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Inside the 2011 Chevrolet Cruze

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I must say, in real life, the interior of the new Cruze is very attractive.
The shapes are pleasant, and the whole thing seems of high quality.
I really like the part of the dashboard that matches the color of the seats. Something you don’t see every day. And much better than some regular trim. Wood or otherwise.

I was a bit disapointed by it not having soft plastic. Especially that color part of the dash that does look soft in pictures, somehow.
But it still looks good, and most cars in the class are not using soft plastics (Except the new excellent Mazda 3)
Everything seems well made and solid.
A nice place to be on a long trip.


Rear legroom is fine, not amazing. But pretty much what is expected in the class.
Much better than the Mazda3.

See what I mean? It does look like soft plastic, doesn’t it…

The trunk is huge. Perfect for its family car mission.

These little plastic panels behind the side windows don’t look better in real life.
From far it’s OK. But up close, they do look cheap.
Like they always do. On any car.

The new Cruze seems like a very nice car. And GM is really confident the 1.4 Liter Turbo can get at least 40 MPG on the Hwy.
Not bad for a solid roomy family car.

Is it better than the current Civic or Mazda3 ? I’m not sure.
The interior seems more upscale and interesting than the Honda. But the interior in the Mazda is great.
So it will be competitive.

But an all new Focus is coming out next year too.
GM’s small sedan might once again be a step behind by then…

Conversation 15 comments

  1. Very refreshing to see some use of color in the interior!! And Vince, I agree with you, it does look like soft plastic (I suppose it's the concave edges that make it look padded).

    About that C-pillar piece of plastic… why don't manufacturers just use some glass and the same window frame material to make it at least convincingly look like a window??

    Overall, definitely seems like a step up in the compact car segment for GM.

  2. the Focus will have push button start and sync with built in hard drive. yes, the Cruze looks like a step behind.

  3. A step up for GM, yes. But has any new model been anticipated longer? How long have we been hearing about this, and it's only an '11?! I hope that by the time it actually hits the streets, it's not too little too late.

  5. I have a hard time believing that the Chevy Cruze will be priced like a Cobalt. The Cruze is CLEARLY on an equal playing ground with the Lexis IS, Infinity, Mercedes C, BMW 3, and anything Acura. In fact, I'd say it has more of a "quality" aura than ANY of the sub $40,000 cars out there today. I like the ecletic two-tone interior and the exterior, while not ground breaking, is certainly on a par with similarly-sized "near luxury" cars in this size catagory. I can see dealers marking these things up considerably.

  6. Wow, if this interior isn't better than the CURRENT Civic (which is now in its 5th model year, then that isn't a good thing.

    It is certainly a step up, but it isn't the giant leap that GM needs. I am still not sold.

    By the way Vince, the Civic uses some soft touch plastics on the dash and door panels, mostly on all the contact points…

  8. Nice little car. That little plastic panel (on the c-pillar) is an unnecessary addition. Too bad the entire car looks like GM slapped its badges on something someone else designed. If this Cruze is built well, I hope it sells well, too.

  9. "Anonymous said…
    I have a hard time believing that the Chevy Cruze will be priced like a Cobalt. The Cruze is CLEARLY on an equal playing ground with the Lexis IS, Infinity, Mercedes C, BMW 3, and anything Acura. In fact, I'd say it has more of a "quality" aura than ANY of the sub $40,000 cars out there today. I like the ecletic two-tone interior and the exterior, while not ground breaking, is certainly on a par with similarly-sized "near luxury" cars in this size catagory. I can see dealers marking these things up considerably.

    December 3, 2009 5:44 AM"

    You are an idiot.

    Any Acura, LexUs, MB, or BMW is far superior to this POS.

    It has ALREADY been criticized for having some chintzy materials.

    You keep on dreaming you, you big dreamer.

  10. The trunk… why are they using Hinged Trunk still?

    Our '08 Focus has Gas Struts(not intruding into the trunk)that open the trunk.

    PS: GM… if you aren't going to use a 3-door Astra over at Buick, in the USA ….. then why not bring it over as a Chevy….and maybe call it… "Sports" Cruze(with Turbo as optional)?

  11. The trunk… why are they using Hinged Trunk still?

    Our '08 Focus has Gas Struts(not intruding into the trunk)that open the trunk.

    You know what I would like to see at chevy, again, GM(they used to sell the "Geo Storm"…Chevy)… if you aren't going to use a 3-door Astra over at Buick, in the USA( we will get the Excelle sedan, iirc) ….. then why not bring it over as a Chevy….and maybe call it… "Sports" Cruze(with Turbo as optional)?

  12. What about all the Luxury Imports that use goose neck hinges in their trunks? Research it. I'm amused by the comparisons to entry luxury marques with this car. For the Cruze to even be mentioned in that class, GM must've done something right!

  13. Vince, this is what I like to call too little too late.

    Sure, this would have been fantastic if introduced two years ago but in 2011 this IS NOT going to cut it. The 9th gen Civic will be coming out which always dominates, and the Mazda3 will be getting its MMC.

    I think it will be dead in the water when it hits with the better options available.

    I sure as hell would take a Civic over this unproven, rebadged Daewoo. GM can't even design a small car on their own.

  15. I sure as hell would take a Civic over this unproven, rebadged Daewoo. GM can't even design a small car on their own.

    –Then you're a fool. Its 2009 (almost 2010) Time to get over that nasty Honda HABIT.

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