Aveo vs. Rio: No One Wins

Ok, obviously I pushed you people too far. But I have to say, this was one of the more interesting and amusing Showroom Showdowns from the perspective of the guy who has to go through and read/count all the comments (me). Over half of you voted neither, and many of you were quite passionate about it. To quote maffew, "NONE OF TEH ABOVE…. would rather rock a moped with a milk crate bungee corded to the front, pulling a bicycle trailor full of the kids I dont have…."

Chevy barely edged out the Kia in the vote, but I can’t declare it a winner. Some people scolded me for not selecting the Aveo sedan, but the sedan is priced over $12k. And some of you wished I’d picked different econoboxs all together, like the Yaris, but that wasn’t the point–I wanted the cheapest, crapiest cars I could find. And a few brave Aveo and Rio owners wandered into the fray to try to defend their modest vehicles—kudos to you guys. There also seemed to be a strong sentiment that econoboxs have gotten worse over the last 10 – 20 years. Several people mentioned how their old Festivas, CRXs and Geos get significantly better mileage, while also being a lot more interesting to the average enthusiast. Heads up auto manufacturers, there is definitely an opportunity here.