Overview & Reviews

The Chevy Aveo was one of the first representatives of a new generation of inexpensive small cars that dawned in the 2000s as car shoppers began changing their buying habits to reflect rising gas prices and tough financial times. Unlike the penalty boxes of old, these small cars would sacrifice little in terms of reliability, features or comfort.

Having said that, the Aveo paled in comparison to later competitors. Built in Korea by GM-owned Daewoo, the Aveo was uninspiring to drive and saddled with subpar interior quality. A penalty box it was not, but it wasn't an object of desire, either. Eventually, Chevrolet discontinued the Aveo and replaced it with the vastly superior Sonic.

Most Recent Chevrolet Aveo
The Chevy Aveo was available as a subcompact sedan or four-door hatchback called the Aveo5. Both debuted in 2004 and, apart from the subsequent minor face-lifts that occurred for the sedan in '07 and the hatchback in '09, didn't significantly change throughout its run.

From 2004-'08, every Aveo was powered by a 1.6-liter inline-4 that made 103 horsepower and 107 pound-feet of torque. For '09, it was bumped up to 107 hp and 106 lb-ft, while for 2010 those figures were revised to 108 hp and 104 lb-ft. Transmission choices were always a standard five-speed manual or optional four-speed automatic. Manual transmission gear ratios were altered for 2010 for improved fuel economy.

The Aveo's tall profile wasn't the most aesthetically pleasing when viewed from the outside, but it certainly paid dividends in terms of providing useful amounts of headroom and legroom. The Aveo's interior also provided a commanding view for all passengers, and a fully reclining front passenger seat and a 60/40-split-folding rear seat expanded cargo capacity. The sedan's trunk offered 12.4 cubic feet of storage space. The Aveo5 also had a fold-down rear seat, and it could carry up to 42 cubic feet of cargo.

In Chevrolet Aveo reviews, our editors found it to be the least appealing of contemporary subcompacts, particularly toward the end of its life. But as a used car purchase, the Aveo represents a pretty affordable way to get acceptable transportation. Strengths included a low price, ample headroom and logical control layout. Downsides included mediocre acceleration, an unrefined driving experience, subpar cabin quality and a sloppy gearshifter (this was the rare instance in the subcompact class where we would recommend the automatic). Shoppers will want to consider 2006 and later Aveos, as they have additional features such as side airbags, alloy wheels and cruise control.

User Reviews:

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  A Good Little Car - 2010 Chevrolet Aveo
  By mbee19 - June 21 - 12:34 pm

  Ive had my 2010 Chevy Aveo for 3 years now (I bought it new) and I love it. Yeah, its not powerful and its not the most beautiful thing on the road but I dont think its any uglier than the rest of these new, weird looking vehicles. I like the interior, its plenty roomy enough, Ive done a couple cross country moves with me, my husband and three dogs (and all our stuff). Its super efficient, which is the most important to me. I cant afford $80 - $100 + a week to get around. I can fill up for about $40 and that gets me almost 300 miles. Its never ever given me any problems, except the drivers seat fabric has a rip from wear and tear, I guess. Make sure to change the oil, itll last.

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  good deal for the price - 2010 Chevrolet Aveo
  By garryman2 - May 24 - 8:41 am

  I bought this car used with 48 thousand on it. It has a 1.6 liter engine. No engine repair has been needed. I was surprised by how roomy this compact car is. I get the mpg that was advertised. The car handles well. The 100 thousand 5 year powertrain warranty and rust protection warranty are big pluses that attracted me to purchase. This car is very basic with no frills like power locks or windows, blue tooth, cruise control, or GPS. The stereo system is average. The exterior design to me looks sleek. I would recommend this car to my friends.

