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www.oakvillebeaver.com · OAKVILLE BEAVER Wednesday, December 9, 2009 · 30 Chevrolet fills different niches with new lineup Continued from page 28 And after 500 hours of wind tunnel testing, the Volt is almost as slippery as the original EV-1, the most aerodynamic car GM ever made. Inside, the Volt is comfortable for four, with unique textures, graphics, LCD monitoring and control panel buttons that are touch sensitive, in the same style as iPods and other modern hand-held devices. Batteries for the Volt begin production this month. The cars will go on sale to the public in California by late 2010, along with a fleet issue of 100 vehicles that will be performance-monitored through their OnStar systems. The Chevy Volt is an elegant answer to model. fuel efficiency concerns. A lot will depend on pricing balance ­ the cost of the car, 2011 Chevrolet Cruze: the cost of fuel and the economy of scale The Chevy Cruze, on the "gas-friendly" end of the that GM can achieve in order to put the spectrum, offers more broad-based appeal, refining its reins to a potentially premium price for mass marketed heritage from Cobalt and Cavalier with this new-tech solution. new levels of fuel economy and refinement. The Cruze The Chevy Volt will expand to is a global car, aimed squarely at popular Japanese comCanadian markets by late 2011 as a 2012 pacts, boasting a more spacious interior and greater cargo room than Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla. "Cruze is already a hit across Europe and Asia and now, it's coming to North America to challenge the status quo," said Brent Dewar, GM Vice President, Chevrolet Global brand. The Chevy Cruze adopts the new Chevrolet iconic design that debuted with the Malibu and Impala, blending the two-tier grille and Bowtie logo styling cues with an arching roofline, a steeply raked windshield, fastsloping rear pillars and a short rear deck for sporty, coupe-like proportions. This is a fairly large compact, wider and longer than most of its competitors. That benefits interior roominess but slide into the driver's seat and your first overall impression is one of detailed refinement and quality way beyond anything GM has done before in this compact class. Admittedly, I was in a top-of-the-line leather-clad model but, regardless of trim level, the new Cruze boasts a Corvette-inspired twin-cockpit motif matched with tight gap tolerances, soft-touch components and cool ice-blue LED illumination, along with high-quality materials and construction. The interior pillar and other moldings are colourand grain-matched to the headliner, while seat inserts are color-matched to the color of the instrument panel accent trim. You normally expect this kind of treatment and attention to detail only in larger, upscale sedans. The 2011 Chevrolet Cruze will be offered in LS, LT and LTZ trims. Standard and available equipment items include: * Six-speed automatic and manual transmissions * Ten standard air bags, including frontal, sideimpact, roof rail head curtain, rear seat side air bags and new knee air bags * Bluetooth, USB connectivity and navigation system * XM Satellite Radio and OnStar * MacPherson strut front suspension and Watts Zlink rear suspension with a family of 16-, 17- and 18inch wheels * Standard StabiliTrak electronic stability control, rollover mitigation, traction control and anti-lock brakes * Fuel-saving, rack-mounted electric power steering Under the hood, the Cruze offers two engine choices. On base LS models, the 1.8-litre four-cylinder Ecotec engine makes 136 hp and 123 lb-ft of torque. Standard on LT and LTZ models, a turbo-charged 1.4-litre engine, sharing the same basic architecture, makes 138 hp and 148 lb-ft of torque. That's only a modest uptick in horsepower but the more substantial increase in bottom-end torque will improve launch and acceleration. Both engines have been aimed towards a fuel efficiency highway rating near 40 mpg (US), or about 6L/100km (hwy) but we'll wait for actual testing to confirm those figures. The 2011 Cruze will come to Canada by the fall of 2010.