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2016 Chevy Cruze vs 2016 Honda Civic, Hyundai Elantra, Mazda 3 i grand touring, Etc

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#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
2016 Chevrolet Cruze vs. 2016 Honda Civic, 2017 Hyundai Elantra, 2016 Mazda 3, 2016 Nissan Sentra
Car and Driver
By Eric Tingwall



Some people will tell you that every modern vehicle is a winner, yet some cars still haven't mastered the basics.

The auto press' Mazda fetish continues:

From the July 2016 issue
There’s a popular myth that, outside of sports cars and exotics, all modern cars are essentially the same. Believers claim that quality, safety, and equipment levels have reached a plateau that makes the differences between a Honda and a Hyundai somewhat moot. It’s a simplified view of the world, kind of like those early grade-school report cards where you were satisfactory at best or needed improvement at worst, but either way, everyone was moving on to the next grade.

In recent years, the automotive compact class has advanced into a fleet of mini mid-sizers. Almost universally, these cars have grown in interior dimensions, inherited upscale features, and adopted prices that top out north of $30,000. But we don’t buy into the notion that similarity means homogeneity. There’s a distinction between satisfactory and great, just as there’s a difference between the first grader who understands subatomic particles and the mouth breather who can’t stop eating all the delicious, free paste. A car can go 100,000 miles without fault and spot a vehicle in its blind spot and still have deficiencies in the most elementary aspects of steering, braking, and accelerating. To sort out which small cars are at the head of the class and which need to be held back, we gathered five of the newest small entries, all *sensibly equipped and priced right in the middle of the range.

Full story at link above

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The Cruze was the quickest, 0-60 in 7.6, the fastest, 1/4 trap in 15.9 @89, highest top speed at 132, the shortest braking 70-0 in 168ft, the quietest 68 dba, the most efficient, observed 33 mpg, and finished mid-pack at third, proving, unequivocally, that Mazda and Honda are far superior.
 
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#2 ·
The auto press (and me, for that matter) tend to prefer cars that are fun to drive, even if that's not their core mission. That's out of step with a lot of the buying public, but those folks are reading Consumer Reports, not Car and Driver.

I'd probably be happier with the Mazda, even with Mazda's typical higher road noise. Most people just looking for a commuter car will likely narrow down to the Honda and Chevy.

That said, would it kill Chevy to do a more performance-oriented version of the Cruze?
 
#4 ·
The top three are the class of the field(where's the Focus?). Having said that, it comes down to preferences to as to which one would pick. And yes, what's up with Chevy no offering a sport version of the Cruze? Can't be that difficult or expensive as they already make it in Europe.
 
#5 ·
I just test drove a new Cruze RS Premier this afternoon at my local dealer, and I disagree with how C&D scored the car on many points. Granted, I haven't driven the Civic and honestly don't plan to. However, I did drive a new Mazda 3 and thought it was a great car. It could have been completely justified choosing the Cruze as the winner in this comparison. C&D low balled the car in almost every category, plan and simple. I don't have time to give a full review, but the new Cruze is completely class competitive and the real deal. Go drive one for yourself.
 
#8 ·
So had the Honda had a conventional automatic (or manual) it would have won. Sounds about right. The new Civic hits all the right points and seems to be the perfect compromise of the Chevy's smoothness and the Mazda's sportiness.

Can't go wrong with either of the Top 3 choices though.
 
#10 ·
#11 ·
....

payolaanddriver said:
The combination of dull accelerator response, a slow-to-engage first gear, and a bit of turbo lag means that the car can sometimes lurch unpleasantly or shudder when maneuvering in parking lots or creeping forward in traffic.
 
#13 ·
Folks need to realize that the top three finishers in this test are all very good. C&D chose the Mazda based on what they were looking for. But, the main thing to take away from this is that the Cruze is in the game vying for the top spot. Not just competing. Shoppers who are open minded need to look at at the very least the top three in this test before buying.
 
#14 ·
The new Cruze is a terrific car but they need something like an SS performance version with over 200 horsepower. Chevy has essentially redesigned their whole portfolio, I am just wondering why they're not putting out more performance sharp handling versions. For example, the Cruze, Malibu, Trax which I own and like very much and even the Sonic. I also believe the Honda and Toyota bias does exist and sometimes its not right. Chevy and GM need to keep building terrfic new models with quality and reliability which is key.
 
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