Kevin-Gara Brown 0 Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 My wife and I are headed to Houston in November for the Jags-Texans game. We want to drive and had thought about renting a car; however, I am thinking about driving my Spark. Anyone spent 2,000 miles in the Spark over a long weekend? What can I expect at 75 on rough interstate highways in Louisiana? Link to post Share on other sites
Lovgun7 75 Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 75 is a breeze.... thats what i drive to work ... no issues rough highways ??? your really only expecting the same if you drove a rental. just incase you dont have triple A i would try to aquire a donut Link to post Share on other sites
WaltK 305 Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 just incase you dont have triple A i would try to aquire a donut Good advice, but if you can't score a donut, you still have Onstar, and roadside assistance, so no matter what, you're good to go. Enjoy the trip, the great mileage, and the instant engine break in. Link to post Share on other sites
Lovgun7 75 Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 Good advice, but if you can't score a donut, you still have Onstar, and roadside assistance, so no matter what, you're good to go. Enjoy the trip, the great mileage, and the instant engine break in. @waltk holy crap thats right haha... @Kevin your actually good to go... i forgot about onstar. Link to post Share on other sites
malibuguy 14 Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 Keep the speeds 55-60 with a light foot and expect 50+ mpg We took a trip down to virginia beach and in some pretty bad traffic at times I was averaging 56mpg...but the traffic jipped it down to indicated 51 and change...real world fill up math was 52 and change Top off your tires at 45cold to help. mrtwiggy 1 Link to post Share on other sites
austex04 48 Posted September 12, 2013 Share Posted September 12, 2013 When you drive faster than 70mph, your mpgs will start to drop like a rock, but it'll still be decent. I don't recall the interstates in LA being that bad, many of the two lane hwys are, but the 55mph limit on them will yeld some impressive mpgs. I suggest running 42psi cold on the tires if your going to drive at higher speeds, below 40psi the hwy ride gets crappy. If you like Creole food, LA and east TX is where you'll find the best places for it. Link to post Share on other sites
Kevin-Gara Brown 0 Posted September 12, 2013 Author Share Posted September 12, 2013 This is encouraging. @lovegun7 I have Onstar and AAA. My corporate car is a new Camry. Nice car but I am actually more comfortable in the Spark. I also had a Crüze last weekend while GM changed out my AC compressor. Again, the larger car seems more cramped inside. I really like the engineering if the Spark's interior. Link to post Share on other sites
austex04 48 Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 This is encouraging. @lovegun7 I have Onstar and AAA. My corporate car is a new Camry. Nice car but I am actually more comfortable in the Spark. I also had a Crüze last weekend while GM changed out my AC compressor. Again, the larger car seems more cramped inside. I really like the engineering if the Spark's interior.I also had a Cruze loaner while mine was in the shop for a week, I didn't like it at all. Cramped compared to the Spark, and getting 7mpgs less than my car, even with the 1.4 turbo. Hyundai and Toyota know how to make a better compact car, I hope on my next long repair I get a Elantra. Link to post Share on other sites
Ataristic 5 Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 Being a Houston native, I can advice you to expect lots of tractor trailer traffic as soon as you enter Texas. The semis dont always stick to the right lane so keep both hands on the wheel and stay sharp, our cars are not the most visible to the weary trucker. Right after Beaumont you will hit an area of bays and lakes, so expect crosswind on the freeway. Link to post Share on other sites
Lovgun7 75 Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 BTW i had a chevy Tahoe as a rental... VERY NICE... mpg garabge lol. 2nd time around i had a Challenger ... if you guys think the spark speakers suck... hop in a 2013 base challenger ... you'd think the sound would be better for the price tag... nope. AAA and Onstar you should be signed sealed and delivered. if its too much of a stretch id even opt to go AAA plus ... i did it last year for the towing miles. Link to post Share on other sites
whoknew1985 5 Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 I have taken two long trips in my Spark and have not regretted it at all. I did find a donut spare to place in my car as a precaution and use the road side assistance as a plan B. It is a comfortable car to drive on trips with a acceptable ride quality. I believe you will enjoy the experience. Link to post Share on other sites
NoSprak 17 Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 I second throwing in a real spare. I believe it was cleanMPG.org, but someone there took a Spark from Chicago to NYC and averaged 50MPG for the entire trip - even with NYC traffic. The review didn't say the the car was uncomfortable. Link to post Share on other sites
