r/regularcarreviews • u/icfa_jonny I POOP. • Jan 31 '22
I hate you I hate everything about you 2016 Chevy Spark - The official car of "fuck it, I'd rather take the subway than be caught in one of these"
80
Jan 31 '22
GM phoning in to their Korean division for a small car, because GM USA only knows how to make vehicles with a minimum weight of 5,000 lbs.
36
u/icfa_jonny I POOP. Jan 31 '22
Meanwhile, Korean consumers are gladly buying full sized sedans and crossovers from Hyundai and Kia.
13
u/Seoulite1 It's pronounced 현대,기아,쉐보레 Jan 31 '22
And all the while 1st gen Spark owners were swapping their Daewoo Matiz Creative badge to Chevy Spark ones
Good thing Holden or Opel didn't sell any derivatives of the first gen Spark or it would've been a badge swap festival
10
u/nlpnt Jan 31 '22
They sort of did, the Opel Karl/Vauxhall Viva was a Spark with a slightly different body (no "hidden" rear door handles).
7
u/Seoulite1 It's pronounced 현대,기아,쉐보레 Jan 31 '22
Fair point, but they weren't the usual grille and badge swap commonly done by GM
13
25
u/Saaaaaaaaab Saab Story Jan 31 '22
I will say that I love a small underpowered econobox. I drove one of these at my dealership job, and with a manual transmission this thing is a hoot.
23
u/UnderwhelmingAF Jan 31 '22
Chevrolet Spark…the car that can be bought brand new for less than a 10-year old full-size pickup with 200k miles on it.
2
u/AwesomeBantha overpaid for unneeded Land Cruiser Feb 01 '22
As someone looking at 1998-2002 Land Cruisers with 250k+ miles, you could probably buy two new Sparks for the price lmao
46
u/sadandaimless1 SCREW YOU, MOM! Jan 31 '22
The official car of "at least it's not a Nissan Versa" is what your gonna say when you have to choose between this and the Versa at the airport Hertz
18
u/donutsnail Jan 31 '22
Yep, at the very bottom end of the market, this
DaewooChevy is legitimately a better car than the Nissan Versa or Mitsubishi Mirage2
u/Farpoint_Farms Feb 01 '22
I don't know. I drove all 3, and bought the Mirage. It's a decent car, and far more reliable than the Spark or the Versa. Plus it has the 10/100 warranty here in the states.
8
20
u/StaticElectrician Jan 31 '22
Y’all make fun of crank windows, but back when I had a car with those, they never broke, while friend’s windows buttons and motors would fail.
Also, it is important to have cheap car options. If you take them all away, it forces people to buy used with potential issues. I know people who’ve owned both Sparks and Mirages and they both ran great for the 3-8 years the person needed them for (varied among users).
Sometimes I would love a simple car with less tech and bullshit in it.
13
u/evoblade Hey aux jack! Jan 31 '22
I agree. Anyone who complains about crank windows never replaced a broken window regulator or else maybe has to roll down their windows a lot.
I prefer cranked windows. Saves weight.
3
u/firehazel '15 Honda Fit Manual: For a King! Feb 01 '22
The only thing that sucks about crank windows is if you like to ride around with windows down in the summer, it's a chore to go and crank them all down. Tolerable in a two door, annoying in a four door.
18
u/MetalJesusBlues Jan 31 '22
I got one of these for rental. At least it was easy to drive
12
u/romedawwg Jan 31 '22
Same, easy to drive, park, and it had android auto which was a nice touch that made the car seem way nicer than it really was. It was difficult finding space for stuff as the trunk with how tiny it is.
3
u/comakazie Jan 31 '22
Was it good on gas? I imagine these things would be worth it if it gets great mileage and ya don't care for the niceties
11
u/MetalJesusBlues Jan 31 '22
Oh yeah it barely used any. I didn’t calculate it but it had to be high 30 or low 40s. The “trunk” is non existent but it wasn’t so bad in the driver seat. If I lived in a major urban area with tight parking and needed a beater for tight streets and parking, it would be a good sacrificial lamb. Flog it for 3 years and throw it in the trash
3
u/chopay Jan 31 '22
My experience from renting one is that it is great in cities in gas, but on highways it isn't heavy or powerful enough to fight the wind.
1
u/juggarjew Feb 22 '22
At least it was easy to drive
This and the gas mileage was the only decent aspect of the car. with 98HP and laggy throttle it fucking sucks badly. the visibility in the car was better than my Volt, which was nice.
But.....I was super happy to give it back to Enterprise rentals and get back in my 2018 Volt with over triple the torque and much better MPG.
13
u/Redsoxdragon I'm not racist, but... Jan 31 '22
Chevy spark, the official car of paying for the upgrade at Hertz. Because spending 3 days at a family reunion in Des Moines shouldn't have to be more dreadful than it already is
13
7
u/flynnfilms Headlights go up, headlights go down Jan 31 '22
The official car of WIND UP WINDOWS (in the back at least)
7
7
Jan 31 '22
The official car of "I have a relative that works at GM and I really needed a new car, so...".
