This is my first post in mouthshut and as a matter of fact my first review of any product anywhere. I have been thinking of writing this for quite a while now as I have gained so much information from the fraternity in the past.
Around seven months back we started about thinking of buying our first car, and had decided to go online to begin the hunt of the best hatch around 4L. We needed one to travel mostly within city, and an average travel of around 350-400 km per month. So diesel variant was of the table. We shortlisted i10, Astar, Zen, Spark, and Beat. Even though these had a variation of more than 50k between them, we thought of giving the hunt a try . As it turned out, the specs for i10 and Beat around 4L(on road in Chennai) were too basic, we didn’t like the rear design of Astar. It all boiled down to Zen and Spark, and what sealed the deal was the 50k discount that we got from Chevrolet on Spark. Eventually with all the negotiations we got the top variant, LT(fully loaded version of Spark) at an on-road price of 3.93L. Sundaram Motors, Chennai provided remote lock, mud flaps and interior carpet as accessories in addition to the first insurance premium.
Since I was a newbie in driving, there was not much point in taking a test drive, but I still took it for the fun of it. Here is one of the tips to the guys in Sundaram in case you are reading; when you send a car for test drive, please make sure the vehicle is in a top shape. If I were to decide on taking a Spark, based on the ride quality of the sample that you had sent, it would have been a sure no no. Since I had already made up my mind, and had experience of the vehicle beforehand I didn’t bother much.
Well, after 3000km of travel(mostly in the city, only 600km in high way), and two servicing I can say that, I am quite satisfied with my purchase. I have tested the mileage in the roads of Chennai(full tank to full tank). With AC on 30% of the time it gives an FE of 13.3kmpl in the city. The ride is smooth, AC cools really quickly, and corner handling is also nice even at higher speeds. I have hit a top speed of 105kmph till now in ECR and car always seemed grounded quite well. As far as the leg space is concerned, I can say that I am 5’9”, and with my father, 5’7” at the back seat, we didn’t have any space issues at all.
Also, I have always liked the look of Spark over its rivals.
The only con that I can think of is that, there is a slight drag with the AC on, which I am not sure about other cars in the same category. There has been one issue with the clutch bearing which needed to be replaced as it had started making a lot of noise. It got covered under warranty though.
Overall, I will give it a thumbs up. If you really push me, I would definitely like a Ferrari, but within a budget of 4L, I think I will take Spark LT any time.