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Cruze beats foreign competition for top Consumer Reports pick
Lordstown-built auto outshines Civic, Corolla in compact car category
By Kalea Hall
LORDSTOWN
The Lordstown-built Chevrolet Cruze has beaten its foreign competition to receive the title of “Top Pick” by Consumer Reports.
Its overall score surpassed that of the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla, making it the first domestically built car to earn “Top Pick” in the compact car category in more than a decade.
“The Cruze is impressive,” said Jake Fisher, Consumer Reports’ director of automotive testing, in a statement. “With such a smooth ride and quiet interior, it feels like a much larger car, and reliability has been solid right out of the gate.”
Consumer Reports says it is “an independent, nonprofit organization that works side by side with consumers to create a fairer, safer and healthier world.”
Union leaders at the General Motors Lordstown Complex were ecstatic to hear the Cruze beat the competition for the top recognition.
“I am blown away, really, because we have worked really hard as a team and complex to make sure we build the best car – and it is something that someone else recognized and came to the same conclusion,” said Glenn Johnson, president of the United Auto Workers Local 1112, who represents the assembly plant workers at the General Motors Lordstown Complex.
The plant recently lost its third shift because of the slowdown in compact car sales. On the assembly side, more than 600 workers were laid off and on the fabrication side of the plant about 235 were laid off.
“Even though we are going through some trying times right now, we are doing things the right way,” said Robert Morales, president of UAW Local 1714, who represents the fabrication plant workers. “We do have a good product and we believe in our product.”
Consumer Reports named its seven top auto picks for 2017 on Tuesday at the National Press Club, before the Washington Automotive Press Association. The 2017 top picks are: Toyota Yaris iA for subcompact car; Toyota Prius for compact hybrid; Audi Q7 for luxury sport utility vehicle; Mazda MX-5 Miata for sports car; Subaru Forester for small sport utility vehicle; Toyota Highlander for midsized sport utility vehicle; Honda Ridgeline for compact pickup truck; Chevrolet Cruze for compact car; Kia Optima for midsized sedan; and the Chevrolet Impala for large sedan.
For a vehicle to be named a “Consumer Reports Top Pick,” a model has to have an exemplary overall score in its vehicle category from the findings of four tests: road-test performance, predicted reliability, owner satisfaction and safety. A car that beats the competition is considered “truly extraordinary.”
“This hushed, smooth-riding sedan is roomy enough to be a budget-friendly alternative to a midsized car,” Consumer Reports said of the Cruze. “The polished 153-horse power turbocharged four-cylinder engine is lively yet frugal. It achieved a good 30 mpg overall – and an impressive 47 mpg on the highway.”
Michelle Krebs, senior analyst for Autotrader.com, called the latest version of the Cruze “outstanding.” The next-generation Cruze hit the market in spring 2016 with an updated sleek style, enhanced technology and upgraded safety features from its predecessor, the first-generation Cruze.
“Consumer Reports has always been pretty tough on domestic vehicles,” Krebs said.
“So for the Cruze to beat vehicles like the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla, that is a huge feather in GM’s cap. Anytime Consumer Reports does something positive, that is a big deal because they are tough critics.”