Chevrolet Cruze

elias · February 2012

i have 1.8L cruze stick and it warms up about the same as you are reporting, starting in an attached-garaged at 20F above outdoor temp. i don't care so much when it gets fully warmed up, only when it will start giving cabin heat on a frigid winter morning, and that it warms up 10x faster than VW TDI did !
maybe there is something funky with the Eco grille-flaps (?) - aren't there some closable flaps - like diesels use to block the radiator? on eco are they controlled by ECM? maybe they are a factor you can control or are malfunctioning? seems like they could affect coolant temp big time in winter.

gpara · February 2012

About the grill shutter, I have a switch on the shutter to monitor when it closes, it is closed the entire time. Heat will start at about 160 degrees.
This morning I used lower hose heater, on 10 minutes started and idle 20 seconds, shut off and left it for another 10 minutes, my temp was at 150 1.5 miles out and at 4 miles was at 180 which is acceptable but I did not use the heater and I started at 38 degrees. This will do the job, I plan to remove heater and hose for warmer weather, already got a new hose ordered thru GM.
I am surprised that the 1.8L warms up so slow, not known for it's efficiency.
I think GM needs to offer an engine pre-heater for moderate to cold temps on all these smaller cars.
Gary

elias · February 2012

engine-block-heater is nifty option, I actually had one on an LG4 V8 - but it leaked after a few years - requiring freeze-plug-replacement !..

cool about the grill shutter. i was wondering what would happen if i took the eco grill shutter set up and put it onto the front of a 1.8L cruze. some sort of matter/antimatter implosion perhaps...

g-man, the distances you are mentioning still seem amazingly low for anything resembling full warmup. these cars warm up SUPER fast in my opinion, since I am measuring by cabin heat not coolant temp. I dump max heat into the cabin intentionally, as soon as the coolant gets any warmth at all. the item i wish for is a heated steering wheel...

possibly consider that the engine is NOT warmed up when the coolant reaches whatever temp you want, 180, 195, 210, whatever... it takes another 10 minutes for the block to warm to that temp, after the coolant, man!

On the VW TDIs, some folks would put a foam tube thing around the grille/airdam crossmember, to physically block some of the grille, and to allow the engine to retain heat in winter. I never tried that and don't recommend it for your Cruze! There were some mornings/days where I would drive TDI 75 mph for 25 minutes and it would never get fully warmed up.

ken137 · February 2012

car has been in shop 15 days now and supposedly they have received the heater core so it should be installed today. I should know by tomorrow at the latest what the outcome is.

elias · February 2012

Here's hoping it will be fixed, ken137 - best wishes .

budman21 · February 2012

Have had my LT for about a month now. Very pleased overall. Minor things are lack of interior trunk release, only one convenience outlet, no cargo net, strong smell from off-gassing of plastics, and no light in glove box. Get the turbo version. You won't regret it.

bradley2 · February 2012

2011 Cruze LT1 Turbo. Now 30,000 miles after 13 months. No complaints except periodic rattle from drivers' side pillar. Each time I take it to dealer the rattle disappears but some other times it sounds like a pop can is in there. Mileage decent not great at 29-30 MPG HWY, but I do drive pretty fast. I like the way it drives and find the cabin comfortable and decent quality. Backseat is more or less unfit for adult humans.

brueggie · February 2012

Took a trip down to Austin, TX Saturday from Frisco, TX ~ 4 hour drive all highway. Filled up the tank the night before and averaged 42.7 down and then 45.3 on the way back without resetting the gauge. My instant/50 mile average touched 50.0 at one point and I drove an average of 67.8 mph with highway speeds between 70-80mph. Absolutely love this car!

2012 ECO ~7650 miles

Kirstie_H · February 2012

A reporter is looking to interview parents who own a Chevy Cruze Eco, Toyota Prius V and/or Honda Civic Hybrid. If you are willing to share your experience with the car, please email PR@edmunds.com no later than March 10, 2012.

elias · March 2012

at 15k miles, still no data to know what 1.8 M6 gets on 100% highway cruise. 33 mpg in commute/stop-and-go/highway/around-town; never zeroed the avg-mpg meter.

with fuel prices increasing, the tradeoff # of miles is decreasing, the tradeoff point where eco costs less overall than non-eco cruze. maybe tradeoff point is below 100k miles with fuel at $5/gallon ...

i'm hoping to trade for an electric-Cruze before 100k miles. (Volt!) Or a Corvette, not sure which.

btw, in the eco, isn't it sort of cheating that they increased mpg by reducing fuel tank size by 15% just to save the weight?

brueggie · March 2012

The design engineers eliminated something like 200+ items to reduce weight in the ECO from a regular model Cruze. I can't miss them if I never had them!

