Chevy to Introduce All-New Compact Car With 1.4-liter Turbo & New Aveo in 2010

Chevy will step up its efforts in strengthening its lineup of fuel-efficient cars with the addition of an all new compact-sized vehicle along with the introduction of a successor to the Aveo subcompact. The announcement was made today during GM’s annual stockholder meeting by the company’s CEO, Rick Wagoner.

The yet unnamed compact-sized vehicle, which could replace the Cobalt in Chevy’s line-up, will represent the first U.S. application of GM’s global architecture strategy. Production will begin in mid-2010 at GM's Lordstown, Ohio, plant and according to Wagoner, the new compact will be pure Chevrolet in design, and will feature the 1.4-liter turbocharged version of GM's global four-cylinder engine –see here. GM expects that with this engine and a manual transmission, the new Chevy will deliver a 9 mpg improvement over its current entry in the segment. -Continued

As for the Aveo, Wagoneer noted that GM recently approved the development of next generation model which will be based on a global architecture. GM says that the Aveo is expected to have segment-leading fuel economy when it goes on sale in the U.S. market in the second half of 2010.