The Chevrolet Spark () is a city car manufactured by General Motors's subsidiary GM Korea from 1998 to 2022. The vehicle was developed by Daewoo and introduced in 1998 as the Daewoo Matiz (). In 2002, General Motors purchased Daewoo Motors, which was marketing the vehicle with several GM marques and nameplates.
The third generation was marketed globally, prominently under the Chevrolet brand in North America as the Chevrolet Spark and in Australia and New Zealand as the Holden Barina Spark. The fourth generation was launched in 2015, known as the Holden Spark in Australia and New Zealand. It also serves as the basis for the Opel Karl in Europe, Vauxhall Viva in the UK, and VinFast Fadil in Vietnam, the latter being manufactured under license.
A limited-production all-electric version, the Chevrolet Spark EV, was released in the U.S. in selected markets in California and Oregon in June 2013. The Spark EV was the first all-electric passenger car marketed by General Motors since the EV1 was discontinued in 1999, and also the first offered for retail sale by GM (the EV1 was available only on lease).
Production of the Spark at the Changwon, South Korea assembly plant ended in 2022. The plant would instead produce the second-generation Trax.
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First generation (M100, M150; 1998)
M100 (1998–2000)
The production of Daewoo Matiz started in 1998, and it was marketed in South Korea and many European markets, internally designated the M100. The exterior design is based on the Italdesign Lucciola, a 1993 concept evolved from the 1992 Italdesign Cinquecento concept by Fabrizio Giugiaro at Italdesign, which had been rejected by Fiat. The 0.8-litre gasoline engine and the transmission were carryovers from the Daewoo Tico, but as of 2013 used a multipoint fuel injection system. Engineering was carried out at Daewoo's Worthing Technical Centre in England. The car became the best selling Daewoo model in Europe and in India for the next four years.
It was based on the Daewoo Tico, a licensed-built Suzuki Alto, with which both Tico and Matiz share mechanicals and suspensions. From this origin was derived its characteristic narrow width, imposed by the Japanese kei car tax category.
The Matiz was launched with just a 0.8-litre straight-three engine, derived from the Suzuki F8B. It developed a maximum power of and a maximum torque of , and had a combined consumption of . It had a top speed of and could reach in 17 seconds. In certain markets, it was also available with an automatic transmission.
<gallery widths="200" heights="146">
File:Daewoo Matiz rear 20090920.jpg|Daewoo Matiz (M100; pre-facelift)
File:Daewoo Matiz M100 - deska rozdzielcza.JPG|Interior (M100; pre-facelift)
File:FSO Matiz M100 (5).jpg|FSO Matiz
</gallery>
M150 (2000–2005)
This facelift was designed at Daewoo's Worthing Technical Centre in England, and introduced in South Korea in late 2000, and exported from 2001. The front-end structure was modified to accommodate a four-cylinder engine, although the introduction of this engine, the 1.0-litre S-Tec unit, was delayed until after Daewoo's takeover by General Motors in 2002.
The M150 continued to be produced by GM-Uzbekistan (previously UzDaewooAuto) in Uzbekistan until 2018. The car was launched to the Russian market as the Ravon Matiz in 2016, but was soon discontinued. In South Korea and Japan this updated Matiz was sold under the name Daewoo Matiz II.
<gallery widths="200" heights="150">
File:Daewoo Matiz.jpg|Facelifted M150-series Daewoo Matiz
File:2005 Daewoo Matiz Xtra Cool 1.0 Rear.jpg|Facelifted M150-series Daewoo Matiz
File:MHV Chevrolet Matiz 01.jpg|Chevrolet Matiz
File:FAC Matiz silver left-front.jpg|Formosa (FAC) Matiz
File:Pontiac Matiz 2005.JPG|Pontiac Matiz
</gallery>
Lechi (China)
In China, the car was marketed as the Chevrolet Lechi. It remained in production until 2012, when an updated version was introduced as the Baojun Lechi. It is to be offered under both Chevrolet and Baojun brands during a transition period. The Lechi has also received certain powertrain updates, making the car economical enough to qualify for a subsidy and a tax break from the Chinese government.
|Score
|Points
|-
|Overall:
| style="text-align:center;"|N/A
| style="text-align:center;"|N/A
|-
|Adult occupant:
| style="text-align:center;"|
| style="text-align:center;"|19
|-
|Child occupant:
| style="text-align:center;"|N/A
| style="text-align:center;"|N/A
|-
|Pedestrian:
| style="text-align:center;"|
| style="text-align:center;"|15
|-
|Safety assist:
| style="text-align:center;"|N/A
| style="text-align:center;"|N/A
|}
Engines
It featured a range of three petrol engines which had these specifications:
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;"
|-
!Model
!Engine
!Displacement
!Power
!Torque
!0–100 km/h (0-62 mph)
!Top speed
!CO<sub>2</sub> emissions
!Notes
|-
|0.8||I3||796 cc|||| at 4,200 rpm||17.0 s||||161 g/km||
|-
|1.0||I4||995 cc|||| at 4,300 rpm||14.2 s||||157 g/km||introduced in 2002
|-
|1.2
|I4
|1,206 cc
|
| at 4,000 rpm
|13.9 s
|
|180 g/km
|China, from 2009
|}
Copying controversy
thumb|The Chevrolet Matiz/Spark (left) and the Chery QQ (right): The design of QQ is a copy of the original Matiz/Spark.
