The Chevrolet Spark, all-electric minicar scheduled to debut in the United States as a 2013 model next year and promoted as “the smallest diesel engine in the world in mass production,” recently debuted in India where it’s known as the Beat.
The Beat/Spark has a three-cylinder turbodiesel engine displacing less than a liter and is as rated, via Indian testing, at a 56.5 miles per gallon.
The 936cc engine has a fixed-geometry turbocharger and vacuum-operated wastegate, giving it an output of 58 horsepower and 111 pound-feet of torque. But it also has more unique statistics: the cars weighs 2,260 pounds and can advance from 0 to 62 mph/100 kilometers in a lowly 15.5 seconds.
The Chevy Beat Diesel also has four seats and five doors. It’s available in three trim levels and includes variable electric power steering. Alloy wheels, anti-lock brakes and airbags are offered as options.
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Article Last Updated: August 10, 2011.
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A sports, travel and business journalist for more than 45 years, James has written the new car review column The Weekly Driver since 2004.
In addition to founding this site in 2004, James writes a Sunday automotive column for The San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times in Walnut Creek, Calif., and monthly auto review and wellness columns for Gulfshore Business, a magazine in Southwest Florida.
An author and contributor to many newspapers, magazines and online publications, co-hosted The Weekly Driver Podcast from 2017 to 2024.