Looking at a spark but based on these forums I'm worried.

[Zer0n1nja64 0]

So I've wanted a spark since the first models came over seas. I'm in a position now to buy a new base model ls manual for $12000+1500 off in qualifying incentives which is a fantastic deal!

After reading these forums it seems like every single driver here has a problem with their spark, should I be worried? Ac issues, weird shifting problems, water leaking into the car, are just a few. Should I be worried? What should I look for when I test a few out tomorrow?

I'm back and fourth on a manual, auto and ls or 1lt. Since my iPhone will do everything the mylink does with iOS 8 launches I don't see that as big a value but 6 speakers and cruise control are a plus.

Just wondering what everyone's thoughts are?

[icepick 9]

I have had one issue with my spark (other than dealers installed option that were missing). It was my cruise control. Just needed a new switch. The 6 speakers are deceiving. The front 2 speakers are considered 4 cause they are two way speakers. So don't let that be a deciding factor.

[njresler 14]

I've been please with my 2013 2lt I got over a year ago now. Yes the a/c needed fixed but not till recently. So it did fine for awhile. But after the fix works better than ever. I did have my injectors replaced also. But I think it's been a great car. I love and tell ally friends about it.

[jibb3r 29]

I would do it again. I just cleared 11,111 miles on mine, with no real issues. I went to the dealer twice: My keyfob was coming apart, and my rear lift gate shocks needed replaced. Both replaced under warranty. I am holding off on the A/C recall, as mine works fine from the factory; even though I got the letter in the mail.

[Zer0n1nja64 0]

That's good to hear you guys have good experiences. 2 of my friends have sparks and love theirs. One had the ac issue but I'm glad to see that being fixed.

I'm going to look into that 2 in one speaker. I only listened to a ls 4 speaker and thought it sounds better then my suzuki so that was a huge plus. Since iOS 8 will do everything mylink does I'm not concerned about that either.

Now if I can get the 10500 for the vehicle were in business.

[WaltK 305]

I've got my 2LT automatic, for 18 months now, no regrets at all. The a/c was less than stellar, but the recall took care of that, outside of that, nothing to speak of. I don't know what's in the future, but that is with any car. The model you pick, is a matter of personal choice, and your budget, I always tend to go for the whole nine yards....

[Greg_E 211]

Not everyone is having problems, but enough are that if I had seen all this before I bought mine, I would have purchased something else.

[Angrybird12 61]

I got the 1LT with the CTV automatic. I love the Mylink and the Bluetooth connection to my IPhone plus the USB input, plus cruise control are definately worth it. I did replace all four (6) speakers with Kickers so I guess I now have 8 speakers according to GM.

I was dissipointed with it being sluggish sometimes from a start but since I did the resonator air box delete and added a K&N air filter that is seldom a problem now. I have put 4,500 miles on mine in a little over 2 months and it continues to impress me.

Edited August 3, 2014 by Angrybird12

[austex04 48]

Honestly I would suggest looking at something else, such as a base Fiesta (manuel trans only), Hyundai Accent, or a used car instead of the Spark. The Spark has some quaility control issues, many people have year old Sparks that consume oil between changes, leak oil, or have multiple other problems with a car thats under 2 years old. GM is telling people its normal for a new car to use a quart or more oil between changes, and a number of people have had their engines replaced already, and GM still has not figured out why the failures are happening. Mine had the a/c recall done, which works better now, and I now burn just over half a quart of oil every 4-5k miles when it didn't before. I have 30k mostly hwy miles. My clutch is also starting to feel different. Fyi GM is still making small cars that turn into clunkers quickly. Forget about resale value, too, I already tried to unload mine for a new Hyundai. I decided to keep mine til it starts costing me money, then I'll bite the bullet and trade in, even for a used car. On the plus side, the gas mileage is great, I average 36-38mpgs city, and get over 40mpgs hwy, which is far better than what GM states they get. If you decide to take the risk, the LS is the cheapest, and has most of the must have features. There are aftermarket cruise control kits if that part is a deal breaker.

