Consumer Reports: Chevy Spark Gas vs Chevy Spark EV

This article originally published on Gas2
by Christopher DeMorro

Since the demise of the EV1, General Motors has stayed away from pure electric cars. The Chevy Spark EV is its first attempt at a battery electric vehicle in about a decade, and once again GM has built an EV worth owning. In fact Consumer Reports even prefers the all-electric Spark to the gas-powered version GM also sells.

What Consumer Reports loves the most about the Chevy Spark EV is the 400 ft-lbs of torque, which makes the little electric car quite fun to drive. Unlike the gas-powered version, which has just 84 horsepower and 83 ft-lbs of torque from a 1.2 liter engine, the Spark EV has more get-up-and-go. Consumer Reports also notes that the Spark EV is a lot quieter than the normal Spark, another benefit.

Priced at just $27,495 the Spark EV is also surprisingly affordable, and can be had for well under $20,000 with applicable state and Federal tax rebates. A full charge is typically good for up to 82 miles of driving, though the lack of an onboard charging system means the Spark can take 7 hours or more to recharge.

With rising EV sales and more affordable options than ever, are electric cars finally coming into their own?