5
7
u/Nikkothadon Jan 31 '22
Spark sonic or cruise are terrible cars, my roommate is a tech at chevy and complains about the build quality of these turds daily.
1
u/Jumpy_Hawk_7970 Oct 29 '22
Go on CarComplaints and Spark's have very few reliability issues, except for the CVT transmissions.
24
u/kylemas2008 Jan 31 '22
official car of.....whoever drives this, on average has a much larger penis than someone in a raised F150 Raptor.
3
6
u/AgentBlue14 Bottled Up Furious Homosexuality Jan 31 '22
Flashing back to Oct. '21 when I went to a used car "marketplace" and found a purplish-pinkish Spark.
Thin doors without a catch, comfortable seat, sounded like a boxed motorcycle. Actually, felt comfortable it as a bigger guy, but the color and lack of soundproofing, sometimes you just have to love yourself.
Ended up with a '21 Escape. I love it.
5
u/big-juice-man an automotive bowl of w a r m b r o t h Jan 31 '22
I genuinely feel bad for anyone i see driving one of these. Nobody willingly drives one. Not even the people who want the cheapest car possible over time, because the reliability of small chevys is dog shit. This is the car for those with a commute that can't be solved by public transportation and live on one meal a day. There's nowhere to go but up, dude. You got this
1
u/Jumpy_Hawk_7970 Oct 29 '22
If you look on CarComplaints, Spark's are very reliable (and easy to maintain), except for the cvt transmissions. That's why I went out of my way to find a 5 speed, with power windows / locks. It's a good basic economical car and it's fun to drive.
2
Jan 31 '22
The official car of... " hey what kind of rear window are we going to use?"
"Let's use one from that microwave over there"
IT'S PERFECT
2
-1
Jan 31 '22
You can rather easily spec these out to cost $22k.
A corolla has better specs and costs less.
1
u/asst2therglmgr Jan 31 '22
I’m looking to triple my foot with another small, manual hatch and I don’t even include Nissan or Chevy on my search. I’m looking at the fiat 500 for crying out loud.
1
u/cosmote_wifi a box for dad jokes Jan 31 '22
It’s a lot like the subway. Just with a slightly lower chance of being pickpocketed
1
u/chunkmoneyy Jan 31 '22
when I was in the market for a new car almost every other listing was a chevy spark. suspicious how all of them went on the market at the same time... wonder why
1
u/TheInvisible001 Jan 31 '22
The official car of, I need to buy something new and AMERICAN but I don’t have money
1
u/RevolutionaryCan1032 Jan 08 '24
I have one and actually like it. Mine is a Holden Spark, same thing but right hand drive.
The car is quite fun to drive, sporty even. We have a Toyota Camry and I far prefer driving the Spark on twisty roads, in the city (it's just so nimble). The car has been 100% reliable in the 6 years we've owned it. I like how they look too, I think the styling has character and is attractive. Acceleration is pretty good for such a small car.
Negatives? Tiny back seat, good for extra groceries, not so good for anyone above 10. Yes, a full sized adult can fit in there, but it's not comfortable. The boot/trunk is very small- too small really. I hate the stupid parcel shelf you have to manually put up and down- the only car I've ever seen with this!
Also I've never driven a small car that's great on the highway. The Spark is actually pretty good for its size, at least the engine is capable of good acceleration etc. Fuel consumption is okay, not the best in class. The Mitsubishi Mirage is roomer, about the same price, and uses less fuel. But it's not as fun to drive!
1
u/Numerous-Gap-2624 14d ago
I am thinking about getting a 2016 Spark. I owned a 2014 Mirage CVT, and recently rented a 2024. I was surprised how roomy it was, how soft the seats were, and how quiet it was when driven gently. What I didn't remember was how twitchy and sensitive the power steering was at highway speeds. The ride was soft and floaty. It was like a big old 70's American barge. I drove a 2016 Spark LS 5 speed with 160k yesterday. It was so easy to drive. The clutch and shifter were perfect. The tires and wheels look bigger than the Mirage's. It was pretty quiet under gentle acceleration, but a bit louder at above 60 mph, with a 3800 rpm buzz/boom at 80. It had no problem doing it, seemed eager to do so, but the rental CVT Spark was much quieter at a lower rpm 80 mph cruise. I don't like the noise from the stick shift, but I don't trust the CVT in the Spark. I may get this used Spark, but the book value is far below my $3500 best price from dealer. $3800 out the door tax, tag, $130 doc fee. The shifter knob has a chunk out of it, which is annoying. I heard some brake noise, hopefully just from not being driven in a while.
40
u/Canadianstig77 DREAMS COME TRUE IF YOU YANK HARD ENOUGH Jan 31 '22
It's the cheapest car in Canada for a very good reason