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Well guys i found this article on autocar UK website!
First Drive
Cruze 1.8 LT
Test date 10 March 2009
Price as tested £13,595
What is it?
This is the all-new Cruze ‘compact sedan’, which GM says is the
first Chevrolet to be tested in Europe and tuned for European tastes.
The car was styled inside and out at GM DAT in Korea, under a
multi-national team. This new look will be rolled out as Chevrolet’s
new global design language.
The Cruze is also the first GM model to be based on the all-new,
global, Delta platform, which will also underpin this autumn’s new
Astra. The upshot is that GM is expecting top-notch crash-test results.
The best way of putting this 4.6m-long machine in context is to
think of it as a kind of replacement for the old Seat Toledo saloon or
VW Bora.
In this 1.8-litre LS form, the Cruze is loaded with standard
equipment, including cruise and climate control, anti-dazzle rear-view
mirror, 17in alloys and an upgraded stereo system, as well as the
follow-me-home headlights fitted to the lower-end models.
What’s it like?
The first impression is of the car’s good looks. The Cruze has a
chiselled, sophisticated exterior that gives nothing away to more
established brands. The unusual double decker front grille treatment is
particularly refreshingly.
The pleasant surprises continue inside. Chevrolet has done a
first-rate job. The ‘dual cockpit’ treatment is original and stylish
and the quality of materials and finishes very impressive. It even gets
chunks of switchear from the Insignia (steering wheel, stalks,
headlamps switch) as well as its own impressive centre console design.
We drove the 138bhp 1.8-litre petrol Cruze, which gets a five-speed
manual box as standard. Firstly, the driving position and seat and
wheel adjustability were excellent and even the largest adults will get
comfortable. The Cruze is snug, but just big enough.
Despite the advertised power, the 1.8 engine is lacklustre, with a rather droning sound track when pushed.
However, although the unit was also very tight, most of us have got
used to the ready torque of turbodiesel engines and have forgotton what
small-capacity naturally aspirated petrol engines are like.
It needs stoking up past 3000rpm – aided by a slick ‘box and stubby,
short-throw shifter - before the car really picks up pace for
overtaking. This car is crying out for a small capacity turbocharged
petrol engine (which, incidentally, it will get, but only in the US).
On very poorly surfaced Spanish roads the Cruze rides very well,
floating over rough surfaces, although on coarse surfaces it picks up a
little road roar. The car doesn’t roll too much, either, despite the
fact it has no sporting pretensions.
Perhaps the biggest disappointment is the steering, which feels
detached and imprecise through long corners and with a half a turn of
lock in place.
However, all that said, the Cruze is impressive in its own
determinedly non-sporting way. It rolls along quietly and smoothly, and
feels altogether light years away from being a budget car.
Should I buy one?
Nobody interested in the kind of sharpened responses offered by,
say, a Ford Focus, would be entirely happy with the Cruze. However, the
quality of the car, especially the interior, the cruising refinement,
the promised safety and the extremely competitive pricing make the
Cruze a highly intriguing prospect.
For a lot of less demanding drivers, this is a very, very tempting package, especially in the current economic climate.
(www.autocar.co.uk)
First Drive
Cruze 1.8 LT
Test date 10 March 2009
Price as tested £13,595
What is it?
This is the all-new Cruze ‘compact sedan’, which GM says is the
first Chevrolet to be tested in Europe and tuned for European tastes.
The car was styled inside and out at GM DAT in Korea, under a
multi-national team. This new look will be rolled out as Chevrolet’s
new global design language.
The Cruze is also the first GM model to be based on the all-new,
global, Delta platform, which will also underpin this autumn’s new
Astra. The upshot is that GM is expecting top-notch crash-test results.
The best way of putting this 4.6m-long machine in context is to
think of it as a kind of replacement for the old Seat Toledo saloon or
VW Bora.
In this 1.8-litre LS form, the Cruze is loaded with standard
equipment, including cruise and climate control, anti-dazzle rear-view
mirror, 17in alloys and an upgraded stereo system, as well as the
follow-me-home headlights fitted to the lower-end models.
What’s it like?
The first impression is of the car’s good looks. The Cruze has a
chiselled, sophisticated exterior that gives nothing away to more
established brands. The unusual double decker front grille treatment is
particularly refreshingly.
The pleasant surprises continue inside. Chevrolet has done a
first-rate job. The ‘dual cockpit’ treatment is original and stylish
and the quality of materials and finishes very impressive. It even gets
chunks of switchear from the Insignia (steering wheel, stalks,
headlamps switch) as well as its own impressive centre console design.
We drove the 138bhp 1.8-litre petrol Cruze, which gets a five-speed
manual box as standard. Firstly, the driving position and seat and
wheel adjustability were excellent and even the largest adults will get
comfortable. The Cruze is snug, but just big enough.
Despite the advertised power, the 1.8 engine is lacklustre, with a rather droning sound track when pushed.
However, although the unit was also very tight, most of us have got
used to the ready torque of turbodiesel engines and have forgotton what
small-capacity naturally aspirated petrol engines are like.
It needs stoking up past 3000rpm – aided by a slick ‘box and stubby,
short-throw shifter - before the car really picks up pace for
overtaking. This car is crying out for a small capacity turbocharged
petrol engine (which, incidentally, it will get, but only in the US).
On very poorly surfaced Spanish roads the Cruze rides very well,
floating over rough surfaces, although on coarse surfaces it picks up a
little road roar. The car doesn’t roll too much, either, despite the
fact it has no sporting pretensions.
Perhaps the biggest disappointment is the steering, which feels
detached and imprecise through long corners and with a half a turn of
lock in place.
However, all that said, the Cruze is impressive in its own
determinedly non-sporting way. It rolls along quietly and smoothly, and
feels altogether light years away from being a budget car.
Should I buy one?
Nobody interested in the kind of sharpened responses offered by,
say, a Ford Focus, would be entirely happy with the Cruze. However, the
quality of the car, especially the interior, the cruising refinement,
the promised safety and the extremely competitive pricing make the
Cruze a highly intriguing prospect.
For a lot of less demanding drivers, this is a very, very tempting package, especially in the current economic climate.
(www.autocar.co.uk)
