2009 Chevrolet Spark Review

Chevrolet is putting a brave face on it. After facing an uncertain future under new management, the American firm can now relax under the protection of a government-backed GM. So what better way to rise from the ashes than launching an all-new model?

The Chevrolet Spark, which replaces the crude and slow Matiz, is an all-new city car designed by the man who penned the chic Fiat 500. It's been created to capture the hearts of a youthful audience and aims to go head-to-head with the Kia Picanto and Hyundai i10.

Inside, the cabin proves that Chevy has turned a creative corner, finely balancing a low-cost approach with a sense of fun.

Prices start from £6,945 and stretch to £9,845, while the options of a low polluting 67bhp 1.0-litre and an 80bhp 1.2-litre should make it among the best in class for running costs.

Chevrolet is confident its tiny city car will be a huge hit this side of the Atlantic. Read on to find out why.

New Chevrolet Spark

It's a mini-MPV that is shaped with a 'wheels-out, body-in' stance, its single-arc roofline accentuated by strong, clean body sides free of cladding. The focal point of the cabin is the motorcycle-style instrument 'pod', which sits on top of the steering column and delivers all of the essential information in a compact yet easy-to-read manner. The analogue speedometer is backed up by a digital tachometer, just like on a motorbike. All the controls are backlit by ice-blue lighting when the headlights are turned on. In-car entertainment is a matter of choice and Spark customers can enjoy their favorites on radio, CD, MP3 or by plugging in their portable systems via USB or Aux-in sockets.

The car's size, handling and manoeuvrability are in tune with urban life. Chevrolet's new mini comes in a compact package: at only 3640 mm long and 1597 mm wide, it should easily squeeze into tight city spaces.

The Spark is available with Electronic Stability Control, with electronic brake and traction control capabilities to provide precise anti-lock braking capabilities, as well as exceptional yaw stability. Almost 60 percent of the car's structure consists of advanced steels, with varying levels of stiffness and built-in crush zones to absorb crash impacts. The front engine bay rails and subframe are designed to absorb energy while maintaining the highest loads possible as they collapse, while a transition zone around the base of the A-pillars and front bulkhead effectively distributes crash energy around rather than into the passenger compartment.

A similar crush zone exists at the rear, with the fuel tank and its connections designed in a way to minimize the chance of ruptures. Additional rear impact loads are absorbed by a strong rear cross member.

High levels of occupant protection are further enhanced by twin front airbags, side curtain airbags and additional seat mounted thorax and abdomen airbags, seatbelt pretensioners and a pedal retraction system, which pulls the pedal box away from the car's occupants in the event of a frontal collision, reducing the risk of lower leg injury.

Two engines are on offer at launch - both petrol units with displacements of 1.0 and 1.2 litres. They are closely related and use a cast-iron block and alloy head, with a double overhead camshaft and four valves per cylinder. They feature multi-port fuel injection and are both Euro V emissions compliant. Both engines come with a five-speed manual gearbox.

The two engines use advanced features such as port deactivation technology to improve exhaust gas recirculation, leading to optimal fuel efficiency and idle stability, along with a timing chain to ensure a lifetime of low maintenance and running costs. The Chevy Spark consumes only 5.1 litres of fuel per 100 km and produces CO2 emissions of 119 g/km.

Much of the interior space is down to the car's clever packaging. The cabin was designed to accommodate as much supplementary storage space as possible. The centre console, for example, incorporates a bin for carrying smaller items such as a mobile phone, MP3 player or packet of chewing gum, while there's also a double cup holder next to the gear shifter.

New Chevrolets perform well in Euro NCAP crash tests

General Motors (GM) reports that its two newest Chevrolet models, the mid-sized Cruze and the smaller Spark, have performed well in the latest round of Euro NCAP crash tests. The Cruze was awarded the top five-star rating, while the Spark was awarded four stars; it reportedly scored 69 points out of a possible hundred in the tests, leaving it just one point short of winning a fifth star.

The Cruze was the first car subjected to the Euro CAP tests to score maximum points on both the frontal offset collision and side impact tests. The company attributed the good results in part to extensive use of high-strength steels in the Cruze's body structure, and also pointed to the active safety systems fitted to the car such as electronic stability control and electronic brake-force distribution.

The Cruze and the Spark are the latest models from the former Korean Daewoo operations whose products have been sold in Europe with Chevrolet badges since a GM takeover a few years ago. If GM had gone ahead with its divestment of Opel and Vauxhall, the Cruze and the Spark would have been been of central importance to GM in its efforts to maintain or improve its position in Europe; now the relative positioning of Opel/Vauxhall and Chevrolet, which to some extent occupy the same market territory, will probably have to be looked at afresh.

The Cruze, a sister car of the new Vaxhall Astra (which also received a five-star Euro NCAP rating in these latest results), has generally been well received, although it has been held back by the fact that initially at least it has only been available as a saloon, rather than with the hatchback body style favoured by European buyers.

