The 2013 Chevrolet Spin, a new, small multipurpose vehicle (MPV) designed for families and their gear – according to General Motors (GM) – will join Chevrolet’s global portfolio when it launches in Brazil later this month.

GM says the Spin will go on sale in Indonesia in 2013, with additional markets to be announced at a later date. General Motors South Africa (GMSA) product communica-tions manager Caroline Thomas says GMSA is considering “many new models for introduction in South Africa”, including the Spin, but cannot confirm its arrival in South Africa.

The announcement of the new model was made by GM CEO Dan Akerson at the company’s annual meeting in Detroit, in the US.

“The Spin is a great-looking, efficient and functional small MPV, and the only vehicle in its class to offer a six-speed automatic transmission,” said Akerson. “The Spin will be affordable to purchase and – just as important – affordable to own.”

The Chevrolet Spin will offer seating for five or seven passengers.

GM claims that the vehicle “delivers flexibility, carlike handling, cargo-carry-ing capability and great fuel economy, with the look of a sports utility vehicle (SUV), thanks to its muscular exterior and wide stance”.

The Chevrolet Spin will follow the launches of other Chevrolet vehicles around the world, such as the Malibu midsize sedan, the Colorado, the Trail-Blazer midsize SUV, the Cobalt sedan and the Cruze wagon.

The TrailBlazer is scheduled to arrive in South Africa in the fourth quarter of this year.

The first production units of the new Chevrolet Trailblazer are currently rolling off GM Thailand’s production line, in Rayong.

The Rayong plant is the first in the world to build the new TrailBlazer, which will be sold in Thailand and exported to more than 50 markets.

In 2011, when Chevrolet sold a record 4.76-million vehicles around the world, the top ten markets were the US, Brazil, China, Russia, Mexico, Canada, Argentina, Uzbekistan, India and Colombia.

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