All too often, cars are a numbers game: how much power it's got, how fast it'll go and how fast it'll get there. In the case of the Chevrolet Spark EV, one number — and only one number — stands out: 400 pound-feet of torque.
Torque is that kick in the ass you feel when you bury the accelerator. Saying the Spark EV has it is like saying the iPhone has market share. To put 400 pound-feet in context, consider this: The Porsche 911's flat-six engine is good for 325. The 5.0-liter V8 in the Ford F150 pickup? Three-eighty. The Ferrari 458 Italia makes due with a mere 398 lb-ft.
Now, stump-pulling, tire-smoking, grin-inducing torque is not the only thing GM's little EV, which goes on sale in California next year, has going for it. It's attractive (enough) and roomy (enough) and priced well (enough). And it probably has a range and recharge time on par with anything that isn't the Tesla Model S. We say "probably" because the General isn't getting specific with specs until the car's official unveiling at the L.A. Auto Show next week.
Still, we can tell you this ultra-compact commuter-turned-all-electric-runabout has some serious get up and go. Stomp on it and the Spark spins its ultra-efficient (read: low grip) front tires with reckless abandon. Sixty mph supposedly arrives in 8 seconds, nearly four seconds faster than a gas-powered Spark. It also yanks the steering wheel from your hands like an angry dog pulling its rope toy. And all that torque bleeds away quickly as the single-speed transmission doles out the 134 horsepower offered by the electric motor mounted where the engine would be.
What we have — again — is another automaker ripping the engine and fuel tank out of an existing model, stuffing a motor and battery in there and calling it an EV. Mini did it with the Mini, BMW with the 1-Series, Honda with the Fit and so on. Is this yet another cynical attempt at meeting California's zero-emissions mandate? A compliance vehicle to boost GM's corporate average fuel economy figures? The General's flacks answer with a resounding (and obviously rehearsed) "no."
We're not so sure. But healthy skepticism aside, the Spark EV makes a slightly more compelling case than cars of its ilk.
To begin with, it's not a bad looking car. It doesn't scream "I'm an EV!" And even with the addition of the battery packs and assorted electronics, it doesn't lose any of its interior or cargo capacity. This is a car you could actually live with.
What it gains, though, is weight. Lots of it. A Spark powered by dino juice comes in at around 2,300 pounds. The EV gains another 400 pounds on top of that, due largely to the 562-pound battery pack mounted where the fuel tank would be. The only upside to the additional bulk is it gives the car a driver-friendly 50/50 weight distribution, which should help the handling. Not that we'd know, because our test loop was a about as exciting as standing in line for tickets to Skyfall, and lasted just as long.
No word yet on just how big the liquid-cooled lithium-ion pack, by A123 Systems, is, but we've been assured it's "north of 20 kilowatt-hours." If that's true, a charge on a 240-volt outlet is around 7 hours and a 120-volt plug will take the better part of a day. Fast-charging systems should be able to boost the Spark's pack to 50 percent in 10 minutes and 80 percent in around 20 minutes.
GM is keeping mum on range for now, but based upon the juice we started with (about 80 percent charged) and the range the dashboard display told us we had left (a little over 60 miles), we figure the Spark should be good for around 80 miles. That's a little better than the Nissan Leaf's EPA-rated 73. The Spark EV will probably cost about as much as the Leaf, too, though we won't know for sure until next week. But if you want one, you'd better be living in the Golden State. It's available only in California to start, with no word on when it might roll out nationally.
California compliance vehicle? Nah...
