Form, function, but little flair
Two weeks running about the North Island of New Zealand gave us a good indication of the Holden Cruze’s ability in preferred turbo-diesel guise
Developed by GM in Germany and built in South Korea, the Cruze has been a key contributor to Holden’s sales growth since its launch last June. For every 10 Commodore sales, Holden has been consistently shifting about half a dozen Cruzes.
The well-specced petrol automatic we drove in a recent small sedan comparison test (Oct-Nov issue) failed to live up to expectations so we jumped at the opportunity for an extended drive of a turbo-diesel model across the Tasman during the holiday season.
The press vehicle supplied was an entry-spec CD model although it did come with the optional six-speed automatic and standard air-conditioning. Cloth seats and 16-inch steel wheels didn’t have the appeal of the leather and larger alloys of the CDX but the trade-off was slightly better ride on the familiar Hankook rubber and cooler seats during the heat of the day. The test car had covered nearly 7000km upon collection – arguably enough for a modern diesel to be delivering close to its best economy.
Our first 1000km was predominantly non-peak urban driving with plenty of inner-city motorway travel in light traffic including 20 harbour crossings via the Auckland Harbour Bridge. Driving was leisurely and little was demanded from the car in terms of performance. Fuel consumption for this stint was 7.9L/100km and with most of Auckland in holiday mode, it was hard to imagine achieving a better return.
Immediately obvious was the engine’s welcome extra torque compared with the undernourished 1.8-litre petrol. When you’re looking to pick up speed, kickdown results in a decent thrust forward from 1500rpm. Much of the time the diesel Cruze will lope along in the tallest gear it can handle and response from 1200rpm or so is initially hesitant unless you force a kickdown with a gentle stab of the throttle or self-select using the transmission lever. The latter became second nature during the subsequent touring route.
At times, on light throttle, we noticed some flaring between third and fourth when the ‘box seemed in two minds about changing up. It would eventually follow through but on slight inclines would leave the engine labouring.
Most of the other grumbling came from the engine bay. The 110kW diesel is vocal upon start-up and provides a constant soundtrack around town. It only really quietens down when you’re coasting at a constant speed on the motorway. One night, I arrived at an intersection, selected the stereo’s mute button on the steering wheel, and listened to 20 seconds of chatter before the lights went green. Some buyers will expect greater engine refinement even if they find the performance satisfactory.
Other niggles included difficulty reading instrumentation when the sun was high in the sky as the plastic casings for the instrument binnacles suffer from reflections. At night, the centre console display reflects annoyingly in the upper part of the windscreen. And the boot on our car could only be opened via the key fob; not having an internal release lever or bootlid lever soon became tiresome for both driver and passengers. And while the Cruze’s safety equipment is extensive (including six airbags, ABS and ESC) and results in a five-star ANCAP rating, the thick A- and B-pillars and passenger seat headrest impede driver visibility so extra care is required at intersections.
Good headlights for night driving and the three-barrelled jets for windscreen wiper fluid are very effective although you usually need to manually invoke an extra sweep of the screen to clear away all the fluid. The steering wheel is well shaped and good to grip, and the stubby switchgear stalks feel unbreakable but would be better if they were longer.
At the wheel, the driving position is very good and a full range of adjustments are easy to make. The trip computer, air-conditioning and stereo controls are intuitive to use and logically arranged on a tastefully designed dashboard. And overall cabin quality seemed perfectly acceptable although the test car was already sporting its fair share of scratches.
Into the country
Our 1000km touring route consisted of three days out of Auckland, heading to the Hawkes Bay region via the popular tourist hotspots of Rotorua and Taupo. Warm, sunny weather meant the air-con was constantly in use while traffic was mostly free-flowing. On occasions, manual downshifts to fourth, and sometimes third, were necessary for overtaking in passing lanes. With equally ideal driving conditions on our return north, and speeds ranging between 80km/h and 110km/h outside of the towns, an overall return of 7.55L/100km for the touring route seemed a little underwhelming.
What made more of an impression on the open road was the Cruze’s alert steering, good bump and rebound damping and reasonable ride, apart from quite a lot of suspension noise over cats’ eyes and expansion joints. And the brake pedal has a consistently progressive feel to it, whether you’re negotiating traffic or brushing off speed on the approach to fast bends.
The Cruze also feels a bit more grown-up that its small sedan description gives it credit for. One night, after eight hours on the road with three rest breaks, I felt in good shape when parking the car for the night thanks to the fine driving position and supportive seats. Interior space is plentiful up front and the high, arched roofline results in an impression of airiness. Headroom is also good in the back but legroom is borderline for tall adults. The 60-40 split-fold rear seat is very useful and seat action is simple. All doors have large bins with bottle holders but other storage compartments are modest in size. There’s little to see beneath the bonnet but checking essential fluids is a quick procedure.
And while our test car looked a little anonymous in metallic blue-grey, the shape still strikes me as a handsome, well proportioned one with some effective bodywork creases and characterful designs for the lighting.
Safety and affordability were at the heart of GM’s global development program for the Cruze and the result is a convincing, practical workhorse that would benefit from some fine-tuning. The diesel engine might be noisy and have a narrow power band but it does a better job than the current petrol unit and is more economical. Combined with the six-speed auto, it’s our pick of the range. – Andrew Kerr
Fast Facts - Holden Cruze CD
- Engine: 2.0-Litre 4-Cyl Turbo-Diesel
- Power: 110kw@4000rpm
- Torque: 320nm@2000rpm
- Transmission: Six-Speed Auto
- Weight: 1520kg
- Fuel Consumption: 6.8l/100km (Claimed)
- Consumption On Test: 7.7l/100km
- GVG Rating: 3.5 Stars
- Safety Rating: 5 Stars (Ancap)
- Pros: Good Engine/Transmission Combo; Excellent Standard Safety; Tidy Handling; Body Style; Value
- Cons: Engine Noise; Tight Rear Legroom; Sun Affects Legibility Of Instruments; Tyre Roar On Coarse Chip
- Price: From $25,990
