2010 Chevrolet Cruze Malaysia Reviews & Ratings, Expert Car Reviews on LIVE LIFE DRIVE

The 2010 Chevrolet Cruze proves to be an appealing, capable car which is priced to provide value-for-money as well. But the Chevrolet brand will need further investment before the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze can attract the attention it deserves.

2010 Chevrolet Cruze quick specs

Body Style	Sedan
Class	Mid-size Family
Assembled	-

Engine Range	-
Fuel Options	-
Seating Capacity	5

2010 Chevrolet Cruze ratings (overall rating : 4/5.0)

Styling
Handling
Comfort
Quality + Reliability
Performance

Roominess
Running Costs
Value for Money
Equipment
Environment

Styling

One may think that a global car like the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze would be designed to be as “neutral” in appearance as possible. The Chevrolet Cruze's designers had other ideas apparently, penning a car that looks distinctively sporty. The front end is particularly characterful, dominated by an imposing grille and sharply angled headlamps. The rear is attractive, too, but perhaps a little too Honda Civic-esque? The bold design could split opinions, but we think throwing caution to the wind allows the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze to at least differentiate itself in a crowded segment.

Handling

Based on General Motors' Delta II platform, the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze has the goods to back up its sporty looks. The quick steering is well-weighted at speed and offers good feedback when tackling corners, although more feel around the straight-ahead position would be ideal. When pushed, the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze remains unflustered—exhibiting minimal body roll, gripping on admirably and resisting understeer surprisingly well, all of which allow it to be driven hard—while providing an adequate margin of error with the standard stability control feature. The strong brakes with good pedal feel deserve praise, too.

Comfort

The suspension setup is of the firm-yet-pliant variety, overcoming bumps and potholes comfortably and riding out highway undulations with ease. Refinement is also a strong suit of the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze, whose cabin remains very quiet until around 140–150 km/h, which is when wind and road noise starts to creep in from the rear. The sporty-feeling cabin provides an intimate environment for keen drivers, with a good driving position which is accompanied by a two-way adjustable steering column and driver's seat-height adjustments. The controls are intuitive to locate and use, though the instrument gauges are hard to read under sunlight. A worse oversight is the omission of a driver's footrest.

Quality + Reliability

With a flowing centre console design, aluminium-like panels and a band of fabric stretching across the dashboard and onto the door panels, the cabin design cannot be faulted for a lack of style. Compared with the cabin of its predecessor, the Chevrolet Optra, the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze takes an even bigger stride forward in terms of cabin quality. The build quality is as good as it gets for the money, and, while generally hard-to-the-touch, the dashboard materials are well-textured. The controls operate with a sense of solidity, too. The key mechanical components, the engine and the transmission, have been used in various models under different General Motors-owned brands, and thus should remain sturdy in the longer term.

Performance

The 1.8-litre Ecotec engine pumps out a relatively generous 141 hp and 176 Nm, and is paired to the C-segment's first six-speed automatic gearbox. The on-road performance is less promising, however: while the engine is eager-to-rev and serves up good acceleration, it has to be worked hard to maintain any sort of real pace, sounding harsher the harder you rev. The six-speed gearbox shifts smoothly though not quickly nor decisively at times, which is when the manual over-ride function comes in handy. The sixth ratio ensures that cruising at 110 km/h is carried out below 2000 rpm.

Roominess

Front and rear occupants should have no complaints regarding legroom thanks to the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze's 2685 mm wheelbase, which is only 15 mm shy of the class-leading 2700 mm wheelbase offered by the Honda Civic and Nissan Sylphy. However, due to the sloping roofline, taller occupants (1.8 metres and above) will find the rear headroom too limited for comfort. Cabin stowage areas as well as cup- and bottle-holders are aplenty, while the well-shaped, 450-litre boot, along with 60/40 split-folding rear seats, makes the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze a practical car to live with.

Running Costs

The fuel consumption is officially rated as 15 km/litre, although you would do well to achieve 11-12 km/litre in real-world driving, despite the six gear ratios which help with fuel economy. Servicing and maintenance costs should be moderate with the emergence of Naza as Chevrolet's distributor, while spare part pricing should trend lower over time. Its predecessor, the Chevrolet Optra, suffered precipitous depreciation due to poor brand image and a general lack of appeal. This time round, the significantly more appealing Chevrolet Cruze, whose brand image is improving as well, should be better-received on the used car market.

Value for Money

There is no question that the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze is endlessly better than the car it replaces, the Chevrolet Optra. There is also little doubt that the Chevrolet Cruze offers value as well, proving to be an appealing, capable car for less money than rivals. The 2010 Chevrolet Cruze absolutely cuts it against more established rivals with its attractive styling, good ride-and-handling, excellent refinement, well-built cabin and the segment's first six-speed gearbox. But for the Cruze to win sales from Japanese rivals, Chevrolet needs to restore confidence in the brand by investing in its dealer network and consistently churning out quality cars. The Chevrolet Cruze's main rival for now is the Kia Forte, another car under the Naza group, which shades it as the value proposition at the entry-end of the C-segment.

Equipment

Standard equipments include 16" alloy wheels, front fog lamps, power adjustable/folding side mirrors, reverse sensors, keyless entry, steering wheel-mounted audio controls, electronic climate control, anti-pinch all-round power windows, and 6-speaker audio system with MP3-compatibility and 6-disc in-dash CD-changer. Safety features include dual front SRS airbags, traction control, ABS (Anti-lock Braking System) and EBD (Electronic Brake-force Distribution).

Environment

Chevrolet says that the Euro IV-compliant 1.8-litre Ecotec engine emits 159 grams/km, with fuel consumption at 15 km/litre. The availability of six gear ratios certainly helps when it comes to saving fuel and mitigating emissions, but the need to strain the engine to access the performance can only worsen the real-world driving fuel economy. Being imported all the way from Korea also means that the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze's carbon footprint is more than rivals' which are locally-assembled or imported from neighbouring countries.

Browse by make

Browse by category

Select by make

Select by body style

2010 Chevrolet Cruze Review

2010 Chevrolet Cruze at a glance