Chevrolet India has launched the much publicised Chevrolet Sail U-VA in the highly competitive hatchback segment of Indian car market. The new Chevrolet Sail U-VA replaces the Aveo U-VA hatchback and will be soon joined by its sedan version to replace the sedan sibling of Aveo. It may be noted that thanks to an unexciting styling and lack of an oil burner, the Aveo siblings could never manage to do well in the country. While the styling continues to remain understated and quite boring on the replacement models, the diesel engine option should make life a lot easier for the Sail sisters.
Sail is already doing duty in the Chinese market and the car has been made keeping the developing countries in mind.
Variants
The Chevrolet Sail U-VA has been launched in following variants:- Base, LS, LS ABS and LT. The Base variant is available with petrol engine only.
Prices
Prices of Chevrolet Sail U-VA petrol variants are- Base-INR 4.44 lakhs, LS-4.83 lakhs, LS ABS-5.18 lakhs and LT- 5.57 lakhs.
Prices of Chevrolet Sail U-VA diesel variants are- LS-INR 5.87 lakhs, LS ABS-6.19 lakhs, LT-6.6 lakhs.
(all prices ex-showroom, Delhi)
Exterior
GM played safe with the Aveo’s styling, probably, a tad too safe to battle with the Suzuki Swift and the likes. While the Sail is not much ahead in the styling department, I have to admit that it does looks a generation ahead of the car it replaces.
The car can’t be mistaken for anything other than a Chevrolet.
Upfront, the bonnet has a muscular crease running across it which looks good and adds character to the car’s styling. It looks good with the wheel arches and a slightly big bumper up front. The new car sports a typical ‘modern day Chevrolet’ grille that pays homage to the bigger Cruze. Together with the big headlights, the bold grille makes the front end look neat without making it appear boringly rectangular.
Coming to the side, the bland surfaces continue and the car can really do with blacked out B pillar to make it look a tad sophisticated.
The car comes with stylish 6 spoke alloy wheels on the top end variants.
The Rear end, with somewhat ‘Puntoish’ vertically stacked lamps and the beefy bumper with integrated reflectors finally provide somes visual relief.
Overall, the Sail is a neat design but nothing ground breaking here.
Interior
The interior space is the new U-VA’s trump card. The car has spacious and airy interior with good fit and finish. The space on offer can easily rival that being offered by some of the entry level sedans on sale in the county. The car is being offered with beige-grey interior colour theme with hints of chrome at a few places.
The dash on the Sail has a slight hint of Opel cars of the yore with the 3 spoke steering wheel giving the interiors a somewhat sporty appearance. The Power window buttons are found on the floating panel below the centre console. There is a big storage space below the centre console for wallet/cellphones/coins.
The car comes with as many as 25 storage spaces which include the storage space under rear seats.
The Sail offers 60:40 split folding for rear seat row for an increased boot space of 1134 litres.
While the car has a very spacious interior, the Sail’s cabin looks rather boring when compared to the jazzy interiors of the Beat. The interiors of the new car stress more on being practical then on flair. And this can be a good thing for many.
Features
–Base– Body Coloured Bumpers+ Cup Holders in Front Console+ Amber Interior Lighting+ Front Seat back pockets+ Power Steering+ Air Conditioning+ Front Power Windows+ Power Adjust for ORVMs+ Tilt Steering+ Day and Night IRVM+ Remote Fuel Filler + Boot Release+ Engine Immobilizer
–LS- All features of Base+ Full Wheel Covers, Body Coloured ORVMs+ Foglamps+ Rear Antenna+ Chrome Inside Door Handles+ Chrome Parking Brake Button+ Leather Wrapped Steering+ Rear Parcel Shelf+ Cigar Lighter+ Driver Airbag+ Key-in Reminder
–LS ABS- All features of LS+ Digital Clock+ Integrated Audio System+ 4 Speakers+ Bluetooth for Mobile Music Streaming and hands free telephony+ ABS
–LT- All features of LS ABS+ Passenger Airbag+ Security Alarm System+ Speed Sensitive Autolock
One of my favorite features has to be the In Car Entertainment system as it allows Bluetooth enabled music streaming and mobile handsfree system.
Engines
The all new Chevrolet Sail U-VA offers the buyer an option to choose between a 1.2 litre petrol motor that has been borrowed from the Chevrolet Beat and the tried and tested 1.3 Fiat Multijet diesel engine.
Specifications
The 1.2 litre petrol motor produces 86 PS@6000RPM and 113 Nm@ 5000 RPM. It has an ARAI certified fuel efficiency of 18.2 km/l. The 1.3 litre motor on Sail U-VA diesel produces 78 PS@ 4000 RPM and 205Nm@1750 RPM. The Sail U-VA diesel boasts of an ARAI certified fuel efficiency of 22.1 km/l.
Both engines are mated to a 5-speed manual gearbox and are coupled with a 42 litre fuel tank. The braking system consists of a front disc-rear drum setup with ABS+EBD on selected variants. The Sail U-VA’s suspension comprises of McPherson Strut setup at front and twist axle setup at rear.
Good Car and very spacious