I bought a new car today!

[jblackburn]

First road trip in the Cruze was a success! It's a great highway car, and just shrugs off bumps on the terrible roads in northern NC and Richmond.

The dash says I averaged 41 mpg with an average speed of 70, and a back seat and trunk packed full of stuff. The Eco models tach lower on the highway and are lightened by 200 lbs from my LT, but I like my model quite well. 500 miles on it now means the break in period is finally over, and tomorrow I can finally open up the taps and see what it can do!

That said, I do miss the Volvo's amazing stereo and it's ability to quickly change into a faster moving lane without even thinking twice about it.

[el diablo viejo]

Congratulations on your new ride and hopefully car-trouble-free-life for the next ten years.
I always enjoyed and learned something while reading your innumerable posts, and marvelled at the time you would put in to help everyone on this forum.
Best of luck in your new endeavors.

[stone36]

Justin,
Wanted to throw in my thanks and well wishes, as everyone else here you've saved me a ton of time and money. Best of luck with the new car!

[rspi]

The dash says I averaged 41 mpg with an average speed of 70, and a back seat and trunk packed full of stuff. The Eco models tach lower on the highway and are lightened by 200 lbs from my LT, but I like my model quite well. 500 miles on it now means the break in period is finally over, and tomorrow I can finally open up the taps and see what it can do!

Man, I would hold off on that break in period. I'd triple it if I were you.

Go ahead and update your sig and get the separation woes out of the way.

[jblackburn]

For those of you that care to read my ramblings:

It's been almost 2 weeks with the Cruze, and it's at 1000 miles now. It was my first week of work in DC, and with the metro, the morning and evening commute really isn't half bad since I don't have to deal with traffic. I'm moving into my own place (first time living on my own without a roommate - I can finally afford it!) next weekend and will be moving all of my stuff from Blacksburg with the assistance of my parents and their car.

In that time, I've had a bit of time to get used to my new car, and I'm really quite happy with it. Definitely a much better small car than anything else I drove in its class, and I feel like it's perfect for me to have at this point in my life right now.

Some observations:

• Highway mileage on a tank of gas was around 42 mpg. My last tank was almost exclusively city and stop and go highway traffic, and I still managed 33 mpg (I don't drive really conservatively, but not like a maniac either).
• I love the interior. It looks like a more expensive car than it is, and nothing like the cheap GM vehicles of the past that used cheap, hard plastics everywhere.
• The powerband on this engine is VERY good for a small 4-cylinder motor. 138 hp doesn't seem like much, but the almost 150 ft/lbs of torque is what makes it feel much bigger than it is. I can shift under 2000 RPM at times when I'm in bumper to bumper traffic and not bog the engine in the next gear. NO other 4-cylinder car I've driven has ever been able to do that. Changing up at 3000 leaves you plenty of pull in the next gear to keep up with traffic around you.
• Gears are really short. I'm up in 5th in normal driving by 35 mph. 6th is a highway cruising gear from 55+.
• I thought the Volvo heated up fast, but this thing had the heater going in literally 1-2 minutes of starting a cold engine. AMAZING.
• Clutch is one of the best I've ever driven. The engagement is very smooth and it's easy to take off without much thought.
• Visibility is very good all-around. Not quite as good as the S70, but pretty good compared to other cars I've driven a good bit.
• Power is smooth, pretty plentiful for most driving below 55, and consistent from 2000-4000 RPM. I only rev higher if I absolutely need to merge quickly as the gears are close in ratio and there's always torque to keep you speeding up.
• It rides VERY well and is extremely quiet even at highway speeds. Big potholes and rode imperfections that jarred my whole S70 are barely even felt.
• It's slow above 55 mph trying to accelerate quickly without screaming the engine, but that is to be expected of such a little engine and little turbo. It has no problem keeping up at 80 on the highway, but don't ask it to surge around a slow-moving vehicle with a rush of acceleration.
• While it loves to be thrown around and responds instantly to driver input, the stock Firestone tires are crap for handling and squeal very easily. The suspension is good and body roll is very little around tight corners. I feel like the car would have a lot more potential being thrown around with better tires (like the Yokohamas I had on the Volvo that cornered like they were on rails). 2LT and LTZ models have a lowered suspension and bigger rims, so they probably handle better while mine has a smoother ride.
• The steering gives no feedback (it's electric). Don't like that much at all for a car I'd like to have some fun with, but it's nicely weighted and not super light all the time as a Honda or Hyundai is.
• The AC is AMAZING on full blast, but lags the engine quite badly. The variable displacement compressor is a great idea, and only drags that much power from the engine when you've got it on full blast. On other speeds, the power difference is not noticeable at all.
• 89 octane is very much smoother. Kind of a shame, though, as I was hoping to use 87 year-round since that's what they recommend. Then again, this is a turbo engine running 18+ psi of boost. Any turbocharged engine is going to lag on very hot days running low-octane gas no matter what they design it to run on.
• The radio is cool that it will connect to my iPhone and play music directly, but the speakers are terrible. I wish I'd opted for the upgraded Pioneer system.

