Buying questions

[Dirkdaddy]

I am in market for LTZ 1.4 MT hatch after renting a 1.8 LT hatch AT car.

Was impressed at the headroom, handling, MPG was good (not as good as the Accent I rented but good) and the style.

Q:

LTZ's '12's have drum rear brakes and '13 disk - I swore I'd never buy another drum brake car after fighting the adjusters causing excessive pedal travel on a few other vehicles...but the '12s are cheaper to buy and brakes seem to work great - its a very light small car.

The radio - The '12 LTZ radio has bluetooth and USB interface, the '13 has the newer flat screen style radio. How much different really is that? Does it have HD Radio? My '12 Kia (keeping it) has HD radio makes a difference in sound.

I could buy a '12 LTZ locally for $12500 + some doc fees and BS and then TTL. But I was looking to spend a bit less being a cheap bastard but they won't budge. Wonder with gas prices declined 25% if $11.5k is reasonable for one of these with about 30k miles. Other than some usual wear and tear very minor, they are clean cars I"m looking at.

Anything else I should be aware of or look for? I'm good with checking out most stuff, ain't my first rodeo, but if there are Sonic specific deals let me know

Scott
ps. I did read about the MT issue with the bearing failures and people needing new transmissions. My vehicles would still be under powertrain warranty. Also, have people tried upgrading the lube to a full synthetic? that would likely go a long way to helping that bearing stay good.

 

[Breezybro]

You really need a mylink for one, two I love my rs with 4 disc brakes.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

 

[Calculon]

Wonder with gas prices declined 25%

I wouldn't count on that lasting forever. Unless you drive lots of highway miles where the added gear will help with mileage, the 1.8L might be worth considering since you can probably get it for less and the shifter is better.

 

[Swordsmith]

The 1.4 MT has had some issues, spend some time driving the car and see if you get a grinding noise going from one gear to another. At 30,000 miles the problem should be there if it's going to be there, it tends to develop in the first couple thousand miles. Grind going from 1st to 2nd is the most frequently reported problem, but I have one going from 3rd to 2nd and into 5th from either direction. Chevy says this is within tolerances for an "econobox" and will not replace it despite warranty. I have to admit I have put over 50,000 miles on it and the problem has not gotten any worse or had any effect other than making me wince a little.

Another reported problem is a coolant leak, which is usually the water pump. Not sure how you could check this, as the leak is usually slow so you would have to drive the car a couple weeks to see it. But I guess you could put some UV dye in the coolant, drive it for a day, and then inspect for signs of a leak?

Neither of these problems is actually common, but they are the two I see reported most.

 

[Dirkdaddy]

After reading a good bit of the posts and concerns on the intellink style radio, I'm not sure that's really the direction I'd go. I have a UVO radio interface on our Optima SX, and it does OK but like when playing a station, it displays stuff about the station and song, but to get to presets to change stations you have to press two different times on the screen. I've gotten so I just use the knob like in the 70's cars! It doesn't have the app ability of the itellink setup. But I'm also over 50 and if the fonts are small that's actually quite a bit deal, a I don't drive with reading glasses on. Not sure if that Intellink is a bonus on resale or not. The google maps hack if it would be possible would be really nice with that big screen, I admit. Still looking around. I've had a series of GM cars, and the Kia has actually been super trouble-free even with direct injection turbo. I just didn't want to spend $$ on a 3rd vehicle and the latest version of the Accent is the one I'd want which are selling higher. Originally I was going to get a beater for about $4k, but then we rented the sonic LT and it was pretty impressive and I figured I could justify spending a little more.

 

[Z71]

Sonic is not a "very light" little car. It weighs 2,800 lbs. And it is not so little (at least the sedan version). A "very light little" car would be a 1982 Renault LeCar which I owned years ago. It weighed 1,800 lbs.

 

[LorbeerTLC]

The Renault R-5 LeCar...

Sonic is not a "very light" little car. It weighs 2,800 lbs. And it is not so little (at least the sedan version). A "very light little" car would be a 1982 Renault LeCar which I owned years ago. It weighed 1,800 lbs.

Good Lord!
Someone else had a Renault (R-5) LeCar?!
I had a 1977 blue one when I was a teenager and it was one of the smoothest riding econoboxes I've ever had! Never-mind it cornered on its door handles... its torsion-bar suspension really smoothed-out the bumps along the road! With the right-side wheelbase longer than the left-side (and the spare tire mounted above the engine), longitude-mounted engine, FWD, it was an oddity of a car.
I'll never forget when I had to have routine maintenance, the AMC dealer would quickly usher me into the garage, afraid someone would see me! HA!

I've also had (read: "HAD") a Smart Car... but I'll save you from that story!

But I digress...
I currently have a 2012 Sonic LTZ Hatchback with a 1.4L, 6spd manual and I haven't had any problems with it and I have almost 50,000 miles. I love this car!