Chevrolet has launched the new Cruze starting at Rs. 13.85 lakh, an increase of Rs. 1.3 lakhs over the previous base variant! Visually, there is nothing to distinguish the new Cruze from the old one externally. But the biggest change is under the hood – a new engine and gearbox.
The Cruze comes with an all new 2.0-litre Z-series diesel engine and a six-speed manual replacing the 5-speed manual transmission of the outgoing Cruze, while the automatic also remains six-speed.
Variants and prices
The new Cruze is offered in three variants: LT, LTZ and LTZ Automatic. The base LT variant (manual transmission) is priced at Rs. 13.85 lakh the mid LTZ variant (manual transmission) is priced at Rs. 14.77 lakh and the top-end LTZ variant (automatic transmission) is priced at Rs. 15.67 lakh.
What’s new?
The new Cruze gets push button ignition on/off, programmable smart screen as standard features in all variants. The LTZ variant continues with the host of goodies it offered such as as power folding and heated outside mirrors, 4 channel rear parking assist, rain sensitive wiper system, cruise control on steering wheel, auto dimming inside rear view mirror, Bluetooth music streaming – and a power adjustable driver’s seat and sun roof. The LT variant also gets an upgraded multi-information display like the LTZ.
Performance
The new Cruze is powered by an all new 2.0-litre Z-series diesel engine that puts out 163 Bhp of power and 380 Nm of torque. When compared with the outgoing model, the new Cruze engine is more powerful by 15 Bhp and has 53 Nm more torque. Both the manual and automatic variants have 6-speed gearboxes. Fuel efficiency is a claimed 13.9 kmpl for the automatic and 17.3 kmpl for the manual transmission, with real world figures hovering about 12-13 kmpl.
Price comparison
The base variant of the Cruze competes with the Volkswagen Jetta, Skoda Laura, Toyota Corolla Altis and the Renault Fluence. The Cruze base variant is cheaper than the Jetta and the Laura by about Rs. 60,000 – Rs. 1 lakh variant for variant, but more expensive than the Fluence and the Altis by about Rs. 85,000 to Rs. 1 lakh.
The mid variant of Cruze is cheaper than the Jetta and the Laura by about Rs. 1.2 lakh while pricier than the Fluence and Altis by about Rs. 70,000. The top-end variant of Cruze (AT) is roughly Rs.3 lakh cheaper than the Jetta and Laura but Rs. 44,000 costlier than the Altis.
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