Chevrolet Spark Review (2010-2015)

Car buyers of a certain age may remember Daewoo, the Korean manufacturer that launched in the UK in the late 1990s with a no-haggle price guarantee and a desire to break the car retailing mould. Daewoo broke first, and pulled out of the UK market, but not before it had served up a host of new models. These included the Matiz, a five-door city car known for having the slowest 0-62mph of any passenger car on sale at the time.

Chevrolet, which is owned by US giant General Motors, picked up Daewoo’s pieces, and relaunched many of the outgoing models in the early 2000s. The Matiz was rebranded as the Chevrolet Spark and hit showrooms in 2010.

The little Chevy didn’t have much in common with its all-American stablemates such as the Camaro and the Corvette, but it was certainly an improvement on the Matiz. Despite its diminutive proportions, the Spark’s design is quite brawny – perhaps a link to the aforementioned muscle cars. Its blunt nose gives way to a raked windscreen and roof, which lowers towards the back to meet the upright rear end. It’s a well-proportioned small car that combines style with practicality.

Inside, everything is a bit, well, plasticky. Cheap cars are cheap for a reason, and often because they’re made up of inexpensive materials. The car’s designers at least attempted to make the interior look interesting, with an instrument binnacle on the steering column, similar to a MINI. The rest of the controls are contained within the dashboard’s centre console.

The Spark looks well packaged from the outside, with what appears to be an upright, spacious rear, but it’s actually a bit of a squeeze, especially for adults. Headroom and legroom in the rear is in short supply, and adult occupants may well be – literally – rubbing shoulders, such is the shortness of space.

Rivals such as the Hyundai i10 and the Skoda Citigo – along with its close relatives, the Volkswagen Up and the Seat Mii – have more space inside, and bigger boots than the Spark’s rather meagre 170-litre capacity.

The Spark is powered by a choice of two engines: a 68bhp 1.0-litre unit or an 80bhp 1.2. The former has a 0-62mph time of 15.5 seconds, and feels as sluggish as that figure suggests, while the 1.2 has a bit more pull – useful for owners who make the odd motorway journey – and a 0-62mph time of 12.1 seconds. That said, both versions are slower than many of their rivals, and they feel and sound noisy and laboured at speed.

The Chevy is light and easy to manoeuvre, which is handy in urban environments, but it’s not exactly engaging out of town. The steering is accurate enough, but the car is prone to roll during corners and, while the suspension is soft and the ride OK, it’s also jittery over poor road surfaces.

The entry-level Spark has little in the way of equipment. There’s no stereo and the steering wheel isn’t adjustable. It has six airbags, and that’s about it.

Things get better with the Spark +, which includes air conditioning, electric front windows, and central locking, along with a USB-compatible four-speaker stereo. The LS adds remote central locking, a sunglasses holder, 14-inch wheels, body-coloured door handles and mirrors, front fog lamps, and a body-coloured rear spoiler.

The LS+ gets alloy wheels, all-round electric windows, a trip computer, heated electric door mirrors, roof bars, and steering wheel audio controls. Finally, the range-topping LT comes with 15-inch alloys, climate control, interior detailing to match the exterior (depending on the colour), an exterior body kit, and a six-speaker stereo.

There are just two different engine options available to Spark buyers, both petrol and both relatively economical. The 68bhp 1.0-litre will return 55 mpg according to the old NEDC test cycle, so something like 45mpg plus in the real world is realistic. CO2 emissions of 118g/km aren’t bad for a car of this age either, and equal relatively low Vehicle Excise Duty.

It’s a similar story with the more powerful 79bhp 1.2-litre engine. The extra power isn’t enough to have impact the 1.0-litre unit’s fuel economy or emissions, so official figures are 56.5 mpg and 118g/km.

Because Chevrolet no longer operates in the UK, there is no franchised dealer network available. There are still authorised Chevrolet service specialists around the country and, of course, lots of independent garages. The supply of spare parts for the Spark is guaranteed by Chevrolet until 2025, too.

One way in which the Spark will save owners money is with insurance. The Chevy’s groups are very low, with the entry-level Spark in insurance group 1 of 50. As the trim levels increase, the groups do rise, but not to crazy levels, and the top-spec LT model sits in group 9.

New Sparks were sold with a three-year, 60,000-mile warranty, but Chevrolet would also that to a five-year, 100,000-mile plan for an additional fee. Fixed-rate service plans were also available. All Sparks are now out of warranty and Chevrolet’s absence from the UK means service plans are no longer available.

It’s a very simple car, which means there isn’t all that much to go wrong, and a quick online trawl of owners’ forums and reviews reveals few common issues. The fault with the most publicity is a problem with the engine bay latch. Corrosion could cause the secondary bonnet latch to stick in the open position and, if the primary latch isn’t engaged properly, the bonnet could open unexpectedly.

Other obvious problems are centred on the cheap and flimsy plastic in use in the Spark’s cabin. They will have encountered a fair bit of wear and tear over the years, so it’s worth checking that everything’s in place and unbroken.