I was listening to the MotorWeek #34 this evening going over the New York AutoShow and they made an interesting observation: 'More 4 cylinder, turbos coming and fewer V8s. The new fuel economy standards means we're going to see a downsizing of engines and more hybrids due to the new fuel economy standards.' 'Chevy Cruze plans try to achieve 40 mph, highway, on a 4 cylinder, 1.4L, turbo with manual transmission. GM's Corolla killer(?)' I looked at the GM web page on the Chevy Cruze and obviously, it is not yet in production. But I got the impression of a small car, more along the size of our old Echo. They indicated GM has high expectations . . . Perhaps the production version will be better than the web version. Bob Wilson
It is in production. It's sold in Europe but will be here next year. It's the size of a Corolla. Fairly spacious inside and out although watch your head going in and out of the back seat as the sloping roof line can catch some noggings. Trunk is decently sized and the doors close with a nice thud. Fabric-covered dashboard is a nice touch but it would be better if they chose better fabrics. It feels a little cheap.
TurboCharging results in a detuned/derated engine during "cruise" mode, so 98% of the time the non-turbo driving alongside will have 20-30% better FE. On the other hand, like the rabbit vs the turtle, you will be able to do 0-60 FAST.... West/Otto/Atkinson/Miller cycle multimode engines are the answer. Variable BOOST, using the CVT/PSD techique, to implement SuperCharging is the future.
I hope they hear the feedback about feeling a little cheap. GM makes a good product, and then they screw it up by cutting corners. Remember the fake wood in Cadillacs?
same name. Cruze The new Chevrolet Cruze ? Dynamic and fuel-efficient 4 door saloon ? Chevrolet UK Well that's always been the case. The Cobalt was nice. Nice buttons and knobs but the dashboard and door armrest felt cheap (the armrest was broken on my rental)
For those of us who don't know anything, how are multimode ICE's possible? For someone like me you will have to start at a fairly basic level.
