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sparkto

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Everything posted by sparkto

  1. I keep my tires at 250kpa or 36psi, roughly speaking. But I don't bother re-airing it if it drips a bit, only if it drops seriously low like below 200kpa. Speaking of air pressure, I've learned a lesson on simple safety. Everyone should always carry two things in their trunk: an air pump/instant compressor and also a tire patch kit with an extra knife (to cut/trim the plug after insertion) and grip/clamp to pull foreign objects from a tire. I had a flat tire in April of this year, the spare came in handy, but I could have spent a few extra minutes doing the fix myself and not even
  2. I've seen you try and control discussions several times in the past. My only polite response: there's no referee necessary. We can post to old topics or new topics as desired. Its slightly weird that you're even concerned about this. If you are unaware that you're being socially awkward/creepy, well there ya go. Now you know. Saying as a friend...
  3. As mentioned, dealers can order parts that aren't in stock. But if its something you can install, just head to an online shop and order it direct to your home. I've found it the easiest way to replace parts (I had the plastic piece fall out of my back liftgate/door, for example). If you get a dealer to do anything, they'll gladly charge you an $80 installation fee for 5 minutes of work on a part that might be $5-10.
  4. I have a '17 Spark, owned it for 2 and a half years now. I exhausted my freebie oil changes for the first 4 changes, but I finally bit the bullet and started changing my own oil. Since I'm an amateur, it takes me longer since I have to figure out how to properly jack the car up without the best tools to do it. As it stands, I think your best bet is just to regularly look at the oil and check the basics: is it low? Does the color look good? If it looks good and isn't low, there's no reason to change it before the indicator goes off. The Sparks' 5W-20 blend is super thin and lasts longer than ol
  5. Since winter is several weeks away, it is time to start this topic back up. If anyone is visiting this forum and looking for advice, last year I bought a set of Dunlop Winter Maxx tires and threw them on the rims. The Spark appears to have good handling in the snow with proper tires, since the stock Kumho all seasons were getting some wear on them they began sliding around crazy with no traction on any incline or small hill. While the Dunlops aren't top rated winter tires, I can report that any winter rated tire is far superior than all seasons. You don't have to buy the most expensive winter
  6. Many people have strong opinions on these matters, but here is my take. I've used traditional polish then wax, I have a Meguiar's wax that I have applied previously. The results were okay, but I felt like it was smudgy and didn't shine as well as I wanted. However, I have had better luck with cleaner-wax products, particularly the NuFinish polish. It isn't really a strong and abrasive polish, and it leaves a residue that protects like a wax. You don't have to apply two different coats, you do it once and you're done. I've found the finish it provides is clean, has a very good shine
  7. This is still a relevant topic, and there aren't any other topics in this section. Hopefully someone can come in and report their findings after a long period, such as battery performance after 5 years of ownership. It is my understanding most batteries are holding up very, very well if they aren't in super hot climates like Arizona.
  8. You say that with such a negative tone? In any event, my 2017 Spark I committed to be the last internal combustion engine vehicle I will ever own. Unless I wreck it in the immediate future, I intend on trading it in for a Bolt or other competitive electric vehicle in the coming years. While the Spark EV is dead, the Bolt was a very big upgrade and I was glad to see GM commit. The age of the electric car is finally here. So what kind of range figures did any of the Spark EV owners get? How big is the battery pack and how far do you get? The new Bo
  9. I know this is an old topic, but on my visits to the US I noticed the difference between the light in the Canadian model and the US model of the Spark. My comments apply exclusively to the 2016 and later Spark models. If you are tired of seeing the blaring lit "PASSENGER AIRBAG" light and the words "ON" and "OFF" in bold, full led lighting, you do have one option. Order a module from Canada. The Canadian models have symbols that are less distracting at night. There are three symbols: one showing airbag on, one showing airbag disabled, and an unrelated symbol indicating the seatbelt
  10. Dealer maintenance shops are no better or worse than other shops, you get good or bad service anywhere depending on who is doing the work. But, the main reason I don't depend on dealership maintenance after a warranty period is purely price and convenience. Dealership service for things like oil changes or tires tends to be slower and less convenient, and they tend to be on the pricier side. That's not to say you can't get good service, but the hour or two hour wait oil change at a dealer has happened more than once in my life, and I don't have the time to wait on something that takes all of 1
  11. I didn't bother getting a set of winter tires this past season, but my first winter with the Spark went well. I drove through a pretty tough winter storm from Sudbury all the way to Toronto and the hours of driving didn't feel particularly out of control, just had to watch my speed and stability was fine. But to be fair, the tread on the all seasons they installed was very good and it was only a few months of driving from when I bought it to the winter season. So, next year the tread may be worn to the point where it would be noticeably poor. Bottom line, as you may kno
  12. It could be that you had a set of defective tires put on during the manufacturing process, since the tires aren't made by GM, you could file a warranty claim with the tire manufacturer if they prematurely went bad. I find most stock tires tend to be cheap quality, tires have never been a top priority of most new vehicle sales in my car buying history. I had a new Honda years ago where the tires went bad at 20k. They were balding bad after only one season worth of use.
