It seems that someone reminded Chevy that it still makes the $13,600 Spark, the cheapest car in America, because now Chevy says it is discontinuing it. This is no big surprise given the dominance of SUVs, but still a sad end, and, if I’m honest, a betrayal of one of GM’s oldest ideals.
That ideal would be making a car for “every purse and purpose,” or the idea that GM made everything from cheap Chevys to expensive Cadillacs and everything in between. Because, without the Spark, what constitutes Chevy’s cheap car now, the Trax, which starts at $21,400? Fuck that!
Anyway, I’m getting ahead of myself. CarsDirect has the news from the horse’s mouth:
According to a GM spokesperson, the Chevrolet Spark will officially be discontinued after production ends this summer. The decision will move the brand even closer to a lineup comprised almost entirely of SUVs, trucks, and an all-new generation of electric vehicles.
CarsDirect learned of the Spark’s demise today in an email from Chevy spokesman Kevin Kelly, who confirmed the car will be produced through August 2022, at which point it will be phased out.
Your options in this segment will soon be one car fewer, with the Mitsubishi Mirage being among the most appealing. There’s also, of course, the Kia Rio, Hyundai Accent, and Nissan Versa. You’ll notice a trend here, in that none of them are American, because apparently not only have we stopped buying small cars we’ve decided to stop making them too.
And while I know these things tend to go in waves — I won’t be surprised if one day the price of gas shoots up and automakers change their tune — what’s troubling now is that there aren’t affordable electric cars waiting in the wings, or affordable cars, period. Instead, it’s quickly becoming the case in America that, if you want a new car, you’re in for $30,000, or $25,000 at the very least and that, my friends, is absolute garbage.
RIP Spark, Chevy didn’t deserve you.