Morning vs. Spark

2012 Kia Morning

2011 GM Korea Chevrolet Spark

Yes, both of these fuel-efficient compacts were made in South Korea. The Kia Morning was made in Seosan, South Korea, while the Chevrolet Spark, in the other hand, was made in Changwon, South Korea. For the fact, the Kia Morning is now on its second-generation model while the Chevrolet Spark is the new name of the GM Daewoo Matiz Creative since the GM Daewoo name was replaced into GM Korea Company, using the Chevrolet brand as their front. The Spark was arrived in the Philippines a few months ago while we are still waiting when will Columbian Autocar Corporation bring the second-generation Morning as the new Picanto (2nd half of this year perhaps?). Let's tackle both of these Korean made compacts and try to figure which fits my discriminative taste.

CASE ONE:

First of all, the second-generation Kia Morning (known worldwide as the Picanto) takes center stage in the compact category since it was debuted in late January 2011. Come to think of it, the design looks more matured since the first generation but to me the round shape on the new exterior looks more bubbly and chubby, making it one big fat compact car others wouldn't know what comes next. Under the hood, the new Morning is equipped with the Kappa MPI 1.0L engine that produces 82ps/6400rpm and in terms of fuel economy, the 4-speed automatic variant can go for about 19km/L while the 5-speed manual transmission goes to about 22km/L.

CASE TWO:

As always said, the Chevrolet Spark from Hankook GM (GM Korea Company) is the new name of GM Daewoo Matiz Creative as part of replacing the highly criticized GM Daewoo Auto and Technology name into Hankook GM (GM Korea Company), using the internationally-acclaimed Chevrolet as a primary brand in Korea. Other cars from GM Daewoo such as the Damas van, Labo truck, and the premium sedan Alpheon (based on the second-generation Buick LaCrosse) retains under unique brands. Anyway, enough what I said, the Chevrolet Spark offers the best design only this compact hatchback can achieve, unlike its rival, the second-generation Kia Morning, which has some weird bubbly and chubby look. The Spark offers two engine types; a 1.0L DOHC petrol engine and a 1.0L LPGi engine that runs on Liquefied Petroleum Gas. The 1.0L DOHC petrol engine produces 70ps/6,400rpm of power output and with a 5-speed manual, it goes for about 21.0km/L of fuel economy. The 4-speed automatic transmission equipped on the Spark can go for about 17.0km/L.

OK, so I admit it. The Spark is more stylish than the new Morning/Picanto while the new Morning/Picanto is more fuel efficient than the Chevrolet Spark made from Hankook GM.