Sonic 1.8L Commuters

[c-lo]

On Monday I parked my 05 Legacy GT Wagon which was my DD (269k) and purchased a Sonic 1.8L LTZ. black on black. love it. it will now serve as my daily commuter.....60 miles a day.

didn't get the turbo version. honestly...I drove the 1.8L and found it fairly peppy. so much so that I decided to purchase it. I don't sit in stop and go traffic, and most of my driving is at highway speeds. so far the only time I'm missing the torque is from a stop at lights, or up a hill.

Just curious how satisfied other 1.8L owners are. Do you wish you had the turbo?

I'm thinking about tightening up the suspension. little too much lean for me

 

[$ub$onic]

Very happy with my 1.8. It has treated me very good, with little over all issues with the whole car.

I drive 70 miles a day and the sonic never skipped a beat.

No longer a daily but I drove it as a daily for 2 years.

 

[c-lo]

that's good to hear. I hear you've modded the hell out of yours now

 

[mitdr774]

In 2.5 years I am just over 60k miles. I still enjoy driving my car.

 

[$ub$onic]

that's good to hear. I hear you've modded the hell out of yours now

Just a little. Haha


Fun video

http://youtu.be/PgXr0be790g

Was running about 80% of what the car could do, but it was a Fun afternoon.

 

[TMac]

I'm loving every mile I put on my car. Both of my parents enjoy driving it as well and they own Saabs

 

[christopher.s.terry]

Love mine as well 48k on her and had her for 2.5 years as well. Im doing a turbo build on mine...follow the official 1.8 turbo build if ur interested ok


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[SuperFudd]

Test drove 2 identical LTs except one 1.8 and the other 1.4T.
Didn't notice the power difference. The 1.8 was more pleasant. Got the 1.8. (see below)
Let my daughter drive it the other day. Her comment upon her return was " That car really GOES!"

 

[TheFallenAngel12]

I love my 1.8L sonic. Its been great to me and the few issues i have had have been taken care of with no problems by the dealership under warranty. Its been a solid car for me.

Ive test driven a 1.4T sonic and it was nice, but i felt the stock 1.4T had just as much pepp if not less as my 1.8L did. Yeah the turbo would have been fun to have but overall im very satisfied with my current sonic.

Ive let my step-father borrow my sonic a few times and he has mentioned many times he cant beleive how much my sonic gets up and goes so well. Its not the quickest thing out there but its definetly no slouche i dont think. outdoes my previous 2 vechicles i had before i bought this 1.8 sonic.

 

[Z71]

I cannot understand why Chevy did not use the 6 speed manual transmission with the 1,8 liter engine. They use it in Chevy Cruze. The gears are spaced out much better in the 6 speed manual.

The 5 speed manual used in Sonic is a solid transmission but the gears are too high, especially the first gear. This makes it difficult to quickly pull out into traffic with this car. I had a 1992 Mazda Protege LX with a 1.8 DOHC engine and gears much lower than the Sonic. This lowered the fuel economy, but the car would run around in circles around this Sonic.

 

[SM45H B0T]

Just a little. Haha


Fun video

Sonic pitt race trackX - YouTube

Was running about 80% of what the car could do, but it was a Fun afternoon.

I quite like the sound of the exhaust. But idk how I'd like it at night.

I guess I'd need to hear in person how "ricey" it would sound.

What all do you got into it?

 

[$ub$onic]

I quite like the sound of the exhaust. But idk how I'd like it at night.

I guess I'd need to hear in person how "ricey" it would sound.

What all do you got into it?

It sounds ok, a lot of drone on the highway.
Function >form.

It's a one off 4-2-1 header, high flow cat, magnaflow cat back.

 

[Palmaris]

On Monday I parked my 05 Legacy GT Wagon which was my DD (269k) and purchased a Sonic 1.8L LTZ. black on black. love it. it will now serve as my daily commuter.....60 miles a day.

