I’ve been thinking seriously about replacing the ol’ Camry, preferably with something of significantly better fuel economy. My first leanings were toward the Echo, but a friend has built up a large credit toward purchase of a GM vehicle on her Visa, and since she no intention of ever using it, I may be able to cut the price of a Aveo but $1000 or more.
Car reviewers indicate the Echo has slightly better mileage, but the Aveo has slightly better features. Any thoughts?
Are these essentially the same cars? Like the Chevy Prizm (which I own) and the Toyota Corolla?
The Aveo is based on the Suzuki Swift.
Toyota’s ability to make quality, long lasting vehicles is well documented.
The same cannot be said for Chevy. You’ll go through that $1,000 saving in no time with repeated repairs to the Chevy.
My Toyota has 125,000 miles on it. Other than a battery replacement, and tire and oil changes, I haven’t had to put a penny in to it. And I torture the thing with short drives here and there with almost no highway driving. Its a work truck and all my jobs are local.
A few months ago I checked out a couple of different 2005 Aveo models. IMHO they’re just a little short of being good small cars. Just a bit too tinny, just a bit too lightweight.
My own feeling was that once I got over the newness of it, an Aveo would be slow torture. An Echo might not be that much better, but Toyotas in general tend to grow on you, not wear on you.
The Echo is on its way out, to be replaced by the Yaris.
I drive an Echo every day. There are pros and cons to it.
It is reliable, and the gas mileage is just fine. But I have never been comfortable in this car like I was in my old Mazda Protege. The seats are just brutally hard, and the car is narrow. When shifting gears, I’m always bumping my passenger.
I’m stuck right now in a deal with my wife - I’ll drive this thing, which is her old car, until the minivan is paid off. The instant that happens, I’m losing this sucker faster than you can possibly imagine.
I have to commute in this thing every single day, and I ought to do that in a vehicle that is comfortable to me.
YMMV, but keep that in mind.
Have you considered the new Toyota Corolla (03 to present)? That has great mileage and is a lot more comfortable than an Echo or Aveo.
That Aveo is supposed to be turd on wheels.
I’d get a used Civic or something similar for the same price.
Yeah, the Echo is going byebye, and it’s usually not the best idea to buy a car that’s no longer being produced. It raises the costs of depreciation and repairs over the long haul.
One suggestion might be to give the Saturn ION a try. A litle better than the Chevy Aveo and similar in price and fuel economy, plus you’d get to use that $1000+ GM credit. They are doing a Red Tag Price incetive until 1/3/06 so you may be in business.
I would go for a Toyota personally, mainly for reliability (and excellent aircon, but they may not be necessary where you are.)
I would also suggest you look at a Corolla, though in my opinion, the older model (2001?) is a better car. The new Corolla has you sitting too upright, and I find the clutch and gear shift to be unforgiving. I have the older one but have spent the last six weeks driving a new one, long enough to know that I am very happy with my own 2001 Corolla.
One says “Toyota”, which is a car company. The other says “GM”, which is a pension and health benefits company that has a sideline business of making cars. 
Okay, I’ve put a toe in the water and visited a Toyota dealership and a GM dealership, and gotten more than enough talk about how low my monthly payments can be. I was hoping to pick up a cheap 2005 basic hatchback (+ automatic) on a deal, but the Toyota guy didn’t have any more (he was loading up on Yarisi, which I’m prepared to rule out for the obnoxious advertising alone) and all the GM guy had was a sporty '05 Aveo tricked out with a nifty orange paint job and a lot of of other crap I’m at best indifferent to. If I’m still looking around in a month and he hasn’t sold the Cheez Whizmobile, maybe I can lowball him. Tonight I’ll head uptown to a bigger Toyota dealer and see what he’s got.
Did the GM dealer have Saturns on hand? If so did you do any comparisons?
According to googlefight, the winner is the Echo.
Sorry, I can’t afford a car that has a philosophy.
I like my Echo. I don’t find it uncomfortable (but I’m very short), and I like the wacky styling. I even groove on the center-mounted control panel.