GM Daewoo's Kalos leads U.S. compact car market

GM Daewoo Automotive & Technology's Kalos, sold as the Chevrolet Aveo in North America, was the best-selling entry compact car in the United States last year. 56,642 Kalos cars were sold for a market share of 34 percent.
Next on the list came Hyundai's Accent, followed by Kia's Rio, Scion's xA and Toyota's Echo.

The Kalos was released in the United States in November 2003, five months later than the Scion xA, Toyota's compact car marque.

In 2003, Kalos ranked fourth after the Accent, Rio and Echo. The price of a Kalos ranges between $10,000-15,000, making it competitive in terms of both cost and performance.

The model received five stars, a top grade for measuring safety, in the frontal crash test by U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration last year.

A total of 207,851 Kalos cars, including 241,437 locally assembled, were exported in 2004, marking the highest number for a single model.

The number of entry compact cars sold in the U.S. rose from 133,676 in 2003 to 166,501 last year.

The demand for compact models with engine displacements of between 1,500cc and 2,000cc, are gaining popularity due to high fuel costs and heavy traffic, according to GM Daewoo.

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