Chevrolet Lacetti Road Test

Chevrolet Lacetti

The Lacetti is very driveable, with positive power steering and a very nice 5-speed manual gearbox (automatic is an option). The gear ratios are well set up for both town and country driving. Despite being an estate car, the Lacetti Station Wagon is very easy to manoeuvre and with the help of power door mirrors, which are also heated for frosty mornings, parking is a doddle.

In terms of performance the 1.6-litre, petrol engine gives the impression of being a larger unit. It feels quite lively and ready to perform. Well, in all but fifth gear, so safe overtaking on motorways is best achieved by dropping to fourth.

This particular power unit produces 109 PS or just over 107 bhp at 5,800rpm and 150Nm of pulling power at 4,000rpm. The top speed is 116mph after a 0-62mph time of 11.4 seconds. The Lacetti isn’t about high performance, more value for money and that is helped by reasonable fuel consumption figures of 27.4mpg for the urban cycle, 44.8mpg for the extra-urban resulting in a combined of 36.2mpg. The CO2 output is also reasonable for a petrol engine at 181g/km, which puts the 1.6 in VED band E and the insurance is group 7.

Out and about, the Station Wagon’s suspension is just right - the system soaks up minor bumps with ease but is not soft enough to allow the car to wallow. In fact, it is surprisingly agile and flat on fast bends. However, as far as safety features are concerned, the Station Wagon has only side and dual front airbags. ABS is standard but Traction control is only available on the 1.8 Sport and CDX (saloon) models.

During the test week, I found myself saying on more than one occasion that the Lacetti Station Wagon was not the car I remembered from years ago. It feels much more substantial and solid and I’m sure the build quality has improved. All Lacettis are well appointed with alloy wheels, full electric windows, air conditioning and air filter, as standard.

I liked it and I think that it is still well worth a look for families on a budget.

Chevrolet Lacetti