Chevrolet Onix

Chevrolet Onix at a glance

First generation (2012–2019): Brazil's number one

The first Onix was built at Gravataí in Rio Grande do Sul and at São Caetano do Sul near São Paulo. It came with flex-fuel engines that give more power on ethanol than on petrol. The 1.0 delivered 57 kW (78 PS) on petrol and 59 kW (80 PS) on ethanol, while the 1.4 managed 72 kW (98 PS) on petrol and reached 78 kW (106 PS) with ethanol. Trims were LS, LT and LTZ, with 14-inch wheels on the 1.0 and 15-inch on the 1.4, and buyers could choose a five-speed manual or an automatic.

In February 2013 the Prisma sedan joined the hatchback, offering a 500-litre boot. The 2016 facelift brought smartphone mirroring (Android Auto, Apple CarPlay) on a touchscreen and an Onix Activ with crossover styling and a width of 1,737 mm. The base LS kept the original front and became the Joy. The Joy and Joy Plus, renamed in late 2019, stayed in production until 2024, latterly in Colombia.

Sales grew almost every year, and the Onix led the Brazilian market from 2015 to 2020, when the Fiat Strada took over first place.

Safety: from zero to five stars

The first Onix had a poor Latin NCAP record. In December 2014 the 1.0 with two airbags received three stars for adults and two for children. Under the 2017 protocol and without stability control it scored zero stars for adults and three for children (0 of 34 adult points). An updated version tested in January 2018 improved to three stars for both.

The second generation changed the picture. Tested with six airbags, the Onix Plus sedan scored 28.34 of 34 adult points and 42.33 of 49 child points in 2019, and the hatchback 28.90 and 42.33. Both received five stars for adult and child occupants and Latin NCAP's Advanced Award.

Second generation (since 2019): GEM platform and turbo

The new Onix was launched first in China in April 2019, as a sedan built by SAIC-GM in Yantai, where it replaced the Sonic and the Cavalier. Brazil followed with the Onix Plus sedan in September 2019 and the hatchback in November, adding a Premier trim above LT and LTZ. Mexico received the sedan in spring 2020 from the San Luis Potosí plant, which stopped building it in May 2022. Colombia got the Onix Turbo in March 2020, and UzAuto Motors began production in Uzbekistan in 2022.

In July 2025 the Brazilian Onix received a facelift for the 2026 model year with a new front, optional LED headlights, an 8-inch digital cluster and an 11-inch touchscreen. GM claimed fuel economy of up to 17.7 km/l (5.6 l/100 km) for the revised engine.

Onix engines: flex-fuel, three-cylinder and turbo

In markets that do not tax engines up to one litre at a lower rate, a naturally aspirated 1.2 replaces the small 1.0, and those versions have no flex-fuel capability. The 1.0 turbo built in China is rated at 4.9 l/100 km. In Brazil the turbo gives 87 kW against 61 kW for the naturally aspirated 1.0, about 43 percent more from the same displacement. Our power converter translates between kW, PS and hp.

Photo gallery