Overview & Reviews

The Chevrolet Cruze does not have history on its side. The Chevrolet division of General Motors has historically done "big" well: big trucks, big family sedans and big V8 muscle cars. When it comes to small cars, though, the General hasn't been so good, with the lamentable Cavalier and Cobalt being the two most recent examples. But that's changed with the compact Chevrolet Cruze sedan, an honest first-class upgrade that meets its world-class competition head-on.

The Cruze's handling is sharp and precise, and its fuel economy is potentially quite high. There's even a diesel version that should give Volkswagen Jetta fans something to think about. With a variety of truly impressive competitors available these days, we wouldn't exactly call the Cruze a class leader, but its well-rounded nature shows that Chevrolet can now do "small" as well as "big."

Current Chevrolet Cruze
The Chevrolet Cruze is a five-passenger compact sedan offered in LS, LT, LTZ, Eco and Diesel trims. A 1.8-liter four-cylinder engine generating 138 horsepower and 125 pound-feet of torque motivates the Cruze LS, while the LT, LTZ and Eco models upgrade to a turbocharged 1.4-liter engine with 138 hp and 148 lb-ft. The diesel features a 2.0-liter turbodiesel four-cylinder rated at 151 hp and a formidable 264 lb-ft. The LTZ and Diesel come standard with a six-speed automatic transmission; the other trims have a six-speed manual, with a six-speed automatic as an option.

Regardless of trim, the Cruze is well equipped, as even the base LS gets air-conditioning, full power accessories, Bluetooth phone connectivity and a six-speaker sound system. Like many modern compact cars, the Cruze can be equipped with a variety of comfort and convenience features previously reserved for luxury cars. These include blind-spot monitoring, leather upholstery, heated seats, a power driver seat, a rearview camera and a 7-inch touchscreen with smartphone integration. Just because you're buying a small car doesn't mean you can't have all the bells and whistles.

In reviews of the Chevrolet Cruze, we've praised its athletic handling, even on standard-suspension cars. The available sport-tuned suspension predictably provides a firmer ride, but it compensates with downright sporty responses on winding roads. Less appealing is the regular automatic transmission; it's reluctant to downshift at times and not particularly smooth. Happily, the torque-rich Diesel gets a different six-speed automatic that's more responsive -- this is one of our favorite Cruze models due to its excellent fuel economy and spirited acceleration.

Taking center stage inside is a dual-cowl dash layout seen on some other Chevrolets, combining with two-tone color options to create a stylish environment. However, the Cruze uses some plastic trim that seems cheaper and harder than that of its competitors. The Cruze's front seats are a bit narrow, which might be an issue for some drivers, but they offer plenty of adjustment and are both supportive and comfortable. A low cushion for the backseat diminishes comfort for longer-limbed riders, whose thighs will have minimal support. Actual legroom is average for the segment, but the trunk is surprisingly large.

Used Chevrolet Cruze Models
The current, first-generation Chevrolet Cruze was an all-new model for 2011. A few new features arrived for 2013, including a rearview camera and Bluetooth streaming audio. The Diesel model didn't debut until the 2014 model year.

User Reviews:

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  Poor - 2017 Chevrolet Cruze
  By poor - June 7 - 7:23 pm

  very poor

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  Ok car wish it had cruise control. - 2017 Chevrolet Cruze
  By Justin Talley - April 12 - 1:19 pm

  Whats a Cruze without cruise

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  Fell out of love - 2014 Chevrolet Cruze
  By Patricia Tipton - March 14 - 1:51 pm

  Real problems with emission controls and related DEF issues. Less than 38500 miles and have had 10 service events relating to these issues. Last three were out of warranty and cost me around $1500. Oil changes and DEF top offs run between $90 -100.

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  Transmission issue & More - 2013 Chevrolet Cruze
  By Brittany Vallejo - March 7 - 6:23 am

  I bought my car brand new in May 2013. Within a couple of months I was experiencing the car lunging forward while at a stop, loss of power, and loss of acceleration. MPG has also been significantly impacted. I was originally getting 36-42 mpg highway, and now get 28-30mpg. I took the car in several times and had ALL recalls performed on the vehicle, including the transmission part. "Fixing" the transmission made it worse, to the point where when driving it would feel as if we were constantly being rear-ended, hard. Final in Oct/Nov 2015 ( I cant recall now), GM agreed to totally replace the transmission with a new one (not used). Guess what, this didnt solve the issue and Im to the point where I physically can no longer drive the car due to the pain caused by the constant surging and jerking the car makes. Getting rid of the car is not an option since the Cruze has flooded the resale market (thanks to Cruzes being rental cars), as my car is approx. $5-6k under water. I contacted Chevrolet directly to resolve the matter and they advised me that they are unable to help, and to work directly with the Dealership. The Dealership cant fix it, so now Im stuck paying for a car that cant be driven.

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  Best car EVER! - 2014 Chevrolet Cruze
  By Turbo Diesel Fan! - February 15 - 11:12 pm

  I purchased my 2014 Cruise Diesel through a Chevy dealer that had acquired it from GM as a Manufacturer vehicle. The previous owner claimed it had transmission problems & GM replaced it, tested it and gave me a 12 month, 12k mile bumper-to-bumper warranty. The car had 87k miles when I bought it and Ive now driven 11k delightful miles. My driving is mostly rural highways at 55 mph and I average 42-46 mpg! My overall average for 11k miles is an impressive 43.5. My best 50 mile average is 51.7! Amazing! I check the actual mileage at every fill-up and the cars computer is very accurate. Having driven an SUV for the past 3 years I can give some pros and cons. First, the ride quality and comfort is what I expected of a compact car- a bit more road feel, but above what I expected in the handling department. After several hours of driving the seats are a bit unforgiving, but overall comfortable. The noticeable lag on throttle response, due to turbo spin-up, is acceptable once you know to anticipate that. The extra 20 lbs of torque boost when the turbo does spins up is quite impressive! I did not expect the acceleration to make me grin like I still do! The ONLY negative is the outside temperature reads about 24 degrees low on the display. Under warranty. I had my local dealership look into it and I made 3 different trips as they replaced every component from the sensor to the gauge cluster - to no avail.