Took $40 to fill the tank @ $3.46/gallon here in Dallas which is the most a tank has cost me thus far. Saw this morning that it has jumped to $3.69 so that will add another $3-$4 next time.

Karen_S · March 2012

A reporter is looking to hear from a driver of a Ford Focus, Ford Fiesta, Chevy Cruze or Chevy Sonic who previously drove a compact from a Japanese automaker, such as the Toyota Corolla or Honda Civic. If you currently drive a Focus, Fiesta, Cruze or Sonic, and are willing to share your story with a reporter, please email PR@edmunds.com no later than the end of business Tuesday, March 6, 2012 with your daytime contact information.

lexan1965 · March 2012

I've had my Cruze 2LT w turbo for about 16 months now and have 34K miles on it. Can't be more happy and satisfied with this vehicle. I drive 70% highway, 30% city to and from work and I am a bit heavy on the gas. I'm getting an average 33.5 MPG and I calculate this manually as the DIC reports are about 1.5 MPG off. The car is fun to drive and I have had no issues at all with the car.
Does anyone know what the differences are on the ECO model? I know about the shutters and tires...just curious! :shades:

imidazol97 · March 2012

From other posts about it, I believe they use a smaller gas tank to save weight and make other weight-saving changes from the standard model.

gpara · March 2012

Hi, I put together a program on the eco package for a dealer, lower ride height by 1 inch, liter tires and ultra low rolling resistance goodyears, taller final overdrive ratios, liter body and less welds and metal, no spare tire, functional rear spoiler,full underpaning to break turbulance, not sure if all cruzes have this but, RVC, regulated voltage control, drops charge to 12 volts when battery is full instead of 14v normal system

gpara · March 2012

The fuel tank is the same part number from GM, it will hold 15+ gallons if you have time to fill. The vent system on the cruze eco is supposed to limit the fill to around 12 gallons. Had my tank off and modified to fill past 9 gallons, I was having trouble filling past that. The vents hang down about 4 inches into the tank and there are 3 different level vents, non removable.

elias · March 2012

wow that is interesting about the vented fuel tank situation. almost similar to 2-generations-ago VW TDIs, except with cruze there's no way to remove the capacity-impeding-vent/vanes.

gpara it is seriously that is wild and cool how you are ultra-eco-ing your cruze.
how much does underpan weigh? running at 12V instead of 13.8V is also very interesting. Eco gearing is already taller/wider and you made it taller yet? gearing doesn't necessarily do what one wants- results dependent on power & torque curve ! ?

stever · April 2012

A reporter is looking for a car shopper who thinks 40 MPG is a requisite before they buy. If you have recently shopped for a car, and you have only considered cars that get 40 MPG, and you are willing to share your story with a reporter, please contact pr@edmunds.com with your daytime contact information no later than Tuesday, April 24, 2012 at noon Pacific/3 p.m. Eastern.

sajayra · April 2012

Ive seen alot of questions on forums asking how to hook up a amp to the stock radio. Here's a video for anyone who needs help. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-y8hgSNtos

elias · May 2012

First 500 mile I-95 roundtrip, with 1.8LS stickshift: 36mpg, about 3 mpg better than commuting. Go-pedal was floored approximately 974 times each way in order to keep up with traffic/conditions. Just a couple doofi drivers were encountered, and only one drunk. Traffic is FAST out there people. With this car semi-loaded with 1.8 engine and automatic transmission, it would be *impossible* to "lead" the especially concious/big-dog drivers on I-95. but it's totally doable with the stickshift, thank you.
20k miles on it so far, zero dealer visits, just the one oil change and now time for #2 (synthetic).
home-run, GM: An actual 4.3 (A+) should go to the team that conceived/designed/built Cruze.

winter2 · June 2012

Recently, GM quietly announced that the Cruze will be sold here with a diesel and a six speed manual (no automatic) in model year 2013. The engine is being co-developed by GM and an Italian company partially owned by GM called V.M. Motori. FIAT owns the rest of V.M. Motori who has been making diesels since 1947.

I bring this up because of an issue I have had with V.M. Motori diesels. Chrysler in Europe has been using this company for some years now and in 2005 and 2006 used one of their engines in the Jeep Liberty. I had a 2005 Liberty with one of these engines and it did not hold up. It threw a rod at 77,594 miles without warning and destroyed the engine in short order in spite of getting very good care. If you look on the forum here on Edmunds at the Jeep Liberty diesel you will see that there have been numerous issues.

