Owners have filed 485 complaints on the Chevrolet Spark, covering 2013–2022. The system named most often is Power Train (112 reports). Worst years by volume: 2014, 2013, 2015; cleanest: 2022, 2021, 2018. 45 reports describe a crash, 3 a fire. On average the car was 3.7 years old when the problem happened.
What breaks on Chevrolet Spark
Grouped by the system owners named — percentages are shares of all 485 Spark complaints. Open any row for the full reports in owners' own words.
Power Train 112 Read
I have registered complaints regarding this vehicle before. The transmission in this vehicle does not work properly; it is unable to accelerate properly from a low speed or stopped position. I have had the transmission replaced 3 times, but the issue has not been resolved. On august 19, I was involved in an accident…
Airbag code (95) the car just got out of the shop from a faulty transmission and a warped piston(#3) I had it back for two weeks and now the airbag code comes on. I drove about five minutes and then park the car down to one the code came on. I cleared it shut the car off them started it came back
I have a 2019 Chevy Spark after doing research it appears that the Spark has a high transmission failure
Electrical System 77 Read
Vehicle caught on fire from the inside somewhere towards the driver side in dash. Instrument cluster and dash completely burnt. Entire inside interior of car burnt
The contact owned a 2020 Chevrolet Spark. The contact stated that the police department informed them that the vehicle caught on fire. The contact stated that the fire may have started under the instrument panel and air bags had deployed. The vehicle was severely burned and only the contact’s vehicle was burned. The…
I lease a car through carvana, and they informed me that the car was safe and properly inspected. In the first 2 weeks, I took the chevrolet to a certified dealership for a routine inspection. I was informed that the vehicle has severe mechanical and electrical issues. The enginee needs to be completed replace they…
Service Brakes 47 Read
Vehicle brakes went out suddenly after hearing a loud POP sound...brakes wouldn't respond and pedal hard, ran off road and could only glide to a roll stop and not really then...fortunately a repair shop adjacent so drove their and rolled stop. Initial look shop advised vacuum pump needs to be diagnosed...they came…
The contact owned a 2017 chevrolet spark. While driving approximately 35 mph, the brakes suddenly malfunctioned and the driver crashed into a parked bulldozer. The air bags did not deploy. The vehicle was destroyed and towed. The driver sustained a left knee injury, which did not require medical attention. A police…
I was driving on the freeway during evening rush hour, so it was stop-and-go traffic. I always leave plenty of room between myself and the car in front of me. The car ahead stopped suddenly, and I slammed on my brakes with a car and a half length distance between myself and the vehicle in front of me. I was going…
Air Bags 46 Read
On 5-3-2025 I rolled my vehicle end over end at least 6 times at a high speed. One of my vehicle safty options was "Advanced SRS airbags" During the crash my vehicles side airbags deployed but my drivers steering wheel air bag did not. As a result of them not deploying I smashed my face into the steering wheel and…
The contact owns a 2021 Chevrolet Spark. The contact stated that while driving through a bend in the road at 40 mph in the snow, the vehicle began to slide as they lost control. The contact ran over a road sign, which caused her to land in a ditch as the vehicle flipped onto its passenger side. The air bags did not…
The contact owns a 2021Chevrolet Spark M2. The contact stated while stopped at a red light when the contact was struck from behind launching the vehicle off the ground and moving forward 30ft into the rear driver side of a third vehicle in the middle of the intersection. This resulted in none of the airbags deploying…
Engine 41 Read
Reported several problems with the chevy spark with purchased in aug 2013, no starts, auto shut offs, RPM spikes and "now" oil burning, beginning october 2013 directly to gm company at 855-238-0780, 866-790-5600 and chevy headquarters and several chevy service centers: onstar subscriber services acct# account number:…
The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Spark. The contact stated that while her daughter was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. An unknown message was displayed. The vehicle was able to restart, but the failure persisted. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the O2 sensor was replaced;…
This is a periodic occurance when going starting at 0mph at any point during a trip. Normally the engine will rev smoothly but there are times when going from a complete stop to getting to at least 30mph it feels as if the engine is just taking in air and it just revs up and the car starts to roll but doesnt actually…
Structure 21 Read
Hood flew open into windshield while accelerating, caused me to crash vehicle into tree
