Award-winning Chevrolet Sonic discontinued due to small car sales slump
Topped all vehicles in J.D. Power Initial Quality Survey
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U.S. production and sales of the subcompact Chevrolet Sonic are being discontinued this year due to declining sales of the subcompact model.
(Chevrolet)
Chevy will continue to build the hatchback and sedan at its Orion Assembly plant in Michigan alongside the Bolt EV until October, before it is retooled to add production of a new Bolt-based small electric utility vehicle.
The Sonic was introduced in 2011 as part of GM’s post-bailout commitment to build small, fuel-efficient models in the U.S., but sales peaked at just under 94,000 in 2014 and were less than 14,000 last year. It recently achieved the highest score of any vehicle on the J.D. Power Initial Quality Study.
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Chevrolet also ended production of the Ohio-built compact Cruze last year, as the market shifts toward utility vehicles, but it continues to sell the South Korea-made Spark, which is smaller than the Sonic and GM’s cheapest model at $14,395.