TDD 6-Month Review of Cruze Diesel

[MarcusW]

I wonder how well the Cruze Diesel is selling in the U.S.... TDD seems to like it.

[URL="http://www.thedieseldriver.com/2014/07/2014-chevrolet-cruze-diesel-six-month-review-and-report/"]2014 Chevrolet Cruze Diesel: Six-Month Review and Report

If you’re an automotive journalist who regularly reviews cars, there’s nothing like 14 winter storms in your neck of the woods to stop you dead in your tracks.

Few automakers equip their cars with winter tires and no-season (our term for all-season) tires aren’t effective for driving following a significant snowfall.

In hindsight, January 2014 wasn’t the best month for The Diesel Driver to add not one but two long-term test autos to its fleet.

The 2014 Chevrolet Cruze Diesel was the first in (the second was the Mercedes-Benz E250 BlueTec). The Cruze is one of many new diesels on sale for the first time for 2014 – and it received The Diesel Driver’s Diesel Car of the Year Award, presented at this year’s New York International Auto Show in April.

[/URL]

 

[TDI smile]

A member here just sold his Cruze Diesel, because he did not like it. Went back to a VW.

 

[tdi90hp]

8.6l/100 in town average(out of the review)? That is HORRIBLE. My new Mazda 3 gasoline (14) is currently averaging 6.7 liters in town on RUG and the same number as theirs on the highway.(5.6). Granted my car is a stick but the M3 is also new like the Cruze. My wife's 12 Volvo T5 5 cyl Turbo gasoline that has strict in town duty basically averages 8.7l/100 with an automatic and 250HP!!. I aint impressed on that in town number but obviously it's partly due to the fact that thee kids are mashing the pedal pretty good.

 

[gulfcoastguy]

"Diesels allmost always outshine their estimates after 5000 miles". My JSW out did the estimate the first tank and every tank afterwards. I didn't have to drive an automatic either.

 

[skramer]

So easy to look for real world numbers to get an idea of results

http://www.fuelly.com/car/chevrolet...fig_id=13154&bodystyleconfig_id=&submodel_id=



In other news....A member on this forum sold his VW for a Mazda

 

[LarBear]

Whoever wrote this article obviously forgot about GM's failed diesel V8's in the 70's I believe. They just converted the top end to diesel parts and left the bottom end as is. I never drove one, but do remember seeing a few of them rattling and smoking around Seattle. A truly crap design by people who didn't know and didn't apparently take the time to learn.

The Cruze is a nice looking car on the outside IMHO, but the interior looks cramped and with less apparent space than a Jetta. Since most people don't buy diesels as drag racers if a Cruze diesel wants to race let 'em have at. I'd be willing to be that if I didn't care how long it took me to get places that I could get 700 miles/tank with the Jetta. But when I'm going 550 miles, don't want to get up before the crack of dawn and arrive at midnite, and have to make the usual pit stops for food and relief averaging 55 mph (total time not just time on the road) is doing pretty well even driving 70-75 mph. I have to admit that as I've gotten older that 550 miles is about the limit of my endurance too.

It's also very surprising to people who look into a Jetta's open trunk to see the relatively large space. We also get a spare tire which the Cruze diesel doesn't.

 

[cevans]

The Cruze is a nice looking car on the outside IMHO, but the interior looks cramped and with less apparent space than a Jetta. Since most people don't buy diesels as drag racers if a Cruze diesel wants to race let 'em have at....
It's also very surprising to people who look into a Jetta's open trunk to see the relatively large space. We also get a spare tire which the Cruze diesel doesn't.

I looked long and hard at the Cruze, and these were my exact problems with it.

It is a compact car, of course, but feels VERY cramped. More cramped than a MKIV because of the HUGE dashboard. The no-spare situation is also worrying to me, since the spare is taken up by the adBlue tank. Obviously a "made to fit" rather than "designed to fit" set up.

Finally, it is expensive! $25k, compared to a larger Jetta at $22k is a hard sell. The Cruze may have a higher quality interior, but it isn't THAT much better. On the plus side, looks like the Cruze owners are enjoying their rides so far, and the MPG seems to be very good too.

 

[vwgtiglx]

You can get a basic one for $22K according to Tru-car. I got mine for that in Oct. 2013. There is no comparing the current VM Motori engine with the old GM V8 diesels of the 1980's. Mine is breaking in quite well now at 8K miles and the MPG is way over the rated claimed mileage.

 

[BRUSSELS BELGIAN]

Hey!

I drove a Chevy Cruz diesel on an identical loop as my 2005 Passat TDI. Passat 48 miles per gallon; Cruz 58 miles per gallon. Any questions?

 

[IndigoBlueWagon]

Yes, but your Passat gets terrible FE. What would the B4 get on the same loop?