Extended Test Drive, 2015 Chevrolet Cruze

So Holly has reviewed the 2014 Chevrolet Cruze here and is not really much of a fan, she's had it as a rental many times, this time was the first time I'd driven one.

This is going to be part test drive / car review and part road trip related travel journal.


First, why was I in a Chevrolet Cruze?
Well, while owning a Subaru BRZ is wonderful the rear seats are more for show / really short people. If you're going any real distance with more than two people it really doesn't work. Holly and I were heading back to her parents in Massachusetts from Delaware and Holly's younger sister wanted a ride. Unfortunately Holly's younger sister is not a munchkin, does not belong to the Lollipop Guild, nor is she an Oompa Loompa, and therefore as a full grown adult she does not fit in the back seat of the Subaru BRZ.
As with any car rental it's a dice roll, especially when the NE Corridor train lines have been shut down due to a train crash and no one is returning their rentals to where they started from. So 2015 Chevrolet Cruze it was.

 Holly did a favor for her dad involving gas cans possibly older than her. Some were leaky, so our trip back smelled of gas. While it looks like a few kilos of cocaine or heroine may have exploded in the trunk it was actually baking soda to help with the smell and cleaning.

Now that pictures of the car are done, time to discuss the vehicle itself.


Seats are wide and do not hug at all, very clearly built for the US market. Seats relatively comfortable in front passenger seat, though I found my legs aching after three hours in driver seat. Handles for adjusting seatback angle is both small and awkwardly positioned. Heated seats in the rental were a nice plus.

Seemingly decently planted, no problems taking on/off ramps at decent speeds. No real front steering feel through steering wheel. No real rear feel through the driver's seat from the butt as to what the rear of the car is doing. Steering wheel oddly well weighted despite lack of feel.

Throttle response is not nonexistent but is delayed, it revs up quickly and then uncoils the power release until it builds into a relative surge. To me this was a great improvement over the 2013Volkswagen Jetta 2.5 SE I drove before as a rental, which could not get out of its own way.

Brakes are not exceptional, they are not progressive but they do work, and at least the brake pedal cannot be described as spongy.

While the transmission does have a manual mode there is no reward for using it. There was also no eco or sports mode. Like most automatics the gearbox does not immediately kick down, but will drop a gear if you keep your right foot on the gas, again not stellar response, but acceptable. Apparently you can spec one with a manual, according to Chevy's website, so that's a nice thing. I wonder how hard I'd have to look at local dealerships to find a manual though.

Trunk space and rear seat space are both fairly generous. Visibility out the front windshield is good. Though blind spot to the right rear is kind of big and nasty.

Entertainment system is rather busy button wise, especially because it is also a touch screen.

Gauge cluster is nothing to write home about either, and the center multifunction info screen seems particularly dated.

Turn signal stalk was obnoxiously short for no apparent reason, like you really needed to reach behind the wheel to manipulate them.

Roughly 715.4 miles driven and 22.0 gallons of gas used, so by the car's own estimations, roughly 32.52 mpg which is respectable.

The model we had was the the 2015 Cruze 2LT Automatic. According to specifications:
1.4L turbocharged Ecotec engine. 138 hp @ 4900 rpm and 148 lb-ft @ 1850 rpm. Estimated EPA fuel of 26 city / 38 highway. Since almost all driving was highway I guess my fuel assessment should not be "respectable" but rather "disappointing" especially since most driving was done cruising with cruise control on.
In summary, it wasn't bad, it wasn't great, but it would make a decent A to B car. I would expect better fuel efficiency considering the engine and all.

Now on to the road trip journal aspect.

We stopped for gas and snacks and a pit stop at a New Jersey Turnpike service station. Normally not exciting or special but apparently there was a truck with a Lamborghini Countach on its bed.
Apparently my cell phone camera at night is good for adding dramatic lens flare similar to that seen in the most recent two Star Trek movies.

 Also, I missed it, bad apparently Holly's sister photobombed me.

My normal camera add no lens flare, but the shots where the camera wasn't flat on a surface proved a bit tricky in terms of hands shaking and how sharp the images are.

We also too a picture of traffic heading the opposite way on the George Washington Bridge in New York because traffic was stuck in a 3.5 mile solid block of bumper to bumper traffic. We were glad we were heading north.

There was also a nice Chevrolet Corvette C3 on the road north with us for a while. So I snapped a few shots at a rest stop, the owner came out and drove off before I finished taking my shots.

Then on our way back we snapped a shot of the Verrazano Bridge in New York because it is pretty.

And lastly Holly took a bunch of pictures of a camouflage-ish Nissan GT-R we met on our way back to the NJ Turnpike. Also more cell phone pictures means more lens flare and granularity.