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My next door neighbor has a Spark. They got it for their student daughter. It’s a good city car. She drives it to and from school and other areas around town.she has enough room for her books and other school supplies. She can carry three other people for short trips around town. One passenger in front seat and she can do a longer trip. Because she’s a student the most grocery shopping she does is picking up milk, eggs, or bread on the way home from school. A single person can do grocery shopping using the Spark by using the back seat and front passenger seat for additional cargo. Folding down the rear seats does increase cargo capacity but for groceries you’re better off leaving the seat backs and use the floor and seats as cargo for groceries. Forward and side visibility is good, rear visibility can be limited but no more than most hatchbacks. Ride is a bit harsh over bumps compared to larger wheelbase vehicles. Can travel on interstate highways but I wouldn’t recommend using it for long trips. She says she can really feel the pull when being passed by 18 wheelers.
It's the cheapest car Chevy imports (comes from Korea) and it shows.
The Spark is the only DaeWoo(sp?) I know of, so I don't haven't heard anything about DaeWoo reliability/longevity. Has anyone else, outside of ones made when they were first getting started?
Now that I think of it, I saw a DaeWoo dealership a long time ago but not in recent times. I guess they didn't last as a stand alone brand.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jcp123
I’d give it a provisional yes.
We have a few company cars, and the Spark impressed me. Easily my fave in the fleet, which includes a pair of the similar but larger Sonic, some Chevy Colorados, a Versa Note, and a Nissan Frontier. It was never on my radar, but it’s fairly quiet and solid, doesn’t wander or get pushed around by wind at highway speeds, and is adequately powered. Reasonably roomy, and the CVT doesn’t act like a CVT. Fuel economy is, of course, stellar, even some of my bonehead co-workers can’t push it under 34mpg around town. It’s a competent and refined piece of engineering which I just flat out didn’t expect. The provisional part comes from the fact that I do t know what its reliability is like (if the Colorado is any indication, it’s not good, but the Sonics have been fine).
But is the Sonic made by GM or DaeWoo? How about the Colorado?
The Spark is the only DaeWoo(sp?) I know of, so I don't haven't heard anything about DaeWoo reliability/longevity. Has anyone else, outside of ones made when they were first getting started?
Now that I think of it, I saw a DaeWoo dealership a long time ago but not in recent times. I guess they didn't last as a stand alone brand.
But is the Sonic made by GM or DaeWoo? How about the Colorado?
Quote:
Originally Posted by wikipedia
Current models manufactured by GM Korea
Buick Encore GX (a crossover developed by GM Korea; export-only)
Chevrolet Trailblazer (subcompact crossover; 5-door SUV)
Chevrolet Equinox (compact crossover; 5-door SUV)
It's an intriguing tale of self-made wealth for people who enjoy the meteoric rise of Elon Musk.
Daewoo began in South Korea as a textile company in 1967. The owner was 31-year-old Kim Woo-choong – using a $5,000 loan – the firm quickly catapulted in size. Within two decades, Daewoo boasted $40 billion in global sales, became Korea’s second-largest conglomerate, and produced everything from construction equipment to firearms to consumer electronics. Daewood entered the car business in 1978 by purchasing a stake in an insolvent company which produced relatively small quantities of Completely Knocked Down (CKD) Nissans and Toyotas since the early 1960s.
General Motors already owned a 50% stake in the Korean firm which it had in the early 1970s and produced Chevrolet 1700 , which was a rebadged for the Korean market. In 1987 Daewood built the Pontiac LeMans which was sold in the US. In 1992, Daewoo bought GM’s share of its joint venture for $200 million to become an independent manufacturer.
Daewoo began sales in the US in the late 1990s and last about 4 years before going bankrupt in spectacular fashion which involved conviction of it's CEO and jail time. Two decades after selling 50% of the company, GM bought back 100% of Daewoo in April 2002 for $1.7 billion in cash and preferred stock for control of the new company now officially called GM Korea.
GM’s acquisition was a very profitable by first helping them penetrate the Korean domestic market. Within four years, GM Korea was producing over 1 million cars for 150 countries and helped them move into China. Many Daewoo models were rebranded as Chevrolets. Ten years after the deal closed, one-quarter of all Chevrolets sold worldwide were built in Korea, and were essentially Daewoos.
The Spark is the only DaeWoo(sp?) I know of, so I don't haven't heard anything about DaeWoo reliability/longevity. Has anyone else, outside of ones made when they were first getting started?
Now that I think of it, I saw a DaeWoo dealership a long time ago but not in recent times. I guess they didn't last as a stand alone brand.
But is the Sonic made by GM or DaeWoo? How about the Colorado?
