You know, I was just thinking while I was reading this and crossed the terms “b segment” and “a segment”- We americans instead use “large”, “mid-sized” or “compact”, which puts a little bias on the type of vehicle we sell and buy. Until little details like this change, since the perception is obviously not going to change for a good few decades, some Americans will still think of a subcompact as “worse” than a larger car.

Which is most often the truth, and we haven’t seen any exceptions to that size rule for atleast fifty years, but…

47 miles per gallon is a bit weak for a car that size, no?

@04focus
The smart car only gets 41 highway, and according to smart’s website, it’s the most fuel efficient non-hybrid car in the US.

66 hp, what is this a 70’s fiat 500?

Realistic mileage will probably be in the low 40s. Add a sweat-hog or two and you’re looking at high 30s.

Now drop a VW TDI in this and now were talking!

How are Americans gonna buck a trend when almost half are overweight and could never fit in anything smaller than a mid sized SUV.

Changing a vehicles rating from compact to b segment or whatever is going to have little effect on a customers buying habit. I would surmise few would even know what vehicles are rated as compacts. They would just say they want a small car and go to the dealerships.

I thought the Spark was b segment?

jayjc, if I’m reading you correctly you apparently think the concept of ‘a’ and ‘b’ segment cars is lost on the average North American buyer. Well, you would be right. We’re not used to that terminology. By the way, you forgot to add ’subcompact’ to the terminology we are used to… which is what most of us would apply to a car like the Spark. To be honest I like our way better, but then again I also prefer it when cars have real names instead of the alphanumeric mishmash so many have chosen to adopt.

The key here is not only MPG, but PRICE!

turbo diesel would add lke $5k to the cost. Hybrid would add about the same.

If they can set the price at maybe $11k, they’ll have a winner.

johnny is right that the whole a- b- c- segment talk is a little off-putting to North Americans, mainly because very few automakers have been offering anything smaller than a c-segment (compact) vehicle here for many years. The Aveo, Echo/Yaris and Fit are considered b-segment (subcompact), and the Accent/Rio and Versa are c-segment sized but b-segment priced.. but when was the last time a true minicompact vehicle was offered here? Was it the Chevrolet Sprint or the Toyota Starlet? I have to assume the Spark will be competing with the likes of Ford Ka, Fiat 500, Toyota iQ and Smart Fortwo.. pretty small by NA standards!

More than 25 years ago I drove a Nissan Pulsar NX coupe with about 78 hp… it got around 30 mpg and had plenty of pickup… so the Spark isn’t so different. In fact it’s kind of shameful how little progress we’ve made in a whole generation.

Another rebadged Daewoo to join the Aveo in Chevy’s pile of sh*t. Anyone who has this car unless they drive it only in the city is gonna suffer of short llfe. I can see people throwing this car away because it died on them after only 5 years of ownership.

in terms of styling, the pulsar was a leap 20 years behind…god that thing was ugly…compared to a modern car i’m guessing a pulsar is also a deathtrap and pollutes like a fiend…

All eighties cars were deathtrap by today’s standards. Anyway I believe a Pulsar was similar to the Sentra of the day. The question is were does this fit in. The new Cruze is supposed to get over 40mpg on the highway, and be priced around 15G. The Aveo is less money 12G or so, though mileage is unimpressive. Is a Spark going to be less than 10G? I guess if people will buy a “Smart” they will buy this thing too, but how many. Anyway I do see some “Smart” cars around, but I have yet to see one on the highway. There is probably a reason, so the highway mpg could be a mute point.

I see Smart cars on the highway up here every day… in fact I even had one cut me off last week. Lucky for that guy I was in a company vehicle and retaliation would have been a career limiting move. Of course there’s a good reason they’re so plentiful in Canada… we’ve had them since 2004.

So leftwing, show me some numbers to back up your statement about something like a Pulsar polluting like a fiend. I’m not doubting you… but even back then cars were fuel injected and had catalytic converters. They weighed a lot less and because of that they generally had smaller engines pulling them around. So what exactly is the biggest contributing factor to reduced emissions between say a 1989 Nissan Pulsar and a 2009 Chevy Aveo?

This car and others like it could do well in sales. Keeping in mind the number of people who have lost their jobs and/or houses/credit etc, when the time comes that their ability to hit the market to purchase a new vehicle is realized many may opt for smaller cars like the Spark vs the former large look-at-me SUVS. It would also fit well in the Zip Car inventory

Johnny, in LWA’s defense, he did say he was guessing about the Pulsar’s pollution, but we all know that speculation from lefties must always be accepted as absolute fact that you should never Ever EVER question, whereas facts stated by those who are not braindead big government teat-sucking obamapologists are extremist propaganda.

Johnny, there are HUGE differences in emission standards between 89 and 09. You can almost close up a garage and leave a ‘09 car running and live. NO way in ‘89.

“After flip-flopping on their decision…” Gross understatement demonstrating GM’s consistently gross mismanagement. The Spark “Coming to America” is more like an afterthought, and stop-gap filler for a waning US GM lineup.

@jonnycanuck It take some balls to cut some off in Smart car.

I don’t see this car as stealing smart (yes, lower case s) sales. Why? Well, smart is after all associated with M-B, sold and serviced by M-B dealers, for a price half of the cheapest C-class M-B. smart is a fashion statement. smart’s unique design and quirky nature makes it so that it is measured in smiles per mile, not miles per gallon.

