1.4 L Sonic Questions/Reliability

[Ocean]

Hi all!

I am hopefully going to be a proud owner of a new 2014 Chevrolet Sonic LTZ Turbo in the 6 months. I'll be using my college discount and Oregon's sales tax (or lack thereof :banana to save some money. I do have some quick questions for you Sonic owners, though.

1. How well does this car actually perform driving through the mountains? What I mean is, does it moan and groan all the way through or can it handle them nicely with some decent driving skills? I live in Oregon and travel through the cascades quite often.

2.How is it on reliability? For those of you who have had your sonics for 50,000+ miles. Any issues so far?

3.I've seen one roof rack for the sonic. Id like to carry two different 10 foot long kayaks to the lakes on the weekends, has anyone had success with this before?

Thanks!

 

[bvz]

I can comment on the roof racks: they generally don't fit at all. Neither Thule or Yakima make them for our Sonics. Rhino makes one, but it didn't fit my car at all. The gap between the doors and the roof is so tight on some of these cars that the metal clamp that goes between those two points actually touches the paint on both sides at the same time. When it came time to return my racks, rhino didn't believe me at first. But when I sent a photo they were shocked at how tight the spacing was and refunded me my purchase price.

I've heard that the factory racks don't fit any better on a lot of the cars (apparently the distance between the roof and the top of the doors varies widely from car to car).

I'm going to have permanent racks installed (which involves drilling into the roof). Both Thule and Yakima make them. Look around this forum and you'll find some folks who have gone that route. It seems the best way to go.

In general though I love this little car (1.4, 6 speed manual). It is my first domestic car ever and I couldn't recommend it highly enough (I only have 1400 miles on it so far so I can't comment on reliability, but I can report -with some sadness - that it stands up well to being side swiped by a city bus

 

[ahtoxa]

Ocean,

All modern cars will make it just fun in the mountains, it just depends on how tolerant you are to dropping a few gears. A manual Sonic is geared high, so going uphill necessitates downshifts of 2 gears or more, for anything less than a mild incline.

Reliability has been good, with some people early on having issues. Main issues are - 1-2 shift grind for the 6 speed manual. Waterpump issues and seemingly disappearing coolant for some. Front swaybar links need to be replaced and go out with some frequency - this is likely the most common issue. The trans issues are less common and waterpump and coolant issues are less common yet.

The Sonic is a reliable car, but as I mentioned, will require some downshifts for hilly terrain and it's been geared for economy rather than accel. This will also depend on whether you go with an auto or a manual or a 1.8 motor vs 1.4T.

 

[Lazza]

What are the symptoms of front swaybar links failing? Are they expensive to replace?


_Lazza

 

[River_Rat]

Apparently they are prone to making a clunking noise, either over bumps or in turns. Even out of warranty, they are fairly cheap to replace, or even upgrade. Less than $50 if I recall. At 23k miles, mine are still holding up just fine.

 

[Insanika]

I had no issues traveling for three days in the mountains.

Ahtoxa is correct, even with my lower geared RS I was shifting almost constantly. That wasn't an issue though, I love my manual.

 

[Larrymer]

Yep. I constantly have to shift from 6-> 4 when going up a hill.

 

[Yosemite Sam]

I travel through the mountains in SoCal at least twice a month and only have to downshift to 5th sometimes. As far as reliability, I have over 56k and only last month had to replace my water pump. I had strange electrical problems when it was a couple months old but that was taken care of. I don't have or need a roof rack so I can't say anything about that. The Sonic is the best car in its class and when I wear this one out I will get another! :banana:

 

[ChrisJ]

I travel through the mountains in SoCal at least twice a month and only have to downshift to 5th sometimes. As far as reliability, I have over 56k and only last month had to replace my water pump. I had strange electrical problems when it was a couple months old but that was taken care of. I don't have or need a roof rack so I can't say anything about that. The Sonic is the best car in its class and when I wear this one out I will get another! :banana:

Yep.
The Sonic has its flaws but you won't find a better car in its size and certainly not for the cost.

 

[barrstev]

I agree with everyone else here in saying that you won't regret your purchase. I rented an LTZ turbo and bought an RS manual a month later. What sold me was how much better the FWD grips compared to any other car in its class, and how well the car handled when i put it sideways with the e-brake leaving the rental car place. I highly recommend the RS over everything else! It's worth it for the better brakes and suspension alone. I wanted the better mpg of the ltz, but it was willing to give it up for the red stitched leather, rear discs, and suspension tuned by the Corvettes engineers. And driving super modest, i've gotten 37mpg (only once because it's impossible to drive modestly)

As for gearing, the car is geared to keep the engine running as slow as possible for efficiency, but going from 6th to 4th directly in a 140hp 2800lbs car to pass will solve all of your problems.

This car is very fun to drive hard, and it doesn't break the bank. Even performance parts are insanely cheap and provide impressive power gains.

 

[Scot]

I haven't blown mine up yet.

Lord knows I've tried.

 

[LorbeerTLC]

Chevy Sonic LTZ 1.4L Turbo in Oregon

Hi all!

I am hopefully going to be a proud owner of a new 2014 Chevrolet Sonic LTZ Turbo in the 6 months. I'll be using my college discount and Oregon's sales tax (or lack thereof :banana to save some money. I do have some quick questions for you Sonic owners, though.

1. How well does this car actually perform driving through the mountains? What I mean is, does it moan and groan all the way through or can it handle them nicely with some decent driving skills? I live in Oregon and travel through the cascades quite often.

2.How is it on reliability? For those of you who have had your sonics for 50,000+ miles. Any issues so far?

3.I've seen one roof rack for the sonic. Id like to carry two different 10 foot long kayaks to the lakes on the weekends, has anyone had success with this before?

Thanks!

Hi Ocean!

I live just west of Salem, Oregon and I have a 2012 Chevy Sonic LTZ Hatchback with the 1.4L turbo, 6-speed manual and I can tell you you'll do fine driving over the Cascades and even the Siskiyou's.
You'll be working the gears somewhat (depending on the grade), but you shouldn't have any problems keeping up with the maximum speed limit. You'll also have fun driving it through the winding roads!

As for reliability, I have close to 47,000 miles without any real problems. However, I don't know if I'm an exception as others may tell you differently.
But personally, it's been the best car I've ever owned (and I've had 7 different cars over the years!). I would definitely buy a Sonic again!

As for a roof rack, I've had my share of problems with removable racks and if you've read some of the comments, others have had problems too. So I decided to go a different route and buy a permanent rack.
It's by Perrycraft and it's SWEEEET! Here's the link to the page that shows the pictures and additional information on this rack:
http://www.sonicownersforum.com/forum/aftermarket-crowd/750-yakima-thule-other-roof-racks-post50261.html?highlight=perrycraft#post50261
However, I did have it professionally installed as I have the factory sun roof and didn't want to risk puncturing the drain pan that helps drain any water that might seep in through the seals. They did an Awesome job! :banana:

Hope you get and have fun in your new Sonic!
-Tom