Jump to content

Recommended Posts

I bought mine based on its LOA. I needed a car that could fit in one bay of my garage behind my golf cart. At 145" the Spark fits just fine! And if I'm traveling to something other than my home course, with the rear seat down I can (just) fit my clubs in the back. I do find fault with the car, but when your primary buying criteria is LOA the choices are very limited. It does what I bought it for . . . it fits!

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...

I have owned many subcompact and always had good reliability and mileage with the chevy. Whenever I saw a Spark on the street I said what a cute little car. I researched the competition but when I actually drove the Spark I made my decision. Yes the safety rating and the dealer offering a lifetime powertrain warranty entered in to my decision. The EPA was impressive but I'M actually exceeding the estimate.

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 2 weeks later...
  • 9 months later...
  • 1 month later...

I always liked driving small cars. Ive been stuck in a 2013 malibu since 2013 and wanted something small again. The wifes car took a crap, so it was my chance to get me another go cart. She was happy to have the malibu and i was very happy to get the spark. The fuel economy and roomyness of this car is what sold it for me. I was looking for a fiat 500. And the spark even being much slower brings way more value. Ive been with it for almost two months.

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 4 weeks later...
Seeking a modest extra car for my household, I shopped the usual $17k-and-under subcompacts, bought a 2016 Spark LS CVT. I had originally rejected the Spark due to its tiny size, but gave it a try while looking at a Sonic. Turned out the Spark felt much bigger inside than outside, and I liked the 2016's understated exterior. I wanted the manual, but nobody else was willing to learn to drive a stick. We've had the car for about a month now, and the more time I spend in it, the better I like it. Considering its price and size, I'm pleasantly surprised by the Spark's airy interior, handling, infotainment system, quiet, airbags, rear camera, and the peppy CVT-Ecotec 1.4 powertrain, which is pretty relaxed even at 70mph. I'd prefer more roadfeel through the steering wheel, but I imagine few Spark owners will chafe over that detail. Also this base LS comes with manual windows, locks, and mirrors; all of which is ok with me, and seems to suit its unpretentious character.


The Spark gives me The Little Engine That Could vibe; or as Annette once said: "Frankie's small, but he's wiry!"

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 1 year later...
  • 10 months later...

I like the spark....I just bought a New 2017 LT...love all the features and the extra's you get with the spark....I really enjoy the 4G feature on it for hot spots....when on the road the Wife can take her I pad and stay busy while I am driving....I drive 50 miles one way to work...and have gotten 40.6 miles per gallon...they is a huge help and savings than driving my F150 truck...I traded in a 2010 Nissan Cube...but just have not been happy with the Brand...have had several issues with Nissan over the past years....so their version was out,,,Honda is too much money...and I really don't like the looks of the fit ...so I started seeing the Sparks everywhere around town....and figured they were worth the look....something had to be going on with Chevy...so here I am....2017 Spark

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

I bought ours mostly for my wife...also retired, who wanted small and easy to park. I thought the spark was a good fit for her and picked up a 2013 auto tranny with 2kmi on it for $10.5K...cash to reduce the interest. I thought I could get about 100K mi out of it without issues. Now well over 160Kmi, no real issues, runs like new and although I also have a big Range Rover V8..I drive the Spark whenever available because it handles so well and parks anywhere. I drive it hard and change the synthetic oil only once every year or so and I am somewhat surprised that it has come this far without major issues. I have had a few bumps and potholes and the wheels never needed alignment and the rear bumper has not shifted as it handle a few back-ins to cement walls..same with front. Brakes seem to last forever since the pads are thick and the car is light. If it wasn't for the fact that the new models all come with a CVT auto tranny, I would easily buy another...since I usually drive it flat out, the CVT is not an option for me. Because of the low initial cost and low trade in value, it's the kind of car you keep until it fails. My next car will also be a small unit and hopefully by then Chevy will have a similar non CVT unit on the market...If not I may get a new Spark manual shift....haha..I can just hear my wife!

Link to post
Share on other sites
  • 1 month later...

I bought a Spark for several reasons:

 

1) I wanted a brand new vehicle, I had grown tired of the last several used vehicles I had and ended up spending more in maintenance for a short life span than it was worth.

2) I wanted value, I just don't see the point of spending a fortune for transportation.

3) I am single and don't have a need for tons and tons of space.

4) Despite not needing seating room for tons of people all the time, I admire the hatchback design where you can fold the seats and still fit a lot in this vehicle.

5) Last, but not least, I was looking for fuel efficiency. I just don't feel like paying more for gas than for the payment on my car, I drive a lot and this was important to me. I drive between 40-50k a year (Canada is a big place, and things are often spaced a long way away, its just the reality)

 

There are several competitors I looked at: Nissan Micra, Mitsubishi Mirage, even larger vehicles like a VW Jetta, the Cruze, so on and so forth. I found a used VW Jetta for a similar price that I found my brand new Spark for, but I looked at VW reliability figure and realized I'd probably get back into the past mistake of maintenance and repair cycles that defeated the purpose of a used car, so I settled on the Spark.

 

Nissan's Micra and the Versa Note both drive like crap: they accelerate poorly. The Mirage had impressive fuel economy, but it had horrific drive quality. That thing bounced and rolled around like crazy, and its build quality was noticeably poor. I wanted cheap, but not *that* cheap.

 

Doesn't hurt that the Spark looked like it did incredibly well in off-set crash tests you find online. The Spark appears to be the safest small vehicle out there, from what I've seen.

 

The Spark seemed to be the best mixture of all the above: fuel economy, good acceleration quality, build quality is slightly higher for an economy car. Quite frankly, the build quality and materials feel like luxury compared to Nissan or Mitsubishi's offerings.

 

The only other car I considered near the end of shopping was the Honda Fit, but I couldn't justify its price tag for thousands more. Honda has over-priced its small vehicles, they are selling for thousands more and they rarely include incentives. The sales guy wouldn't budge from the sticker price and I don't feel like paying for a name, so they lost me as a customer. The Spark sold me on the price point of offering a higher quality product for less than the Fit. So I went for it.

 

For better or worse, I presently live in one of the largest cities in North America. I also needed a smaller type car just to get around town easier. Parking in Toronto is a pain, well just being in a major city is a pain half the time, but the footprint of this car makes my life easier. The Spark has a magical formula: its city/congestion friendly, but it has performance so you can drive comfortably on the highway. Some of the other sub-compacts quite honestly aren't designed for a highway. The Spark can pass fine, it drives well at 120 (km/h, not mph), which is my average highway cruising speed. But if I need to speed up to 140 to pass a slow group of trucks or cars, the Spark can perform well. Some other sub-compacts really aren't highway friendly. The Spark seems to have good wind resistance and isn't blowing around all over the place at high speeds.

Edited by sparkto
Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...