I am not trying to dissuade anyone from buying a diesel, but engines from this company leave something to be desired. I wonder why GM did not use one of their Opel diesels instead?

crkyolfrt · June 2012

This is interesting to learn, winter. I almost bought a Liberty because it offered the diesel. I loved the torque and the way the engine ran, although for its 2.7 litre size (if I recall) certainly wasn't the smoothest of inline 4's, it was smooth enough.

The deal breaker for me, was the auto transmission. While I prefer a stick (and that engine was well suited to utilizing the most efficiency out of a stick with so much torque down low in the rpm range) I was still considering a purchase with the only trans available, being the corporate Chrysler 5 speed auto. But it shifted so badly, that I lost total interest after driving a second demo at a different dealer. The two trans shifted a bit differently from each other (even that was curious) but they both were busy shifters when they needn't have been, and lazy when they needed to be responsive. Just terrible software communicative management with the engine. A total deal-breaker. And wouldn't you know it, years later we learn that that trans did in fact have a very troublesome torque-converter. Little did I know at the time that Chrysler's sourced engine emission systems would also cause a myriad of issues down the road that can't really be blamed on VM.

But, your crank issue (and I have heard of other mechanical issues also) can't be blamed on emission devices or Chrysler; or at least I surely don't think they can. But what can be blamed on Chrysler is how poorly they handled their customers who got saddled with this troublesome, expensive power train. And for that I have a memory like an elephant and feel relieved that the auto trans was such a disaster on my demo drives because if it hadn't, I too would be experiencing the premature and even fatal issues you guys who bought one, have. I feel badly for you. And I thank you for your info post about the Cruze VM diesel. Had I not known this, I probably would have stilled passed if the auto was not available, but only because of some health complications that make shifting a stick a problem for me in my years now.

I am extremely impressed with the mileage that Cruze owners are getting in real world driving, with both engines and trans combos. I have personally driven the turbo with 6 auto and the 1.8 with 6 stick and was very impressed with both. The 1.8 with the stick left me suspecting that given the weight of car and the 1.8 with auto would make it not too swift for pickup, and if driven hard in stick or auto would be harder on gas than the turbo driven normally. But I also believe the great mileage owners like alias are getting with the 1.8 stick if driven not too aggressively. Now that I know about where GM is foolishly sourcing their diesel (instead of using the Holden?/Opel) and not offering the auto, my choice would be the turbo with auto when I am in the market again. Of course the bar is constantly being raised so who knows. And we also won't know if GM does a better job than Chrysler, of making emission systems more compatible with VM's diesel, but also offer longevity. Visions of crank failures on a cared-for engine is hard to forgive though.

winter2 · June 2012

The issues with the powertrain in the Jeep Liberty were multiple and if you were not aware of some of the quirks, it would cost you.

If this VM/GM hybrid engine is more VM than GM then expect issues, especially with emissions and mechanical issues. The EGR valve on the CRD was a nightmare. It was not properly designed to handle the soot in the exhaust stream and from time to time you had to "blow out" the soot from the EGR which left clouds of soot behind you when you did it. Another quirk was the intake manifold pressure sensor. It needed cleaning with every oil change and of course the location left something to be desired. Forget to clean this sensor and you would blow a hose from the turbo to the intercooler. Then we come to the variable geometry turbo, made by Garrett. Only lasted about 80K miles before you had to repair it or replace it. I wish Chrysler had used a twin-scroll turbo, yes more money, a little harder to package, but in reality simpler and more rugged. The Cruze diesel will have a DPF and potentially urea (DEF) spray into the exhaust stream for emissions. This should prove interesting.

As to the trans, you must have driven an early model in 2005. The trans in my CRD always shifted smoothly in fact almost too smoothly. When Chrysler recalled the CRD to modify the engine torque and replace parts in the trans including the torque converter (F37 recall) the vehicle acted very much the same except that power delivery was not quite as potent. I was into my third torque converter at the time my engine threw a rod and I had read of other Jeep CRD owners having even more torque converters installed than I did.

Now back to the Cruze diesel. If GM has more say than VM, I am not sure what to expect. I still remember the 5.7L V-8 diesel nightmare from the late 70's to early 80's. GM gave diesel a bad name and an undeserved bad reputation with that engine.

