Click on the photo for a high res gallery of the Trax

Although we were deeply saddened by the notion that General Motors would not be bringing its Beat subcompact car to the Unites States, the General is apparently planning to send a new minicar to America to replace the Aveo that we are currently saddled blessed with. We don't yet know what the car will be named, but rumor has it that it will be built in Mexico atop the General's Gamma platform and will share plenty of design cues from either the Trax or Groove concept from last year. It shouldn't come as much of a surprise that GM would choose to offer a four or five door hatch in the States, as consumers have generally gravitated away from coupes here. Still, the Beat was apparently the best received of the three small car triplets that GM showed last year in New York.

U.S. safety standards will enlarge the car somewhat, which is one major reason why GM won't be offering the Beat here. Somehow, smart and Toyota have figured out how to engineer small vehicles which can pass Federal crash tests, so we know it's not impossible. Regardless, the new vehicle is expected to be in showrooms no sooner than 2011, so there is plenty of time to stew over the decision.



[Source: Automotive News – Sub. Req.]

The General, along with the rest of the American automakers, has a long established history of making the most profits from the largest vehicles. Small cars from the Detroit 3 have therefore fallen way behind the imports when it comes to desirability. GM Global Design Chief Ed Welburn went so far as to say, "In North America, we never did a good small car." Ouch. Instead, all the best designs come from overseas, which GM has plenty of experience in. "Today, we are able to draw on resources of design centers in Korea, Brazil and Europe who really know how to do small cars," says Welburn. Like the ones who designed the Aveo?

So, if the Cobalt and Aveo are not good small cars, at least they'd better be cheap, right? Sure, but expect that to change too as upcoming replacements for its aging small cars will be more expensive than current models. The Chevrolet Cruze, not expected in the U.S. for at least a few more years, will cost an extra few thousand dollars compared to the Cobalt. Hopefully by then, the Beat will be properly engineered for the American market as well.

[Source: Automotive News, sub. req'd]

Despite already selling a version of the Toyota Matrix as the Pontiac Vibe, it seems that the coffers at General Motors may bring the Pontiac G3 to the U.S. market. Already sold to our neighbors up north, though known in Canada as the Wave, the G3 is a slightly revised Chevrolet Aveo, which is currently the cheapest vehicle the General offers for sale in the U.S. Oddly enough, the G3 would not post significantly better fuel economy figures than the already available Vibe, though it would undercut its slightly larger sibling by a few thousand dollars. While we can see the reasoning behind wanting as full a vehicle line-up as possible for dealers representing the Pontiac-Buick-GMC trifecta, the G3 seems to do little more than continue to water-down Pontiac's already shaky performance image.

As was previously reported, the Pontiac G3 was just recently approved for sale as a 2009 model by the EPA. According to Automotive News, though, some dealers and even some executives within GM itself were surprised by the decision to get the G3 certified for sale in the states. Sounds like we may not be the only ones who think that the G3 may be a bit too much brand-dilution.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

click the Aveo for high-res images of the new face

The news for next month's Frankfurt Motor Show keeps on coming. The Daewoo-built Chevy Aveo is getting a revamp with a face similar to the new Malibu that will debut at Frankfurt. The Aveo hatchback is currently sold in Europe as the Kalos, a name that will be supplanted by the US name. In addition to the new frontal look, the interior is also getting an upgraded interior and a more efficient gas engine. A 1.2L 84hp engine is added to the lineup in addition to the upgraded 1.4L that was already used. The updated Aveo hits the road in Europe next March. So far there is no word when the new Aveo will show up on US shores.

[Source: Chevrolet]

General Motors has been selling the Chevrolet Aveo in the US market since shortly after they bought a controlling interest in South Korean auto-maker Daewoo a few years ago. The Aveo is GM's smallest and cheapest (as well as least expensive) car in the US market. Right now, all the Aveos are sourced from Daewoo's plant in South Korea, but GM wants to expand availability, so they have been trying to set up another plant somewhere.

In the second half of 2007, production of the Aveo will be added at plant in Warsaw, Poland that is belongs to Ukrainian partner UkrAvto. Production volumes will start at 60,000 units a year and then ramp up to 150,000 or more per year. Polish produced Aveos will be mainly for the European market allowing more of the Korean built units being exported to the US and Asian Markets. The deal with UkrAvto is not a joint-venture at this point, instead the Ukrainian company will be assembling cars under contract.

[Source: Automotive News - subscription required]