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FutureFolly

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 27, 2014
Messages
141
My bet is that the 2014 Spark EV LT2 w/ CCS will someday be a highly sought after EV in the collectibles market. The most direct comparison I could think of would be a 1959 Morris Mini.

The driving dynamics give it an endearing quality that will keep it well loved over time. Future DC-FC infrastructure will make its Level 2 charging weakness less significant. Also, the interior of all old cars feel cheap so that will get ignored progressively with time.

As well as these superlatives:

-GM's first production BEV.
-First EV available with CCS in the US
-First use of what I think will become a legendary powertrain
-First EV to be the cheapest overall car to own
-Most ironically perfect name
-Best vehicle for embarrassing old muscle cars
 
I would think so, I have the 2014 base Spark with DC quick charge port.
I did not like the "leatherette" interior of the other model, but the leather steering wheel woulda been nice.
And to add to the collectability, it is the only year with the 400 foot pounds of torque and the bigger battery....
so the 2014 is the "high torque, big block battery model". haha!
 
CSW said:
I would think so, I happen to have that model spark.
And to add to the collectability, it is the only year with the 400 foot pounds of torque and the bigger battery....

I do expect Jay Leno will want one of these eventually.
 
RichV said:
jsca72 said:
-Most ironically perfect name
-Best vehicle for embarrassing old muscle cars

I particularly like these last two points. :D

Not sure about the last point. My wife dusted me in our Sienna minivan. :oops:
I have to admit that though this thing has a ton of power, when you put your foot in it it tends to fish-tail - from the front. lol Which takes off crucial seconds to recover from. Still, I'm not looking to beat muscle cards - as fun as that sounds. Perhaps if there were more "standard" tires on the car it may hang on better out the gate.
 
Oh, and the other thing that should make it collectible is that there's only a few thousand made, as I understand it, and the rumour is there will be no 2016 model coming out. Though I find that hard to believe, given their fairly recent statement that they would begin selling thew Spark EV in Maryland.

The question is whether GM will consider the Bolt as a replacement for the Spark EV. Seems to me they're in two different price categories, and why stop selling it? The Bolt will be $10k more. That's a lot of money for most buyers.
 
Many Spark EVs will probably not get battery pack rebuilds and simply get junked when the range isn't useful anymore. This will keep them more difficult to find in 5+ years.
 
FutureFolly said:
Many Spark EVs will probably not get battery pack rebuilds and simply get junked when the range isn't useful anymore. This will keep them more difficult to find in 5+ years.
I wonder if there even WILL be battery pack rebuilds...
 
A123 systems that made the bigger battery in the 2014 is no longer doing EV batteries, so there certainly won't be the 21kwh batteries anymore..... maybe the 19kwh ones still that come in the 2015 and later.
 
What I'm hoping is that at the very least they offer a retrofit for a 6.6kw charger. So you can charge twice as fast on Level 2.
 
ezryder said:
What I'm hoping is that at the very least they offer a retrofit for a 6.6kw charger. So you can charge twice as fast on Level 2.
I doubt GM will ever do this for the Spark EV. The car sells in WAY too small a volume for them to bother.

Heck, GM seems uninterested in putting on a 6+ kW OBC on the next gen Volt. :roll: :(

You're going to have to hope someone comes up with an aftermarket solution. This seems also unlikely due to the small potential target audience due to tiny Spark EV sales. If it were an aftermarket solution for the current gen Volt and were directly compatible w/the Spark EV w/few or no changes...
 
I wonder how much more the Spark would have cost if they did put a 6.6kw charger on it? 100 bucks? 200? I know that I would have been willing to pay it... now that I have owned one for a year. At first I did not see what the big deal was, but it really can be helpful with the large number of 240v chargers out there.....
 
CSW said:
I wonder how much more the Spark would have cost if they did put a 6.6kw charger on it? 100 bucks? 200? I know that I would have been willing to pay it... now that I have owned one for a year. At first I did not see what the big deal was, but it really can be helpful with the large number of 240v chargers out there.....
I don't know. Off the top of my head, the closest I can think of offering it as an option is Nissan. For 2013+ Leafs, the S trim was new (previously there were only SV and SL). If you buy a base S, you only get a 3.x kW OBC. If you get the $1,770 "charge package" (click on Build & Price under S trim at http://www.nissanusa.com/electric-cars/leaf/), that gives you both 6 kW OBC + CHAdeMO inlet. Unfortunately, you can't only get the higher wattage OBC.

'13+ SV and SL already come w/6 kW OBC but CHAdeMO is optional on SV.

I checked the current Canadian Leafs, which are equipped differently and it seems their S (http://www.nissan.ca/en/electric-cars/leaf/versions-specs/) comes w/6 kW OBC and you can't get the CHAdeMO inlet on that trim.
 
CSW said:
I wonder how much more the Spark would have cost if they did put a 6.6kw charger on it? 100 bucks? 200? I know that I would have been willing to pay it... now that I have owned one for a year. At first I did not see what the big deal was, but it really can be helpful with the large number of 240v chargers out there.....
The only option for GM would have been dual chargers as an option, and their existing hardware might not be designed to operate that way.

If it could then you're probably right. The 3.3 kW OBCs probably cost GM around $100, and new mounts with an additional cooling branch would probably require a $500-600 price bump. I'm hoping GM puts a 9.6 kW OBC in the Bolt. 7.2 kW will barely be enough for a 40-50 kWh battery pack.
 
CSW said:
A123 systems that made the bigger battery in the 2014 is no longer doing EV batteries, so there certainly won't be the 21kwh batteries anymore..... maybe the 19kwh ones still that come in the 2015 and later.
I believe that US law requires auto manufactures to make parts available for a minimum of 10 years. Not to say it will be reasonably priced, but at least it will be available.
 
I think it is 20 years. But if they have the 19kwh battery that will fit and work fine, and with same range according to GM, then they don't need to offer the 21kwh battery anymore.
 
cwerdna said:
This is the response I received from Brammo's regional business manager when I inquired about parts availability before buying my Empulse R.

Yes, as per US law we must provide replacement parts for 10 years for vehicles. Batteries will always be available for replacement however the original factory batteries will last longer than you ever own the bike...
 
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