  13. Often people seem to rag on smaller vehicles and performance in winter conditions, but I experienced reasonable performance when we had a freak ice storm two weeks ago. The traction control seems to help tremendously in certain conditions, although if you're stuck its of course better to turn it off and rock the car back and forth until you get out. I got stuck, rocked it back and forth, and then had to put traction control back on to get into a parking lot. It worked well. If you put a quality set of winter tires on this car, especially if you can get studded ones in your location
  14. I've already taken several big trips with my Spark, its only 1 year old. Just a few months ago I did a 5,000km round trip (roughly 3000 miles) in winter and it performed remarkably well. If you don't push the speed, you can easily get around 5l/100km or roughly 45mpg. I kept my speed around 100 and it returned very good economy. Again, converting to the US that's around 60-65mph.
  15. Regarding the transmission... CVT takes getting used to, it sounds different, it performs different. But different does not equal bad. The only 'negative' to a CVT is if it needs servicing most all shops are setup to just replace it, there isn't really a repair option or rebuild option for the CVT. BUT, if you have severe transmission issues years after ownership when the warranty expires, its unlikely major repair would be cheaper anyway. You have to pick your poison in life, and a CVT actually runs smoother than traditional automatic transmissions and is far less shifty and jerky
  16. *facepalm* There won't be a trade war per se, the rest of the world will continue to trade. Whether the US wants to buy those goods without a tariff is its own choice. Edit: I wanted to mention you can drop corporate tax rates to 0% and you still can't bring certain jobs back that automation or foreign labour can produce cheaply. Tax rates are only a small factor in a large set of circumstances. Secondly, if you're so against foreign labour, why didn't you purchase a Chevy Sonic? The Spark is manufactured in South Korea. The Sonic is built with mostly US and
  17. Anyway, getting away from China, the fact is your President tried to dump a 300% tariff on Bombardier, which is the key Canadian aerospace brand based in Montreal. It seems to be a decision made without any facts, without any planning, and without any sense rooted in reality: https://globalnews.ca/news/3789724/bombardier-anti-dumping-duty-us/ Pray tell me exactly how Montreal-based Bombardier is a threat to US national interests and security? Please, make the case my friend. It can't be done. Here is what a trade war looks like: US stomps and snorts its nose, places a 3
  18. I provided the Quebec reference just to show that power generation can be done cheaply and in carbon neutral ways, I have no idea why hydro prices would be what they are in New York. I'm not going to sit here and pretend to be a grid specialist when I'm not, all I can say is that there are places where energy is cheap, abundant, and green already. Quebec is one of those places where rates are extremely low and where production is carbon neutral on a large scale. With regard to global warming, I happen to be someone who believes the data shows man has dumped astronomical amounts of
  19. Really this is a story of isolationism vs globalism. Mexico isn't draining the US economy, if the US has to fear Mexico then the US has serious problems. The biggest problem I have when talking with a yankee is that the average American thinks the world revolves around the US, that isn't the case. The world isn't necessarily out to get the US and the world isn't soaking the US. China is an emerging power, but they produce cheaply made manufacturing goods. They aren't doing so to soak the USA, they are doing so to bring the hundreds of millions of Chinese citizens out of poverty and
  20. I bought a more premium 1LT CVT with the heated rear view mirrors and other perks, they had another LS model on the lot for $13,300, but I ended up paying $16,000 I believe it was? I was going to buy the $13k model, but they offered no interest payments on the $16k model so I was sold. If I wouldn't have gotten the no interest promotion, I wouldn't have got the 'premium' Spark.
  21. 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
  22. I'm not an extreme environmentalist, far from it as I like a modern lifestyle and I'm not looking to reduce my usage back into the stone age... But honestly, batteries are recyclable. Every heavy earth metal in them can be reused. They aren't nasty, they are in need of improvement and development, which Tesla and others appear to be improving the price points on.
  23. Do I sense an anti-electric feeling in the room? LOL I consider Nuclear power to be clean, it has zero emissions and there's little to be afraid of. Its clean energy. Wind turbines are cool if you ask me, not sure where the problem is there. You still need a back-up supply that isn't susceptible to low wind periods, but its a great addition to the grid. Nuclear is the obvious choice for a zero emissions redundant backup energy source. There's a great film in regards to this, its called Pandora's Promise, I'd recommend you watch it if you have the time and desire for the
  24. Car sharing is probably going to become a bigger thing in major cities like Toronto. About the only thing leaders of this region talk about anymore is transit, but the reality is that the vast majority of people still prefer and strongly demand car ownership. For the urban kids who can't afford a nice car, this is a good option for driving to the store after work or for weekend trips where the bus won't take you. Its too bad they are letting congestion get worse and worse by ignoring street and highway improvements in this great city. All major city leaders ever talk about in the 2
  25. All I can say is that I'm not affiliated with any political movement what-so-ever (I'm interested in supporting the conservative leader for our next premier here, but I've supported liberals in the past, I vote for the individual - not the party, although I know those words mean something different to a Canadian than an American interpretation), but right now what is going on in the US is quite frankly disturbing. I'm not saying any alternative option in your last election was great or anything, but what is happening today is just insane. Your President isn't just attacking China, he's attacki
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