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Chevy Aveo New Owner Reports!

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Comments

  • poncho167poncho167 Member Posts: 1,178
    " am VERY intrigued by this. That price is really high,unless the Canadian dollar is VERY strong against the US dollar? I don't know. You paid nearly $18K for a 'LT' version of the Aveo."

    The Canadian dollar and American dollar are now the same in value. There is a big controversy going on right now of why Canadian cars are so over-priced. I recently saw some figures that showed the same model Volvo was $7,000 more in Canada. Mercedes Benz was in the news yesterday responding to claims of price fixing in Canada and said that they will not charge more and will adjust any prices that were inflated. This is just the beginning as more people are coming out with complaints. Supposedly, there are many people coming over the U.S. lines to buy cars to bring back to Canada. This used to be in reverse just a few years ago but fell out of favor when the big auto manufactures here in the states said they will not honor Canadian car warranties for American buyers.
  • wave54wave54 Member Posts: 211
    The lower control arms (front will be done on Monday as well) any body else having same problem?

    Surprised to hear about that on an 07, especially with such low miles. Replacing lower control arms has been an issue for a number of 2004 owners -- I would have figured that with a redesigned suspension, the problem has been corrected by now.

    At least you're still under warrantee. Good luck.
  • flaaveoflaaveo Member Posts: 161
    My 2006 Hatchback is the same color blue. So you have the 2007 sedan and no automatic! My gosh, they do overprice the Canadian Aveos! I mean it is a nice looking Aveo. But not even an automatic at that price.? An IPOD is only $100 to buy yourself here in the States,did it come with the sound system? I am sure I could get that car for around $14K easily here. I hope you enjoy your car. It is beautiful.

    But I think GM is taking advantage of our Canadian friends! Here THAT car is an LT,not an RS...it would be fun to buy the RS badges!! I got to try. A Yaris here is probably nearly as high here. The steering wheel controls is a nice thing to have. To bad they dont have the transmission shifters paddles on the steering wheel,like on the Mitsubishi Lancer. But I think they come with the automatic to get them anyway. Well enjoy the car,and as long as you know you got a good deal, that is all that matters.

    I dont know the Canadian pricing system. It still seems high to me. But it is the newly designed sedan and 'loaded',but not even an automatic at that price to me is very high! I got mine a 'lowly' LS hatchback with just an automatic and A/C and cd stereo for under $10K. I know the new sedan has a few new things on it standard, and once you add all the stuff you mentioned it would drive the price up. But I would think $14K would be tops for me...here in Florida. :D Enjoy it...it is VERY nice looking! **** Where are the RS badges?? I cant find them in the pictures. All I see are 'LT' badges. I'd love to buy RS badges from a Canadian GM dealer. What do they look like??? Or where are they on the car?
  • richard1hainesrichard1haines Member Posts: 41
    Well there's the frieght and PDI included in the CDN$18,110 price and that price now also includes free sunroof. So we can subtract $1200 for PDI/Freight and another $1000 for the sunroof and the LT-RS is now $16,000CDN. The RS package adds two RS badges to the front door panels. Do USA Aveos have heated mirrors? I went back to the GM site and did some pricing. If you get an LT and add the alloy wheels, rear spoiler, cd player with 4 speakers (still not the RS 6 speaker), and sunroof the price is over $19,000 with PDI/Freight included. So it makes more sense for us to buy the RS package and get the 6 speaker cd player, sunroof for free, and stereo controls on the steering wheel (not available on LT). But yes I see what you're saying about USA versus Canadian prices, but what can we do. I think our market is very different from USA so the prices reflect that. We buy over 50% of all our vehicles in the subcompact or compact class versus just over 13% in USA (our figures are similar to Europe), due to our gas prices being far more expensive.

    http://www.gm.ca/gm/english/vehicles/chevrolet/aveo/overview

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/smurfyboy/476973229/in/set-72157600156282274

    Also check out these photos to see how the GMDAT Aveo is sold around the world:

    http://www.flickr.com/photos/smurfyboy/1451223348
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/smurfyboy/1450364715
    http://www.flickr.com/photos/smurfyboy/1450364999
  • m5pilotm5pilot Member Posts: 3
    Can anyone give me details about the pre-installed alarm system on the Aveo? Is it factory installed or dealer installed?

    Also, on the sedan, if you lock the doors with the key fob and then open the trunk with the key, does the alarm go off?

