2017 Cruze Diesel: No hatchback version, no manual transmission offered.
Full revised last year, the Cruze sedan is joined by a hatchback for the first time in the United States, while the Cruze diesel model returns to the lineup - but only in the sedan. The diesel features an all-new 1.6 liter oil-burning four in place of its predecessor's 2.0 liter, mated exclusively to a six speed automatic.
I have to honestly say that I am disappointed. In my opinion, GM has the chance to really go after VW TDI owners, and conquest left and right. No manual transmission diesel? Perhaps I am wrong, but the joy of driving a diesel is rowing your own gears.
I would be interested to know the past take-rate of a manual transmission/TDI combination at VW.
Perhaps GM knows that the TDI will return, and possibly early 2017 - right when the Cruze diesel is scheduled for introduction.
While disappointed, I will assume that IF the Cruze sedan diesel is a hit, the engine choice will be extended to the hatchback, and maybe, just maybe; a manual transmission option will appear.
Any lack of manual transmission on diesel Cruze is purely down to North American management - in Europe the big proportion in mainstream sector is manual, with automatic very much a minority
I was told the TDI stick take rate is OVER 50% and the golf sportwagon was around 40% of TDI's itself - both sub segments the CRUZE is NOT even CLOSE to offering
IMHO a DIESEL Equinox/Trax would be a GOOD start
Considering the SUV/CUV thing is where the market is these days, if they want to get diesels out there in any significant numbers or market penetration, that area is where they should be introducing diesels as well.
Think the Compact Sedan/CUV Diesel market is done.
The new gas turbos deliver enough performance/MPG at a lower cost, next area for growth will be gas/electric since most automakers will offer electric variants that will need the battery pack to be "designed in".
Diesel Market will remain viable for Truck/Van and SUV's (heavier mid-size and up).
GM missed their opportunity when they refused to offer the Astra Hatch/Wagon as Buicks years ago, if they had GM would have been a position to take advantage of VW's issue, now the segment is disappearing into niche status and the Chevy brand will never command the premium required for GM to make money on it.
Think the Compact Sedan/CUV Diesel market is done.
The new gas turbos deliver enough performance/MPG at a lower cost, next area for growth will be gas/electric since most automakers will offer electric variants that will need the battery pack to be "designed in".
I think you are right. The gasoline versions of compact sedan/CUVs generally get over 30 MPG to over 40 MPG on the highway. A diesel engine in one will never pay for the extra cost of the engine, cost or urea refills and the additional cost of the fuel. Also, people are more likely to buy what they are familiar with and those of us who owned diesel, we remember the smell and mess of self service refueling.
Back in the "good old days" when diesels were in high demand and before the GM diesel engine problems killed the market, many if not most of the people who bought diesel cars were people who used diesel engines in their work, either in trucks or equipment. There was also a big difference in fuel mileage between gasoline and diesel as well as diesel was cheaper than gas.
They really really need to offer both manual and hatch. What is it they smoke over at GM, on a very serious note? This is a no brainer. Hatch, Manual, Diesel. The marketing worth of such a project is priceless!!
Having owned a Cruze ECO (1.4T, 6-spd man) that consistently beat the fuel economy ratings, I would personally have loved to had a Diesel, hatch/wagon, manual, plus AWD.
However, unfortunately I think this is probably closer to reality:
How happy will a VW diesel owner be with a diesel that doesn't have cheat software? Meaning presumably VW's engines were peppier and the extra $$ they saved from not installing the proper emission package might have gone into the interior/handling. These folks may not be happy with a diesel Cruze that complies with the law, and I bet most of them don't care about the scandal and will stay with VW, ultimately there may not be a big market for a non-VW diesel in the USA (which the diesel VW market is only a small niche).
I'm not saying I'm against GM giving it a shot, but there might be places their money will be better spent.
How happy will a VW diesel owner be with a diesel that doesn't have cheat software? Meaning presumably VW's engines were peppier and the extra $$ they saved from not installing the proper emission package might have gone into the interior/handling. These folks may not be happy with a diesel Cruze that complies with the law, and I bet most of them don't care about the scandal and will stay with VW, ultimately there may not be a big market for a non-VW diesel in the USA (which the diesel VW market is only a small niche).
I'm not saying I'm against GM giving it a shot, but there might be places their money will be better spent.
I know the VW situation is different in Europe to North America, partly due to differences in NOx levels permitted and partly due to the way the legislation is worded and tested - but only the 1.6 diesel needs a hardware change, in addition to the software change needed on 1.2, 1.6 and 2.0 diesels. VW claim that there's no change to performance or consumption and I'm not aware of owners complaining when they've had their update.
VW owners on both sides of the pond may well be concerned about reduced value at trade-in time - but will be equally aware that better deals on buying VWs will be available - so the cost to change from a VW to another VW may well be less than the cost to change from VW to Chevrolet/Opel/Vauxhall.
As a %, the diesel car sector in North America is much smaller than in Europe, because the low fuel tax makes the economy argument far less convincing - until the scandal, VW had dominated that sector in North America and I'd expect a likely outcome is that the sector shrinks dramatically due to the scandal rather than give other brands a golden opportunity to get established in that sector.
I am a VW TDI owner that will be letting my car go in the buyback. I love my Jetta and really don't want to part with it, but the math involved just don't support me keeping it.
