Testdrive in a Diesel Cruze

6195 Views 56 Replies 21 Participants Last post by El Dobro, May 31, 2017

Jmaj

Discussion Starter · Mar 20, 2017

2017 with leather package.

This was a short test drive. The plastic was still on the seats, just off the truck on Saturday.

Pros

Diesel knock is absent, just as advertised.
9 speed automatic shifts smoothly - double clutch technology works. You have to get on the "oil" to make it downshift forcibly enough to feel it.
Stop-start technology.
Diesel torque + 9 speeds - pretty good acceleration

Cons
Low pitch engine rumble is always there - in no way is this silent propulsion.

Normally I would go with the Volt but the choice is not so clearcut here. There's zero state incentives, I'd have to buy the Volt and get 0% financing to go along with a modest amount of manufacturer's incentives. Even with the fed tax credit it's stretching to make the number close enough.

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rmay635703

· #15 · Mar 21, 2017

Jmaj said:
For the technically inclined here is an explanation of Tier 3

www.dieselnet.com/standards/us/ld_t3.php

One thing I have learned is to never own a diesel automatic.

You ruin the diesel unless you run it through a good old 5 or 6 mt

New diesel chevies come with a stick for a reason, don't waste your time learning the reason through experience.

Just buy the manual off the bat and smile

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rmay635703

· #17 · Mar 21, 2017 (Edited)

Qinsp said:
Chevrolet and GMC discontinued the stick shift Duramax 6.6L powertrains long, long ago. And when they were around, the manual trans engines were derated to lower torque and hp. The 5 and 6 speed Allison transmissions could take way more abuse than the manual trans or clutch could. It is not unusual for an Allison to over 100,000 miles towing at stock HP levels if you replace the spin-on filter and change the oil as recommended. I think at least one guy went over 250,000 miles IIRC.

Love that Allison. My race truck pushes 936rwhp through an Allison 6-sp. Enough torque to destroy any light truck manual trans instantly. So much torque is available that I detune it to hold it at no more than 1500ftlb to save the drivetrain and crankshaft.

https://www.cars.com/vehicledetail/detail/695811129/overview/

MT Diesel is priced quite competitively, in a few years maybe my road trip car will become a diesel.
Will have to test drive it to see if I can get 70+mpg like I did with the old TDIs

Anyway...

An Allison is Durable but when I converted my diesel truck from auto to a manual my city FE doubled, highway improved as well and my acceleration was better. True I was lucky if I even had 200hp but the difference was night and day better.
Near the end I had a 30mpg full size diesel truck, hard to do that using an auto.

That said I wasn't even talking a truck, the car certainly won't have an Allison (or anything close) automatic diesels suck, plain waste of a perfectly good car to cripple it with a 9 speed, cvt or whatever autotragic you want to throw at it. 10-20% lost off the top, especially at cold temps and no early shifts putting around town. (Hence the pathetic city rating that you probably won't reach in the auto and easily beat with the stick)

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rmay635703

· #54 · May 31, 2017

twoheeldrive said:
As one of those "tree huggers", I am happy that you and 480,000 others will not have that opportunity.

http://myimiev.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=3156&start=20

A lot of the buybacks are sitting in the yard of a future "mobility " company

That car company may we'll sell the cars back into the market after a period of time

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