Chevy Cruze diesel hatchback may claim highway MPG crown

[cuts_off_prius]

2018 Cruze with the 1.6-liter turbodiesel four could be “the first nonhybrid car this century to achieve 50 MPG on the highway" for the US and Canadian market.

I hope this sells.

EPA ratings better reflect real world results than those of the NEDC and the highway figures are usually easy to beat, especially in diesels sold here. I would expect this to get AT LEAST in the mid 50s MPG highway in the real world.

http://www.autonews.com/article/2016...hway-mpg-crown

http://jalopnik.com/the-diesel-cruze...kin-1787691332

Chevy Cruze diesel hatchback may claim highway mpg crown
October 11, 2016 @ 7:00 pm
Richard Truett RSS feed



UPDATED: 10/11/16 9:22 pm ET - adds details
DETROIT -- Chevrolet’s diesel-powered Cruze hatchback -- the brand’s first compact hatchback available in North America -- could be the first nonhybrid car this century to achieve 50 mpg on the highway.

GM officials said Tuesday the Cruze hatchback will get an optional 1.6-liter turbodiesel in the 2018 model year. The fuel-efficient engine will be paired with a nine-speed automatic transmission or a six-speed manual.

The nearly identical Vauxhall Astra diesel, which is on sale in Britain, carries a European Union rating of 85 mpg on the highway. But the British imperial gallon is 20 percent larger than the U.S. gallon and EU testing procedures have been criticized for not being representative of real-world results.

Diesel engines, on average, can improve fuel economy by 20 percent over gasoline engines. The EPA has not rated the fuel economy of the Cruze diesel hatchback.

Several European magazines have tested the Astra diesel and achieved 55 mpg with a six-speed manual transmission. The coming nine-speed automatic might be enough to push the car to 50 mpg, giving GM the title of most fuel efficient nonhybrid car and helping the company in its quest to win over VW’s former diesel customers.

AutoPacific analyst Dave Sullivan thinks GM would be happy with 47 or 48 mpg.

“If the Cruze diesel can hit 47 or 48 mpg, it should be a success in closing the gap with hybrids for highway driving efficiency,” Sullivan said. “Keep in mind that the Malibu Hybrid gets 46 mpg on the highway.”



In a test drive of gasoline powered Cruze hatchbacks from Ann Arbor, Mich., to Detroit Tuesday during a GM media event, one car, equipped with a six-speed manual transmission, achieved 41.7 mpg in mostly highway driving, while another with a six-speed automatic, turned in 42.3 mpg, according to the car’s fuel economy data.

The EPA rates the 2017 Cruze hatchback at 29 mpg city/38 highway with the automatic transmission and 28 city/37 highway with the manual.

Currently, GM’s most efficient nonhybrid car is the Cruze sedan, which carries a 40 mpg highway rating.

"We expect it to do better than that (40 mpg highway with the gas version) but we can't talk numbers yet," said David Poniatowski, program manager for the Cruze.

He said consumers can buy the Cruze and Equinox diesels as a "hedge" against higher fuel prices: "We know what gas and diesel prices are now, but these [vehicles] will be on the road for a long time."

He says the fuel economy with the diesel is one attraction, along with torque and power: "We're creating a niche out there for customers who are in love with diesel," Poniatowski added.

With the expected fuel economy improvement from a diesel engine, 50 mpg looks possible, especially with the nine-speed automatic transmission coming.

Automakers are racing to add gears to their automatic transmissions, but so far the results have been underwhelming, said Sullivan. “The ZF nine-speed in Fiat Chrysler, Honda, and Land Rover products hasn’t yielded headline grabbing numbers yet,” he said. “The last Cruze diesel hit 44 mpg on the highway, besting the Jetta TDI that was also cheating on emissions.”

The hatchback version of the Cruze is arriving at dealerships. The car is available in two trims, LT and Premier, and carries a base price of $23,065, including shipping.

“With 9 percent market growth in small hatchbacks last year, it’s the perfect time to bring the Cruze Hatch to America,” Alan Batey, president, General Motors North America and Global Chevrolet, said in a statement. “As Cruze continues to set the tone for Chevrolet globally, it articulates the brand promise of offering cars with the latest technologies, more features and greater efficiency, performance and safety with fresh, distinctive styling.”

Select members of the 2017 40 mpg club*

• Chevrolet Cruze sedan 30 city /40 hwy

• Honda Civic 2-door 31/40; 30/41

• Honda Civic sedan 32/42; 31/42; 31/40; 28/40

• Honda Fit 33/40

• Jaguar XE 32/42 (diesel)

• Jaguar XE AWD 30/40 (diesel)

• Jaguar XF 31/42 (diesel)

• Jaguar XF AWD 30/40 (diesel)

• Hyundai Elantra 32/40

• Mazda2 32/40

• Mitsubishi Mirage 37/43; 33/41

• Mitsubishi Mirage G4 35/42; 33/40

• Volkswagen Jetta 28/40

• Toyota Corolla Eco 30/40

• Toyota Yaris Eco 32/40

*Nonhybrid vehicles

Note: Multiple ratings result from various engine/transmission combinations

Source: 2017 EPA preliminary fuel economy guide

Nick Bunkley contributed to this report.

