IAB reader Ashok Kumar from Chennai, who is a regular reader of our blog, mailed us pictures of the Chevrolet Sail hatchback (that will be marketed as the Chevrolet Sail U-VA) near the Chennai airport.
The Sail twins will be launched in the coming months but continue to be tested all over India.
We recently caught a Sail sedan wearing camouflage that replaces the Aveo sedan. Likewise the Aveo U-VA will be replaced by the Sail hatch. The Sail twins will roll out from GM's Talegaon facility with Fiat Multijet engines.
We wrote to Mr P. Balendran, GM India's Vice President asking if both diesel and petrol will be available at the time of launch. Most car companies choose to introduce petrol before moving on to diesel. "It will be available both in diesel and petrol options. We plan to launch car sometime end of October," he said in his reply.
GM has pinned its hope on the Sail twins, to expand its presence in India, terming the Sail as their game changer. The diesel-powered B+ segment is a high volume segment which has attracted every player in India. This is an important segment for GM because Aveo & U-VA could not do a Swift or an Etios for the company.
You can take a look at the Sail hatch's interiors here
The Sail hatch is powered by the 1.2L petrol engine and 1.3L Smartech diesel engine. Both being refined & economical engines, we also expect the Sail to benefit from the zero maintenance and service costs GM offers in its mini car range for the first three years of ownership.
