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Originally Posted by VikrantD

One heck of a car that was. Super conformable and way better than the tin cans of those days.

For whatever reason, the reviews (especially word-of-mouth) were very negative for the Spark.

Those few who went ahead and bought the Spark despite the reviews, were not let down by the car - as they fondly recollect even after a decade.

[vishy76]

19,000 km Update



I have been away from this thread for a very long time. Thanks partly to my signature procrastination and partly to the German Queen who shares garage with my Spark. Majority of the expenses incurred when it comes to the Spark have been more of wants than needs if one considers the fact that this is essentially a 9-year-old A-segment hatchback, not worth more than a 5-digit sum in the used car market.

I will list down everything that has happened in a chronological order since the commencement of my ownership around July, 2020. A scheduled service was carried out in December 2020, which included changing the oil, oil filter and air filter. Set me back a paltry 2700 bucks.


January, 2021

I believe I have already mentioned the spark plugs and front dampers with the strut bearings were replaced in my initial ownership review itself. The latter was largely due to a large rut the car encountered on the front left-hand side, when I gingerly took it down what I thought was a gently sloping village trail littered with occasional shallow potholes. Unfortunately, I couldn’t have been more wrong. While traversing down this trail at fairly high speeds, the car went over a very deep rut on the front left-hand side, followed by a rather abrupt transition back to level ground. The Spark didn’t quite take well to this undulation as expected. A very nasty metallic twang emanated from the front left, forcing me to get off and check what had gone wrong instantly. While nothing seemed wrong at first glance, I could make out two anomalies as I racked up more miles:
- The car was slowly pulling to the left. The pull got worse with time
- There was a prominent rattle from the front left-hand side over bad roads
After jacking the wheel up, I could feel some play in it and suspected a busted wheel bearing.

The Spark was sent over to my FNG who deduced that the play was due to a very weak damper and a failed strut bearing. A set of front dampers (Monroes) and new strut bearings were installed. The issue seemed to be solved though I felt no obvious difference in the way the car handled or rode. This exercise set me back close to 7K including labor.

Fast forward to June 2021, and the same rattling returned. Only this time, even releasing the clutch would cause it. I dropped the car off at a nearby FNG for the following:
- Fix whatever is wrong with the front left suspension
- Do a full denting and painting for the bootlid (Had reversed into a pole once as mentioned before, leaving ugly dents which had become breeding grounds for rust)
I also demanded that none of the badges except for the Chevrolet Bowtie be reused. A full debadge essentially.

The FNG got back with the following diagnosis:
- The front left strut mount had worn off prematurely leading to the same rattle. The front left wheel bearing was also weak and would need changing
- He offered to repaint the entire hatch and bumper instead of a single portion. I gave the go ahead for a complete bootlid repaint, but demanded the bumper remain untouched

The FNG did a good job of doing the repairs and repaint, except for one major mistake. As expected, the idiots went ahead and pasted the badges in a hurry without letting the paint dry sufficiently (and of course, ignoring my demands for the debadge). There was no way I could do anything. Trying to take the badges off would result in the paint peeling off too. Decided to leave it alone.

This job cost me around 7800 bucks in total, with around 4.5K going in for the denting and painting and the balance for the strut mount, strut bearing and the wheel bearing.


Fuel Pump Issue



Around July, 2021, another issue reared its ugly head. Very shortly after this denting and painting job had been done with the suspension repairs, the car felt wonderful to drive, except for one hiccup. Flooring the gas pedal, would sometimes lead to a rather irritating jerk and hiccup. The car wouldn’t pick up seamlessly. This jerking got worse, especially with a drop in fuel levels. In the end, I had to enlist the help of fellow bhpian vigsom to troubleshoot the issue. Long story short, we both ended up doing 2-3 rounds of DIYs for R&D purposes. I will list down what was done with a few supporting images:

- Throttle body cleaned. Did lead to an improvement in overall performance but the jerking remained
- Spark plugs and cables checked. Nothing wrong with them
- Fuel pump assembly removed and dismantled. Fuel strainer found to be in very poor shape. Strainer changed. No improvement in performance
- Bought an aftermarket fuel pump motor and fitted it to the assembly. Issue seemed resolved for a week and returned again
- Finally, handed the car over to my FNG who changed the fuel pump feed pipe. This largely resolved the issue but the car still jerks when the fuel level goes anywhere close to reserve

I didn’t want to invest 4000 bucks for a brand-new fuel pump assembly, especially considering the fact that it still wouldn’t guarantee an effective solution. Vigsom’s advice from the beginning had been to maintain an adequate level in the tank and forget the issue. I decided to be better late than never when it came to this, and simply stopped allowing the fuel level to drop below 2-3 bars (around 5-6L).