Welcome! I got my Sonic after my Subaru Impreza was getting old and tired. I still have the Impreza though, and I am using it for Rallycross! So much fun!

In Canada, your almost forced to get the 1.8 or pay 5 grand more but I still like it. By the numbers, and what I hear, it seems that the power is pretty similar to the 1.4. The whole point was that the 1.4 gets you the same power with better fuel mileage. Of course that's a good thing!

 

[DaBlackapino]

My first car was the LS 1.8L, and since it being my First Car i found it to be VERY nimble and has good handling. Funny thing is I paid 14K for it..and 3 day's later another Local Chevy dealer posted an LTZ same year 2012 for the same price...lmao!!!! Al thought i was pissed..because i would have bought it because of the plether and the radio, but other than that...i Stuck with my LS and i just installed or rather REPLACED the Stock Bulbs with PIAA's. I've already got my Summer Tires ready and picked out for this Summer along with the RIMS, and Possible Subwoofer system made by Kicker called Sound gate. So yes I am VERY Pleased with my Car.

 

[Poohman]

I cannot understand why Chevy did not use the 6 speed manual transmission with the 1,8 liter engine. They use it in Chevy Cruze. The gears are spaced out much better in the 6 speed manual.

The 5 speed manual used in Sonic is a solid transmission but the gears are too high, especially the first gear. This makes it difficult to quickly pull out into traffic with this car. I had a 1992 Mazda Protege LX with a 1.8 DOHC engine and gears much lower than the Sonic. This lowered the fuel economy, but the car would run around in circles around this Sonic.

My92 protege with BPT swap n 14psi was my best car I've owned. I could smoke the tires at will...I regret letting it go. Chevy has come a long way since the Corsica and Cavalier.

 

[DWolfe2010]

I am a 1.8 owner and lover! I am determined to get close to 200 hp with no turbo (I know it's almost impossible, but hey lemme have my fun!) Had it for going on a year. Roughly 12k miles and no a single issue. I've got exhaust and cai, waiting on headers to come in. Then I'll be getting a tune. Hopefully that gives me a decent boost. I drive her daily. Maybe 8 miles all together to and from work

 

[OsonicE]

I drive about 70 miles per day in mine, pretty hilly and cold/rainy. If I really hypermile I can get 35 mpg out of her, and the turbo guys get 40+. And the 1.8 has a timing belt. So the 1.4 would probably save money in the long run, but it would take a couple years of commuting to notice a savings and I plan on moving closer to work.

It's got lots of little issues, the gears on the five speed are spaced out funny, the ride is really uncomfortably stiff yet leans on corners too much, 0-60 is quite slow, It uses a special expensive oil filter, the panel gaps are huge, the little round headlights are pretty dim...

But for 11,000 new I get 34 mpg, it holds four 6' people comfortably, has plenty of features and cupholders, airbags everywhere, cruise control, it looks good, it's reliable, cheap to insure, and the slowness keeps me out of trouble

 

[Hdmanny]

I would only prefer the 1.4t due to it using a timing chain instead of a belt like the 1.8.
I drive 125 each day round trip to work, it is not all flat with a few hills. I bought it 14 months ago with 39k miles and just went over 76k miles this weekend. It has had a few problems but nothing major so far, not looking forward to replacing the timing belt this year.
I test drove a Sentra with a 2.0l and it was not quicker than my Sonic, plus I liked the looks of my sedan better.

 

[BennettPM]

Really happy with the 1.8L. I did not compare a turbo and non-turbo, just was very leery at the time about longevity of a turbo drive train. Not so much any more.

 

[DaBlackapino]

I'm going to Do the same thing you did with your Sonic to mine...but w/o the decals...and the smoke lights..since i think it's illegal here...but...I'll be lowering it...and Adding a Spoiler and new tires with Rims. All i have to ask is..was it hard to put on the Spoiler? Did you Do it yourself or proff.