The 2016 Chevrolet Cruze has begun to leave its birth place of Lordstown, Ohio, and ship out to dealers across the United States and Canada, and eagle-eyed drivers may notice a handful of Chevrolet’s new compact car sitting at dealer lots. That is exactly what we noticed, and we decided to take advantage of it.
Before we head out to Nashville, Tennessee to drive the 2016 Chevrolet Cruze in less than two weeks, we decided to take the all-new Cruze for our own quick spin. We played a bit of undercover journalist here, posing as a prospective buyer to gain access to a 2016 Cruze. Don’t worry, Spitzer Chevrolet, your sales force was kind and very helpful.
So, we grabbed the keys to a volume-selling LT model, equipped with the RS package and painted in Siren Red Metallic, and began our test drive.
Before setting off, though, we took a moment to take in the 2016 Cruze’s styling since it’s the first time we’ve seen the vehicle outside of the auto show circuit’s bright lights. The 2016 Cruze looks good in person, showing off a bit of Chevrolet character in the process, even though the front end looks incredibly similar to a Toyota Corolla. But, such is the industry anymore.
Each 2016 Cruze is equipped with a 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine, and mated to a six-speed automatic gearbox, but a manual gearbox is optional. Ours was equipped with the auto. As we set off, one thing became immediate with the powertrain: its tuned for fuel economy. Tall gears and timid throttle input make the 1.4-liter a fuel sipper. However, the engine and transmission played well together, kicking down appropriately when we reached a 55 mph zone during our test drive.
Steering feel was typical of any modern day vehicle, meaning electric and vague, but the ride surprised. The 2016 Cruze didn’t feel disconnected from the road, but it absorbed road imperfections very well as it hit typical Ohio potholes and sunken in sewer caps.
Now, what we really liked. The stop-start system is superb. We forgot the 2016 Cruze was equipped with such a system. It’s also incredibly quiet putzing around town, something we also appreciated. And we will mention the ride once again, because it feels vastly improved over the outgoing Cruze.
But, there were a few things we didn’t care for. The LT trim sits below the Premier trim in its hierarchy, and nothing felt “special” about this Cruze, even with the RS package. The interior was a sea of black. Literally. Modest wouldn’t even describe the contrast of color with subtle silver accents. Materials also seemed below par for the segment, but everything fit well with tight panels.
We want to reserve our true final judgement for our actual road test of the 2016 Cruze when we touchdown in Nashville on April 18, so expect an in-depth look at the car soon. In the meantime, it seems like the 2016 Cruze has pulled out a proper followup to Chevrolet’s best selling model globally.
Comments
I have seen a few here in Ohio at the dealerships….now first I did not drive one and I am only commenting on the exterior, which is not necessarily bad. The problem is that the New gen Malibu looks great in person. The new gen Cruze looks a bit goofy.
I seen it at the auto show and at first thought it didn’t look that bad.
The Malibu, Impala, Camaro, & the new Volt all look great. Great lines great stance….The Cruze is the weak link in the new line.
most ppl shopping for a compact do not get bent out of shape about looks so it will not affect sales.
It is not bad…it just doesn’t nail the styling like the rest of the new Chevy line-up.
Just go see it in person….except for no 2.0 turbo offered the car does seem to be pretty impressive with features!
I like the looks but I’m not sure I like it over the outgoing model. Though I may prefer this front end slightly. I just really liked the ‘mini BMW’ sophisticated look of the old one. Particularly the side profile and from the rear. I agree with the commentary on the interior being sub par. I’ll take it a step further and say that applies to the entire Chevrolet line right now. I’ve been in the new Malibu, new Cruze, new Volt, new Camaro and new Colorado and I can say all have an overwhelming feeling of cheapness on the inside. I’ve not had a chance to see the Bolt or Sonic. Even with the current Tahoe/Silverado. In each case you feel surrounded by what come across as cheap plastics and fabrics that would have only cost pennies to upgrade. The Premiere trims were also lacking in color choice as well as soft touch plastics. In a couple of cases, the interior materials seem to have been downgraded from previous models. Not the designs themselves because I feel they improved greatly, but the quality seems to be cheapened.
Matt, I have been in the 2016 Colorado Z71 and I really thought the interior seemed fairly nice with a great amount of options. were you in a lower lever Colorado? not saying you are not right at all about the quality.
What are some volume car manufacturers that have impressive interior? Mazda and Toyota both lack in nice interiors.
I would disagree newer mazdas have nice interiors, a it like a bmw or caddy? No but they are nice esp the newer 6s abd upper trim 3’s and especially the newer cx-9 coming out I have a 2014 6 and it’s nice but yes has some cheap parts, and Malibu has an improved interior for the Chevy brand
Mazda nice interior? nope!
Matt, I also really loved the looks of the old Cruze. But it suffered from two problems.
