Chevrolet Sonic turbo gets six-speed automatic

Chevrolet Sonic fans who want the turbocharged 1.4-liter engine but don't want a manual transmission are in luck. Chevrolet is now shipping the Sonic with a six-speed automatic mated to the turbo engine.

Fuel economy for the turbo Sonic, despite the automatic, is 27 mpg in the city and 37 mpg on the highway, with a 0-to-60-mph time of about eight seconds, Chevy says.

Sonic turbos with the stick return 29 mpg in the city and 40 mpg on the highway, with a time of 7.8 seconds in the 0-to-60-mph run.

The Chevy Sonic is also offered with a normally aspirated 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine, with either a manual or an automatic transmission. Both the turbo and the naturally aspirated four-bangers are rated at 138 hp.

By David Arnouts