Edited August 4, 2014 by austex04

[Retired old Gearhead 201]

Well, at $10,500, I don't think you could get a better 'bang for the buck' for a new car. If you are knowledgeable about cars/mechanics and were willing to spend some time you could probably find a 'higher end' used car in great condition with some warranty left. I'm fairly knowledgeable about cars & mechanics but chose to go with the Spark as we needed a small second car with some features, long powertrain warranty, easy to park and drive in crowded city setting. We have about 26K on the 2013 1LT/auto and have not had any of the reported issues and found the car easy to get around in city and cruising at 85+mph does not feel strained. Auto was chosen as the small engine required more shifting than we wanted. The 5 yr. powertrain warranty on a new car will give you more peace of mind than a used unit and, as I said, if you want a small car then the $10.5K new is a really good deal.

•When inspecting the unit you are actually planning to buy take the car on a test drive the way you plan to use it. When starting the car the turn of the key to start the engine should just need a quick flick...not even a half a second. Try it on the highway at various speeds to check for vibrations, rattles and tracking. Try it on city roads for acceleration and braking taking some turns a little higher speeds to be satisfied with the way it handles.

• After your test drive open the hood with the engine running and listen for loud or hard ticking (soft valvetrain noise is normal) and engine vibration (should be very slight). Look at the engine for brown oil spots on the head & valve cover seals area. Turn off the engine and check oil level and color should be amber or clear (Clean Synthetic oil appears clear and conventional oil amber when clean>blackish or dark oil indicates a problem). During your test drive try the AC to be sure it cools properly in motion as well as at a stop. Check inside and out for paint or finish damage. Check for inside and outside panel/parts fit...no unusual gaps or shape. Open and close all four power windows at the same time. All the above checks are pretty well standard for a new car. If you cannot decide on manual or auto before hand, take both for a drive doing the above checks and buy the one you like. Never buy any car unless you have test driven and checked the actual unit you plan to buy.

Hope this helps in deciding your purchase.

[psquare75 35]

For every member here with issues there's probably 10 on the road happily driving their cars, blissfully unaware of any issues or the few jaded owners huddled together in this blighted place.

[Angrybird12 61]

For every member here with issues there's probably 10 on the road happily driving their cars, blissfully unaware of any issues or the few jaded owners huddled together in this blighted place.

That's true on any forum or Internet search, people with problems tend to post more often about issues than people with no issues at all.

Just search other forums and you will see all cars have issues, even those so called trouble free Toyotas and Hondas...

[leighmaxwell 6]

Since mine got fixed, I love it. I was upset that it had problems in the beginning, but all semes to be fine now. The car is fun to drive and so cute to look at. I hope it lasts for years to come.

[Greg_E 211]

If 1 in 10 has a problem, that's a huge number, even 1 in 1000 is a huge number. I think most people are just being told it's normal and the are just driving them, the dealers for the most part don't seem to want to work on these cars. And if you think this place is blighted, you are of course welcome to not return.

On the Fiesta forums there are certainly more people modding their cars than there are complaining about problems. Only exception seems to be the 6 speed power shift transmission and Ford just issued a recall on those for various issues revolving around the clutches and seals. And this is mostly 2011 models. The manual transmission seems to be a really solid car with few people complaining, and lots of hop up parts available.

Edited August 4, 2014 by Greg_E

[parakalien 0]

I've had mine for 2 weeks and since day 1 both left tires are leaking about 10psi per day (no punctures). Took it to the dealer and they said they can't find it leaking and told me to check it over the next few days (I've been checking it for the last 2 weeks???).

My AC blows cold, trans shifts great, haven't lost a drop of oil.

But I do think it's odd that a 0 mile car is having issues holding air in it's tires.

Also I noticed the wheels have like 10 wheel weights on each one. I've never seen a wheel so out of balance that it needed that many weights....

That being said, I'm sure they will fix my tire issue (fix it, or give me new tires and rims, I'm not settling for anything less) and I'm sure I'll enjoy the car for years.

As others have said, your paying less for this than you would a used car from the likes of Honda or other "higher end" budget car. So I'm happy with a few hiccups.

[Angrybird12 61]

I've had mine for 2 weeks and since day 1 both left tires are leaking about 10psi per day (no punctures). Took it to the dealer and they said they can't find it leaking and told me to check it over the next few days (I've been checking it for the last 2 weeks???).

My AC blows cold, trans shifts great, haven't lost a drop of oil.

But I do think it's odd that a 0 mile car is having issues holding air in it's tires.

