Do you worry about your spark being door dinged

[Jeffrey Makela 6]

I worry about it every time I park my spark. I try to park my spark so other car doors cant hit it.

and avoid parking next to 2 door cars. And park far a way form the other cars when shopping.

The sparks thinness seem to protect to spark from door dings.

[WaltK 305]

I hear you, but it seems no matter where you park, someone will be right on your ass when you come out of the store. I picked up a miniscule ding,right at the very edge of the passengers door, when parking in my own driveway, my passenger opened the door, right into the neighbors central a/c unit, right next to my property. He offered to pay for any damages, after I threatened his life. But there is no way I am going to have a door resprayed for such a minor mishap. It really is hardly noticeable. But I understand your concerns, I've had new cars over the years, and even the first dropping of bird doo, pisses you off.

[Sparktacus 10]

How to ding (and idiot) proof your Spark:

1.) locate your nearest mobile Paintless Dent Removal guy, get his business card.

2.) "designate" that one spot in the WalMart parking lot. You know, the end spot with the curb surrounding front and side.

3.) Parking spots with curbs in front and on the right (pass) side are preferable.

4.) Park the Spark as close to the curb side as possible. This will give enough room for the door-flinging passengers of other cars next to you in case one of those "People of WalMart" parks next to you.

5.) Be conscientious about who you park next to. Not snooty, just aware about the tell-tale warning signs on their car: doors dinged up, parts falling off, paint missing and dings on door edges. bumpers smashed, duct-tape and NASCAR bumper stickers (ok, I made that last one up for fun).

6. Lastly, avoid parking next to "entitlement" vehicles: Hummers, Escalades, Old rickety SUVs with chromed 20's, Dually Diesel pickups, etc...they will park on the half a spot that your Spark has left open, on purpose- because they can.

7.) Usually these spots are best found in the far back regions of your WalMart parking lot. Avoid parking as close to the front of the store if possible. The walk will be good for you, you get the opportunity to observe more "People of Walmart" on your walk and at Holiday times you can use your MyChevrolet app to locate your car.

8.) If in case, any "People of Walmart" types or a flock of crows are on your car, take liberties with you OnStar Horn and Lights activation feature. With caution however, the results could be messy.

9.) as a side-note: parking as mentioned above gives you a solid advantage in case of a zombie invasion, where as zombies would most likely be attracted to the slower moving average WalMart shoppers, you can slip by nonchalantly through the mele and drive right off unnoticed, unscathed...and un-dinged.

Reference: http://www.peopleofwalmart.com

Edited September 19, 2013 by Sparktacus

[Lovgun7 75]

ive been dinged already ... its bad completely chipped the paint... you wouldn't be able to find it if you looked at my car but I know its there ...

i want to get mouldings but OEM are too dame expensive dealer or ebay ... more than $100 for mouldings ???

theres a universal set that im looking for but then i dont want the moulding glue to mess up my paint

[Greg_E 211]

If you use the 3m automotive moulding tape there is little concern about wrecking the paint. I wouldn't recommend using the adhesion promoter stuff, that will discolor the paint. If you need to remove the moulding, a bit of heat and be prepared to wreck the moulding. After the molding is gone you should be able to roll the tape off your doors without wrecking the paint.

The factory molding doesn't look like it will do anything to prevent doors from hitting the paint, look too low.

[WaltK 305]

Here is the moulding I bought, http://chevysparkforum.com/topic/803-my-side-mouldings-visors/

I've seen it in Pep Boys, for like $20 for 16' x 1", using 3M adhesive. Fortunately, I wanted black, so it worked out perfectly for me.

Amazon has something similar http://www.amazon.com/Cowles-T3502C-Black-European-Molding/dp/B00029XC7M/ref=sr_1_6?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1379789008&sr=1-6&keywords=auto+body+side+molding+black , most auto stores stock this or similar stuff though.

[Lovgun7 75]

Thanks Greg & walt

[tommyspark 24]

Not just the Spark. I've been this way with every car I've ever had. Is what it is. Sadly, if you don't want people to door ding your car, you have to park far away. Lol don't ride with me to Walmart if you don't want to have to hike it out

[Lil Dew 14]

I park away from people, and NEVER next to mini-vans.

[Jeffrey Makela 6]

I park away from people, and NEVER next to mini-vans.

Why mini-vans? there door slides back to open so it cant hit your car.

2 door cars have long doors and can hit your car.

Edited September 22, 2013 by Jeffrey Makela

[Lovgun7 75]

got my moldings !

http://chevysparkforum.com/topic/1575-exterior-door-moldings/

[Lil Dew 14]

Why mini-vans? there door slides back to open so it cant hit your car.

2 door cars have long doors and can hit your car.

What do most mini vans carry around? Word starts with K ends with D and has an I in the middle. Usually the parents are not paying attention either while maneuvering their cart to load through the side door.

Kids aren't the most observant, and they will scratch, dent or ding your car without even knowing it. It is part of being a kid.

[Michael DiRisio 0]

I have Street Parking at my school apartment in Buffalo. Every time I pass the car I check the front and back looking for a new scratch from someone attempting to parallel park. So far only have a little scrape, someone must have pulled to close and hit me in the rear. Can see some metal but its less than the size of a dime. Unsure if i should attempt to repair it before the snow hits. Or it starts to rust.

[Lucwolf 0]

Great ideas from all of you. I'll add one more. I try to park on the passenger side of the car next to me. They have a driver for sure, but maybe no passenger. I once went 7 years with no door nicks on a daily driver. Must be a record! LOL

[Lovgun7 75]

I was sitting in my car at a target parking lot and all of a sudden i hear BAM ! i look over and some moron says "oh sorry man..."

he hit my car.

i get out and take a look. Lucky for me AND him i had my moldings.

[Dori 13]

Rain, sleet or snow; the back forty is where it park. And taking up two parking stalls. Drives my girl nuts, but hell I love my car!!

[Ataristic 5]

My biggest concern is windshield chips, seems this car is just a magnet for them, I have owned for a month and already got two. Lesson to be learned, do not drive close to semis or dualie pick up trucks.

[Trancer07 30]

I know first hand just how easy it is to dent a Spark. I was backing out of a self service car wash and somehow my side mirror got hooked around the hose to the spayer gun and the sprayer hit against the side of my car fender leaving a couple pretty good dents and scratches. I had PDR done at my local body shop but they couldn't pull out one dent all the way due to possible paint damage.

With how thin the steel is on this car, I'm starting to wonder if I'll even have a car left after 5-10 years.

Edited November 2, 2013 by Trancer07