    If you are inside the sedan and lock the doors with the key fob, can you pop the trunk from the release button?

    Any help you can give would be appreciated.
  • richard1hainesrichard1haines Member Posts: 41
    I'm not sure if the alarm is factory or dealer or both. But what I can help with is this. If you arm the alarm system outside the car (locks the doors), you'll still be able to use the keyless remote or key to open the trunk without setting off the alarm. However, if you unlock all doors and open the trunk and keep trunk open for longer than 60 seconds, the system on 2007 and 08 Aveos will lock all doors as a security added feature. If you are inside the car and decide to lock with the keyfob and try to start the car the alarm will go off. You are advised by the instruction book to lock all door by pushing down the driver's door lock - this locks all 4 doors. To unlock all four doors from the inside, just pull up on the driver's side interior door lock.
  • poncho167poncho167 Member Posts: 1,178
    "Do USA Aveos have heated mirrors?"

    Yes, but only on the LT model.
  • northerncedarnortherncedar Member Posts: 11
    Just pick up ours yesterday. It had a vibratory squeek on the left door, but apparently worked itself out in about 1 hour of driving. It was not any worse than my wife's new Focus, which had a sqeak on the door, vibrating trunk, and terrible wind noise on the left window since we bought it new. The quiestest new car we've ever own is the Corolla. But I can't ask for more from a $8300 car that we paid $7000 for.

    The stick shift was a little hard to learn at first, as it is like many cars, difficult to get into 2nd when you down shift. Once you've realized that you can not accidentally get into reverse (there is a finger activated release that you must use - which is great), you can jam it hard into the corner, so you will not mistake 2nd gear for 4th. It took a while to get use to that.

    The steering was nimble, which handled better than the Equinox that we almost bought. But apparently was a big complain from other folks.

    Beware of the back seat latch. We had major problem with a 2008 in Mexico that had only 400 miles, and I read it online too. Don't force it or jam it or it will lock. Hopefully it will not give us major problem. So far no problem yet, but it could be for folks who use it alot. I imagine lots of WD40 will help with the jamming issue.

    I find it interesting that the 30000 mile timing belt check was removed on the 08 model, but required on the 07 model. Apparently a visual check is worthless, and they've done away with it. I am still planning to replace that timing belt every 30 to 40 K after the first replacement at 60K. Don't want to mess with these interference engines.

    Please give feedback on your 08 Aveo experience. Hopefully they've got most of the glitches worked out.
  • northerncedarnortherncedar Member Posts: 11
    No more squeeks from my car today, the 2008 aveo we got 2 days ago. The shifting is still difficult to get used to, going from 4 or 5 to 2. I still have problem putting it into 3rd.

    The cup holders are wayyy to small, crampted, and tight. Hard to shift with 2 sixteen oz pop in it, as it cramps up against the stick shift. I would not put any double 20 oz pop, or they will bump each other's lid off. It really was meant for small coffee cups or small coffees.
  • sv6ridersv6rider Member Posts: 1
    Well just got a new 08 Silver Aveo Hatch. Replaced my 98' Cavalier, I mainly use it for work commuting and have only put 30 miles on it but the car is nice. Our main vehicle is a 07 Equinox AWD which is awsome. The main problem I have with the Aveo is how cheap the switch gear feels and how thin the doors are, sorta reminds me of the geo tracker and metro. I will accesorize it in time. First up are tinted windows a better set of speakers with a small 4 channel amp. I will keep the stock head unit because it lets me plug in my SIrius radio. and the aveos idea of a premium sound system is a joke. but what can i expect from a 14000 dollar car I got for 11000 out the door, then minus trade and cash for a whopping monthly car payment of $122
  • gene_fitzgene_fitz Member Posts: 9
    I got my first Aveo in 2005. I loved it, it was an LS model, 5 Speed, AM/FM radio, manual everything. It was a great car.
    I just got a 2008 Aveo LT, and again, pleased as punch with the purchase.
    The Automatic transmission I don't care much for, I mean, I am a die hard stick shift fan, and I don't like the constant upshift-downshift in the hills, but it doesn't lack for power.
    The 2007/2008 Sedan models do have a nicer front profile than my 2005 did, which is wonderful.
    My LT has the AM/FM/CD/MP3 player with steering wheel controls which is very nice, though the volume isn't really all that. I am not sure if it is the stereo itself or the speakers. I like to rock out while I am driving, and the stock unit just doesn't have the punch I am looking for. But the 6 speaker system is really nice and clear.
    The Alarm is a help (not that I carry much that I am worried about being stolen, well, other than the car itself). Downside to that is the replacement key, with the alarm controller costs $148 to replace, then another $45 to get it programmed.
    Overall, my experience is really good. I have very few complaints, at least no more than I would have with any car.