First, the backseat legroom was just too small. I rented one (I think a 2013) with the family on a series of long drives in Southern California and the backseat was the punishment zone. Ever since then, I’ll rent it only if I have max one other person with me.
Second, and this may have more to do with me more than with the car, I just couldn’t find a comfortable place to put my left foot when I drove it.
Other than that, loved the car. Just could never justify buying it. Looking forward to checking out the 2016.
By the way, did anyone notice that the trunk is smaller in the 2016 vs the previous generation (especially in the LT and Premier trims)? I think that’s one of the ways they were able to increase the backseat legroom.
Well, they finally got the new Cruze in my local Chevy dealership and I test drove an LT model (they only have LT’s right now).
Chevy COMPLETELY fixed what I did not like about the previous Cruze. Both front and back seats are roomy and comfortable. Plus the car is surprisingly quiet at all speeds (I took it to well over 90 mph on the highway), and the suspension is very good at absorbing bumps. Frankly, I was surprised at how well it drove. The interior features were also quite good.
OK, now on to the items I wasn’t as happy with. First, the car I drove had an all-black interior and it did nothing for me. Basically looked like a lot of shiny black plastic. I saw pictures of other interior colors (atmospheric gray and a black/Kalahari (orange)) interiors that looked much better – to me at least. Second, the instrument cluster looked a bit cheap. Then again, it did work very well, had a ton of info, and was intuitive to use.
Finally, the trunk does seem smaller than the previous Cruze. It is a very useful boxy shape, but the width is not as wide as it could have been. Plus it has a real spare tire, not just a tire repair kit.
According to Chevy’s website, the LT and the Premier seem to have smaller trunks than the L and LS. 13.9 cubic feet compared to 14.8 cubic feet. Not sure why. Having previously had a 2011 Malibu with a large trunk that often came in handy, trunk space is a big deal for me. The previous Cruze and the current 2016 Civic are superior in this regard.
Finally, the engine is an interesting one. It has two personalities: It starts weak, and then really strengthens when the turbo kicks in. This is at all speeds. When the turbo spools up, the power is definitely there, but it takes a second or two. I don’t have much experience with turbo-charged engines, so I don’t know if this unusual turbo lag. That initial weakness is a bit disconcerting, but I think more experience with the car will enable a driver learn how to best make use of it.
Overall, I was very impressed. I’m not a big car kind of guy, and I absolutely hate driving big SUV’s when I rent them (when I have to, for the space). For me, large compacts like the Cruze, the new Civic, new Elantra, or Jetta are much better. Or a small SUV or cross-over or small station wagon. With a different color combination and the right options package, I can easily imagine myself buying the new Cruze.
It’s a different world and while it would be easy to simply say what the 2016 Chevrolet Cruze needs is a LTG 2.0L DOHC-4v 4-cyl turbo with 265-275 horsepower; but even the LWC used by the Buick Cascada with 200 hp from it’s 1.6L DOHC-4v 4-cyl turbo would change the entire personality of the Cruze without sacrificing fuel mileage much as the 200cc bigger engine would mean not needing to work as hard and make the Cruze more ‘fun’ to drive.
And why is Chevrolet limiting the options available to those who want the LT with a six-speed manual? There is only the convenience package available — not the safety/tech package as offered in 2013. And put a lumbar adjustment on the front seats.
And no sunroof…. I would have considered on with this plus the tech package and the manual (in the hatch,) but no…. so no sale from me at this time.
The new Cruze is great! With this new paint scheme “Red Siren” looks elegant and sporty. This car is perfect like me, your line design is very modern. I love it. Former Red Crystal also is also cute and it is only in Malibu. GM has the most complete line of beautiful red colors in their cars. Butte Red and Garnet.
My preference :
1. Siren Red Tintcoat
2. Crystal Red Tintcoat
3. Butte Red Metallic
4. Red Rock Metallic
5. Garnet Tintcoat( Camaro 2016)
Having climbed in and out of a new Cruze Premier at a recent product training course, I have to disagree with the comments on here about interior trim. Not only did GM place soft touch materials everywhere you are likely to rest your hands but the attention to detail is significantly better than the old model-and I liked the old model. Especially if you can compare it side by side with the New Civic as we did you will notice how much better the interior design, fit , finish and quality of materials the Cruze offers. Leg room? Oh yes, there’s now more than ample leg room in the rear seats-we had a six foot 2″ “passenger” sit behind a 6’5″ “driver” and they both fit. So unless your family is made up entirely of NBA stars, you should have no problem fitting them in a Cruze. BY the way, horsepower and torque are up to 153 hp/177 lbft. and the car is lighter than before. It would be cool though if GM would make a pocket rocket version RS to compete against the others in this class.
They have done a really good job with this new Cruze. Like some of the other commenters I just wish the marketing bunch could get the standards and options in better order. I want things like leather and auto dim mirror but don’t want the top trim and all the things it makes you have. Once again GM fails the details.