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New Cruze gets rave reviews at Pittsburgh auto show
By Kalea Hall
PITTSBURGH
Alison Munnin is in the market for a new car, and the Lordstown, Ohio-built, next-generation Chevrolet Cruze just might be that car.
Munnin, a Fox Chapel resident, was one of thousands at the Pittsburgh International Auto Show Saturday.
“With the new model they have added so many features,” Munnin said. “It’s an affordable price to get so many great features.”
Munnin made sure to check out the Cruze to replace her 2006 Chevrolet Cobalt – another product that came from the General Motors Lordstown Assembly plant – while she was at the show.
A new silver Cruze will be on display from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. today and Monday at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center in downtown Pittsburgh, along with other vehicles in the Chevrolet lineup, including an all-new Malibu. About 600 new vehicles are showcased this year at the show, and 60,000 people are expected to attend.
“The next-generation Cruze is a great follow-up to the first generation,” said Robert Morales, president of United Auto Workers Local 1714, who represents the fabrication plant workers at the Lordstown plant. “We are excited about it. We are excited to hear feedback.”
Like Morales, Glenn Johnson, president of UAW Local 1112, who represents assembly plant workers, believes displaying the Cruze at both Pittsburgh and Cleveland auto shows gives a sense of pride to the workers.
“Every time we get an opportunity to showcase the efforts of the membership and their hard work and the dedication ... I just think it is fantastic,” Johnson said.
About 4,500 workers at the Lordstown GM plant are building the next-generation Cruze. The same workers built more than 1.4 million first-generation Cruzes.
The compact car comes with what GM leaders call “no compromises,” so it is expected to follow in the successful steps of its predecessor – the No. 1 selling car in the world since 2008.
First produced in the U.S. in 2010, the first-generation Cruze resonated with customers in search of good performance and fuel efficiency.
By June 2011, the Cruze became the first American-made vehicle to lead the compact-car segment in five years. That same month, Cruze sales hit 24,896 to make it the best-selling car in the U.S.
In March 2013, the Cruze was in the top 10 of most-sold passenger vehicles and it was named the best 2013 compact car for families by U.S. News & World Report. In July 2013, the Cruze had its best sales month, with 32,871 sales. In 2014, the momentum for the Cruze kept on. An updated version debuted in the fall with a facelift and access to 4G LTE with Wi-Fi availability. In 2015, Chevrolet unveiled the next-generation Cruze in Detroit.
The new model is larger, yet lighter. It comes with 2 inches more rear legroom, but is 250 pounds lighter. Paired with its 1.4-liter turbo engine, the lighter Cruze makes for a fun ride, GM says.
The new Cruze also comes with higher fuel efficiency — 40 mpg highway, compared with 35 in the first-generation Cruze. The design of the new Cruze is sleek and sporty with some hints to its Chevy siblings. It comes with 10 airbags, OnStar and features that consumers may not think about in compact cars, such as lane-keep assist with lane departure warning and forward-collision alerts with forward distance indicator. Technology was important in designing the next-generation Cruze. Through Chevrolet’s MyLink Infotainment system, a driver can stay connected with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto to access navigation, hands-free texting, calling and music.
Cruze prices start at $17,495 for the Cruze L Manual transmission and go up to $23,995 for the Cruze Premier Automatic.
At the auto show, Chevrolet product specialists showed off features and talked with interested guests like Munnin and her husband, Michael, who noted the features, and the interior and exterior styling as what he liked about the new Cruze.
“I love it,” Michael said. “It’s a great car.”