Frankly, I am intrigued by this development but I am very scared of anything associated with VM Motori or GM.

backy · June 2012

I just took a Cruze rental (1LT I think) on a 370-mile two day trip. It had just over 12k miles when I picked it up. The outbound trip was in the evening and temps 70-80, so no AC and average speed was 64 mph--never had the cruise control over 67. Almost all highway. On that leg I got 42.7 mpg per the trip computer. Then I drove around town today and headed back to town. It was about 80 and I was dressed up so had the AC on. Still was doing well, at about 42 mpg overall, until I-94 was blocked by a bad accident. I sat for a long time, with AC on (1/2 mile for over an hour). Finally got to turn around and drove on side roads around the accident. But with all that I still averaged 40.2 mpg for the trip, which I think is really good given the near-zero mpg I got for over an hour (which dropped the overall mph to just over 50). Also, my butt and back weren't too much the worse for wear sitting in the car for nearly 4 hours w/o a break.

gpara · June 2012

Great job on the mileage, if you are that good now look at the ECO model and be ready for 50+mpg under the same situations.

backy · June 2012

Based on recent reviews from C/D and CR on the Eco, I doubt I'll see 50+ mpg under those conditions. Maybe 50 mpg with the stick when cruising on the highway.

Kirstie_H · June 2012

A reporter is interested in talking to any car shoppers who are thinking about buying any one of the following small cars: Chevy Cruze, Ford Focus, Hyundai Elantra, Honda Civic or Dodge Dart. Please send a brief description of your shopping experience and your preferred contact information to PR@edmunds.com by Monday, June 18th

bradley2 · July 2012

Sorry to say but after attempting to be a patriot & GM/Chevy man with strong multi-generational family ties to the company this Chevy Cruze recall for stupid under-carriage fire hazard is the last straw that broke this camel's back. In addition to that my Cruze (2011 LT) had bad hood paint job/crease out the gate, lousy fit & finish and additional recalls/service advisories including a failed thermostat, etc. and a wicked rattle from driver side pillar among other things. Also my 2010 Chev Equinox had multiple problems with less than 50k miles including a passenger rear window motor failure, a lumbar driver seat automatic motor failure, rattles galore, speakers that hum and moan, and more. That on top of prior Malibu gasket failures and yada yada yada have given me no choice. Bye bye GM, have a nice life. PS the dealers were great but the design, engineeering and manufacturing flaws doom them too, I fear and no marketing gimics can overcome that. I am a patriot and a loyalist, but I am not stupid. Watch for my next posting about a FORD or heaven forbid, an import. PS my 2006 KIA Spectra 5 now "owned" by my daughter with 150k+ miles and no coin invested other than brakes, tires, oil changes and timing belt runs like a top. Go figure.

ab348 · July 2012

Don't let the door hit you on the way out. Cruze has been very well received and has had both good reviews and a good track record. All cars have recalls and this one is pretty minor.

jamtracy · July 2012

X2.....
I've had mine for 6 months now. I drive it everyday and have had zero problems or complaints with it.

jpf · July 2012

45% market share in 1980 and 15% in 2012. Soon there may be no more customers to hit on the way out the door.

elias · July 2012

there are so many awesome GM cars now! I regret that I only have one butt to put in the drivers seat of a GM car at a time, including my gas-only Volt (aka Cruze).
in Cruze news, my 2011 M6 had the two safety recall/inspections done yesterday. It took less than an hour.
The car did need the shield thing for engine/clutch.
It did not need the disassembly/welding/re-assembly procedure - a 24 page process - would have required two techs.

ab348 · July 2012

Perfectly sensible response, since we all know the same people who designed & built the Citation also did the Cruze. :confuse:

backy · July 2012

Not quite. The Cruze's design comes from Europe and Korea.

pineapple73 · October 2012

The V.M. Motori engine in the liberty was an over bored 425 series with extra cylinders unit first used in 1998 in europe it was a disaster when overstretched . the engine used in the cruze is the ra420 first introduced in 2006 and is very reliable I am curently running an antara with the same engine and 6 speed manual box it has been extreamly reliable.

jpf · October 2012

No, different engineers but same corporate philosophy. GM hasn't learned much in the past 30 years.

lexan1965 · November 2012

Upon changing my oil one day last month i noticed a pink drip coming from around the seal bearing area where the drive shaft and transmission connect. Immediately called the dealer as I had an extended warranty, thank God! My 2011 Cruze has 56K on it by the way...
After showing the technician the trouble area I was given a loaner vehicle and told they would call me as soon as they inspected it further. I recieved a call later in the day and was told the water pump has a bad leak...r u kidding me?!?! 56K miles and the water pump goes bad! Anyway, while they were replacing it they replaced the thermostat and also found a cracked engine mount which was also replaced. Never owned a vehicle that had less than 100K on it and had issues of this sort. All together I paid nothing for the repairs and I am still happy with my Cruze. I would still buy another one if I had my choice.

lexan1965 · November 2012

averaging 33.5 city/hwy and 36mpg on hwy 2011 Cruze 2LT 1.4L turbo

gmcustsvc · November 2012

We're glad to hear that everything has been resolved on your Cruze, lexan1965! We wish you many more happy miles, and if there is every anything you would like for us to check into, please contact us via email at socialmedia@gm.com (include your name, contact information, and the last 8 digits of your VIN with your inquiry).