    The Aveo is a good buy, and a wonderful car.
  • scrverscrver Member Posts: 3
    I just bought my 2008 Aveo5 last week. I wasn't going to buy until fall but lucked out and fell into $1000 off bonus bucks and $1000 GM loyalty at the same time. I couldn't refuse. I have been impressed so far. I will use the vehicle mainly as transportation to and from work in the winter and rainy days. Both of my sons laughed at me when they saw it (my other vehicle is a K3500 diesel dually) until they drove it. I hope that it will last me 5 years at 10,000 per year. Will post more when I drive it. Hi to all.
  • richard1hainesrichard1haines Member Posts: 41
    26,000km on my 2007 Aveo Sedan and so far no problems have surfaced. There's been a minor issue with the silver painted finish on the interior door handles rubbing off onto our fingers. But otherwise, it's been dead reliable and a great little car. :)
  • tootal2tootal2 Member Posts: 13
    I didnt know you could use the 1000.00 gm loyalty and bonus bucks at the same time.
    I might of bought one if i knew that. I going wait till the 2009 aveo comes out i think.
  • scrverscrver Member Posts: 3
    I didn't either. The loyalty wasn't posted. If I hadn't stopped that day I wouldn't have known. IF I hadn't been in the sales managers office I may not have been told. I got lucky . (for a change) The bonus bucks ran out the following day and the loyalty had just started. Go figure.
  • poquettepoquette Member Posts: 4
    Hello, well it's the Poquette's again w/ 2007 guess what here we are Sept. 2009 so far since the lower control arms we have had all four rims replaced cause they were defected, also bushing replaced( in shop 7 times for that issue) and now they are telling me w/ only 23,358 I need upper struts, mounds and bearing and all new tires cause of uneven tire ware. they tell me i need to pay for tires I told I don't think so they need to pay for those so now we are waiting for chevy(main) office to get back to us on monday to tell us yes or no. We told them the tire might of last longer if we didn't continue to have problems with the front end. the Poquette's
  • wifes07aveowifes07aveo Member Posts: 31
    I'm just happy to inform you that my 07 aveo has 33k trouble free miles. Its my commuter car and couldn't be happier. so far a great bang for the buck.
  • vjv1vjv1 Member Posts: 1
    I just bought an Aveo LS 1 month ago. It has 59,000 miles on it. I had the timing belt changed since I did research as to what the maintenance schedule is. So far I like it, but have read posts on different websites about how unreliable it is. I'm hoping this isn't true because that is the reason I purchased a "new" car. I like the way it drives; not much pick up but it is a 4 cylinder. Seems to idle fast at first, overall seems ok. Anything else I should know? I wish it had a CD player but that is minor. It zips along once I get up to speed. I didn't get the water pump replaced when I had the timing belt done. Hope that wasn't a mistake. I've heard various opinions about that. Overall, do you all like the car? I wasn't looking for anything fancy, just something economical and reliable.
  • aveomanaveoman Member Posts: 1
    We recently purchased a 2009 Aveo. Since the ignition key is a non-chip key I went to a couple of local hardware stores to have a couple of spares made, only too find out that the blank was not available except at the dealer. I called and was told it would be $35.00; I was a little shocked since it was a non-chip key. Well to make a long story short I went back to my neighborhood hardware store and as it turns out they came up with a blank that would work. It is made by 'ilco' and the numbers on it are X174 and TR40. It ended up costing me a little over $8.00 instead of the dealers rip off. I just wanted to share this for those who might be in the habit of making spare keys. The people at the store said it is typically a Toyota key blank, just in case you might go some where that doesn't have the particular brand this store carried.
  • barkydogbarkydog Member Posts: 45
    Nice try, but unfortunately it won't start your car. From what I've read these keys are not standard "chip keys" - they are a level above that, called transponder keys, and are much more expensive to duplicate. Yes, the newly cut key itself will physically fit the lock. But the key won't start the car unless your original key with the embedded transponder in it is somewhere near the steering column to receive the transmitted signal that it emits.