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  Dont buy this CAR!!! - 2014 Chevrolet Cruze
  By Customer - February 12 - 12:17 am

  I have had my car in the shop 14 times. GM and the dealership have not been a help. There are issues with the 2014 and nobody wants to admit it. I regret buying this car. I finally got rid of this car .

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  Reliable good-looking car - 2012 Chevrolet Cruze
  By Taylor B. - January 17 - 5:45 pm

  I love my 2012 Chevy Cruze. I fell in love with the interior the second I sat in it. I bought the car used and have had it for nearly 2 years now with NO problems at all. Has about 64k miles on it at this point as well. For the price, it is a great car. Even survives the harsh NE winters - which was surprising. The only problem is the shifting is pretty poor in most situations. It will often feel like the car is lurching forward when shifting. Strange. Other than the weird shifting, this car is great.

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  Go blue - 2014 Chevrolet Cruze
  By Keith Green - December 24 - 8:35 am

  Review electronic options.

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  Great MPG with PEP! - 2014 Chevrolet Cruze
  By Designergirl100 - December 19 - 10:27 am

  My overall experience with the diesel Cruze is exceptionally good. The car was purchased with about 5k miles on it and it now has 59k miles. I drive around 2 1/2 hours a day in my commute (about 150-170) miles per day. The Cadillac and Tahoe both had to go to upgrade to a newer car and get better gas mileage. Overall (city and highway) is around 40mpg, but the highway mileage alone is about 50mpg. Of course for comfort, this car is no comparison to my Cadillac. That is not really a fair call. However, the pep and handling in this Cruze is incredible, at least for a small car that isnt a sports car. For comfort, I added some fancy seat padding for the lumbar and butt (highly rated stuff from online) and got some nice tires designed for a quiet ride. It works fine for me now. It is a quiet-ish ride (nothing distracting), and the interior is nice (not fancy). My cover for the mirror on the visor broke off about 50k miles. That is the only thing, though. It is certainly an upgrade from something like a Yugo. The car has been in one accident hitting large dog/wolf/coyote (whatever it was) that wiped out the radiator and grill in front. Some bit of work later, all is well and no problems continuing from it. It took the dealership some repeated trips to fix the reason the check engine light kept coming on afterwards, since the problem was diagnosed too simply in the beginning. This occurred in an Infinity a few years ago and they just kept replacing the catalytic converter until I suggested that might not be the actual problem and I am not picking up the car until they figure it out. It took almost two days for them to find the real problem. My opinion on the problems of the check engine light that others have might be from the same problem of not tracing back far enough in the chain of events. Dealerships---dont just fix the symptom, FIND THE PROBLEM! As far as overall happiness with the car, it is a definite YES! I would buy this car again. It will be one that I drive until the wheels fall off, then look for a deal on another newer one. Maybe in the meantime, Chevy will figure out how to make the seats a bit more comfy. UPDATE 02/03/2017: still love the the car! No additional problems have cropped up. Very reliable car. Update—4 years of ownership and I’d buy it all over again. Great, reliable car. Probably will have 300k miles before I get a new car.

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  Pleasantly surprised! - 2017 Chevrolet Cruze
  By Scott in Illinois - December 19 - 6:21 am

  I got my GM Certified Pre-Owned 2017 Cruze Premier with only 15k miles on it. I went with the intention of buying a Malibu, but after driving the Cruze I was so pleasantly surprised, I bought it instead of the Malibu. I have only put on a little over 1000 miles in the few weeks Ive owned it, but it has not disappointed. I drive 100+ miles round trip 2-3 days per week for work, through moderate rush hour traffic (so no using cruise control, and some slow downs and stop-and-go traffic), and the seat comfort and ride quality have been great. I wish in the Premier at least there was adjustable lumbar support, but the seats are plenty comfortable anyway, so no big deal. The Bluetooth, Android Auto, SiriusXM, voice recognition, etc, all work flawlessly without any hiccups. Climate controls are simple to use. Performance wise, Im not sure what the deal is with Edmunds review. Most other review sites put the 0-60 around 8.0 seconds, some even under 8.0 seconds. I would agree with those test results. The 1.4L turbo has plenty of pep. Merging and passing on the freeway is easy. Plenty of instant torque down low in the RPMs. I had driven a 2016 2.0L Mazda 3i before buying the Cruze, and in daily driving, the Cruze is way more peppy. The Mazda had to get the revs up before it had any power. Gas mileage for me has been a little over 33 combined, based on miles divided by gallons @ fill ups. The trip computer says about 35 combined, Ive had it read as high as 42 in highway driving. My driving is about 50/50 highway/city. But my highway driving often includes some rush-hour traffic, so it isnt pure highway cruising. I agree that the engine start-stop feature should have a turn-off. But if Im in traffic and I dont want it to stop, I simply shift down from D into L, which disables the auto-stop feature. Overall, Im very satisfied with the my purchase. Well see how long-term reliability is, but so far Im pleased with every other aspect of the car.