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  Moms little trustie! - 2005 Chevrolet Aveo
  By tauscuppy - May 14 - 1:49 pm

  I love this car! we always have new trucks, or vans. when gas prices got so high, I went out and bought one of these (after muchresearch on other compacts) Now, this is the family car, its taken us everywhere, not a single worry, I drive on the feeway ALL the time, and cant believe how smooth it is, I have to chech the sppedometer all the time, cuz I am always speeding, but, it never feels like it. this car was 8 years old when I bought it, has just over 100.000 on it now. I will own this car for a long time <3

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  Not horrible, but not great - 2004 Chevrolet Aveo
  By lovethepudge - April 18 - 2:19 pm

  Lets just say that thankfully my dad knows his way around cars or this review could be much worse. I bought my 2004 Chevy Aveo in 2008 with 95,000 miles, it’s now at 116,000 miles. In the 4.5 years that I have owned it, we have replaced the gas cap, the catalytic converter, one of the pulleys just broke and the serpentine belt came off. (thankfully it wasn’t the timing belt) I had the timing belt replaced right after I bought it in 2008. All new tires, replaced rotors (causing the front end to shake when I hit the brakes, nothing major). New muffler in 2011. The transmission sticks when it gets too cold outside. (It’s been doing that for a few years now).

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  TIMING BELT BROKE - 2004 Chevrolet Aveo
  By rich200 - January 27 - 3:45 pm

  Many reviews of this car featured a broken timing belt. I have the same story, but it happened on the highway. Thankfully I was in the slow lane -- had I been in the fast lane I would have been killed. Standing on the side of a busy highway waiting for AAA is scary enough. Needed a new belt and top part of the engine. Total repair $2500, but four visits to the repair shop later I decided to junk the car and got $2500 from a dealer using figures from autotrader.com. No harm, no foul and now I have a brand new Honda Fit and vow never, ever to buy a Chevrolet product again.

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  Do Not Recommend - 2004 Chevrolet Aveo
  By rachelwww - November 6 - 6:47 pm

  I bought this car at 57000 miles. The timing belt broke at 79000, apparently timing belts in this car like to murder themselves and the cars engine in the process. with a price tag of $1500-2200 to fix. This problem came along with other repairs that should not have had to be done in accordance with annual maintenance on the car, such as the air intake replacement and replacing and fixing various other cheaply made parts, the repair costs for this car have nearly outweighed the cost of it in the first place. Also it took me a week to find the cupholder. NOT a user friendly vehicle.

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  His and Hers - 2005 Chevrolet Aveo
  By ckmolina - August 18 - 4:31 pm

  My husband and I both own the 2005 aveo. His has 11500 miles on it and mine has 11300 miles on it. I drive the hatchback LS and he drives the sedan LT. We have driven from Missouri to California and back with no problems. Both of our daylight running lamps have quit working reliably, both the dashlight indicator and the lights themselves. We havent gotten them fixed, instead we just turn on the headlights. Just recently we have had a problem with the sedan overheating. We are still trying to fix that one. The hatchback has had no major issues.

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  Cheap, and it worked for a while. - 2005 Chevrolet Aveo
  By sssargon - August 1 - 8:44 am

  I bought a used 2005 Aveo automatic in 2007 w/ about 25k miles on it to replace my Toyota Echo. It runs (and the mpg was nice), but has large blindspots in the front corners, so watch for pedestrians while turning & is lightweight so the wind blows it around on the highway. In 2009, w/ 45k mi, while replacing tires, found out there was a bent inner tie rod, which requires replacing this whole chassis ($700-900) it caused tires to wear out faster in the front and the car to wobble between 50-65 mph. 62k mi & the clock broke. After only 64k mi & regular maintenance, the engine died. Better replace the timing belt before 60k mi. Too bad it wouldnt have been worth it anyway. Disappointing.

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  Well Maintened but still had major problems - 2006 Chevrolet Aveo
  By mindintomatter - July 30 - 12:05 pm

  I purchased this car for an amazing price. And I know most people probably purchase the Aveo because of that. At $80,000 miles my car has had a string of major problems. The mechanic remarked that hes been fixing Aveos lately with the same problems. The front struts give out, the Temp Sensor, and the Solenoid. My check engine light just came on again. From speaking to people who have Aveos they say this car is badly built and usually doesnt make it to 100,000 miles. The back seat has almost no leg room either.

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  do NOT buy - 2009 Chevrolet Aveo
  By millerk06 - July 17 - 3:30 pm

  This car has been nothing but a nightmare since day 1. I have had my tire pressure light looked at over 5 times and its still not fixed. Going on the interstate is terrible, the air fades out and starts blowing hot and the dealer "doesnt know why". The key hole in the drivers side door has fallen through and is stuck in the door. Its not a quality Chevy, the plant for Daewoo was purchased by Chevy and this is the result - a Korean piece of crap. Read reviews and research before purchasing.