Top markets include China, United States, Brazil, Canada, but not Europe, home of Opel / Vauxhall.
The new Chevy Cruze, the best-selling car for GM’s almost global brand will be shown with a significant changes to improve room, fuel economy, performance and safety on 24 June in the U.S. This is an important car for Chevrolet because Cruze is now sold in 115 countries, and Chevy is now the fourth largest global brand in the business. Retail sales start in the U.S. this coming winter to be followed by other areas.
The current Cruze is a design hybrid since its engineering was done at Opel in Germany and Daewoo in Korea. North American versions went into production at Lordstown, Ohio during the summer of 2010. Unlike the last time around where Cruz – after being on sale for years in 60 countries – debuted in the U.S. last because of complications and delays caused by the GM bankruptcy, Cruze will debut first in North America.
Top markets include China, the United States, Brazil and Canada, but not Europe, the home of GM’s Opel and Vauxhall and a continent where Chevrolet failed spectacularly and expensively during the last decade to establish its presence.
Built in the same plant as the unlamented Vega, the current Cruze is years ahead of previous GM small cars but also had its share of quality problems.
In the United States, Cruze sales were 273,060 in 2014 – a 10% increase compared to 2013. It is also the segment’s second-best seller to customers under 25 years old in the U.S., and it has doubled share there from the 2009-2010 period when the old Cobalt was being replaced by the current generation Cruz.
At that time AutoInformed said (Driving Impression – Chevrolet Cruze):
“What’s come out of this mélange is a $17,000 to $25,000 offering that GM hopes will take some sales back from the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic, the two class leaders. The Nissan Altima is also a perennial contender in this class. And Hyundai has just revealed a new Elantra that is as technically competent on paper and priced thousands below these contenders. Elantra is using the same formula as the Sonata, the large family car that established Hyundai on the Top Ten best seller lists in the U.S. after decades of trying.
“It is fortunate that for a change the Cruze actually has more transmission speeds and more standard equipment than facing Japanese competitors. The pricing – before any rebates or incentives appear – is right on top of the Japanese cars, an ambitious move – if, big if, GM can make it stick. Nonetheless the hardware is there, but there are decades of bad small cars to overcome at GM. (And I will note, briefly, that the GM bankruptcy and government bailout even with a pending stock offering that will cut and eventually eleiminate the majority stake of taxpayers, remain unhelpful here.)
Alan Batey, president, General Motors North America and global Chevrolet brand chief now recalls in June of 2015, “When we introduced the Cruze it replaced 15 other compact vehicles around the globe. By consolidating design, engineering and marketing efforts, we were able to produce an award-winning, value-driven sedan that won over customers around the world.”
The 2016 Cruze – it’s said by GM – will build on the current model’s success, aiming to add more of the content that is increasingly important for compact car buyers. The 2016 Cruze will be one of the first Chevrolets to offer Android Auto and Apple CarPlay when it goes on sale early in 2016. It will be larger yet lighter than the current model, with new technologies, new powertrains and additional optional safety features that GM claims will bring a higher level of sophistication to the compact car segment.
See Also:
- Chevrolet Cruze Diesel Rated at 46 MPG Highway
- Chevrolet Debuts 2014 Cruze Diesel at Chicago Auto Show
- Massive Recall on Chevrolet Cruze for Fires Caused by Leaks
- Chevrolet Says 2012 Cruze Improves Fuel Economy 2 MPG