I do have to give the man credit where it’s due though. Vigsom could have simply said this was my D.I.Y idea, my car and my screw ups, washing his hands off the issue entirely (or not getting them dirty at all). However, he made sure we saw this issue through to (almost) the end. I don’t think I can ever find a D.I.Y partner as enthusiastic and passionate as him. I learnt a lot from him in the process, and I think this is a solid takeaway from the entire saga apart from having the chance to dismount and dismantle a fuel pump assembly from a car. It’s a D.I.Y I will remember for life.

Throttle body cleaned by vigsom using IPA and a cloth. Quite a lot of carbon on the circumference of the flap. Overall performance did improve by about 7-10 percent I would say:


The Fuel Pump being pulled out. WD40 or the rust smash I used is your best friend:




The Old strainer. Reduced to a few pieces of fibre held together by some plastic. Had disintegrated completely otherwise:


Got a new strainer and bolted it to the pump, only to find that the fuel pump reservoir is too small to accommodate even this size of a strainer:


Had to go back and buy a smaller circular strainer. This one fitted perfectly to our relief:


Issue still not sorted. Went ahead and shoehorned a brand-new pump motor into the pump assembly. The issue went away for a week only to resurface. Decided to give up at this point. Even my FNG could only partly sort the issue out:


I might change the fuel filter for the sake of it in the future but I don’t expect any miracles in all honesty. This is one less than ideal functioning component or sub system I have been dissatisfied with but forgiven on the car.


To keep or not to keep

The Spark’s usage shot up after the Jetta had to stay at the FNG for close to a month on account of major running repairs. My dad would use it for around 40-50 km on a daily basis. I also started racking up miles and the car breached the 19,000 km mark on the odo in no time. The yearly running from July, 2020 to July, 2021 was around 3500-4000 km. Quite a lot considering the average yearly running of the car was not more than 1700-1800 km when I got her home.

The motive of procuring the Spark was to have a beater car which would enable me to learn to drive. Post this, the car was destined to be sold off. However, I have developed a sense of respect for the Spark seeing it work day in and day out. Subtract all the repairs I listed above, and I am quite sure the car would still be limping around today (albeit, not in a condition I would have liked to keep it in). The thing just doesn’t have much to go wrong. Its been half a decade after GM left India, but spares are not a huge issue with a flurry of aftermarket vendors available. Scheduled maintenance costs peanuts.

Most importantly, it’s difficult to find a car like this today new. Most A-segment hatchbacks have turned to gimmickry and features rather than good old-fashioned solid engineering to attract customers. The Spark in my opinion, makes a solid case for itself here. Lastly, the abysmal resale value is yet another deterrent or a blessing in disguise, whichever way you look at it.

I have thus decided to retain the Spark for a minimum period of 2 years from now. Frankly, I would love to keep it all the way till the end of its legal life (another 5 years) and then do an objective analysis of what the future holds for it, but 2-3 more years isn’t a bad figure either.
I thus decided to make a few more changes to it in the interest of long-term ownership.


Clutch Cable Adjustment

I had been alternating between the Jetta and Spark for a very short period of time and had noticed the clutch on the Spark had a few abnormal traits
- Firstly, the car would judder slightly 9/10 times when letting off in first. Unless you were really careful and released the clutch in a very gradual manner (impossible in traffic). Bhpian vigsom pointed out this is due to a slightly uneven wear on the pressure plate fingers and its not something to be very concerned about

- The second issue was a bit more bothersome. The clutch bite point was way too high. It would only start biting when the pedal had completed more than 90 percent of its upward travel. This was really bothersome for me in peak traffic. I visited my trusted FNG, who gladly said the clutch would need replacement

Objectively speaking, the clutch on this car has been replaced at 12K km thanks to my grandfather’s driving style. My dad isn’t very forgiving in this regard either. I didn’t really have much reason to doubt the FNG. Having said all this, I had no difficulty shifting gears, observed no slippage of the clutch and didn’t really see a reason to spend 5K just to get rid of the judder. I decided to go to another FNG and get the clutch cable adjusted. Mercifully, this did make a difference. The clutch now engages at around 60-70 percent travel and I find it much easier to modulate in traffic. The clutch will need an overhaul, but I don’t think its less than 7-10K km away.