tommyspark 24 Posted September 13, 2013 Share Posted September 13, 2013 (edited) About the interior comments..... Whenever someone sees the Spark for the first time, they always want to sit in it. EVERY person so far has either said man I really like that cabin/interior, or commented on the actual room in it. My tallest buddy is 6'2, and the first thing he said was man I didn't expect all this room looking at it from the outside I'm a very tall 5'6, so I have PLENTY of room in the Spark! Edited September 13, 2013 by tommyspark Link to post Share on other sites
malibuguy 14 Posted September 14, 2013 Share Posted September 14, 2013 I make it a point to find a way to get my friends in my wifes spark...my best friend who is 385lbs and about 510...had room in the back...not as much as he would like but he was surprised and said he could manage if he had to ride in the back...his daily driver is a p71 crown vic Link to post Share on other sites
dbnspark 7 Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 (edited) I really like the engineering if the Spark's interior. I don't, when I'm by myself sure it's fine. Two adult males in the front, very tight squeeze. Tough shifting. I'm 6'6" 225 and a friend I was driving around was 6'3". I know someone else here on the forum is 6'5" and his buddy is 6'8" or something and they go to the gym in the Spark. I don't know how they do it. I know they can do it, but I want to be comfortable. Shoulder to shoulder is not comfortable. Edited September 18, 2013 by dbnspark Link to post Share on other sites
WaltK 305 Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 I live in Northern NJ, and this morning while I was out on a brief ride, I seen a Salsa red Spark, with Arizona plates, coming down the opposite lane. Now that's quite a trip! Link to post Share on other sites
Lovgun7 75 Posted September 18, 2013 Share Posted September 18, 2013 very possible that i will be driving from L.A to Vegas. Should be fun Red Rocket 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Red Rocket 0 Posted September 25, 2013 Share Posted September 25, 2013 We will be driving our Spark from L.A. to Sedona next month; part of the trip on Rte 66... I'm looking forward to getting her out of the city. Link to post Share on other sites
Michael DiRisio 0 Posted September 29, 2013 Share Posted September 29, 2013 I drove My spark 2100 miles from Buffalo NY to Va Beach, then Cincinnati Ohio and Back to Buffalo. (a week between each stretch) Having never driven that distance before it was quite a trip.Not sure if any of you have experienced it but I started to get motion sickness from the bumpy roads that the Spark doesn't handle well. After I arrived in VA Beach it took me a few days to start feeling normal again.I really wish I went with the Model that has cruise control as my knee started to really bug me 3/4 of the way through a stretch. (advil helped) You do get great gas mileage above 70 and the car feels like it will just glide and never stop when you take your foot off the pedal. (unlike in low speed) Gas savings was awesome We usually got 300 miles before having to fuel up, only costing us like $20-$30 depending on the state/price. Traveling through the Mountains of West VA, You really have to put your foot to the floor to get any response from the spark while hill climbing. The engine revs and sounds super loud but it still handles the mountains nicely. Our AC actually died on us half way through the trip. A common problem in sparks i guess. All in All the trip was fun and our little Spark had more than enough room for all our things, Bring an imput jack so you can play music off of an ipod or phone with pandora. Link to post Share on other sites
malibuguy 14 Posted October 1, 2013 Share Posted October 1, 2013 If you were doing 55-60 youd be getting much more then 300miles per tank! Link to post Share on other sites
Michael DiRisio 0 Posted October 10, 2013 Share Posted October 10, 2013 Yeah that was stupid to say, What i meant was that every time i filled up the car tell us it can run for 300 miles before needing to be filled again. Link to post Share on other sites
Ataristic 5 Posted October 19, 2013 Share Posted October 19, 2013 I just drove 200 miles to Dallas, excellent fuel economy and no problems running at constant higway speeds. The only thing I didnt like is when I hit segments of road that where being repaved, the kind that have been scraped prior to repaving, the tiny tires on the Spark did not like that at all, vibration, lucky for me, they where working on one lane at a time, so I was able to switch to even tarmac. Link to post Share on other sites
tommyspark 24 Posted October 21, 2013 Share Posted October 21, 2013 Ill be doing a 862 mile trip in a few weeks..... Link to post Share on other sites
greggb 7 Posted April 18, 2014 Share Posted April 18, 2014 Drove my Spark LS from Tucson Arizona to Appleton Wisconsin 3 weeks ago. 1850 miles each way. Trip avg mpg was 41.2 and a lot of the driving was 70 -75 mph. And when I got to Wisconsin it was COLD, and I mean cold. The heater worked awesome though. I drove alone and it took me 2 days each way. For a small car, it was a fairly comfortable drive. My Spark ran just fine, even on the 85 octane gas that they sell in New Mexico. I did drive in some snow in Wisconsin and the car seemed to handle just fine but I did drive slower than I normally do in Tucson. Link to post Share on other sites
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