[Caramelo]

i just love the fact that its the biggest in its class.. it does not look like that(nothing special) but how can the rear seats be lil crampy. is this because of the coupe type roofline??

they are planning to sell this to burger munching americans! lolz.

i wonder what kind of petrol engines they have. anything that can beat the skoda 1.8 TSI

and yeah my only color to go for this car would be the BLACK COLOR. its just BADASS return allover it. i think even if it gets dirty it would look cool ??!!

[thegman]

Originally Posted by vishalrao

@thegman: Then you might be disappointed with the Altis as well, Civic was better for me (driver) and parents (back seat) space wise... do post your comparison of the two.

I immediately went to TD the altis on the Pune bangalore highway. The space was awesome in comparison!. I havent TD'd the civic yet but Ive been going through your initial review of the Civic and i must say that I AM IN LOVE with the new civic [congratz on the purchase again btw]. From your initial inputs of how the performance/handing of the civic is, i think i will like it better than the Altis too. TD'ing it on my next trip to pune in a few weeks is at the top of my agenda! Im in mumbai now but will wait till i get to pune cause i think its pointless to test her in bumper-to-bumper traffic .

I liked the Altis alot but the performance was kinda 'meh..' and the fake wood really put me off. Was your observation similar when you made your purchase?
Have you had the civic bottoming out a lot/at all in pune?...thats my only cringe with the car[older version atleast] upto this point.

Originally Posted by sabynag

I was expecting a lot from Cruze. But after my visit to the dealership, I came back quite disappointed. This car is for impulsive buyers and for those who can afford to change cars frequently. This will be a hit with self-drive car rental agencies across the globe but long-term ownership will have a few takers.

In Bangalore, at 15.20L OTR, this car will find very few takers. Here is why

1. The car feels cramped at every seating position
2. The car has nothing for those who sit in the rear seat
3. Rear centre handrest is too short to be useful - it serves only as a cup-holder
4. I didn't like the central instrument cluster - the display could have been bigger and more functional
5. Driving position is not very good. Visibility may be a problem. I didn't drive the car though
6. The look from the front may not appeal to everyone
7. Ground clearance worse than Civic (on paper)


What could have made this product a killer one

1. A bigger (smarter) display with navigation system and Bluetooth
2. A more elegant central instrument cluster (eg. Jetta, Laura)
3. Better quality leather in seats
4. A true rear centre hand-rest
5. More cabin volume (ceiling height, rear legroom)
6. Better quality plastics

I have considered only the "touch and feel" aspects of the car and not the ride quality, handling etc. as I have not driven the car yet.

Expect a cheaper Cruze soon. This car, in its current form, is no competition to Honda, Toyota, Skoda and VW.

Totally agree with you man point for point especially on Cabin space....its absolutely ridiculous! As we walked out of the chevy showroom my dad muttered "now i know why GM went into bankruptcy"...which pretty much summed it up for me

[iTNerd]

I test drove Cruze a week back before finalizing on Civic. Here are my short observations that finally seal the deal with Civic:

1) Plastic quality - grainny feel and look - does not seems like it belongs to a car in Civic category.

2) Not able to get a good seating position for the driver

3) From Outside, the engine noise was like a truck! Are not common rail engines supposed to be silent compared to other diesels? It is a totally different thing inside though!

4) Mileage of 12-13 kmpl in city - Civic with the iVTEC engine can almost attend that figure.

5) Very thin and pathetic quality of the driver seat height adjuster knobs.. my SX4 has better knob plastics!

6) Very bad space management - The car is longer, wider than most of the competition and yet, offer the worst space management

7) Lacks the premium feel of a 13+ lacs car (looks, quality, feel)

[vishalrao]

Yup, I was put off by the Altis G interiors too, the Civic's looked a notch above to me.

No bottoming out problems in Pune, but I have yet to go to places like, for example, the railway crossing after B T Kawade road which leads to Kalyani Nagar bridge. I've been a couple of times along the Sholapur Rd/Highway around Hadapsar/Magarpatta where the road is rough/patchy/bouncy/uneven and no problems there either but I kept my speed at 60 and occasionally dropped to 40 where there were sudden large repair patches which have a sharp gradient/rise in level.

So as long as you don't drive rash you'll be fine...also I never go too fast that you are unable to slow down quickly enough for any rough patches or potholes that appear out of nowhere...

BTW you might have seen other posts sort of confirming that the new Civic has had some stiffening of the rear compared to the old model but I wouldn't know since I never experienced the old one's problems...

[Ravich]

Originally Posted by 1-Testosterone

You can buy 2 Cruze LTZ's for that price and free diesel supply for few years but then again you'll be complaining about stiff ride quality of the BMW
No car is perfect.

Ofcourse, point well taken. However, there must be one or two elements in the car that makes you ignore the many shortcomings and want to drive it even in the crawling peak hour traffic in Mumbai and on the twisties to Nashik in the monsoon. The car does not have to be expensive or be a status enhancer or have a great resale or brand value.