The Chery QQ3, then known as the Chery QQ, became the center of an industrial copyright and intellectual rights controversy, as GM claimed the car was a copy of the Daewoo Matiz. GM executives demonstrated the extent of the design duplication, noting for example that the doors of the QQ and those of the Spark are interchangeable without modification.
GM China Group indicated the two vehicles "shared remarkably identical body structure, exterior design, interior design, and key components" and Car and Driver called the QQ a "carbon copy", while the International Herald Tribune, in a 2005 article, referred to it as a clone.
The Detroit News reported that "the dispute reflects the confusion, risks, and ambitions in China's new auto industry, where global carmakers are battling pugnacious upstarts for a piece of what may become the world's largest auto market."
Second generation (M200, M250; 2005)
In 2005, the Matiz received substantial modifications (M200), previewed by the Chevrolet M3X concept car shown at 2004 Paris Motor Show. The upper body was revised, based again on a design by Italdesign Giugiaro, the S-Tec engines were updated, and the car's drag coefficient was lowered, resulting in better fuel economy. The interior was also significantly revised, notably with a centre-mounted instrument cluster. The platform was also revised, with a twist-beam rear suspension system replacing the previous three-link beam axle, and the front suspension using cast, rather than pressed and fabricated lower control arms.
In 2008, the 800 cc engine was revised to fall below the 120 g/km level, thus qualifying for the UK's £35 road tax band and no London congestion charge.
In Europe, it was marketed under the names Chevrolet Matiz and Chevrolet Spark. In Italy, the LPG version was called Chevrolet Matiz Eco Logic; it was built from 2007 to 2010 in over 60,000 vehicles by BRC Gas Equipment in Cherasco, Cuneo, Italy.
In South Korea, where it was marketed only with an 800 cc engine and following the introduction of M300 Matiz (Matiz Creative), the M200 Matiz was renamed to Matiz Classic
Production reach 2.3 million worldwide during the first 10 years.
As of 2011, VIDAMCO of Vietnam produces the Matiz M200 as the Chevrolet Spark Lite in complete knock-down (CKD) form at its Hanoi production facility.
In India, the local manufacturer GM India produced two special editions of this generation - the Chevrolet Spark LPG, a version equipped with a sequential injection-type liquified petroleum gas kit, unveiled on the World Environment Day in New Delhi, and the Chevrolet Spark Muzic, introduced in 2009.
<gallery widths="200" heights="150">
File:2007 Chevrolet Matiz SE 1.0 Rear.jpg|Chevrolet Matiz (M200; UK)
File:20100812 daewoo matiz 0001.jpg|Daewoo Matiz M250
File:Centralconsole.jpg|Interior view with the centrally mounted dashboard console
File:Pontiac G2 Matiz -- Front.jpg|Pontiac G2 Matiz
File:Chevrolet Spark Lite 1.0 LS 2013 (11825095544).jpg|2013 Chevrolet Spark Lite (M250; Chile)
</gallery>
Safety
Euro NCAP test results for a five-door hatchback variant on a 2005 registration:
{| class="wikitable"
|-
|Test
|Score
|Points
|-
|Overall:
| style="text-align:center;"|N/A
| style="text-align:center;"|N/A
|-
|Adult occupant:
| style="text-align:center;"|
| style="text-align:center;"|17
|-
|Child occupant:
| style="text-align:center;"|
| style="text-align:center;"|30
|-
|Pedestrian:
| style="text-align:center;"|
| style="text-align:center;"|13
|-
|Safety assist:
| style="text-align:center;"|N/A
| style="text-align:center;"|N/A
|}
Engines
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%;"
|-
!Model
!Engine
!Displacement
!Power
!Torque
!0–100 km/h (0-62 mph)
!Top speed
!CO<sub>2</sub> emissions
!Notes
|-
|0.8||I3||796 cc|||| at 4,400 rpm||18.2 s||||123 g/km||
|-
|1.0||I4||995 cc|||| at 4,200 rpm||14.1 s||||133 g/km||
|}