Drove a Spark EV 2LT yesterday, on about a 20 minute test drive. I'd wanted to look at a 1LT because I prefer cloth seats, but they'd already sold the only one they had. Interior very similar to the gas model, although the dash display was far better. I've not been a fan of digital dashes to date, but I could easily live with this one, so give Chevy a thumbs up. Excellent GOM/SoC gauge, displaying current range prediction with max. and min. ranges as well; very intuitive. Also instantaneous digital power readout in kW. Compass heading at top for the limited number of occasions you might need this, and there's supposed to be OAT displayed somewhere, but I didn't have time to find it.
Outside mirrors seemed a bit small to me; I'm sure this is for max. range, but I'd prefer something larger.
Rear seats are a bit different from the gas version; the bench is one piece and apparently fixed in place, instead of split and able to fold. The rear backrests don't fold completely flat, but close enough, and I figured out how to remove the headrests. Rear seat legroom, or rather the lack of it with the front seats all the way back, appeared unchanged from the gas model. And unlike my Forester or the LEAF, I'd definitely not be able to sleep in the back of this. It's just too short (Fit is the same, and the 500e isn't even in the running).
Apparently Chevy is calling the CCS QC 'Hypercharging', and the salesman was trying to tell me that the 2LT was equipped with it, but the 1LT wasn't (he later sent me an email saying that I was correct: neither comes with it standard, but both will offer it as an option). He even opened the port to show me. Surprisingly, the two CCS receptacles were there, but both were blocked off by a fixed (not hinged, as would be the case if they were operational) cover plate. I pointed this out to the salesman. I don't know if the plastic receptacles contained the pins or if they were wired, but it does suggest that it might be possible to backfit the option, contradicting previous opinion. I'd never seen the J1772/CCS port in the flesh before, but I've got to say that it takes up even less real estate than I'd thought, and makes apparent just how much space is wasted by CHAdeMO's need for a separate plug.
I have zero interest in Bluetooth, On Star etc. capability so will leave it to someone with more knowledge of such features to comment, and my high-frequency hearing is so non-existent now that I can't comment on the audio quality or the presence or absence of whine from the drivetrain. I did like the HVAC controls, although it seemed like the temp control at least has no hard lower or upper stop - it just kept rotating. I didn't spend much time on that on the test drive, so more info is needed.
It's been almost two years since I test drove a LEAF so I can't directly compare performance, but FWIW the Spark didn't seem to experience the falloff in accel above about 40 mph that I remember from the LEAF. 45-65 or 50-70 passing should be easy. I went back and forth between normal and Sport modes, but on the freeway in medium traffic really didn't have the opportunity to notice much difference. I can say that it's quite fast, although it's been a while since I drove anything quicker than my Forester which is about 2 seconds slower 0-60. Nailing the throttle I did feel like there was some torque steer, although the two times I did it I was on a bit of a curve. It's possible that what I felt was torque steer was actually my overcorrecting the steering, which has a considerably faster ratio than I'm used to. Assist seemed to be at a good level, not overboosted at speed. Like most electric assists, feel was about what you'd expect and feedback is pretty minimal, but I didn't find it objectionable given how the car is likely to be driven.
I did get onto a slightly windy two-lane road, but with the salesmen in the car couldn't really open it out and explore the handling limits. It seemed to be decent as far as I went. I didn't notice anything mentionable about the ride. I did try 'L' mode, and would say that, on a fairly flat road at moderate speeds, the decel seemed slightly higher than would be the case if I were making a 5-4 downshift while getting ready to exit the freeway without drama. In other words, while there's a noticeable difference, the rate of decel isn't all that high, far less than would be the case with a 5-3 downshift. I don't know enough about how the Spark's 'L' mode is implemented to know if there's more significant decel descending a steep hill, and there weren't any such hills nearby where I could try it.
I did a bit of single pedal driving in 'L' on city streets, and although I can see the advantage ISTM that I'd want stronger decel there as well. But my time in the car was quite short, ca. 20 minutes total, so this is all preliminary impression of someone who has no experience of single pedal driving (but normally drives a stick, so is used to using engine compression braking).
All in all, I was fairly impressed by the Spark EV. In many ways it reminds me of an early Honda Civic, i.e. it's a nice subcompact that you can throw around. I think they'll sell quite well, especially in areas with high or low temperatures where a car without an active liquid-cooled and heated TMS falls short on range. It's certainly more fun to throw around than a LEAF, but I can't speak for how it stacks up against a Fit or 500e.