My number one replacement pick for the Jetta is a diesel Cruze. I'm very interested in the hatchback. I want a manual transmission, but... my Jetta has a DSG and I've come to respect it as a decent alternative to a stick. I've read that GM has its own automated manual transmission -- a 7-speed. This would be acceptable too. I really, really don't want a diesel connected to a slushbox.
GM can reel me in easily on a diesel hatch with a manual or automated manual. I might still bite on a sedan with the right transmission, but I'm not encouraged.
Well yet another reason I wouldn't upgrade to the current Gen Cruze.
We'd only be interested in the hatch but no diesel absolutely rules it out. Another concern is the new 1.7 TD will be under powered compared to our current 2.0 TD.
The Eco M/Ts do get better than EPA ratings quite often but that is not the case for the A/T 1.4T and the Diesels are highly optioned versions of the car and still return 50mpg on the highway.
Depends which engine version Chevrolet specify - apart from the 195bhp Bi-turbo 2.0CDTi, the other 2.0 CDTi power levels are matched by a version of the 1.6 Whisper Diesel
Regarding production locations due to the poor launch /change over going on at lordstown the sedan is also now being produced in Mexico for the N/A market.
So will Mexico build diesel sedans or only lordstown?
I had a first generation Cruze TD that averaged 36.8 mpg over 33K miles of mixed driving. It had a low tank of 27.9 mpg and a high tank of 50.2 mpg. It's EPA rating was 27 city, 46 highway, 33 combined so it exceeded the EPA estimate by 10%.
It had multiple issues keeping it clean with check engine lights for all NOx levels, particulate trap, and Urea injection issues bringing it to the dealer 7 times in the first 21K miles. A software reflash at 21K seemed to fix the issues as no further problems cropped up until it left my service at 33K. Diesel fuel was 40 to 60 cents higher a gallon than regular unleaded in 2014, but was within 5 to 6 cents of regular by mid 2015 and stayed there, so the premium for diesel fuel was a lot less for the second half of my two year ownership. The DEF fluid was about $22 a gallon and it needed 5 gallons about every 9-10K miles of use. GM covered it in the first free service visit but refused to in the second as they only put in one gallon "as a courtesy". After I emailed them proof that DEF was shown as part of the free 2 year 24K service in my delivery materials at purchase, GM sent me a $100 credit to be used to have the dealership fill it up on my next visit.
The Cruze TD was a very quick car with tons of torque off the line and up past highway speeds. It handled as well as my 2011 LT2 RS with the sportier suspension and lower profile tires.
Very insightful, appreciate your long-term real-world experience.
Appears highway use is where it really excels, there was a short time around here where diesel was at or below gas, but its back to about 15% higher now, and with fall coming, my guess is even a larger gap soon.
If a current production Astra hatch does not have a DEF tank for diesels in Europe until the
2018 model year, One would assume that the Cruze hatch would not have a diesel option until Sept 2018 as the DEF tank placement for both vehicles would be in the same location.
I'd bet anything that the Mexico plant is putting the 1.6 TDI in Hatchbacks for local and other global markets, so why can't the USA have a few? As mentioned, a TDI Encore/Trax would be ideal. Why can't GM at least give me a small TDI Hatchback instead? I think we'll see a Tiguan TDI in the USA before a TDI Encore. Wake up GM, gas is not going to stay cheap for much longer.
I don't know why they don't at least allow it to be built to order. If a dealer wants to stock one they can special order it. If the take rate increases put them in regular production.
All this talk of extra development costs is bunk. The 1.6 TDI will be made in hundreds of thousand units all over the world. The tighter emission stands of the US will eventually be required in Europe also. They've been using low sulfur diesel for years now. Sure if you only city drive it might not make sense, but most US commuters drive over 20 miles each way to and from work. Anyone who tows would also be better off with a diesel. It's a shame we don't see more LNG cars other then those sold to fleets. Simple change to the IC engine to use a clean burning fuel. Many of us have NG already piped to our homes. Any gas station with a NG line could have high pressure pumps to fill a NG car in minutes, not hours to recharge an EV that has to carry tons of toxic batteries. How come you don't see 10 year old Prius's on the road? Because all were leased and after 5 years, the cars are not worth the cost of the replacement batteries.
Nobody is saying that 'ground-up' R&D costs are involved, but to bring a unique engine to a plant/platform is a significant cost, in many aspects, those cost spread over very small unit volume are significant.
"Tows" we are talking about a Cruze still, right?
NG would seem rather easy as NG is "plumbed" everywhere, just like electricity? Yet years of EV's and you still can't find a significant supply of charging stations................
I just looked up 2005 Prius sales was ~108K and over 103K are still on the road today, 95.3% - that is a lot higher than the typical ICE 2005 model year car, just saying.
I will be selling back to VW my manual transmission Sportwagen TDI before the mandated deadline in 2018. While the Cruze hatchback cargo space is less than that of the Sportwagen, with the Diesel and and a MT, the Cruze caught my interest as being potentially the best of all possible replacement vehicles. The diesel has made sense for me as almost all of my driving is highway, and I regularly do use the cargo capacity. Now, I'm sorry to read here that I'll have to look elsewhere -- unless Chevy comes to its senses and matches the needs of us disenfranchised VW TDI owners.
On a related note, why is the otherwise attractive Chevy Volt offered as a sedan only?
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