IMO, I think I just drove the most miserable car

[redhat]

Finally the dealer saw the issue our Impala has been having with it's transmission. They will be replacing the whole valve body on the 4T65E. They also had replaced the gas pedal assembly on Saturday which caused the limp mode.

Any rate, the dealer expects the car to take a week and a half. Their tranny tech is backed up and it'll take a bit for parts to come in. They gave my GF a 2014 Chevrolet Spark for a loaner car.

I'm sure the thing is great on gas, and sorry if I offend anyone, but I really found this car to be down right miserable. Being a passenger was OK, but I got behind the wheel to test it out. Within seconds, my knee was aching from the odd angle the gas pedal is in relation to the seat position. I had to go back to being a passenger.

Not too much room, but hey, these cars are marketed for 20-30 year old people who are 5'8" and about 125lbs. right? Not a 300lbs. 6' big dude.

Thing can't get out of it's own way either, them 84 horses were sure screaming when the CVT let 'em hit 6k. The color she got is purple, it looks like a marshmallow peep.

I got into the Accord a little bit ago and went for a drive. Nothing like rowing through the gears, plowing 'er into VTEC and having some COMFORT, ROOM, STYLE and POWER! I had to do something more manly than go somewhere to put my car into a purse.

Happy for her to have a loaner car for sure, and happy to get ours fixed, but will be the most happy when we get the rolling couch Impala back.

 

[19jacobob93]

I can also agree these are pretty terrible hahaha
My girlfriends mother has one, I'm 20 and I wouldn't have one! I'm also 6'4" and I hitched a lift in it once and after 15 minutes I was completely crippled! Had to spend the evening stretching and cracking my back into place! They are a very cramped, noisy and rough car to drive in

 

[redhat]

Hah, yeah maybe I'll start scheduling a chiropractor if I have to drive it again.

 

[Nick1994]

LOL, I never thought my 17 year old tired Camry could be a nicer car than a brand new Chevy from the sounds of this! 84 horses? Even I have more than those! It's fairly comfortable and roomy as well, and I'm 6'2"! No wind noise either. I understand economy cars have to be cheaply made and cheap to drive, but they should at least make it halfway decent. I mean my old turd already has an advantage to this thing, it doesn't have a CVT!

 

[redhat]

Nick, your Camry is like a showroom luxury car compared to this thing. 84 horse out of a 1.25 litre S-tec II 4 banger which I guess is a collaboration between daewoo and Suzuki.

 

[19jacobob93]

No doubt the Camry would be better! I felt like I was driving on silk after hopping back in my 14 year old Ford hahah and it was good to actually feel some power
They really are built down to a cost, and to be fair they definitely aren't worthy of wearing a chevrolet badge being nothing but mass market GM Daewoos

 

[Quest]

Originally Posted By: redhat
Nick, your Camry is like a showroom luxury car compared to this thing. 84 horse out of a 1.25 litre S-tec II 4 banger which I guess is a collaboration between daewoo and Suzuki.


correction: Chevy Spark currently sold in NA soil is the Daiwoo Matiz 4th gen. Suzuki has no input on this (just like a lot of rebadged Daiwoo that GeeAmm forced Suzuki to sell under it's brand name in NA soil some 10 yrs ago, which lead to the brand erosion and complete withdrawal of it from NA soil.

Q.

 

[Nick1994]

Originally Posted By: redhat
Nick, your Camry is like a showroom luxury car compared to this thing. 84 horse out of a 1.25 litre S-tec II 4 banger which I guess is a collaboration between daewoo and Suzuki.


Haha, and I'm sure it'll rack up far more miles than the average Spark ever will

 

[alex3686]

I heard the Chevrolet Sparks were really badly made but, it's a GM car so that doesn't surprise me. I don't think I could stand driving it with the way that gas pedal is. I'll just stick to my Dodge Charger and Sonata thank you very much.

 

[wirelessF]

See: Chevrolet Aveo

 

[Fleetmon]

It's distant relative might just be a Mazda CX-5....we have one as a rental (6200 miles new) and what a joke. Uncomfortable and lacks power big time. For those that like the CX-5, my post is not to knock it if YOU like it but it certainly isn't what I expect from a ride. We commute 150 miles per day and we feel like we've been beaten at the end of the day.

To give it credit though, a large part of our dissatisfaction may be due to Enterprizes rental car policies....the car came with two key fobs, neither of which work. You have to use the valet key to unlock the drivers door, get in and start it BEFORE you can unlock the other doors. That and no interior lights plus a filthy interior all add to our experience. I will highly recommend the local Enterprize manager have his/her future freed up! Oh yeah, I forgot to mention it had a range of 43 miles of fuel when I picked it up...took it back but they were closed.

Sorry to highjack your thread!

 

[eljefino]

Before I clicked on this thread title I figured it'd be a chevy spark.

Something about the proportions outside is a clue that they'll be junk inside.

 

[tony1679]

Yet another 4T65E problem... GM is lucky they haven't been sued for this too.

Also, your dealer should have put you in a car similar to the one you own.

 

[NHGUY]

I'll take my old K car over any Spark/Sonic/Aveo anyday.Sits and drives like a car,not a go cart or a Lunar Module.Also lasts unlike any Daewoo/GM POC yet devised.

 

[fdcg27]

We have a woman at work who bought one of these to replace her Traverse. She has a commute of sixty miles each way and she thought that the Traverse was too thirsty. No kidding!
She's quite short, so interior room isn't a problem and she's thrilled with the fuel economy of the car.
So far, she's perfectly happy with her purchase. She'll put 150K on it in five years.
Yeah, there are cars that would deliver better fuel economy, but they are much more expensive than this little Korean.
If she had asked, I would have told her to look at and drive a stick Cruze 1.4T, which would deliver similar fuel economy and be far nicer to drive on those long commutes while not costing all that much more money.
There's also the Fit to consider, along with some more expensive cars like the Prius, or a diesel Cruze or VW.
For what it is, the Spark isn't stunningly economical.
Given its proportions, I wonder how well it'll track in windy conditions or on slick winter roads.

 

[BISCUT]

Originally Posted By: Nick1994
LOL, I never thought my 17 year old tired Camry could be a nicer car than a brand new Chevy from the sounds of this! 84 horses? Even I have more than those! It's fairly comfortable and roomy as well, and I'm 6'2"! No wind noise either. I understand economy cars have to be cheaply made and cheap to drive, but they should at least make it halfway decent. I mean my old turd already has an advantage to this thing, it doesn't have a CVT!


I can appreciate your taste in vintage automobiles

 

[E365]

It's basically the cheapest car sold in America, what were you expecting?

Also, it's available in a manual.

 

[Trav]

Try to get some sort of warranty extension on the unit and pay close attention to this thing, get it back in at the first sign of a problem.

 

[dlundblad]

They are pretty cramped cars no doubt. I rode in my friends sonic which had the turbo. It seemed fairly quick, but after hearing your experience, maybe the turbo is a necessity.

I thought the dash display was interesting too.

 

[Jarlaxle]

Is there ANY reason to choose that Happy Fun Ball over, say, a Hyundai Accent? Or a Kia Rio?