[sidindica]

From: Spy Shots: Mystery Chevrolet sedan... what is it? — Autoblog



More pics on the above link

Our crack team of spy photographers have managed to set their lenses on an automotive quandary. Reports from the field say that this particular machine was spotted last year wearing even more camouflage, and that at the time, it was suspected that the vehicle could be the sedan successor to the Aveo. Now, though, we've seen the four-door Sonic that's heading to our market later this year, so our guess is that this particular vehicle isn't aiming to take the States.

That still doesn't answer exactly what the pint-sized four door is, nor does it give us any idea of where the production version will touch down.

There's some indication that General Motors is readying a new compact fighter to tango in markets in South America, India and China, and that the checkerboard prototype you see above is that very vehicle. Still, with the Sonic being manufactured in Korea, we have to wonder why GM would be interested in pursuing an additional model for the rest of Asia. We'll keep our ears down and our eyes open and let you know what we find.

[karanraheja]

I thought the Chevy Sail was going to compete against the Dzire etc.?

[dot]

It appears to have a butch look. But then again, why not, most of the cars in this segment has a boxy/oddball design.

[DMehta]

Chevy sail is on the cards for the Indian market to take on the Dzire and the Etios. Had read about this a while ago in a magazine.
However, this one has a typical chevy front grill and headlamps somewhat resemble the beat.
The sail looks like this, apparently they are two different cars. The above one does not look like the sail.

[iSpoke]

Any supposed dates for launch of Chevy Sail for India?

[SPARKled]

Chevy needs a aveo replacement asap and if they launch this car with a diesel then they have a winner here. But if its a petrol, then again sales will be ho hum.

[Ram]

Hope it is not another small GM car that flunked the Euro NCAP safety performance standards like the Chevrolet Aveo sold in India.

[Mpower]

I wonder what is teh need for another small sedan when the Sail has just come out in China.

Hope it is not another small GM car that flunked the Euro NCAP safety performance standards like the Chevrolet Aveo sold in India

The current Aveo scored a 2 stars and it still considered a pass although it below average. You can expect Accent, Indigo, Ikon etc to be in the same ballpark.

[aaggoswami]

1) GM needs to worry about small car market more than Dzire fighter. Dzire is selling higher than even Ritz. Indigo is also not doing bad at all. Without a proper diesel power, GM cannot get the huge success of Dzire/Indigo.

2)

Originally Posted by Mpower

I wonder what is teh need for another small sedan when the Sail has just come out in China.


The current Aveo scored a 2 stars and it still considered a pass although it below average. You can expect Accent, Indigo, Ikon etc to be in the same ballpark.

Baleno has similar rating as Aveo, Lancer and Accent. But IIRC, only Baleno was tested without airbags.
Ikon to the best of my knowledge gets close to 3 stars ( read in earlier OD issues ).

Opel Astra has 4/5 at that time IIRC.
This brings me to Sail. The base of Sail can be traced back to old platfrom on which the Opel Corsa that came to India was based. Yes, Sail is based on Corsa. That is a pretty old platform to start with. Corsa got 3/5 stars ( not that sure ). Dzire is much newer and we now have etios which atleast gives a good feeling.

Where I appreciate GM is that the Aveo was tested by EuroNCAP. Etios is not tested by EuroNCAP standards which is a bit weird. Agreed that market is different, but still test rating would be good enough for some comparison.

[pnredkar]

In 2003, Opel Corsa had NCAP rating of 3/5, Ikon 3/5 and Accent 1.5/5. I had noted it in a paragraph at:
OPEL CORSA 1.4 GSI India, Good initial impression (updated on 16/08/05) - MouthShut.com

[jkdas]

They had enough with the Aveo and is dumping that name. The new car will surely come to India and pray they price it right and also bring it with the diesel option.

[ph03n!x]

They need Diesels, not new cars - they can easily make a killing if they price the Aveo with a 1.3 MJD lower than the DZire, especially with their 3 years all-taken-care package. They wont kill DZire, no chance, but may make a dent.