2016 Chevrolet Spark (first test drive review)

[Mitsuman]

Wow, festiboi, I didn't expect you ta like the Chevy Spark so much. Good review of the Spark overall. I liked that you included the manual transmission element and how nice that went with the subcompact Chevy. Chevy doesn't have near the Warranty as Mitsubishi does, so the Spark loses there.

Are you gonna review the 2017 Mitsubishi Mirage and G4 sedan when they come out shortly here? I'm still not sure this small car segment is for me. I drive a 2011 Kia Soul base 5-speed in clear white and my wife and I love how roomy it is inside and how easy ingress and egress is. I am sort of curious about the 2017 Mitsubishi G4 and how much room it has in the front and for passengers in the back.

Lastly, is that a Diahatsu in your picture with you in your posts?

[Eggman]

The Spark is heavier than the Mirage by 275 pounds. Did you feel that in your test drive?

[cyclopathic]

I prefer and will likely buy the Mirage but competition and choices are a good thing for people shopping for these kinds of cars. I hope the Mirage's crash test ratings improve over time as from what I remember the Spark did perform very well in crash testing especially in small overlap crash test where as Honda Fit, Mitsubishi Mirage, and others did not.

Issue with small overlap crash is that the main structure is not getting engaged. Toyota fixed similar issue with simple bolt-on part on driver side, which extends the zone.

[Mitsuman]

The current 2013-2015 Sparks have a 1.25 liter engine, timing chain not belt, iron block with aluminum head. The 2016 is a different ecotec design, 1.4 liter, GDI, aluminum block and head, with a timing chain not belt.

Thanks for the update above on the element of the timing chain - this was noted by Speedracer a while back on this thread - it is certainly a plus that the 2016 Chevy Spark has a timing chain. Well, because of festiboi's review of the new Spark, the fact that is has a timing chain instead of a timing belt, the fact that festiboi said it drives nice and fairly smooth for a small car and Chevy is really pricing the little car fairly, this Mitsuman is going to give the 2016 Chevy Spark a fair shake, if you will!

I looked around my area for '16 Spark's for sale and found one with an automatic CVT selling here in Dodge City at Lewis Chevrolet for $14,695. No thanks - this padre's gotta have a manual transmission. Well guys, I went back online and 50 miles west of here there is another Lewis Chevrolet in Garden City, KS. Well, of course I went right to their website! They have a salsa red 2016 Chevy Spark with a 5-speed stick selling for $13,535. OK, I am now getting somewhat excited. Because everyone around here likes SUV's and pickup trucks (this is Kansas, after all) this little bright red pint sizer could sit in that Chevy dealer's lot for months. If I take a drive in it and like the car and decide I want to try and buy it, I would seriously consider offering even lower than that. They probably would tell me to go fly a kite, too.

But festiboi, it was your review of the car that started to get me interested. Now, our '11 Kia Soul clear white base 5-speed only has 60,139 miles on it as I type this out. The car is as sound as a pound, we don't need a new car...but these microcars are so low-priced it gets one's imagination imagining a little bit. I'm gonna keep researching and, if the wild hair just won't leave me alone one day off, I might drive the 50 minute drive west on Highway 50 and give the little Spark a test drive at least. See for myself what festiboi liked about the new little Chevy world microcar.

[MetroMPG]

Thanks for that mini Spark review, festiboi!

I fully agree that GM puts more effort into the Spark's interior than Mitsu does with the Mirage. In my opinion, both the Mirage and Nissan Micra (Canada) have sad, dreary insides. Not aesthetically pleasant places to pass the time, with any colour you like as long as it's black (or nearly black)!

Here's the Spark on the other hand:



With the Spark's improved driving dynamics as you report, the revised suspension in the 2017 Mirage better be good.

What about MPG?

2017 Mirage CVT = 39 mpg US - EPA combined
2017 Mirage 5-speed = 36 mpg US - EPA combined

2016 Spark CVT= 35 mpg US - EPA ratings
2016 Spark 5-speed = 34 mpg US

NOTE: this isn't an apples to apples MPG comparison. The 2017 Mirage is subject to the EPA's more stringent test methods which affect the 2017 model year and up. Next year, the 2017 Spark's ratings will probably be revised downward by ~1 MPG.


$10k Cheap car fight in Canada

In Canada, the base Spark is now officially the cheapest new car available... by $3! There's a 3-way catfight going on:

• $9995 + shipping - Spark
• $9998 + shipping - Nissan Micra
• $9998 + shipping - Mirage (factoring in Mitsu's perpetual $2500 factory discount on the base model)

I'm also thinking I will take a 2016 Spark for a spin, just out of curiosity.

[Mitsuman]

I'm also thinking I will take a 2016 Spark for a spin, just out of curiosity.

Lewis Chevrolet here in Dodge City, KS, has a 2016 Spark with an automatic tranny and in a navy blue color sitting in it's lot and tomorrow they're closed, so I can go get a walk-around look at it.

[festiboi]

Wow, festiboi, I didn't expect you ta like the Chevy Spark so much. Good review of the Spark overall. I liked that you included the manual transmission element and how nice that went with the subcompact Chevy. Chevy doesn't have near the Warranty as Mitsubishi does, so the Spark loses there.

Are you gonna review the 2017 Mitsubishi Mirage and G4 sedan when they come out shortly here? I'm still not sure this small car segment is for me. I drive a 2011 Kia Soul base 5-speed in clear white and my wife and I love how roomy it is inside and how easy ingress and egress is. I am sort of curious about the 2017 Mitsubishi G4 and how much room it has in the front and for passengers in the back.

Lastly, is that a Diahatsu in your picture with you in your posts?

I was equally shocked I liked it so much. The outgoing Spark wasn't terrible; just a cheap and cheerful appliance like the Mirage that offered basic motoring with some practicality. It was a peer and an equal to the Mirage, and I preferred the Mirage over it because of some of the small details; namely the five passenger seating, higher fuel economy, longer warranty, less goofy styling, and a spare tire.

The Mirage still gets higher fuel economy and has the longer warranty for peace of mind, but the Spark has an obvious refinement advantage that it once didn't have.

That shifter was almost Honda-like in its slickness and the handling was superb for an econo car. I still like the Mirage a lot, and if it were my money, I'd probably still go with the Mitsu. But for the average consumer and given the amount of Chevy dealers there, the Mirage is at a disadvantage. The Spark also comes standard with Chevy's infotainment system, MyLink, as well as a reverse camera. That doesn't matter much to me, but it'll appeal to young adults buying their first car

I'll be curious too to see if the 2017 Mirage narrows the gap any

And the car in my photo is a Mazda AZ Wagon. It's a kei car that I had for a while when I was in Tokyo. Awesome packaging and all of the mini car charm

[cyclopathic]

Isn't it just re-badged Suzuki Wagon R?

Definitely not to be taken to 100km/h, and no trunk per se; otherwise nice city car.

[festiboi]

The Spark is heavier than the Mirage by 275 pounds. Did you feel that in your test drive?

Didn't really. We only took it on surface streets (booo!!!), so the weight gain may show when merging. But from a standstill, it didn't feel anymore sluggish than a Mirage. Keep in mind that it has 20+ horsepower than the Mitsu to compensate for the weight gain

[festiboi]

Isn't it just re-badged Suzuki Wagon R?

Definitely not to be taken to 100km/h, and no trunk per se; otherwise nice city car.

That's exactly what it is, essentially a Suzuki Wagon R, which are everywhere in Japan.

Great around town and in tight spots, but things did get dicey around 100kmh. Totally agree. We don't know how good we have it in America when a Spark and the Mirage are among the most "sluggish" cars here