I was not sure if Cruze had it...it seemed like a compromise. May be I am wrong. The chassis and the steering did not (seem to) inspire confidence. But my intent was not to put down Cruze but merely provide a perspective to keen drivers. I actually own an Optra and would sincerely recommend the service, quality of Chevrolet to anyone.


Will I complain about ride quality of a BMW ?--- unlikely !

[Ravich]

Originally Posted by varunjain

Ravich,
I have been driving this car for the last 3 days, and I am really thrilled with the purchase. You can further check more posts about my experience on this t-bhp link.

Thanks Varun... I did read that... One thing I look forward to is driving on the new road to Nashik and back. Your experience is encouraging...
my one attempt at taking the curve on the flyover from Nashik toll road to Thane/Mumbai, caused the body to roll so much that it was unnerving. Perhaps I underestimated the speed - being a heavy car, you don't quite feel the speed !

[varunjain]

One thing I do agree with others above is the 'quality of plastics'. More than that, I would say - the processing of plastics. The cut and finish of the plastic parts is not very good.

[1-Testosterone]

Originally Posted by varunjain

One thing I do agree with others above is the 'quality of plastics'. More than that, I would say - the processing of plastics. The cut and finish of the plastic parts is not very good.

When it comes to quality of plastics/overall interiors quality, VW stands apart. Skoda has much better quality interiors than Toyota and just pips Honda. Also, what I feel like, as of now, the competition is between Cruze and Laura Diesel. Talking about petrol, overall, Laura 1.8 is much better car than both Civic and Altis. It's just boils down to Petrol vs Diesel. If I were to choose Petrol version, I would go for Laura 1.8 with eyes closed.

[VEA]

Originally Posted by iTNerd

4) Mileage of 12-13 kmpl in city - Civic with the iVTEC engine can almost attend that figure.

you wish! (no offense mate)

[vishalrao]

@VEA: you wish? your wish is my command check out my post: http://www.team-bhp.com/forum/test-d...ml#post1546733

12.2 kmpl in office rush hour traffic in Pune... (although it was over a short 4 day period but still)

[VEA]

Brilliant. Dont sell the car even for a million. All i can say is you are lucky. An i10 will find it difficult to manage.

[raul]

I think those who are looking for the absolute best luxury and comfort money can buy in the 11-14 lakh range will not go for the Cruze. The Civic and Altis win here comfortably. However those who are looking for a diesel and performance with a compromise on the comfort and luxury department will find a compelling value proposition in the Cruze. Its got a great 150bhp diesel engine, gadgets and reasonably modern good looks.

From my perspective its the petrol Cruze which should be cheaper than Civic or Altis which might prompt folks to make the compromise on rear legroom and other Cruze drawbacks. But with the diesel the 11-14 lakh buyer unless he/she is a diesel fan/long distance traveller the Civic/Altis will continue to hold more sway.

[thegman]

Originally Posted by VEA

Brilliant. Dont sell the car even for a million. All i can say is you are lucky. An i10 will find it difficult to manage.

These are the figures from Autocar:
[cith/highway]
1.8 MT - 9.2/13.2kpl
1.8 AT - 8.1/11.9kpl

So vishal's figures are really not all that off!

Figures of the i10 just for laughs:
1.1 - 12/16.3
1.2 M/T - 11.7/16

[karan561]

YouTube - Top Gear - Evo vs Lamborghini part 2- BBC

This is a video MUST WATCH for people complaining about the TURBO LAG issues with the Cruze.

In the Video Evo VIII is tested for its Turbo Lag against a 1.6 Fiat Stilo and performs miserably.

So, " unless you are in the right GEAR at the right TIME there is no PERFORMANCE at all "

[Invinsible]

Originally Posted by karan561

This is a video MUST WATCH for people complaining about the TURBO LAG issues with the Cruze.

In the Video Evo VIII is tested for its Turbo Lag against a 1.6 Fiat Stilo and performs miserably.

So, " unless you are in the right GEAR at the right TIME there is no PERFORMANCE at all "

I just like to add the EVO's fall in completely different category with a complete different turbo design.

Every turbocharger has its own characteristics. A smaller turbo will have minimal turbo lag, but change the flange and compressor wheel of the turbo and turbo lag may further increase or decrease. Turbo given with Evo's are designed to give out better midrange and top end performance with boost pressure being 22+psi, therefore the low end sucks.
Incase with diesel cars turbo are not the same. Most diesel cars have turbo design to give better drivability and some are designed to give better mileage in which case there could be some turbo lag and better top end or better low end boost and rough top end power. It comes down to size of turbo used, its flanges, compressor wheel, and at what boost pressure its operating.
For example laura 1.8tsi turbocharger kicks in at 1500rpm but has a limitation where it cannot handle a lot of boost pressure in excess 20 psi. Change the turbo on the same car to the one with bigger housing and the same car will do 250bhp+ with some sacrifice to the low end boost.