Chevrolet Spark hatchback spied testing at Pune, India: What could it be?

The Chevrolet Spark hatchback is General Motors India’s entry level product that costs a shade over INR 3 lakh, making it a highly affordable car. A replacement to the cutesy-cute 796cc Daewoo Matiz, the Spark, while retaining the cute lines, is powered by a peppy 1 Liter, four cylinder petrol engine good for a perky 62 Bhp of peak power and 90 Nm of peak torque, making it the most powerful car in its segment. This additional bit of power and torque makes the Spark quite peppy with the downside being the fact that the Spark finds it an uphill task to match the fuel economy of the likes of the Maruti Alto F8D and the Hyundai Eon.

2012 Chevrolet Spark Spyshot

While General Motors does offer a more economical option in the form of the Spark LPG, the car is struggling to sell in a market which is eschewing petrol cars due to the high cost of running. At such a time, a Chevrolet Spark hatchback, with slight camouflage has been spied doing the testing rounds in Pune, giving rise to various possibilities. One such possibility is the car getting a smaller, 3 cylinder, 800cc petrol engine, one that could make the Spark much more fuel efficient, while also allowing GM India to reduce the price by a few thousand rupees.

However, this is still merely a possibility with no official word from General Motors regarding a smaller engine for the Spark in the near future. Considering that GM India does not have a 800cc, three pot petrol engine in its portfolio currently, developing a new engine for the Spark is highly unlikely given the volumes this car is doing currently. Another possibility, albeit with a higher probability, is a mild facelift for the Spark. The Spark has been around for quite a while now and mid career facelift is very much due for this small car given that it has been almost 5 years since the Spark was first launched in India.

A mild facelift of the Spark, while making the product a little more fresher, might still not be enough for the Spark to fly out of showroom shelves, like it should ideally, given the various advantages of this small car, like a well sorted ride and grown up-more solid feel. For that. GM India needs a lot more than a just a minor facelift. All said, on whether the automaker will oblige and give the Spark more than a mid career facelift is something that the coming months will tell. Watch this space.

Via Team-Bhp