[asimba2]

Seems like a very un-biased review, I appreciate that. Finally auto manufacturers are starting to make efforts to get the fuel economy up. When my girlfriend started shopping for a new car last year we were shocked to find out how low the fuel economy is on mid size 4 cylinder sedans. Most of the Honda Accords, Toyota Camrys, Nissan Altimas, etc., were only rated in the low-20mpgs city and high 20s highway. The car she really wants right now, the 4 cylinder Acura TSX (their smallest and cheapest car) is 'only' rated at 21 city and 29 highway with a 6-speed manual. I say 'only' because I would expect a little 4 cylinder 2WD car like that to get significantly better mileage than my lifted supercharged 6 cylinder 4WD 4Runner.

However, look at these newly designed models and how much they have improved the economy:
2012 Nissan Altima 4 cylinder -- 23 city 32 highway.
2013 Nissan Altima 4 cylinder -- 27 city, 38 highway...(newly redesigned...what a massive MPG improvement)

2012 Ford Fusion 2.5L NA 4 cylinder -- 22 city, 29 highway
2013 Ford fusion 1.6L turbo 4 cylinder -- 26 city, 37 highway

I also like the trend of downsizing the engine size (as you can see above that Ford is doing) and using turbocharging and things like variable rate air conditioning, electric steering and alternators that are able to stop charging when needed...cool stuff! The fact that GM is no longer using the cheapest parts made to mankind and actually using overhead cams, aluminum blocks, turbocharging, variable alternators, etc., shows that the bailout actually made them start trying!

[jblackburn]

Personally, I hated the 2007 Altima I spent some time with on a beach trip with a friend. The interior was cheap, the engine noisy, lots of road noise, and I couldn't stand the CVT transmission. The 2013 Fusion looks AMAZING from an exterior perspective (the old one was a good-looker as well). Hopefully they'll do something about the interior and transmission from the outgoing model - the interior was cheap and the transmission really felt like you had to floor it to make it do anything.

If you're looking at the Altima/Fusion, take a look at the Camry. Fantastic powertrain and interior in the 4-cylinder models, even if the exterior is pretty bland (I think the SE looks pretty good). I think the handling is what surprised me most - it feels planted and confident in corners. My girlfriend has an 02 Camry and it feels like a barge going into corners even on freeway on-ramps. The new Accords are terrible, but TSX's are very nice and didn't get that ugly beak face they gave the TL.

It's a difficult market - there are horsepower wars going on between manufacturers, while they're all also trying to out-do each other in terms of gas mileage as well. I think you have to step under 2 liters now to get 30+ mpg city though.

[asimba2]

I agree with everything you said. The TSX is the car she likes the most, but the economy isn't great. The other top contender is the VW Jetta TDI Sportwagon. But the reliability issues are cause for concern. The current Altima isn't great, but google the 2013 model, it will be completely redesigned. Which leads us to the Ford Fusion. A few years ago neither of us would have even considered buying anything but a foreign car. But now I firmly believe America auto manufacturers are changing and the current Fusion is a really really good car. The 2013 adds style it sort of lacks now. Not to cloud your thread with Ford stuff, but look at the new Fusion:




I like the Camry reliability but the chassis is way too soft and simply does not make for a fun driving experience. Meanwhile, even the gearheads at TopGear vote the Fusion/Mondeo as one of the best cars they have driven.

Anyways, good choice in small cars...glad to see even us foreign car owners can finally consider an American car when it comes time to buy.

[jblackburn]

That new Fusion does look amazing.

Just an update to those still following: I finally made the BIG MOVE (some of you may remember my post about towing a trailer with a Volvo). I'm all settled down into my new place now, and pretty happy with how everything turned out. I'm now close to my girlfriend and friends I had in college (instead of 4 hours away!), within walking distance to the Metro stop in the morning, and have a nice place to live

My family came up to Blacksburg this weekend, and we COMPLETELY stuffed the 5x8 Uhaul, roof carrier, and inside of the Liberty to its gills. I had a good amount of stuff in my car as well. Dad said it was VERY heavy, but pulled the hills well and was able to keep up at 60-65 most of the trip up a very hilly I-81.

With 3 people in my car and a trunk and back seat packed full, I still managed a very respectable 38 mpg @ 75 mph.

Apparently there's a poorly designed front strut assembly in the 2012 Cruzes built before February (I got a November one). There's a TSB out for a popping or clunking noise when coming to a stop (not TOO noticeable, but still enough to be annoying given that my car only has 2000 miles on it). I've been in contact with customer service; they are going to give me a loaner car, free oil change, and replace both front struts under warranty.

[asimba2]

warranty? what's that?