Sarah, GM Customer Service

Sandman6472 · November 2012

Must be something going around I guess...the wife's Mazda3 needs 2 engine mounts...granted her ride has 113k and is an '05 model. Luckily you have the extended warranty...we opted to forgo one. Luckily, there's money in the car fund and since we've never kept a ride over 80k before, don't really feel that bad. Guess we're gonna fix it and try to get this puppy to 150k.

Good luck with your Cruze!

The Sandman :sick: :shades:

lexan1965 · November 2012

I've had my cruze (1.4L turbo) for 2 yrs. now and just went over 57K miles. I've read on several web sites devoted to the cruze that the engines coming from Austria have the wrong gap on the plugs. GM issued a technical bulletin on the issue...I don't have the number for it.
People have said the plugs in their cruze were gapped at .020 to .025. All of them pulled the plugs and installed new plugs at .035 and reported a difference in their engines smoothness and responsiveness. I removed my plugs 3 days ago and found that it was true, had plugs gapped from .020 to .027. I installed new plugs gapped at .032 and have noticed a smoothness on acceleration and at idle. Just an FYI for you other cruzers out there! :shades:

stever · October 2013

A reporter would like to speak to a young buyer of a Ford Focus or a Chevy Cruze. If you are under the age of 34, and you are shopping for or recently purchased a Ford Focus or a Chevy Cruze, please send your daytime contact information to pr@edmunds.com no later than 1 p.m. PT/4 p.m. ET on Thursday, 10/10/13.

elias · October 2013

thanks for the headsup on that lexxie.

Sandman6472 · October 2013

A co-worker drove an LTZ model yesterday and I happened to go sit inside...a very nice interior with a vinyl seating surface that looked like leather. The seats were somewhat comfy but hard to tell without a long drive in one. I liked the dash layout with everything within reach...I will have to snag one for a long trip next time the vehicles are lined up like they were yesterday. My friend at work loves these vehicles so I let her have it and took the Elantra right behind it. The one thing not hooked up was the SAT radio she told me later. I know the Verano is the same vehicle basically but I do prefer the Buick version here...but one pays for the priviledge here and if I had that choice, i would. And the Verano is already on my short list for my next vehicle, but I will give the Cruze a shot and test drive one when I start that process...one never knows and for the right price on the right vehicle, a Cruze could eventually end up on my side of the garage! Good job Chevrolet!!!

The Sandman :sick: :shades:

ab348 · October 2013

The Cruze and Verano are very different. Different engines, different bodies, totally different in terms of soundproofing and the like. I've driven a Cruze and it was OK, but the engine was not al that impressive.

Sandman6472 · October 2013

You mean totally different? For some reason, the Verano looks like a more substantial, heavier vehicle but I thought it was just my eyes. I still haven't driven one at work, I don't see that many, but hope to soon as I am very keen on this vehicle. I have driven the Lacrosse and Regal and was highly impressed with both so I know I would love the Verano...we had a Buick Skylark back in the 80's and it was a nice driver though a bit big for my tastes. I have seen a few in that cream pearlized color and it was very sharp looking. Got a feeling it is close in size to my current Civic which is just perfect...I don't require or want a mid sizer ever again, and eventually I can see us downsizing to one vehicle and I know the wife would love the Verano.

The Sandman

ab348 · October 2013

They are built on the same chassis but with different suspension tuning and completely different bodies. Verano is about 100 lbs heavier, probably mostly soundproofing. Interior space is about the same in each.

chumo · December 2013

Just bought a 2013 LTZ. Please add this discussion my watched list

Sandman6472 · December 2013

Ya kinda have to do that on your own here sir...it's a "self serve" website! You need to "add" yourself...just follow the instructions, it's very easy!

The Sandman

imidazol97 · December 2013

>2013 LTZ

Congratulations. I keep looking and looking trying to decide what cars I want to test drive and whether to include Malibu along with Cruze.

>my watched list.

At top of the messages there are thee links at the right side: Post New Message, Watch This Discussion, Mark as Read.

Just click on the Watch This Discussion then click okay. It will be added as a new topic to which you've subscribed. The servers will try to take you through all the old messages. If you don't want to read 900 messages, click the Mark as Read. Then everytime there's a new message and you've logged in, you'll be shown the new messages + one old message just before those.

Good luck with your car.

Chevrolet Cruze

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