[Draigflag]

That should easily be achievable in a mid sized modern diesel, especially on the highway. It's funny reading these stories from the US, it's like reading something here from 15-20 years ago, it's a shame it's taken so long for the US to only just start to realise the benefits.

Most diesels will work out more efficient than hybrids in most circumstances, especially on long highway stints, which I should imagine are quite common in the US.

[cuts_off_prius]

Originally Posted by Draigflag

That should easily be achievable in a mid sized modern diesel, especially on the highway. It's funny reading these stories from the US, it's like reading something here from 15-20 years ago, it's a shame it's taken so long for the US to only just start to realise the benefits.

Yeah, I do take it to be disgraceful. But you also have to consider our cheap fuel and lack of penalties for driving gas guzzlers. Blame the lawmakers who consider it political suicide to raise the federal gas tax, which hasn't been raised since 1993 (oh and diesel is taxed higher and costs much more per gal). Blame the regulators who aren't aware of the differences between diesel and petrol fuels. EPA standards have a certain NOx limit, regardless of fuel type, so that severely limits the diesels that we can get, but at least the emissions are clean (in theory; or at least until DEF runs out).

For the record, these are the EPA ratings for the 2015 Golf and Passat 2.0 TDI, the most fuel efficient diesels offered.



Severely underrated. My friend's Passat regularly gets MPG's in the low 50s highway. Others can achieve 70 MPG highway without much trying as well. Others delete that extra emissions stuff to maximize performance and FE.

[Draigflag]

Well it's better to have them underrated and be pleasantly surprised, than to have them severely overrated like they are here, and be disappointed when your MPG's are 25-30 MPG down on the official figures! The higher the number, the bigger the difference in the real World too.

[SteveMak]

Originally Posted by Draigflag

That should easily be achievable in a mid sized modern diesel, especially on the highway. It's funny reading these stories from the US, it's like reading something here from 15-20 years ago, it's a shame it's taken so long for the US to only just start to realise the benefits...

The common U.S. mindset views diesel like the first iteration of terrible North American-made diesel passenger vehicles from the 1970s: finicky (e.g., nasty cold weather starting), clattering, smoke-belching, smelly, and unreliable.

Today's diesels are completely different. I'm in Canada, driving my first diesel (a 2015 Audi Q5 3.0 TDI mid-size SUV), and I love it! Cold-soaked starts (well below freezing) are a non-event. There's no smoke or smell (well, with the DEF injection it sort of has the mild smell of a public pool). There's no clatter. From the inside it sounds like a gasoline (petrol) engine. From the outside, very similar. Then there are the benefits of brisk acceleration (0-60 mph in 6.4 sec in my car), and of course, the respectable fuel economy. My Fuelly numbers reveal my real-world numbers in over 20,000 miles of driving, including Canadian winters, which stiffen everything up and cause terrible MPGs. On road trips, I get close to 50 US MPG (@ 50 mph), and my all-time best was almost 52 US MPG! And that's from a mid-size SUV with full-time AWD!

Additionally, for us Canadians, diesel pump prices have been consistently lower than regular gasoline ever since I got my Q5 in May 2015. Right now, diesel sells for CAD$0.899/L while reg unleaded is $0.999/L. Taking into account my better fuel economy and lower fuel prices, my spreadsheet tells me I've saved between 34% and 40% in fuel costs since I bought my vehicle, as compared to getting a gasoline-powered Q5.

Kudos to Chevy for their diesel Cruze, and for persevering in a North American market where the average mindset thinks "Dirty Volkswagen" and "Dirty Diesels" and Dieselgate when they think of diesel cars. Their 50 MPG EPA will likely translate into 55 or close to 60 with a gentle driver like me behind the wheel :-)

[LDB]

I'm looking forward to more info coming available and for it to be included in the Build and Price system.

[cuts_off_prius]

The EPA rating for the upcoming Cruze diesel will be AT LEAST 50 MPG (60 MPG UK). Chief engineer also said the manual will get better mileage than the 9-speed auto.



Chevrolet Aims For 50 MPG With The Cruze Diesel

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Some official numbers finally.

Chevrolet Cruze Diesel's Fuel Economy Clears a Magical Barrier

Announced by a jubilant GM Monday morning, the EPA has estimated the Cruze’s highway mileage at 52 mpg — when equipped with a six-speed manual transmission, anyway. City economy for that model is a far less exciting 30 mpg, or the same as a gas-powered, automatic transmission model. Combined, it works out to 37 mpg in mixed driving.

When compared to the previous-generation model, the new diesel sees an 8 mpg jump on the highway, and a 5 mpg increase in combined fuel economy. Estimated range, according to GM, is 702 miles.

[Draigflag]

700 mile range is good, my average in my previous Clio diesel was 709 ish miles per tank. Now you guys know how we felt 10 or 15 years ago when diesels first hit the European markets.

But the 5-8 MPG increase sounds a bit....pessimistic? A diesel should yield much higher figures than a gasoline equivalent, my Clio was a shocking 80% more efficient that my petrol car previously, that's real World.

[trollbait]

The EPA test cycles are biased against diesels. Beating the older EPA numbers for a diesel was expected.