Also I noticed the wheels have like 10 wheel weights on each one. I've never seen a wheel so out of balance that it needed that many weights....

That being said, I'm sure they will fix my tire issue (fix it, or give me new tires and rims, I'm not settling for anything less) and I'm sure I'll enjoy the car for years.

As others have said, your paying less for this than you would a used car from the likes of Honda or other "higher end" budget car. So I'm happy with a few hiccups.

I bet those left side wheels and or tires are damaged. Seems funny they both go down and have excessive wheel weights on them.

[parakalien 0]

Agreed. I'm a nice guy, so I'm letting the service manager do his rounds, and the dealer is 2 miles from my house so it's not an inconvenience. But I'm pretty set on new wheels and tires and I'm not settling for less.

The good news is he admitted there was a problem, just didn't know how to fix it at the moment (valve stem vs tires or wheels).

[stevesparky 20]

Had good luck with mine.

Have 18000 miles.

Only been to dealer for AC.

They put on a new compressor. AC works fine now.

[Zer0n1nja64 0]

Ended up getting a red 2013 automatic LS! Didn't reAlly want a automatic but the dealership sold it to me for $9500 +299 in fees which was a awesome deal for 10,000 miles on it. Closest I had gotten was 11,000 for something Similar. Can't wait to pick it up Friday.

Thanks for the advice guys, I'm planning on doing the air box delete and might do the ram air effect mod someone else was talking about in another post.

Edited August 5, 2014 by Zer0n1nja64

[Angrybird12 61]

Congratulations, be sure to get your windows tinted, it really helps with the AC on these cars.

[austex04 48]

Ended up getting a red 2013 automatic LS! Didn't reAlly want a automatic but the dealership sold it to me for $9500 +299 in fees which was a awesome deal for 10,000 miles on it. Closest I had gotten was 11,000 for something Similar. Can't wait to pick it up Friday.

Thanks for the advice guys, I'm planning on doing the air box delete and might do the ram air effect mod someone else was talking about in another post.

Before you sign the papers and drive it home, check if the a/c recall #13434 was done to it. If it was done, you should see a blue connector attached to the high side line next to the compressor, and a wire loom running from that switch up along a larger wire loom into the pass side firewall. This fixes the cold/warm air cycle issue on the '13 model spark. Look at the thread about the a/c recall, theres pics of the revised parts.

[austex04 48]

Agreed. I'm a nice guy, so I'm letting the service manager do his rounds, and the dealer is 2 miles from my house so it's not an inconvenience. But I'm pretty set on new wheels and tires and I'm not settling for less.

The good news is he admitted there was a problem, just didn't know how to fix it at the moment (valve stem vs tires or wheels).

It's the Goodyear tires. Most likely the dealer won't be able to balance them becouse the cords have movement or they're out of place. Have the dealer put them on the road force balancer and that will tell them right there if they need to order new tires. GM covers tires for 12 months or the first 1/32 of treadwear. I had 2 sets replaced under warranty before the vibration stopped.

[Zer0n1nja64 0]

We did a rather long test drive of 10 miles just because I wanted to see what I was getting for a mpg average. Everything looked great, they don't have any of my money yet but everything checks out and I'm doing the paperwork tomorrow. I drove it while it was 90 degrees out so the ac was working hard, no different then my current car so I didn't mind.

I forgot to open up the good so I plan to before I sign everything. I checked out everything else and it looks one overall.

[Greg_E 211]

I should offer to sell you mine for less, but I'd feel guilty!

[Skids 108]

I've had mine for about a month. about 600 mile on it. 2LT with a cvt. havent had any problems, the cvt does take some getting used to versus regular automatic or manual, but once you do it's pretty cool, according to car and driver the cvt is faster than the manual. the stereo system(speakers not mylink) in all are junk though first thing i did was replace the speakers(by gm standards i now have 10 speakers) and add a small powered sub. for about $300 and an afternoon it sounds great. yes your phone does navigation and all but depending on most state laws you cant touch the phone while youre driving the my link makes it so you can do everything on the headunit (control pandora, navigation etc) plus it looks nicer too.

when you test drive it, check everything out. if youre buying new if comes with a warranty, i've only owned GM and they always back up their products. you can always purchase an extended warranty(recommended) if you're worried. make sure you buy the gmpp warranty don't let them sell you some after market third party crap.