SA Road Tests

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This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. We drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under South African conditions. It also just happens that most of the vehicles we drive are world cars as well, so what you read here probably applies to the models you can get at home.
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*Please remember too, that prices quoted were those ruling on the days I wrote the reports.


Beyond the facelift: We look at Chevrolet’s 2012 Cruze 1.6 LS 

More than just implants and reshaping

Published in Weekend Witness Motoring on Saturday December 22, 2012

Chevrolet’s Cruze mid-size sedan has been around a few years, so it was time for a little cosmetic intervention to keep the romance alive. Comfort enhancements to base models included headlamp levelling, satellite audio controls on the steering wheel and cruise control. Nipping and tucking was limited to restyled 16” alloy wheels and new front and rear bumpers. That’s the secret of a good “lift” – subtlety.

Because this is the up-range LS model, Bluetooth music streaming, a height adjustable passenger seat, ESP and traction control were added. It also sports six airbags rather than the plebeian model’s four and was treated to reach adjustment for the steering wheel, in addition to simple tilt action. There is a trade-off; the previous six-CD player made way for a one-disc wonder.

Intervention went beyond the visible, with a little engine tweaking taking place as well. Power was raised from the previous rather suburban and average 80 kW to an upper end of average 91 kW. It needed it and you can feel it; both in general liveliness and in open road performance. It’s not all in the vitamins though – we could not track down specific numbers, but the rev. counter tells its own tale. The 1600 we drove in 2009 was geared for 3000 rpm at 120 in top. This new one turns over at 3500 at the same speed, resulting in much nicer roll-on behaviour at cruising velocity and less need to change down for every little incline.

The numbers tell their tale, too. Apart from the added 11 kW of power, there is 5 Nm more torque, it does the zero to 100 dash four-tenths of a second more quickly and its top end is 15 km/h faster. There appeared to be a slight improvement in real life fuel consumption as well, but we cannot guarantee repeatable accuracy because conditions vary from drive to drive.

Apart from that, it’s still the Cruze we know. The 450-litre boot extends as the seat backs fold; it’s wide and it’s nicely shaped, albeit a little shallow. Forget about standing big cases upright. Loading height is about mid-thigh level and the lip is only 15 cm deep, making it easy to load and empty. The spare is a fully sized steel item.

The rear compartment seats three passengers of average size for whom a full set of belts and head restraints are provided and it does so reasonably comfortably. Unfortunately, Chevrolet’s secret to providing acceptable headroom back there, is the rather thin and inflexible seat cushion that hasn’t changed since launch. We found the front chairs a bit troublesome too. Drivers built for comfort could find the cushions too narrow and the side bolsters hard. Final whine – promise – is that the central armrest and CD box is set too far back. It’s under your elbow and not at all practical.

Much user-friendlier is the lever for the five-speed manual gearbox. It’s comfortably placed, has short throws and works smoothly. The foot pedals are well spaced and there is plenty of room to place one’s clutch foot comfortably on the floor. Even the hand brake lever, sited for left hand drive, is easy enough to get at. Fit and finish is well done, looks good and there are plenty of little storage places to satisfy even the untidiest driver.

The Cruze is an excellent family- and fleet car that performs well; handles, steers and stops more than adequately and represents good value for money at today’s inflated prices. All it needs now is a little comfort intervention on the inside.

The numbers
Price: R215 400
Engine: 1598 cc, DOHC, 16-valve, four-cylinder
Power: 91 kW at 6200 rpm
Torque: 155 Nm at 4000 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 12,8 seconds
Maximum speed: 190 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 8,5 l/100 km
Tank: 60 litres
Warranty: 5 years/120 000 km; with roadside assistance
Service plan: 3 years/60 000 km; at annual or 15 000 km intervals

To read about the 1.8 Hatchback, click here

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that road test cars entrusted to me are driven only by me. Some reviewers hand test cars over to their partners to use as day-to-day transport and barely experience them for themselves.

What this means to you is that every car reviewed is given my own personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every car goes through real world testing; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.

My articles appear every Wednesday in the motoring pages of The Witness, South Africa's oldest continuously running newspaper, and occasionally on Saturdays in Weekend Witness as well. I drive eight to ten vehicles most months of the year (press cars are withdrawn over the festive season - wonder why?) so not everything gets published in the paper. Those that are, get a tagline but the rest is virgin, unpublished and unedited by the political-correctness police. Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. As quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so they can see I do actually exist.

I am based in Pietermaritzburg, KZN, South Africa. This is the central hub of the KZN Midlands farming community; the place farmers go to buy their supplies and equipment, truck their goods to market, send their kids to school and go to kick back and relax.
So occasionally a cow, a goat or a horse may add a little local colour by finding its way into the story or one of the pictures. It's all part of the ambience!

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