SA Road Tests

Welcome

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.

*To read one of our archived road tests, just select from the alphabetical menu of manufacturers' names on the left. Hover your cursor over the manufacturer's name, then choose from the drop-down menu that appears.

*Please remember too, that prices quoted were those ruling on the days I wrote the reports.


This is a launch report. In other words, it's simply a new model announcement. The driving experience was limited to a short drive over a prepared course chosen to make the product look good. We can therefore not tell you what it will be like to live with over an extended period, how economical it is, or how reliable it will be. A very brief first impression is all we can give you until such time as we get an actual test unit for trial. Thank you for your patience.


First drive: We boosted ourselves a ride in the 2014 Chevrolet Cruze 1400 turbo

Pics supplied

Bruiser Cruze

Published in Witness Wheels on Thursday December 5, 2013

It depends on your point of view: The Chevrolet brand’s first-ever turbocharged petrol engine is big news. On the other hand, the boosted, 1400cc, GM Family 0 Ecotec engine, as fitted to Opels and now dropped into the Cruze body, is not as new. But let’s clear something up - Tim Hendon, Chevrolet SA Product Manager, emphasised: “This is not simply an Opel engine; it is a General Motors World engine, just as small Chevrolets are not purely Korean cars. They are General Motors World cars developed with input from engineers and designers around the globe.”

What is big news though, is that this engine replaces the old 1.8-litre petrol motor in LS versions of both hatchback and sedan derivatives with immediate effect. It should be an easy transition because the new turbo motor develops only one kilowatt less power than the 1800 over a wider power band, and 24 Nm more torque across an impressive rev range; from 1850 to 4900 rpm. Benefits include lower emissions and improved fuel economy. This goes with a price increase of roughly R9000 since the 1.8 was pulled from the price sheets in June, and despite severe weakening of the Rand since then.

Making the update even more palatable are indicator repeaters in the heated and folding side mirrors; two new colours, Mars Stone Blue and Blue Sapphire; one-touch operation for both front windows and new optional equipment for LS models. These include 17” alloy wheels if you feel the original 16-inchers aren’t sexy enough, leather upholstery, a sunroof, and a driver’s pack consisting of automatic climate control and rear parking sensors. The basic 1600 sedan was given a present of its own; electronic stability control brings it in line with its more sophisticated sisters.

Apart from the base model, both 1600s and the new turbo cars are offered in LS trim only, with the 2.0-litre diesels having exclusive access to LT specification. As such, standard LS equipment includes six-speed manual transmission; air conditioning; ABS brakes with EBD and BAS; ESP and traction control; cruise control; heated rear screen; fabric upholstery; a six-speaker radio and music system with USB, auxiliary and Bluetooth; satellite buttons on the height- and reach-adjustable steering wheel; front fog lamps; six airbags; ISOFix anchorages; remote central locking and an onboard computer.

Differences between sedans and hatchbacks in mass, length and luggage capacity are slight – the sedan loads 469 litres vs. the hatch’s 413 – but engines, suspension and brakes are the same. McPherson struts in front and a compound crank rear axle look after ride comfort while ventilated front and solid rear discs bring everything to a halt. Fit, finish and general comfort items are on par with other Korean (Oops; not supposed to say that) cars and pricing is competitive.
 
Our ride and drive sessions covered almost 450 kilometres of freeway, city streets and country roads over a variety of surfaces. The new turbo-motor had more than enough power to get the job done, controls were easy to get at and comfortable to use and apart from a few kilometres of strong cross winds, the car felt planted and solid. Our only “want” item would be for the gearbox ratios to be revised. Sixth is too long for cruising at our national limit, so we would prefer it to be toothed like the present fifth and the others spaced closer together.

Information gathered at a manufacturer-sponsored launch event

Our review of the hatchback version is here

The numbers
Prices: Hatch – R242 100, Sedan – R244 700
Engine: 1364cc, DOHC, 16-valve, turbopetrol
Power: 103 kW between 4900 and 6000 rpm
Torque: 200 Nm between 1850 and 4900 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 9,3 seconds
Maximum speed: 195 km/h (hatch), 200 km/h (sedan)
Combined cycle fuel economy (claimed): 5,8 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

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.

I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material. If I ever place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with that vehicle at least once already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.

My reviews and launch reports appear on Thursdays in the Wheels supplement to The Witness, South Africa's oldest continuously running newspaper, and occasionally on Saturdays in Weekend Witness as well. I drive eight to ten vehicles each month, most months of the year (except over the festive season) 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.



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