Holden Spark 2016 review

Holden's new city car shakes off the cheap and cheerful tag with a smart cabin and well-sorted road manners.

Tiddler size cars are almost by definition cheap and cheerful — you don't expect too much when you don't pay much. But Holden's new generation Spark micro-car is a different prospect.

Unlike its main rivals from Mitsubishi, Suzuki and Nissan, the Korean-built Spark's driving experience is characterised by relatively strong engine performance, tidy dynamics and decent road manners.

It's tiny for sure — smaller than a Toyota Yaris by a significant margin — but it feels secure, thanks in part to local fettling by Holden engineers.

Punch the throttle and you get a pleasing little growl accompanied by a decent rate of acceleration

Possibly the biggest plus is under the bonnet where you'll find a proper four-cylinder petrol engine (73kW/128Nm). It runs on regular unleaded and easily trumps the three-cylinder engines found in rivals.

Punch the throttle and you get a pleasing little growl accompanied by a decent rate of acceleration from the Spark's frugal engine. It remains strong at freeway speeds, where most city cars feel out of their depth.

Even more endearing is the fact that you don't have to wring its neck to get going or stay with the traffic. That in turn yields real-world fuel economy gains.

Two Spark variants are available, LS and LT. The former in base five-speed manual is priced at $13,990, withn the optional CVT auto (seven steps) adding $1700. The higher spec LS is CVT-only and is priced at $18,990.

Holden equips the LS with a reasonable amount of gear such as Apple CarPlay/Android Auto phone projection, Siri voice-activation, steering wheel audio controls, seven-inch colour touchscreen, hill start assist and remote central locking.

The one blight is the lack of a standard reversing camera. That's included in a Driver Assistance option pack together with cruise control and rear park assist at an as-yet undetermined price

The LT adds 15-inch alloys, partial leather seats, keyless entry and push-button start, white dash fascia, rear park assist, reversing camera and cruise control.

There is reasonable room for front seat occupants but rear seat legroom is tight and the boot is small.

It's an easy-to-park city car that can easily double up as a country driver thanks to its power and manners.

In contrast to the new chassis, there are such old-school features as rear drum brakes, rake-only adjustment for the steering wheel, five ratios in the LS's manual and no direct injection. In reality, these shortcomings are trivial.

The new Spark looks better than the previous model, which had a startled appearance. The interior is tidy, functional and attractive to look at.

Plenty of attention was given to utilitarian features such as the numerous bottle and cupholders, phone slot, easy to operate switches and, this far down the food chain, impressive audio.

On the road

We hopped into the Spark with low expectations. But as soon as we got it on to the freeway in peak hour traffic we were pleasantly surprised.

The CVT is one of the better examples around. It's a lot like Subaru's excellent CVT, which feels a lot like a conventional six-speed auto and doesn't whine and drone like some.

They nailed it in terms of delivering a comfortable ride

There's no manic revving of the engine when you accelerate, just a neat flick down a ratio or two and away you go.

The engine will certainly please most people with its willingness and smooth running. Fuel economy on our drive was close to the claimed 5.5L/100km.

Spark rides well, too, thanks to the hours Holden chassis engineers spent tweaking it at the company's Lang Lang proving ground. They nailed it in terms of delivering a comfortable ride while retaining good composure through the bends.

Even the brakes feel pretty good and there's minimal kickback through the steering on rougher roads. The turning circle is tiny, which means you can park this puppy pretty much anywhere you like.