Driving the All-New Chevy Spark
Cars and Women
Women may not have the same level of notoriety when it comes to intimacy with their cars as opposed to men. And from a technical and biological point of view, it does seem to make perfect sense.
After all, we’re better at ‘making sandwiches’, aren’t we? And the more sandwiches we make, the lesser time we have to spend on the road driving — the better for everyone else, right? :)
Well, not really. I think women have come a long way from making tasty sandwiches to heading the IMF (that’s International Monetary Fund for you non-news fans).
And if you follow that train of thought, driving around town shouldn’t be too hard even for us ‘spatially challenged’ creatures. After all, if we had to we can do anything (like what the song says). I mean if you can run a bad-ass company from a bad-ass position, you must be a bad-ass driver driving a bad-ass car (or at least riding one).
In this day and age, with crazy consumerism being the norm, you’d think car companies would have come up with a design with today’s woman in mind. But no they didn’t. And from the looks of it, nor do they plan to. Sure they came up with lighter and smaller ‘mini-passenger cars’ but somehow there remains a disconnect between what appears to be what women want versus what they actually want (and need) because there’s always this well-meaning man (husband, boyfriend, brother or father) in her life who is more than willing to share his opinions on what type of car fits her.
But ladies, let’s not kid ourselves here. If we can’t let men choose our shoes for us, why then do we ask their advise on which car to drive? Seriously, to me they should carry the same weight.
You are your shoes. That’s why you spend hours walking in your stilettos scouring for that perfect pair — that one pair that lifts you to cloud 9 once you slip your feet inside.
You are your car. That’s why you should also spend days or even months comparing features, visiting showrooms and doing test drives. After all, if your pair of happiness in leather can take you from point A to point B (the distance being in yards, I hope), that happiness in wheels does the same for you a thousand times over.
But of course in the end, we ultimately give in to what that well-meaning man has to say because we believe that sandwich-making is not as intense as drifting.
We let them choose for us because we believe we don’t know any better…
…until now.
Cue “The Bucket” by Kings of Leon:
Enter the All-New Chevy Spark.
It’s pretty, it’s trendy, it’s loaded with features and it’s got something good going on inside its hood. And did I mention, it’s reasonably priced too?
The Nitty-Gritty Details:
The All-New Chevrolet Spark is powered by a 1.0L 4-Cylinder S-TEC II DOHC engine. It has beautiful LED-lit instrumentation knobs and gauges perfect for tinkering with while putting-up with horrible city traffic. It comes with standard roof rails (for the 1.0 AT) for us girls who prefer to bring everything but the toilet with us during trips. Too lady-like? Don’t fret! As in all cars of today, it boasts of power steering, power windows, power side mirrors (1.0 AT) and power door locks / central door locking. And for the paranoid, you’d be glad to know that it comes with standard key less entry with anti-theft alarm and electronic immobilizer and driver side airbag.
For complete specs — click here
For the penny-pincher, rejoice! Mileage is reportedly 22km/L for the 1.2 MT according to Inquire Motoring’s test. Ain’t it good to know that you don’t have to burn your savings account while burning rubber?
Initially available only in 1.2L MT, it’s now sold in 3 variants:
5 Door Hatchback 1.0 LS, MT (5speed) – 518,888
5 Door Hatchback 1.0 LS, AT (4speed) – 568,888
5 Door Hatchback 1.2 LT, MT (5 speed) – 568,888
And in these colors:
Green Cocktail Metallic
Moroccan Blue
Carbon Flash Metallic
Super Red
Switchblade Silver
Olympic White
On Speed:
The new Spark goes from 0 to 100kph in 15.5 seconds and maxes to a speed of 154kph (something we’re yet to see as the fastest we’ve gone on the highway is only a little over a 100kph – sshh, don’t tell MATES).
On Power:
As far as power goes, I’ve found that unless you have significant momentum going for you, you may have to step it up on the gas pedal a little further as you ascend because you may find your Sparky gasping a little on second gear, unlike the Lancer I’m used to.
On Engine:
But boy is the engine quiet! Driving the Chevy Spark gives you that sort of serenity you don’t get to enjoy with the Lancer. Once the engine starts cruising, I’d have to constantly remind myself that it’s not dead.
On Ride:
Spark be nimble, Spark be quick, Spark lane changing is a breeze. Compared of course to a mid-sized sedan, it does feel so much lighter with the obvious upside that it give you a sense of being fast and on many occasions you really are fast. Its downside however is that you feel like riding Aladdin’s carpet when you’re running 100kph on the expressways and when you’re driving beside a bus or big truck, being light is no fun.
Relatively bumpy on unfriendly roads but it’s nothing that a driver can’t fix or find a workaround.
On Maneuverability:
This is probably the aspect of this car you will really enjoy especially if you’re used to mid to full-sized sedans. It’s a joy to handle the steering wheel. It’s like driving bump cars but with more control and less of the bumping. :) With a minimum turning radius of 5m (wall-to-wall), you’d probably find that no corners are too sharp for your trusty Spark.
On Features:
I must say I adore that beautifully-designed control/display panel combo that sport the Spark’s digital fuel gauge, tachometer etc. It adds youthful appeal to the car and provides the necessary information to ensure that the captain is always in control and in style.
It also comes with CD/FM-AM Tuner/MP3/iPod player and for the uber-busy folks, a provision for Bluetooth connectivity (requires BT adapter sold separately).
The Verdict:
So is the All-New Chevrolet Spark for you? It depends.
If you’re a city-dweller who goes through horrible traffic everyday to get to work, run frequent personal and family errands, neither higher than 5’7″ nor heavier than 160lbs, relatively slim and drives around with no more than 4 slim people, does not require too much power, a cheapskate on gas, well congratulations, you’ve got yourself a match!
While it may not entirely please men who live with the “harder, faster, better” mantra, it’s the best buy for women (and men) who go for functionality/usability and practicality. That is not to say the Spark is not gorgeous, of course! In fact, until now, it never fails to turn heads wherever it goes.
*It’s worth noting that during expressway road test, fuel gauge showed faster and significant drop in level than when driven in usual city traffic (in stark contrast to Lancer’s performance under similar conditions). As always, driving habits and road conditions must be taken into account.
On Driving Nirvana:
I’ve always believed that it is when a driver is in tune with his/her car that two separate entities become one and thereby move and feel as one. You are not simply in control of your car, you are one with it.
Every car purchase is every aspect and every consideration as important as finding that one chum you’ll be comfortable sitting with, listening to and ultimately bearing with.
Successful car and driver relationships are no myths. That’s why I always personally wash the car, because in the highly sexed-up highway of life, we all deserve great foreplay occasionally if not all the time.
Oh and before I forget, great foreplay is always accompanied by good music. For your new Chevy Spark, let Chevy itself, on the occasion of their 100th year anniversary, take care of what to put on your playlist.
Of course, I have mine too. But that’s another post. :)
***Note: This is NOT a paid/sponsored post. Expressed opinions about the Spark’s performance is based on blogger’s actual experience of driving new unit. For specs and current price, please visit Chevrolet’s official website.
** Blogged using BlogPress for iPhone
Location:Looc Main Rd,Calamba City,Philippines