This car….well, at its core its a Daewoo. I own a Daewoo, so I can say the following: it will probably get you to 100+k miles without major engine/tranny problems, but in the meantime expect the interior, electronics, and “the little things” go wrong like clockwork. The car will be absolutely operational, but between the shot ac/heater, dead radio antenna, few cracked interior plastic pieces, and perhaps the cheapest from-the-factory tires you’ve ever had, you won’t be a happy owner.

That said though, I do see this car competing well with the 3dr Yaris, Accent, Versa 1.6, and Rio (sedan)… and at least compared to the current generation of those models, the Daewoo appears to have some style and character, we’ll see how it stacks against the next generation (long overdue for the Accent/Rio) of the competition.

smegley is absolutely correct about this point – don’t question me!

i don’t have numbers on pollutants, nor do i know where to find them, although i’ll take a look…my assumption was that advances in computerized engine management has lead to more optimal ignition and cleaner burning (better burning = less crap flowing downstream)…and i’ll pretend like i’m not copying from carstuff and say that, yeah, the increase in air quality standards is also a factor…you think an ‘89 pulsar could get past CARB?

How many pollutants can a 1.0L put out… really?

GM decides that there is a market for Spark, yet Ford decides that there is no market for Ka. What does that tell you? That Ford is BORRRRRRR-ING.

johnny-Your right, subcompacts too.

No, I don’t like alpha-numeric naming either. And I miss some special badges (such as the Viper badge, Impala badge, Monte Carlo badge, etc.), but I’m happy that automakers are finding more coherent designs overall and in some ways, names.

leftwing- Aren’t most cars also carrying two cat converters nowadays?

zoomzoomer- The Chevrolet Sprint (2001) and Ford Fiesta (1998) I think.

orangecones- Daewoo has improved since the car you drive. I remember when Daewoo’s were sold here. Worst excuse of an automobile.

-iluvamcars

Hey everybody,I’m only going to say this once,Ford SUCKS! Just kidding,I’m glad to see so many agree with me that Ford SUCKS!

oh daewoo is back in the US market?? oh yeah they already have been with the aveo…. i forgot….

Jay, yes. There is a cat right at the engine so it can light off earlier and catch the start up emissions which are the hardest to get now.

Good job GM!! This thing will sell plenty, it’s much nicer than the smart.

I think this thing will be a popular first car for kids, not so much adults. Although, it seems underpowered with less than 100 horses. Not sure if it can stand up against the Honda Fit with those specs.

reminds me of my son’s Transformer…same color same car.

Sgt Pepper nailed it.

03, funny that you said that. Just read that the Scion brand is hitting retirees big time. They seem to like the utility, low cost and different looks of the Scions.

looks like a volt’s undue offspring…ughh

the only way cars of this size will sell in any volume in America is if gas prices go way up and stay way up.
Europeans and to a lesser extent Canadians are more accepting of the micro and sub compact because our respective gas prices are much higher than those in the US. The reason our gas is more expensive is because it gets taxed… so unless the speculators come back to buy barrels of crude or your gov’t taxes fuel it won’t matter how much skinnier the average America ass gets, these cars won’t sell in any large volumes.

That’s ironic, I would’ve never thought Scions would appeal to retirees. Sounds like they’re going the same way of the Honda Element.

boycott this car! Skids was racist in Transformers!

Definitely looks nicer than the Smart, but I hope that the car doesn’t put on too much weight when it comes to the US. If it can get 47 mpg, and be both quick, safe whilst not being overweight, then it will definitely be a seller.

It may not have been built in America, because it’s a re-badged Daewoo Matiz, but this is something GM could definitely use to raise sales and rebuild their image, if it works out well.

Since crash tests are somewhat based on the weight of the vehicle being crashed. You can bet a Suburban will do a number on this thing no matter how many crash stars it gets. That is one of the tradeoffs when you drive small cars.

Maybe a 1.0L Turbo? Would be a nice fun little run-a-bout if it had 100+hp motor with some zip. 47mpg isnt bad either. I kinda hope GM keeps the lines of the concept and I also hope they keep from rebadge engineering this thing to death. Thoughts of the Cadillac Cimarron come to mind.

As long it doesn’t feel liike you are sitting in a total POS when you are in the car it should do OKAY in the US Market. Problem is that GM seems to always be way late and billions short when it comes to the small car segment.

GM is leading design again. All you haters can talk sh*t but where is your foreign manufacturers non-hybrid 47mpg car? None? Thought so. The Prius barely does that. And it will cost double the Sparks price.

And I know some of you ragging on the speed of only 66hp like the prius. This will only be slower than the Prius by a little, if at all. And with the low weight the Spark should handle good.

I think GM’s best selling small car is going to be the Cruze. It’s larger, has more power, and also gets about 40 mpg. I also don’t see why they need the Spark when they still have the Aveo. Is the Spark eventually going to replace the Aveo?

Aveo is a sub compact. Spark is smaller. Cheaper, better mpg.

The Chevrolet Spark is one of the jewls that can save General Motors. The electric Chevrolet Volt is an other example. The most important thing now is to finally phase out petrol burning cars.