Seems like a great car other than this rust. 2013 Chevy Spark, 48k miles, dealer is asking $6.5k. Should I run?
I guess I can only post one photo here. There’s more rust on the frame, sort of all over the underside of the car, though it looks surface, not very deep. Thoughts?
This looks like surface rust. Open the trunk and look under the carpet in the tire well. Is there rust? If you can pull the carpet back in the passenger cabin, check for rust there too. If you are serious about this car, have a mechanic you trust give it a prepurchase inspection. He can tell you if the car was partially under water. Ask your mechanic specifically about that. He will know where to look.
4 Likes
Agree with @jtsanders on it being surface rust, normal and nothing to worry about. But spend the best $100 (or so) you will ever spend by having an independent mechanic look the car over before you buy it. This will prevent any expensive surprises.
4 Likes
Just from the picture I would pass on this vehicle . I happen to like the Chevrolet Spark , If this is the LS version I also would pass because the LS does not have cruise control.
I have no idea of your finances and don’t want to . But if you are in the US many places will sell a new Spark LT1 for under 16000.00 ( That will have a full warranty ) and you might consider a lease for lower payments and in three years you can decide to buy or return it.
I don’t think the rust is excessive, but the price sure is! This is a 7-year old car with an original MSRP of $13k for $6.5k. This car is too old to have any remaining warranty, but not cheap enough (compared to new) to justify the asking price.
On the one hand, it is possible to buy a newer vehicle–with at least a year of warranty remaining–for as little as $8k. On the other hand, it is possible to buy a 10-15 year old model, with less than 100,000 miles for less than half this price. I just don’t see the point of spending this amount of money on this kind of car.
Of course, if you really like the car, and it is in good condition, maybe you can bargain the price down to $5k, and then it would be a good deal.
1 Like
Agree with the others, too expensive. For less than this you one can get something like a nice well maintained ~ 2006-2010 Civic or Corola in very good condition that hasn’t seen salt that’s likely to go to 200-250kmi.
Or this 11 to 14 year old vehicle could completely fail tomorrow.
The rust is surface and would not bother me. There are 2 things that do make me wonder…
One is the somewhat high price for a 7 year old Spark.
Two is the very low miles for the age. That brings up the question of the oil change regimen for the type of driving being done and whether or not the engine has sludge or oil coking problems.
1 Like
ANY vehicle could “completely fail tomorrow”–even a new 2021 model that comes to you with less than 5 miles on the odometer. Of course, a new(er) model would have a warranty, and hopefully the manufacturer will be able to resolve the problem(s) under warranty.
That is really besides the point here–as OP is considering an overpriced vehicle that is too old to have any factory warranty, or even to be sold as a Certified Pre-Owned with a CPO warranty. Thus, the Chevrolet Spark which is the subject of this thread is actually a worse bet at $6500 than say buying a 1998 Toyota Camry for $2k, because the Camry, while also old and out-of-warranty will be cheap.
Plus, the Daewoo-designed Chevy Spark was never exactly a paragon of engineering excellence.
I doubt if we will ever hear from Elaine again. Saying this vehicle is over priced is just wrong. The trim level is unknown , the market area is also unknown , the exact condition of the vehicle is unknown plus have any after market additions been made.
In Northeast Oklahoma the asking price seems to be inline with listed Sparks .
For my location, I can see how the rust might not be too bad, but the deal sure is. Decided to pass on this vehicle. Thanks for everyone’s input! 
1 Like