Tyre Change



The stock Apollo Acceleres were 9 years old. Nuff said. I decided not to risk it and just change them. After evaluating a plethora of makes and sizes, I settled for Continental. I will still list down what I was quoted for various options below:
- MRF ZVTS 155/70 R13 – Rs. 3300/tyre
- Continental CC6 155/70 R13 – Rs. 3750/tyre
- Michelin XM2 155/70 R13 – Rs. 4250/tyre

Special mention to the Acceleres first. I think these are hands down the best OE or Indian make tyres I have experienced on a car. Even at the end (or shall I say beyond the end) of their lives, they never really showed signs of giving up dangerously on the limit. The only reason for changing them were that they had gone rock hard (expected) and I ended up having close to 4 punctures on one tyre with two other tyres also showing signs of a slow puncture.

A small but significant lesson learnt the hard way. NEVER allow any garage or tyre shops to tighten the lug nuts using a pneumatic wrench. As good and quick as it sounds, it’s an absolute nightmare to get them off. I stood on the damn wrench, injured myself and finally had to take it to a puncture repair shop because only one nut would budge! This is the rear right tyre with 4 punctures. My tyre change was preponed thanks to this:


I decided that the Continental CC6 would be an appropriate successor to these tyres instead of the cheaper MRFs and went for them eyes closed.

Total bill ~ 15,400 bucks (15K for the tyres and another 400 bucks for the valves)

Got the job done at a tyre outlet named Sarina Wheels on vigsom’s recommendation. They are a Michelin priority dealer too. The owner Arif was very welcoming, and the chaps there worked at a pace I have never seen before at any tyre shop here in Vadodara. I was out in less than 40 minutes. All in all, a great experience and I would definitely prefer this outlet for any tyre related work going forward.

The ride has become a lot more cushier post tyre change as expected. Bumps and potholes don't have a firm jarring edge anymore. Overall NVH has also gone up by leaps and bounds. Quite satisfed with these tyres to sum things up. Will pass verdicts on overall grip levels as I drive more.

Car jacked up in preparation for tyre change. I also took this opportunity to check the rear shocks for leaks:


No leakage from the rear dampers but the top bushes had cracked very badly on both. Additionally, the ride was still quite bouncy and crashy at the back:


The cracked top bush. Most bushes on the car show surface cracks thanks to age largely:


The old Apollo acceleres. Plenty of meat left as expected, but rock hard and close to 4 punctures on one tyre (two very close to the sidewall). Made no sense continuing with them:



New Rear Dampers and Brake pads Ordered

I was keeping a close eye on boodmo and realized the rear dampers were priced quite attractively. A pair of Monroe shocks for the back would set me back by about 2200 bucks. I asked bhpian Klub_class to order a pair for me along with a pair of brake pads of his choice. After taking feedback from bhpian Chiranjitp, he suggested Roulunds. Other choices were Bosch and IGB. Roulunds also worked out to be the cheapest of the lot, so decided to go with them.

The total amount came to a shade under 2400 bucks inclusive of discounts. Good value I would say. Thanks a tonne for placing the order for me Amith! The pads reached within 3-4 days while the dampers took close to 5 days. Not at all shabby. My first experience with boodmo was rather flawless in all honesty.

The Roulund’s brake pads. Current brake pads look good for another 5-7K km, so these will go into my shelf for now:


Getting the new dampers installed will have to wait since I have exhausted my budget for repairs now. Will get it done and update the thread when the time is right.


Outstanding Issues

Its obvious a car closing in on the 10-year mark will have some niggles. I will list them down in order of urgency:

Ever since I got the car, the gear shifts have been very vague and rubbery. The car inherently has a notchy gearbox, but I was observing excess play in the gear lever even when in gear. I probed a bit further and found this dead play was due to slack in one of the shifter cables.

More specifically, it was coming from the end where the cable bolts to the GB selector. I will have to remove the retaining clip and disconnect the cable to check the condition of the bush on that end. It should be the bush though I don’t rule out a badly attached cable end either.

If it is the bush, I will remove the cable and have a new bush made on a lathe. This job isn’t very urgent, though it’s the first one I would undertake if given the chance.

Attached here is a video of the play in the gear lever and the loose selector cable end:

https://youtu.be/4HU4Ic5xSSY

https://youtu.be/XfSLGCh8-XE

Secondly, one of the bushes in the front (ARB or the control arm) is clunking on full articulation at low speeds. It isn’t very bothersome for now but I would want to change this myself when the time is right.