    This strikes me as a very expensive way to provide anti-theft security for what is essentially an inexpensive car. But hey, - that's Chevy's idea of a solution. And it's a really large, bulky ignition key for such a small car.
  • dhuddhud Member Posts: 1
    Good thought, however not well researched. I just purchased two ilco key blanks part number DW04RAP online for my 2008 Chevy Aveo 5 for just over $7 with shipping at http://mysecuritypro.com/daewoogmsuzukidwo4rap.aspx The Aveo has no transponder, no chip, nothing at all but metal and plastic. The thick plastic is deceiving, however, the key is nothing more than a key. The Aveo does have a key available with built in keyless remote, but that is all it does, unlocks the doors, trunk and panic. It has no effect on the engine starting. The car will start and run fine with or with out the original key near by. If you have any doubt on the existence of a transponder, simply take it to any place that cuts keys and they can test it for you. Additionally, the guy at my local True Value told me he would cut the keys for me for free.
  • barkydogbarkydog Member Posts: 45
    Actually I did research it, but the information about this on the web is mostly erroneous.

    You are absolutely correct, and I apologize for adding to the pool of misinformation. I just had a key made with that number blank. It works. But without that cross reference number, nobody seems to know what key blank to use.
  • wwwonewwwone Member Posts: 4
    Hi,

    Just recently bought a new 2009 5 speed LS sedan. Needed to replace a rotting '93 Honda Civic. The Civic was a good car with fantastic gas mileage. Rotting away unfortunately. So sold it for about $1.9k and bought a new Aveo fully warranted bumper to bumper for 3 years / 36000, powertrain covered for 5 yrs or 100,000 for a real deal. For us and our finances this is a very nice car. In fact it's very comfortable and peppy. I don't expect to achieve the mpg of the Civic but that's ok - it's very nice having a comfortable fully warranted car that 16 years newer for very little bucks. The Onstar coverage and built in phone and coverage is very nice as well. So far for the very first tank I've averaged 33 MPG. Not bad for a brand new car that was VERY reasonably priced - especially when you factor in the rebates. So far so good. What do you average with your 5 speed Aveo?
  • orbit9090orbit9090 Member Posts: 116
    Thanks for the helpful info and website link. I couldn't find these anywhere!
  • im4eestorim4eestor Member Posts: 7
    Just purchased a pair of these (non-transponder, non-chipped) DW04RAP "equivalents" ( http://avcokey.com/dw48r-ph-daewoo-nubira-plastic-head-key-blank-dw04rap.aspx ) for $1.50 each, and opted for the $6.10 USPS Priority Mail shipping option ($1.16 more than their standard flat-rate shipping for orders under $50).

    They start at $1.95 for a single key.

    Listed as DW48R-PH Daewoo Nubria Plastic Head Key Blank DW04RAP, so I called their toll free number at 800-332-5397, and spoke to someone in Canada, (where they apparently don't even have a listing for the Aveo) despite the fact that the storefront is physically located in East Northport, NY. He confirmed the this is the identical key blank, and I'll post here to let you know, once they arrive and I have them cut..

    Prior to this, I'd only been able to secure a plastic headed blank for my daughter's use (just got her license) at the only local Chevrolet dealer for the "wholesale" cost of @ $27.00 (retail was over $45!)....
  • barkydogbarkydog Member Posts: 45
    You paid more than necessary. These key blanks are hard to find locally, but if you are persistent and try enough places you will probably eventually find them, as I did.

    I found an ACE hardware store that had them for about $2 each. (ILCO X174 TR40) When they made the key it wouldn't turn in the lock. If that happens don't assume it is the wrong blank, because it is not. If you examine the key closely you will see that it was not cut accurately. Most hardware stores don't calibrate their key making machines too often and this key needs to be cut precisely. They eventually got it right and I had several keys made. A good locksmith will get it right on the first try, but you will pay a bit more.
  • tlgalensontlgalenson Member Posts: 1
    I just got done reading in another review website that MPG will go up significantly if you switch 89 octane gas. I will have to try it and see.

    I am currently looking for a low cost center console addon and the cruise control I ran across that appears to be for the South Korean version of this Chevorlet import.

    I like my care having only a few quibbles like the am/fm radio dieing fairly quickly after I bought it used. An after market Am/Fm/CD player is working nicely now though.

    Tom M.
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