Chevrolet Spark EV - Fleet Only in Canada

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I was pretty impressed when I first saw the specs and pricing on the SparkEV - then learned GM has made no commitment to sell the car outside CA-compliance states. Nice.

Useless. Press "ignore".
 
Hmmm. I thought the Spark EV wasn't supposed to be a compliance car.

http://www.plugincars.com/2014-chevrolet-spark-ev-headed-canada-fleet-only-vehicle-126504.html

Paul Pebbles, General Motors global manager of OnStar electric vehicle services, defended the seriousness of the company's intent to make the Chevy Spark EV a legitimate player. In an interview with PluginCars.com, Pebbles said, “It’s not a compliance car. We’re planning a global launch of this vehicle.” She added, “It will be in a lot of markets,” without providing specifics.
 
That's basically the same statement I'd read in an earlier article. Perhaps I am more cynical when I read [from the original interview]:

“It’s not a compliance car,” said Pebbles. “We’re planning a global launch of this vehicle—it will be in a lot of markets.” But Pebbles also said that GM isn’t yet talking volumes or specific American markets where the car will roll out next summer.

The only thing I'm interested in hearing is "available nationwide", and GM is saying no such thing. The only things we know for sure at this point are CA-compliance states and fleet-only sales in Canada. So when Pebbles says "It's not a compliance car", I can only say "If it walks like a duck and it quacks like a duck...."

I hope I'm wrong - if GM does take the Spark wide, it will provide a much-needed and more functional alternative to the Smart ED, especially if Mitsu leaves the i-MiEV to wither on the vine. As I've noted elsewhere, I fear the minimal-cost commuter BEV may be the most threatened configuration over the next few years, so I'm glad to see the segment survive. And given the advertising support GM has given the Volt, I expect the Spark EV would not get the silent treatment that has made the i-MiEV America's most invisible EV.

But I'm getting ahead of myself - again, as of now I don't expect GM to do any such thing. Not a compliance car? I'll believe it when I see it.
 
I should know better than to trust a posting from Plugincars.com. They are the site with the two FUD articles on the i-MiEV. I've blocked them from my Google search, but apparently that doesn't block them from the Google "news" search articles. :|
 
Does anyone have an idea how the Spark EV gets better mileage figures from the EPA than the i-MiEV? I've seen an EPA number of 119 for the Spark versus 112 for the i. The Spark has a 100kW motor, more than twice the power of our cars, and weighs in at ~500lbs more with a battery pack that is 25% bigger. It seems to me like it would have to be some kind of miracle of efficiency to get better mileage, although the Spark does seem to be more aerodynamic with a .31 cd. Are there any other areas where there are easy efficiency gains to be had in EV's that the Spark might be taking advantage of?
 
Better battery technology. Lose less engergy. They also have liquid thermal management. Much faster acceleration than Miev. I plan to add the Spark EV to my fleet.
 
HParkEV said:
Does anyone have an idea how the Spark EV gets better mileage figures from the EPA than the i-MiEV? I've seen an EPA number of 119 for the Spark versus 112 for the i.
I'd guess that you're probably right when you start comparing the cd's of both cars - Our city rating is 126 MPGe and it's our highway rating of only 99 which pulls the overall number down to 112

I'm not complaining - I'll take the ability to comfortably sit four 6' adults over the lower cd of many other cars. It's nice to drive a small car which isn't really small inside

Don
 
I took some ladies from work for a ride to lunch in the i-MiEV. They were surprised how much space was inside the tiny car. If you compare the wheelbase against other smallish cars, the i-MiEV is right there if not slightly longer than other compact cars, making for more-than-expected interior space.
 
Don said:
HParkEV said:
Does anyone have an idea how the Spark EV gets better mileage figures from the EPA than the i-MiEV? I've seen an EPA number of 119 for the Spark versus 112 for the i.
I'd guess that you're probably right when you start comparing the cd's of both cars - Our city rating is 126 MPGe and it's our highway rating of only 99 which pulls the overall number down to 112

I'm not complaining - I'll take the ability to comfortably sit four 6' adults over the lower cd of many other cars. It's nice to drive a small car which isn't really small inside

Don

I'm not complaining either, I love the packaging and the efficiency of the i, but it is very interesting to me where those substantial efficiency gains are found. Especially in the city rating which is 128 for the Spark, despite the substantial extra weight and double the power, which normally should make it a lot less efficient all other things being equal. In an ICE car you'd have to jump several generations of technology to achieve equivalent or slightly better city fuel efficiency with 500lbs more weight and double the horsepower. In this case it seems that the first generation EV's, like the i, left a lot of 'low hanging fruit' to be picked.
I know the EPA started using the climate controls for a portion of the test since 2008, is it possible that the Spark has a substantially more efficient system? Or maybe the whole EPA testing methodology for EV's is a bunch of voodoo and one should not really put too much faith in those numbers.
 
http://www.slashgear.com/2014-chevrolet-spark-ev-test-drive-02288769/

Complete review of the Spark EV. At 19k after federal rebate, its quite the bargain and has all the fluff - electronic instrumentation, 8s 0-60 time, full underbody pan, aero-grill, 82 mile range. I still think it's butt ugly and the interior is hideous. But it hits all the numbers very nicely. Still not available in Canada.

On a sour note, I don't see the i-MiEV selling many more models when consumers can choose something like this. MMC will have to up the game to stay in the full EV segment, which it doesn't seem like it will.
 
Despite being longer, wider, and having a larger turning radius than our iMiEV, the dealbreaker for me is the SparkEV's storage area with the back seats folded down: 23.4cuft for the SparkEV vs. 50.4cuft for the iMiEV.
 
So since I was down in compliance territory, I took a Spark EV test drive in Portland, Oregon on Friday. The seats, though vinyl, were much comfier than the i-MiEV front and back. Sculpted foam may be one reason that the rear seatback doesn't fold flat, even with fancy fold-away headrests. The instrumentation doesn't have a video-game startup sequence like the Volt, and it does give real numbers (like 113 kW of power when we weren't even in sport mode!). I didn't spot the sport mode button during the test drive, it's down next to the handbrake! The ride was much smoother than an i, and they do a great job of managing torque-steer, much better than the Focus EV. The car also seem quieter than the i, though the tires were probably down at 32 psi... Performance was invigorating (0-60 mph 7.6 sec), and that plus the greater battery capacity (21 kWh) and rated range (82 mile), could've pushed me in to a Spark versus an i, had they been available. I don't like the looks of the car as much as the 'pure design' of the i, and the cargo capacity is a joke by comparison. Turning radius seemed huge after my i, and there's no backup camera. Interior volume for the passengers was fine.
The LT2 upper trim level was stickered at $28k before rebate, including the CCS quick charge option. The dealer had a 'no monkey see' attitude regarding any straw buyer with an Oregon address, so that'd be easy enough to overcome- though it complicates the tax credit and warranty claims. Also would make dealer service a "tow yourself" situation.
 
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