Lastly, a service is due. I change oil based on condition on this car and the current oil can easily go another 6-8 months. I might change the air filter, clean the cabin filter and be done with it. The coolant also seems to be losing color gradually, so it might be something else I might tackle next service.

The IRVM fell off one fine day. I M-sealed it back and its seated perfectly. Might swap to a Honda Auto dimming IRVM if I can somehow find a compatible mount for my car:





Future Upgrades

Have ordered a headlight relay kit to upgrade the lousy stock headlamps. Will be creating a separate thread on it later.



A few parting shots for your viewing pleasure

With an Alto for company. Please excuse the dirty car:




With an Ignis for company. My favorite spec of the Ignis. The 1.2 K-series Delta Manual. Excellent VFM. Both cars do share a lot of traits when it comes to aesthetics including a quirky rear end:






Current odo reading is around 19,400 km:


That’s all for now folks. Thanks for reading through!



Cheers!

[HammerHead]

Great review. Thanks for sharing those details and refreshing our memories.
I had suggested Chevrolet Spark to my sister over other cars available in that price range. It was superior car in every aspect back in the day.
My sister happily used it for years before moving on to Hyundai Grand i10.

[vishy76]

The ODO currently reads 198xx km and is expected to breach the 20K km mark in the next 2 months. Thanks to a myriad of issues I am facing with the kwid, the little Chevy has seen increased usage.

20K KM/9 year Service

In Feb, 2022, I decided to have the car serviced. This is a rare car where I follow a condition based oil change interval rather than a time based one. This is largely down to the low running. The car barely breached the 5K km mark in 1.5 years and the oil seemed to be in decent shape even at this juncture.

I decided to use synthetic oil just to see what sort of a difference it would make (If any). Shell HX8 5W30 is what went in. The oil filter and air filter were both supplied by me to the FNG (procured them from boodmo). I used ZIP filters on BHPian Klub_class' recommendation. Both filters ended up costing me not more than 300 bucks combined. Good value I would say.



I also had the rear dampers, air filter and fuel filter replaced, apart from doing a comprehensive inspection of the entire car. All in all, it was a day well spent at the FNG.

All parts (except for the fuel filter and oil) were sourced by me. The brake pads didn't need changing this time round:




Old oil drained out:


Old air filter was in excellent condition. Decided to reuse it:


New fuel filter. The fuel filter hadn't been changed for the past 9 years:


Finally, the new dampers went in. My FNG had advised me not to change them since there was no oil leakage observed. However, after my experience with the Jetta, where the dampers had nil oil leakage but very poor to no rebound, I decided to take what he was saying with a pinch of salt.

Needless to say, I was right. Here are the old dampers an hour after they were compressed. Zero rebound, although they seemed to resist compression well:


New Monroe Damper in place:


The FNG was very confident in pointing out that the car was "eating" tyres. He said the wear on the inner sides of both front tyres was uneven. After close inspection and 2-3 days of deliberation, I found these claims to be rubbish for the following reasons:

- The rear tyres (where the alignment is fixed and there's virtually no suspension ancillaries that can wear) had the exact same wear pattern.

- It had been barely 200-300km since I had the tyres changed. I don't think a car can eat through tyres this quickly even with poor alignment

- Most importantly, the car drove perfectly fine. Absolutely no issues with the way it went down the road. Tracked arrow straight with the steering at dead centre position. Handled perfectly. Stopped on a dime.

Additionally, 3 different mechanics at the same FNG had 3 different explanations for the "wear". One suspected it to be poor wheel alignment. I also called up the shop which changed these tyres and tried to have a word with the owner personally, but he was least interested in even listening to what I had to say. He bluntly asked me to depend on the FNG to solve the issue. If there's one thing I have realised about the work ethics in my city, it is the fact that nobody wants to take onus of their work and a word known as "customer retention" doesn't exist in their dictionary.

The second mechanic claimed it was a worn suspension. I had a thorough look at the suspension and yes, it isn't in the pink of its health. The ARB bushes do creak when they are cold. However, there's virtually no other issue with the front suspension that I could see. No unwanted play, no torn rubber bushes or bellows and no structural damage to the spindles or control arms.

The third mechanic said it was a steering rack issue. At this point, I decided not to even push for a resolution. I simply asked them to leave the car alone and that I would have a wheel alignment report generated and take a call.





