2011 Chevrolet Cruze
By New Car Test Drive
On Sale: Early 2010
Expected Pricing: $14,500-$19,500
Chevrolet promises a world-beater with its compact 2011 Cruze sedan. By appearances, there's something to the hype.
The front-drive Chevrolet Cruze is expected to replace the Cobalt when it reaches U.S. showrooms in 2010. The Cruze will compete head-to-head with top-selling compacts like the Honda Civic, Toyota Corolla and Ford Focus. It has the look of a solid contender.
The four-door Cruze is a handsome car, shaped in the fashion of Chevrolet's well-received, mid-size Malibu sedan, with even better proportions. Its arcing roofline creates the effect of a two-door coupe, and the Cruze looks longer and wider than many of its competitors, with shorter overhangs beyond the front and rear wheels. It will come standard with 16-inch wheels and offer a 17-inch option.
By exterior dimensions, regardless of appearances, the Cruze is roughly the same size as the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic sedans. Its 105.7-inch wheelbase slots between Civic (106.3) and Corolla (102.4), and the overall length of all three falls within an inch of the other. The Cruze is wider than either the Corolla or Civic by at least 1.4 inches.
The Cruze will come standard with a new, 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine under the hood, generating an estimated 138 horsepower. It will offer either a six-speed manual or an efficient six-speed automatic transmission, while competitors offer five-speeds or fewer. The upgrade engine in the United States will be a smaller, turbocharged 1.4-liter four. Horsepower increases slightly (to 140), but so should fuel economy. Chevrolet says the Cruze turbo will surpass the current class-leading Cobalt XFE's 37 MPG highway. We'd project 39 or 40 mpg, tops.
The Cruze employs a strut-type independent front suspension, which is typical in this class. Its rear suspension uses a solid torsion-beam axle, like the Corolla, rather than a fully independent set-up like the Civic or Focus. Cruze's standard, new-age electric power steering pump features speed-sensitive power assist.
Inside, the Cruze is trimmed with subtle shiny metallic cloth inserts in the seats, doors and dash. The material looks good, as do the grained, soft-touch plastic panels. There's a pop-open storage bin in the center of the dash, and a large LCD monitor that's expected to come standard. Below the monitor sit a dense array of switches with a joystick device, in the fashion of current Acura models. The appearance is high-tech, and appealing, though we tend not to like this approach when it comes to using the buttons. The Cruz will offer both Bluetooth connectivity and USB connectors.
Although Chevrolet hasn't published interior dimensions for the Cruze, we'd guess that it offers more rear-seat space than any car in its class. At 13.2 cubic feet, its trunk is larger than most competitors, too, including both Corolla and Civic (12.3 and 12.0 cubic feet, respectively).
Standard safety equipment will include front, front-passenger side and full-cabin head protection airbags, as well as electronic stability control with rollover sensing and four-wheel disc brakes with ABS. Chevy predicts the highest possible crash ratings in various government and insurance-industry tests.
In an unusual move for Detroit automakers, Chevy has launched the Cruze in Europe, where the market for compact cars is even more competitive and demanding, before it's available in the United States. The Cruze went on sale in Europe in March 2009 and, according to GM, will be rolled out to other global regions.
Early reviews from independent media suggest a high-level of refinement and good performance.
The Cruze will be built in Lordstown, Ohio, and goes on sale in United States and Canada by the spring of 2010. It will be offered in Chevy's familiar LS, LT and LTZ trim levels.
800-222-1020
www.chevrolet.com
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