lovcom 1 Posted September 20, 2013 Share Posted September 20, 2013 Howdie all, I just purchased a 2013 Pink Spark for my wife. We are not the average buyer. We are 53 and 47, empty nesters, and we purchased the Spark because we would rather put our $$ in new condo rentals, and retirement investments. We don't believe that cars are investments. We like the way it drives, the features, and value it offers for the money. We like the MPG too. There are better cars that are of higher quality, and MPG, but they're often much more expensive. In short, we bought the Spark for it's value, and it's bigger bang for your buck factor. The Spark is too new to know just how reliable it will be, so that is the gamble for us: reliability. We also have a 2007 Toyota Yaris, with 160,000 miles. We have paid $0.00 for repairs to that car. The Yaris gets the same mileage as our Spark, yet has much more HP, bigger engine, and is even lighter in weight then the Spark. So yes, we have been spoiled by Toyota ownership. We hope our new Spark will deliver similar reliability and economy. We'd have bought another Yaris, but the best deal for similar features was over $17,000!!! This is way too much $$!! My 2007 cost us just $13,800 out the door. It's no surprise Yaris is now very expensive because it has made the list of the top 10 most reliable cars in the world. So two things: Will the Spark live up to our expectations? Will the Spark's lack of power become an issue for us? Anyways, glad to be here with you all!! Link to post Share on other sites
austex04 48 Posted September 20, 2013 Share Posted September 20, 2013 (edited) Welcome! I'm also a Toyota fan, a friend of mine had 2 Echoes and one Yaris. The current Yaris has 330k miles on it's original engine and auto transmission. I was put off on the price of a new Yaris, as well as the new Hyundai Accent, so I bought the Spark. Check reviews of Chevrolet dealers before you visit their service departments, some dealers are good, many are bad. If your used to the treatment at Toyota dealers, you maybe appalled by GM dealers. I finally found a good dealer who took care of a couple minor unresolved issues after multiple attempts at another dealer. These small, quirky cars actually appeal more to the adult and mature crowd than the younger crowd, like the Yaris and Scion XB did. Edited September 20, 2013 by austex04 Link to post Share on other sites
Jeffrey Makela 6 Posted September 21, 2013 Share Posted September 21, 2013 (edited) The horse power in the spark is ok, sometime I have to hit 5000 to 6000 rpms to go up some step hills. the horse power peaks at 6500 rpm. Edited September 21, 2013 by Jeffrey Makela Link to post Share on other sites
psquare75 35 Posted September 21, 2013 Share Posted September 21, 2013 I got a 5spd for the gf's Spark. More fun, better MPG, and it seems to pull better. My parents both got Sparks with autos, to save on gas, as they are both on the road for work constantly. I find the auto can't get out of it's own way. The 5spd is more tolerable. Intake and exhaust have been dyno proven to add 8-10 HP, and when you have 80ish HP, that's a big deal. Link to post Share on other sites
Chevrolet Customer Care 25 Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 Welcome to the forum lovcom and congrats on the new Spark! Please feel free to email me at socialmedia@gm.com or send me a private message if you have any questions or need any assistance. Jackie Chevrolet Customer Care Link to post Share on other sites
Greg_E 211 Posted September 22, 2013 Share Posted September 22, 2013 OK, so you are a marketing person with GM, I truly hope you are pushing support to get on top of these nagging problems that many of use are experiencing! The glad handing does nothing but make us all resent the company more, we want more than "welcome, glad you bought a Chevy". Mudflap 1 Link to post Share on other sites
whoknew1985 5 Posted September 23, 2013 Share Posted September 23, 2013 Welcome to the forum. I am 46 years old and love this car. I know it is going through some growing pains, as most new model release's do when being sold in the U.S. I am hoping that General Motors will step up and make good on their commitiment to not only their customers, but actual investors as our tax money helps keep this company going. Link to post Share on other sites
esme 0 Posted September 24, 2013 Share Posted September 24, 2013 Another middle aged person here..very happy with the Spark. Low cost, and great gas mileage. So far no A/C or other issues. I live in Fordtown USA, so I like that I don't meet myself coming and going Link to post Share on other sites
GRarchitect 3 Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 My Spark "Old Yeller" is a welcome bit of sunshine every time I go out in this Michigan grey winter. It is so much fun too! Actually saw an Jalapeño one in downtown Grand Rapids today! Link to post Share on other sites
malibuguy 14 Posted December 12, 2013 Share Posted December 12, 2013 Welcome. My wife has a pink '13 spark and my daily is a '10 yaris sedan. The yaris is definetly reliable as gravity and much faster. I tend to get mid 40s on average beating the hell out of it. We love the spark so far, and mid 30s in this cold air so far with runaround town stuff. Worlds better then her previous '95 protege (faster then that too). Link to post Share on other sites
Butch 0 Posted December 25, 2013 Share Posted December 25, 2013 Welcome All and Marry Christmas. Just signed in, checking things out. I purchased a 2013 Spark yeasterday, Christmas Eve,,, pick it up Saturday,, considering undercoating it. I'm 60yo, with a few more years to work I needed some gas savings, 60 miles round trip every day to work. Was driving a 2003 Selverdo 2500.. I used to have a Geo Metro, several years ago, ran it 13 years till bottom rusted out. That was a good work car. So I'm here to listen and discuses any tips or tricks for my Spark. Thanks for the forum, I will keep in touch...... Link to post Share on other sites
WaltK 305 Posted December 25, 2013 Share Posted December 25, 2013 Welcome to the forum, and Merry Christmas, bought yourself a great gift, congratulations, you are going to enjoy it. Sparktacular 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Mudflap 1 Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 Welcome to the forum lovcom and congrats on the new Spark! Please feel free to email me at socialmedia@gm.com or send me a private message if you have any questions or need any assistance. Jackie Chevrolet Customer Care OK, so you are a marketing person with GM, I truly hope you are pushing support to get on top of these nagging problems that many of use are experiencing! The glad handing does nothing but make us all resent the company more, we want more than "welcome, glad you bought a Chevy". I haven't looked at all the "new posts" from last time I was here, but was that it from Chevrolet? Link to post Share on other sites
Mudflap 1 Posted January 2, 2014 Share Posted January 2, 2014 I seldom drive the Spark because it was specifically bought for the wife, but she still LOVES it. (Mama's happy so I'm happy.) Link to post Share on other sites
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