Chevrolet Spark
Registered from 2009 to 2016.
About this model
The Chevrolet Spark is a city car manufactured by General Motors's subsidiary GM Korea from 1998 to 2022. The vehicle was developed by Daewoo and introduced in 1998 as the Daewoo Matiz. In 2002, General Motors purchased Daewoo Motors, which was marketing the vehicle with several GM marques and nameplates.
From the Wikipedia article Chevrolet Spark, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
What fails its inspection
Great Britain's MOT record for the 2012 1.0 petrol. 886 of 3,388 tests failed, 26%.
Better than 18% of 2012 cars. The typical one fails 21%, across 925 models with enough tests behind them to say.
| Where | Share of failures | Failed tests |
|---|---|---|
| Brakes | 45% | 400 |
| Lights and electrics | 44% | 393 |
| Suspension | 37% | 332 |
| Tyres and wheels | 23% | 206 |
| Visibility | 20% | 174 |
| Body and structure | 14% | 128 |
The defects inspectors cite
- Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded
- A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
- Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
- Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
- A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
- Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake
Where it stands out against its peers
- Brakes: failed more often than 91% of 2012 cars — 45% of its 886 failed tests, where an ordinary 2012 car has 27%.
- Visibility: failed more often than 90% of 2012 cars — 20% of its 886 failed tests, where an ordinary 2012 car has 10%.
Same model year only, at least 30 peer cars, zeros included. Every car has a worst part; this shows which, and how far from ordinary it is. A high share means more to check, not a verdict.
NHTSA's investigations are American; no European regulator publishes an equivalent record, so this section has nothing to draw on for a European car. There is no European equivalent of the service-bulletin register either.
Before you buy one
Built from what this car fails on, not from general knowledge of the model.
- Brakes — 45% of its failures
- Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded
- Significant brake effort recorded with no brake applied indicating a binding brake
- Suspension — 37% of its failures
- A spring or spring component fractured or seriously weakened
- Tyres and wheels — 23% of its failures
- Tyre tread depth not in accordance with the requirements
- Brakes imbalance across an axle such that the braking effort from any wheel is less than 70% of the maximum effort recorded from the other wheel on the same axle.
- Lights and electrics — 44% of its failures
- A lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
- Stop lamp missing, inoperative or in the case of a multiple light source more than 1/2 not functioning
- Visibility — 20% of its failures
- Body and structure — 14% of its failures
- Brake pipe damaged or excessively corroded
When it starts failing
At 120–140k miles this one fails 35% of its inspections, against the 25% an ordinary car of the same age fails.
| Odometer | Failure rate | Rate | Its age | Tests |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0–20k miles | 18% | 10% | 102 | |
| 20–40k miles | 20% | 13% | 488 | |
| 40–60k miles | 26% | 17% | 936 | |
| 60–80k miles | 28% | 21% | 971 | |
| 80–100k miles | 28% | 23% | 558 | |
| 100–120k miles | 32% | 25% | 231 | |
| 120–140k miles | 35% | 25% | 63 |
3,349 British inspections, grouped by the odometer reading recorded at the test.
Half of these have more than 60k miles on them. That is how far people drive this car, not how long it lasts.
Specification
| Year | Measured |
|---|---|
| 2014 | 1.2 petrol · 80 hp · 1022 kg · 2375 mm wheelbase · 4.9 L/100km (NEDC) |
| 2013 | 1.2 petrol · 80 hp · 1035 kg · 2375 mm wheelbase · 5.0 L/100km (NEDC) |
| 2012 | 1.0 petrol · 67 hp · 1036 kg · 2375 mm wheelbase · 5.0 L/100km (NEDC) |
| 2011 | 1.2 petrol · 80 hp · 1027 kg · 2375 mm wheelbase · 5.0 L/100km (NEDC) |
| 2010 | 1.0 petrol · 1004 kg · 2334 mm wheelbase · 5.0 L/100km (NEDC) |
Recalls
Filed by the manufacturer with a regulator. A recall is repaired free of charge, whoever owns the car now.
A12/0064/14
The clutch pedal pivot may fail during normal use of vehicle. If the clutch pedal fails the vehicle will not be capable of changing gear.
Recall of the product from end users
A12/0237/15
The bonnet striker secondary latch may suffer from a build-up of corrosion. Consequently, it may not return to the correct position when released. In such an event, and especially when the primary locking device is not engaged correctly, there is a possibility that the bonnet could open while the vehicle is being driven.
Recall of the product from end users
A12/0307/14
Vehicles may experience transmission mount failure which could result in a loss of drive due to disconnection of the driveshaft. This could cause the driver of the vehicle to lose control.
Recall of the product from end users
A12/1236/16
Due to a software problem, the frontal airbags and seatbelt pretensioners may not deploy correctly, which may increase the risk of injury to occupants in the event of a crash.
Recall of the product from end users