Holden's new Cruze is already performing well on the sales charts, but how does it perform on the road? David Thomson takes to the wheel of the turbo-diesel version to find out.
When Holden launched its new Cruze mid-sized sedan a few months back, company boss Mark Reuss declared it to be his company's "no-excuses car.''
That declaration was, at least in part, a reference to the Cruze's predecessor, the Viva. Cheap, but indifferent in quality and dynamics, the Viva made a meagre impression on the sales charts.
Indeed, even when its sales and those of its slightly smaller European sibling, the Astra, were combined, Holden could still do little better than rank seventh for small-medium car sales in 2008.
Since its launch in July, the Cruze has run third in the same category, bettered only by the Toyota Corolla and Mazda 3. If sales continue at current rates, by year's end more Cruzes will have been sold in six months than the combined Viva and Astra sales total for all of 2008.
Sharp pricing is certainly part of the Cruze's appeal; the $31,490 2.0-litre turbo-diesel manual version tested here lists for seven to 10 thousand dollars less than its obvious rivals.
Despite the price advantage, there is little sense of being short-changed in terms of features. The standard list for the diesel includes cruise control, air-conditioning, a six-speaker CD sound system with auxiliary plug-in and fingertip controls on the steering wheel, automatic headlights, a trip computer, power mirrors and windows, electronic stability programming, anti-lock brakes and half a dozen airbags.
Steel rather than alloy rims dent the image outside, but the Cruze is overall a solid and neatly-styled design. A blunt nose and chrome-accented grille makes it look at home as a member of Holden family, while the curved roofline gives a sporty air about the rear.
The interior is smart, with textile-weave inserts across the doors and dash matching the squabs of the seats. The inserts disguise the hard plastic finish of the main dashboard and door trims in a cabin that scores well for the quality of its build and finish.
With a height-adjustable seat and rake-and-reach-adjustable steering wheel, the Cruze adapts to the needs of a wide range of drivers. Most will find, though, that with its high waistline, thick pillars, and plunging rear roofline, there are too many potential blind spots for truly relaxed driving around town.
Out on the open road the absence of a footrest is the most annoying niggle, followed on longer trips by limited upper-back support for taller folk.
Beanpoles like me fare little better in the rear, where legroom is fine but headroom suffers as a consequence of the roof's generous downward curve.
Boot space is decent at 400 litres.
The Cruze's turbo-diesel heart beats strongly on paper, managing a 110kW power output that wouldn't disgrace a number of petrol-powered cars of this size, along with a hefty 320Nm of torque, which is a diesel motor's most telling advantage.
While featuring contemporary common-rail injection technology, the Cruze's engine is not as refined as the latest turbo-diesels Drivesouth has sampled in cars from Europe and Japan. The obvious clatter at idle and low revs may, though, be more a consequence of average soundproofing than the motor itself.
Sluggish pick-up from low revs is definitely an issue of the motor.
However, once into its stride, the engine is responsive, providing generous torque thrust across a broad rev range from 1800rpm to just shy of4000rpm.
Some rivals offer six forward ratios but the Cruze's five-speed manual gearbox was fine by me, and a six-speed auto will join the range very soon.
With the manual, top has the engine spinning at just over 1600rpm at 100kmh, so brisk highway overtaking is best achieved by slotting down a gear.
Economy is rated at 5.7 litres per 100km on the standard cycle, which is right in the ballpark for diesels of this size.
That was a figure we struggled to match on test, however. Even on a straightforward return airport run, the best I could get the trip computer to show was 6.3l/100km.
The dynamic limitations of Holden's early Korean-sourced cars were well known, but the Cruze takes a further step along a path initiated by the Epica in resetting expectations in this area.
Handling is tidy for everyday motoring, with the Cruze turning in crisply and responding obediently to the light but reasonably accurate steering.
It does start to lose composure when pushed hard on really tight roads, with the front end scrubbing into understeer, and the modestly grippy Hankook 205/60 R16 tyres squealing in protest.
Driven sensibly it rides very nicely, soaking up small bumps and maintaining composure over larger ones. Low-rev engine noise aside, it was also reasonably quiet.
Holden has made significant progress by adding the Cruze to its line.
Here, at last, is a credible small-medium car to fly the flag for the brand.
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