuel economy, etc. It reminds me of how brand-new VWs felt 10 years ago.

Tony, I never thought we'd own the same vehicle, that's just weird. And you sold everything else too? Damn. Anyways, it sounds like you like it . I don't know too many people who like the Sonic, you go on any forums or anything and people just say its a pos and the Fiesta/Focus/etc are better. You get much hate yet? For me, I still own my '88 Fiero so I'm used to people not liking the car I drive . I didn't buy my Sonic because of peer pressure, I bought it because I knew what I wanted in a car, I drove it, and liked it.

No hate at all that I've seen. Many automotive forums really like the Sonic, but generally in the 1.4T 6MT combination only.

I love mine, but I seem to suffer from one particular 1st model year-type problem. I'm having a front end clunk issue. It was combined with a blown front strut, which was replaced. I still have the clunk and it's fairly reproducible. Taking it to the dealer tomorrow morning and suspecting sway bar endlinks. Many Sonic owners ended up with replaced endlinks to cure front end clunk and I may be one of them.

lol everyone on the forza forum hates the car. Most of them haven't even driven one they just think its a new Aveo. I've also gotten some hate on the Fiero forum . Apparently a lot of people who used to like GM think its "Government Motors" now and wouldn't drive one even if they got it for free .

Mine has clunked from time to time, not really noticeable though. Its usually on the 1st-2nd shift, making me think the linkage is hitting something.

Is 2nd gear notchy on yours? On mine it always has rough engagement, never grinds though its like the synchro takes a second to actually work. I was hoping getting a new car would mean a perfect trans with no problems, yet its pretty much exactly like my '88 GT, its like stirring a bucket of gravel. I swear the 1.8 5-speed I drove was smoother. Its worth it having the turbo though

No real problems other than that. The hill-holder did hang up once at about 500 miles. Its got 6500 on it now and it hasn't happened again so I guess its good. Like you, I've been getting 35-36 mpg (was getting 37-38 mixed before I started hooning) in mixed/city driving and 42+ highway. BTW, have you thought about getting a boost gauge? I've been wanting to get 1, but it'd have to be mounted on the gauge cluster since there's airbags in the pillars. This is the first F/I car I've driven that doesn't have one, even a supercharged Grand Prix rental car I had had 1. I got a BT OBDII scanner and it shows boost but its just not the same.

[AHTOXA]

Forza forum is not where I'd expect any serious car opinions.

My 2nd engagement is smooth but I have what you're describing going into 5th sometimes.

My clunk is more like a loud pop and is very noticeable. You can even feel it in the floorboards when it pops.

[AHTOXA]

Today I had a chance to flog the Hedehog a bit. I found a good, twisty road around here and decided to go for a spin. The impressions are very positive. Pulling out of turns is 2nd provides excellent early torque with a bit of torque steer, especially when pavement is uneven. It wasn't prevalent or to the point where I was forced to back off so I kept on hammering with a smile on my face.

What it needs though is better rubber. I've found that it's a bit twitchy on turn in and wants to oversteer when trail braking. Some of it is also attributed to a rather tall sidewall but I'm not sure I want to go to factory 17s, primarily due to higher rubber cost.

[potownrob]

did they ever fix the problems and the butchered repairwork??

[theholycow]

What it needs though is better rubber. I've found that it's a bit twitchy on turn in and wants to oversteer when trail braking. Some of it is also attributed to a rather tall sidewall but I'm not sure I want to go to factory 17s, primarily due to higher rubber cost.

You might try lowering rear tire pressure to help with the twitchiness/oversteer and raising front pressure to help with the tall sidewalls.

[AHTOXA]

I run the fronts fairly high as it is at 40 lbs. But I'll play with rear pressures to see how much pressure works best.

[SonicHKS]

Today I had a chance to flog the Hedehog a bit. I found a good, twisty road around here and decided to go for a spin. The impressions are very positive. Pulling out of turns is 2nd provides excellent early torque with a bit of torque steer, especially when pavement is uneven. It wasn't prevalent or to the point where I was forced to back off so I kept on hammering with a smile on my face.

What it needs though is better rubber. I've found that it's a bit twitchy on turn in and wants to oversteer when trail braking. Some of it is also attributed to a rather tall sidewall but I'm not sure I want to go to factory 17s, primarily due to higher rubber cost.

That's responsiveness and a lot of "available handling", major reasons I bought the car. My fiero handles a lot like that, but more extreme/pronounced with the engine in back giving the car a lot of angle around corners. Most econoboxes don't have that type of handling and tend to push pretty bad going in and out of corners. To me the sonic doesn't even have much understeer coming out (a real issue with most FWD cars) and actually goes where you point under power. Its real fun kind of handling and if you can handle it right you don't have to brake for a lot of corners, just lift off and it'll turn like its on rails.