The hood latch was eroded and caused me to crash and shattered my entire windshield
The hood came up while driving
Vehicle Speed Control 19 Read
The contact owns a 2015 chevrolet spark m300. The contact stated that while parked in a parking space, the vehicle was shifted into reverse and spontaneously accelerated at approximately 60 mph into traffic colliding with a vehicle. The contacted stated that the frontal air bags failed to deploy. A police report was…
Okay, I can press the gas and try to go one speed.And my car will go either way, too slow for that gear or way too fast.For that gear , I have almost been several wrecks , because it's either going too slow , went when i'm supposed to be going to certain speed or it's going to fast one supposed to be going to certain…
My chevrolet spark cannot decide what gear it wants to be in, causing delays that are dangerous when pulling out in traffic or turning across lines of traffic. For instance, I slow down to get into the center turning lane of a 5-lane street and then when clear, I accelerate to make the turn. The car feels like it…
Latches/locks/linkages 18 Read
The contact's daughter owns a 2015 Chevrolet Spark. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V640000 (Latches/Locks/Linkages) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was contacted and confirmed that parts for the repair were unavailable. The contact stated…
The contact owns a 2015 Chevrolet Spark. The contact received notification of NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V640000 (Latches/Locks/Linkages) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The local dealer was not contacted. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time…
The contact owns a 2015 Chevrolet Spark. The contact received notification of the NHTSA Campaign Number: 22V640000 (Latches/Locks/Linkage) however, the part to do the recall repair was not yet available. The contact stated that the manufacturer had exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The local…
Spark years to avoid — and the clean ones
Complaints per model year. More reports usually means more cars on the road as well as more trouble, so read the crash and fire columns alongside the count.
| Model year | Complaints | Top system | Crashes | Fires |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Air Bags | 1 | — | |
| 2021 | Air Bags | 2 | — | |
| 2020 | Air Bags | 6 | 2 | |
| 2019 | Air Bags | 4 | — | |
| 2018 | Air Bags | — | — | |
| 2017 | Air Bags | 5 | — | |
| 2016 | Air Bags | 3 | — | |
| 2015 | Air Bags | 4 | 1 | |
| 2014 | Air Bags | 13 | — | |
| 2013 | Air Bags | 7 | — |
The same model year, different builds
Every complaint carries the first 11 characters of the VIN — plant, year, body and engine. That is a production series, and complaints are spread across them very unevenly.
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Distinct production series | 214 |
| Average complaints per series | 2.3 |
| Worst single series | 12 complaints |
| Average age at failure | 3.7 years |
A model average of 2.3 hides a worst series at 12. Enter a VIN above to see the numbers for that exact build instead of the model as a whole.
Owners reported these. Find out if yours is one of them.
- Complaints matched to the exact production run, not just the model
- What the car is worth given what tends to fail on it
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How we count
Every figure here comes from complaints owners filed with NHTSA — 1,100,006 of them, covering 1,982 models built between 1981 and 2026.
A complaint is an unverified report: someone wrote down what happened to their car. It is not a confirmed defect and not a recall. What makes the volume useful is the pattern — when thousands of owners of the same build describe the same failure, that is a signal no marketing brochure will give you.
Two things we do that the source does not. First, we compute the age of the car at the moment of failure from the incident date and the model year. Second, we group complaints by the first 11 characters of the VIN — the production series — so a bad plant run does not disappear into a model-wide average.
Frequently asked questions
What are the worst years for the Spark?
By complaint volume, 2014, 2013, 2015 drew the most owner reports. Bear in mind that popular years put more cars on the road, so check the crash and fire columns too.
Which Spark years are the cleanest?
2022, 2021, 2018 have the fewest complaints on file. For recent years that can simply mean the cars are young.
How many complaints does the Chevrolet Spark have?
485 owner complaints filed with NHTSA, covering 2013–2022. Of those, 45 describe a crash and 3 a fire.
Are these complaints verified?
No. They are unverified reports from owners. NHTSA publishes them as filed and investigates only a fraction. The value is in the pattern, not in any single report.
Can I check complaints for one specific car?
Yes — enter its VIN above. We match the first 11 characters, which identify the plant, year, body and engine, so you get complaints on that exact production series rather than the whole model.