In an effort to keep up with the 2013 Chevrolet Spark’s hot start in the United States, General Motors has ordered more units from its assembly facility in Korea. Chevy released the subcompact into the wild in July of this year and has managed to move 6,313 units as of the end of last month. GM’s original Spark sales forecast pegged the subcompact at 27,000 units sold annually. At its current sales pace, the Spark is on track to meet or exceed that number, so Chevy called over to its Korean assembly facility for back-up.
“We’ve asked for more already,” Cristi Landy, marketing director for Chevy cars said to Automotive News earlier this week. “We’ve gotten a really strong reaction in the marketplace.”
Currently, the Spark is sold in 18 markets across the U.S. and sales have surprised GM executives so far. A labor dispute in Korea earlier this year didn’t help their expectations, but that has since been patched up and production is now back at full tilt. Chevy has requested more shipments to make up for lost production time as a result of the labor dispute. GM’s Korean assembly facility has the ability to produce 200,000 units a year and is responsible for filling Spark inventory in the United States as well as Korea, India, Mexico, and other markets.
“Our dealers are asking for more,” Landy told Automotive News. “We don’t want to make a gut production decision based on two-and-a-half months of sales. But demand has been strong.”
We recently had a chance to drive the 2013 Chevrolet Spark and found it to be surprisingly competitive. Associate editor Joel Arellano writes that the Spark “fulfills its function as an inexpensive subcompact for primarily urban dwellers.”
Do you think the 2013 Chevrolet Spark has what it takes to take the subcompact crown from the likes of the Fiat 500? Tell us what you think in the comment section below.
Source: Automotive News (subscription required)
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