The Sonic is one of those mashups...designed primarily by what’s left of Daewoo but with assists from GM’s former Opel, as well as Holden...but also manufactured here. So you can give credit to whoever you feel like.
The Colorado of course is more “homegrown” American GM.
It's an intriguing tale of self-made wealth for people who enjoy the meteoric rise of Elon Musk.
Daewoo began in South Korea as a textile company in 1967. The owner was 31-year-old Kim Woo-choong – using a $5,000 loan – the firm quickly catapulted in size. Within two decades, Daewoo boasted $40 billion in global sales, became Korea’s second-largest conglomerate, and produced everything from construction equipment to firearms to consumer electronics. Daewood entered the car business in 1978 by purchasing a stake in an insolvent company which produced relatively small quantities of Completely Knocked Down (CKD) Nissans and Toyotas since the early 1960s.
General Motors already owned a 50% stake in the Korean firm which it had in the early 1970s and produced Chevrolet 1700 , which was a rebadged for the Korean market. In 1987 Daewood built the Pontiac LeMans which was sold in the US. In 1992, Daewoo bought GM’s share of its joint venture for $200 million to become an independent manufacturer.
Daewoo began sales in the US in the late 1990s and last about 4 years before going bankrupt in spectacular fashion which involved conviction of it's CEO and jail time. Two decades after selling 50% of the company, GM bought back 100% of Daewoo in April 2002 for $1.7 billion in cash and preferred stock for control of the new company now officially called GM Korea.
GM’s acquisition was a very profitable by first helping them penetrate the Korean domestic market. Within four years, GM Korea was producing over 1 million cars for 150 countries and helped them move into China. Many Daewoo models were rebranded as Chevrolets. Ten years after the deal closed, one-quarter of all Chevrolets sold worldwide were built in Korea, and were essentially Daewoos.
When my cousin turned 16 my uncle bought her a 1988 Pontiac Lemans. I'm not sure if anyone here remembers what that was, but it was a rebadged Daewoo. I don't think she even drove it a year before it was junked.
When my cousin turned 16 my uncle bought her a 1988 Pontiac Lemans. I'm not sure if anyone here remembers what that was, but it was a rebadged Daewoo. I don't think she even drove it a year before it was junked.
The Pontiac Lemans was the first introduction of Daewoo into the American marketplace. At that time the 50 year old Kim Woo-choong would have problably remained one of South Koreas richest men had he kept building GM vehicles. But he bought out GM in 1992, crashed the company in 7 years, and ended up in jail 6 years after that (only served 1.5 years of 10 year sentence until he received a New Year's pardon from the President).
Kim Woo-choong died two years ago just 10 days before his 83rd birthday.
Last edited by PacoMartin; 12-18-2021 at 07:34 AM..
The Pontiac Lemans was the first introduction of Daewoo into the American marketplace. At that time the 50 year old Kim Woo-choong would have problably remained one of South Koreas richest men had he kept building GM vehicles. But he bought out GM in 1992, crashed the company in 7 years, and ended up in jail 6 years after that (only served 1.5 years of 10 year sentence until he received a New Year's pardon from the President).
Kim Woo-choong died two years ago just 10 days before his 83rd birthday.
It was based on the European Opel Kadett. We never got the good one, the Kadett GSi, that spawned a rally version and a number of tuner versions.
I bought a 2021 Chevy Spark. I drove it 1200 miles from Connecticut to Florida. It drives solid, the seats are surprisingly comfortable, and it is very stable on the highway at 70 mph even with heavy tractor trailer traffic on the highway. I utilized cruise control during my trip and got 42 mpg average.
JD Power rates the Spark above the Honda Fit for reliability.
At $17,500 for a well equipped LT model it was a bargain in today's environment.
The car is what it is. Reliable transportation ideally suited for an urban environment. It is also surprisingly peppy. However, it can make the long distance trip when needed. If one has a large family, needs to haul around a lot of stuff, or is used to powerful engines then the Spark isn't the vehicle for them.
The car is what it is. Reliable transportation ideally suited for an urban environment. It is also surprisingly peppy. However, it can make the long distance trip when needed. If one has a large family, needs to haul around a lot of stuff, or is used to powerful engines then the Spark isn't the vehicle for them.
Spark is also Chevy's least polluting model by generation of carbon dioxide. The next is the Malibu
The Spark will be discontinued after 2022.
The Malibu will be discontinued after the current generation In 2024.
including destination, the cheapest vehicles in the US are
$14,595 2022 Chevrolet Spark
$16,055 2022 Nissan Versa
$16,125 2022 Mitsubishi Mirage
$17,145 2022 Kia Rio
$17,670 2022 Hyundai Accent
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