The entire exercise including labour cost me around 7300 bucks. This includes the cost of the rear dampers. As a routine service, this would have ended up costing me around the 4K mark (used expensive synthetic oil). Reasonable I would say.


Coming to what I felt had changed in the car post servicing:

• The ride quality has improved tremendously. I am so glad I ignored my FNG's advise and changed the rear dampers. The car used to crash through potholes and ruts before, but the ride has a very supple edge now. It rounds off potholes and bumps to perfection. There's a hint of stiffness to the ride, but in no way is it bone jarring or discomforting in the least. The rear end also behave a lot more predictably now during hard cornering or emergency braking maneuvers. In terms of the overall ride at low to moderate speeds, I feel the Spark is the best car in my garage. The Jetta is too stiff while the Kwid is too soft and bouncy.
  
• The car feels a lot smoother overall. Yes, the jerks that were felt when the fuel level was low still exist, but the synthetic oil change has made the engine feel a lot more free revving and a tad smoother on cold starts. I personally feel its worth the price I paid, though someone who feels otherwise won't really be in the wrong either. It all boils down to how much you want to spend on the oil and what sort of drain intervals you practice.

Headlamp Bulb upgrade to 90W bulbs

I was going to upload a DIY thread on doing a headlamp bulb upgrade to 90W bulbs with the appropriate wiring changes. BHPian aagoswami had a pair of Hella 90W bulbs lying around which he handed over to me. Thanks a lot man! Really appreciate it.

Unfortunately, I hit a couple of roadblock along the way.

- The first issue was pertaining to the fuse holder. One of the fuses I had procured and installed melted causing a lose contact. Replacing it with a better quality fuse solved the issue

- The second (and more recent) issue was the fact that the headlamp connectors are overheating and melting.

I have a feeling the second issue is a combination of the headlamp switch in my car having a short (sometimes both the low and high beam come on simultaneously if I nudge the stalk) and the substandard wiring kit I have procured. I will be investigating both possibilities and will document the same in a separate thread. For now, here are snaps of the light output post bulb upgrade. There's a reason why I don't want to revert to stock setup even though this setup has the aforementioned issues

Low Beam


High Beam


The low beam output could have been better, but this setup is 40-50 percent better than what I had before. I am not complaining at all.

That's all for this update. Hopefully, I have better news to share next time with pertains to the headlamps.

Till then,
Ciao

[bpm_km]

Nice to read a detailed review and meaningful comments on the Spark. I have been a Spark-rider for the past 12+ years. My first and only car and I do have an emotional bond with it. In a way, my family and I are due for an upgrade but I have been putting it off as I live very close to my office and therefore my kms have always been low. I am more of a defensive driver and not a huge fan of driving given the stressful nature of our roads. This along with my needs have meant that the upgrade is still in the distant future. But my Spark has been trustworthy - it's a great hatch for Indian cities, spacious and has a very good engine. Chevrolet service has been pretty competent but not exactly cheap (but I can't tell whose service is cheap exactly). The car has done only 54k + and that includes nearly 3 years (not continuous) of idle team due to me being away from Mumbai for that long, first in 2016 due to work and then of course, Covid. Surprisingly, she was in near prime condition after my return to Mumbai last March and I have been using her for my usual office commute and weekend chores.

[lime]

Quite excited to see this thread! I have a 2011 Chevrolet Spark LT in Sandrift Grey (clocked 45k), currently being used in Mumbai. I got it from my home in Kerala last July. We almost sold it, but then getting a cab here in Mumbai during the rain started to get very difficult and so decided to give it a second innings here.

Gave it to our FNG for a basic check up. Did a radiator flush, restored headlights and serviced AC compressor (it's getting weak). Had gotten the timing kit and alternator replaced recently. Car was ready for a 1100kms drive.

Recently changed engine oil after flush, fully synthetic 5W40 Mobil 1. Only problem now is rough idling after cold start for about a minute. No changes after replacing to NGK Platinum plugs, Injector cleaner, air filter replacement and throttle body cleaning. Ignition coil was replaced recently. No vacuum line leaks. I'm suspecting fuel pump now after reading your post. There is a slight hesitation in sudden acceleration.

Car is almost stock, other than a set of 4 bridgestone B290s (upgraded to 165/65 from 155/70 apollo acelere), steering wheel leather wrap (neatly done at Orchis, Powai) and 4 x JBL 4 inch speakers. Sharing some pictures here.