2011 Chevrolet Volt Pedestrian Alert System

November 25th, 2009 Earlier this morning, we wrote about GM's announcement that engineers developing the 2011 Chevrolet Volt have partnered with the National Federation of the Blind to figure out "a safe level of sound" from the company's first extended-range electric vehicle. Our subsequent interview with Tony Posawatz, vehicle line director for the 2011 Volt extended-range electric car, helped us understand some details of the Volt's Pedestrian-Friendly Alert System that we hadn't known. Drivers to sound the alert For one thing, the system will be driver actuated, rather than automatically producing sound at neighborhood speeds. Drivers will trigger it just like the "flash-to-pass" function now built into many turn-signal/light-switch combination levers. The goal, Posawatz said, was to produce an "automotive quality sound" that pedestrians would instantly recognize, without confusing it for the horn. He described it as "a series of low horn audio signals or cues," but said the precise sound is "still being fine-tuned." Lights as well as sound At speeds under 35 miles per hour, the system not only emits that characteristic sound, but also flashes the Volt's lights. Though flashing lights may not be useful to vision-impaired pedestrians, they add an additional layer of warning for children, runners, cyclists, and others who may be unaware that a two-ton vehicle is driving silently toward them. The alert sound is distinctive enough, Posawatz said, that it may become a way for Volt drivers to acknowledge each other, just as Corvette drivers and Harley-Davidson riders signal each other as they pass. Hybrids hit pedestrians more The imminent arrival of all-electric cars like the 2011 Chevrolet Volt and the 2012 Nissan Leaf has raised the level of concern among advocates for the blind about the lack of noise from hybrids running in electric mode. Recent preliminary data from a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) study appears to show that hybrids hit pedestrians more often than non-hybrid vehicles. With statistical information now demonstrating that risk, carmakers are lining up to work with groups like the NFB. At speeds under 35 miles per hour, the system not only emits that characteristic sound, but also flashes the Volt's lights. Though flashing lights may not be useful to vision-impaired pedestrians, they add an additional layer of warning for children, runners, cyclists, and others who may be unaware that a two-ton vehicle is driving silently toward them.

The alert sound is distinctive enough, Posawatz said, that it may become a way for Volt drivers to acknowledge each other, just as Corvette drivers and Harley-Davidson riders signal each other as they pass.

Hybrids hit pedestrians more

The imminent arrival of all-electric cars like the 2011 Chevrolet Volt and the 2012 Nissan Leaf has raised the level of concern among advocates for the blind about the lack of noise from hybrids running in electric mode.

Recent preliminary data from a National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) study appears to show that hybrids hit pedestrians more often than non-hybrid vehicles. With statistical information now demonstrating that risk, carmakers are lining up to work with groups like the NFB.

1963 Chevrolet Impala SS - Green With Envy

Life can move in mysterious ways sometimes, and at the end of the day, it's funny how some things work out. Take the case of 28-year-old Tommy Garcia of Lexington, South Carolina. As a child, he grew up around classic cars, and at the age of sixteen, he realized that he had the passion to buy one. For four years, this dream of owning a classic car evaded him, until it finally became a reality when Tommy turned twenty. What's the reason behind the four year delay, you might ask? Well, finding a classic Impala in the South can prove to be easier said than done, as most frames are depleted with rust or simply falling apart from lack of care. In Monetta, South Carolina, Tommy found a '63 Chevrolet Impala SS that was ripe for a rebuild. It was originally purchased for a complete transformation, however, the car's owner had lost his passion and drive for the project.

Tommy stepped in, offering a respectable dollar amount as well as promises to provide updates on his rebuild for the previous owner. His sincerity and business sense swayed the owner, and he allowed Tommy to buy the vehicle. Ecstatic, Tommy put the Chevy on a trailer and brought it back home. The first step in the building process was to make sure the mechanics were in working order. The Impala was brought to Bernie Hajack, a very capable and certified Chevrolet mechanic. Bernie removed the stock motor and rebuilt it from the ground up, using the original factory specifications as his measuring stick. Supreme Plating, out of California, was the destination shop for the majority of the car's chrome additions.

With the help of his father, Tommy was able to focus his attention on the car's suspension. The Garcia men lifted the heavy Chevy frame in their family's garage, and built a perfect hydraulic set-up. Tommy and his dad installed a four-pump chrome setup with 17-inch Pro Hopper whammy tanks, ultimately finished off with polished Hi-Jacker blocks and stainless steel hard lines and also, four Deka batteries line the sides of the trunk for proper weight distribution.

The father and son combo sought out to give the Impala perfect detail, so they decided to strip the '63 down to the bare metal. The replacement parts necessary were taken with the Impala to Richard Wright, Jr.'s Custom Paint & Body in Lexington, South Carolina, where Chris "Goofy" Stewart completed the body work. Richard pulled the Chevy into the paint booth and laid down an Orion Silver basecoat, and several coats of House of Kolor Kandy Organic Green with a green flake. A friend, Mike Louder, added the finishing touches on the roof by spraying a similar mixture of paint to the basecoat, while Jeffrey Brewer went to work, laying down the patterns that Tommy had previously designed.

Chevrolet Volt is challenging for GM

• 
• 2011 Chevrolet Volt Picture

  The Chevrolet Volt goes into production in less than a year, and GM is working on getting the bugs out. | November 23, 2009 | General Motors Corporation

Chevrolet launches a product placement and an awareness campaign

the car will be the center piece of what Chevrolet describes as the “world’s largest school show-and-tell”.

The auto manufacturer will provide a lesson plan to teachers about the Volt through Weekly Reader, an educational materials developer for math curriculum and vocabulary tests.

“Today's middle school students are tomorrow's leaders, so Chevrolet is teaming up with Weekly Reader to provide a fun yet educational experience themed around electricity,” explained Maria Rohrer, a representative from Chevrolet. “Electricity is the new fuel of the 21st century and will help shape the future of the automobile.”

Chevrolet says that the event will tackle the basics of electricity and why it is important and how it can transform the American auto industry. The event will be held at the Harvard-Westlake School in Los Angeles and will be broadcasted on the Web.