General Motors unveiled the Sonic twins last year and everyone was excited about the Aveo replacement. The Sonic hatchback looked a competitive rival to dethrone the Maruti Swift from the top, while the Sonic sedan looked like a formidable alternative to the Tata Manza and Maruti DZire. However, none of the Sonic cars are coming to India. Instead it will be the Sail twins which will make their way to replace the dated Aveo. Now the Sail does look low cost and Logan-ish. So why is GM not getting the Sonic, when the competition has stunning looking cars like the Fiat Punto and Volkswagen Polo on offer?
GM wants to play the value game in India. By bringing in the Sail, the company will be able to aggressively price the Aveo replacement. The Sail is made by GM’s Chinese parter SAIC (Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation) and features the same 1.2-liter engine which does duty on the petrol Beat. Could GM use a 4-cylinder version of the Smartech diesel motor on the Sail for India? We won’t speculate yet, meanwhile we shall feast our eyes on the Sonic hatchback.
