Well folks, this isn't a truck post, so it's probably on the wrong website, but it is a diesel post.

My girlfriend has been looking to update from her grandmother's 95 Camry, but also does not care at all about cars, so I've been taking the brunt of her car search.

Among the cars considered were:

Toyota Camry, Acura ILX, Honda Civic, Honda Accord, Ford Focus, and the Chevy Cruze

For some reason, General Motors has neglected to advertise the fact that they offer a 2.0 Turbo Diesel in the Chevy Cruze, and it has really intrigued me, especially since l saw that the engine is on Ward's Top ten engine list. Anyways, I had some free time and tried to test drive one... Unfortunately, no dealer has a diesel chevy cruze... so I searched and finally found a dealer with a 2015 on the lot. I drove it and HOLY CRAP... The torque was fantastic... I've never actually enjoyed driving a small car, but the diesel had 284lb ft of torque and just willed you to go faster.

Anyways, somehow I stumbled onto a 2014 Cruze Diesel with every option and 42,000 miles on it. The dealer salesman had actually driven the car for the past year so I knew it had been taken care of. Online it was listed at $20,700 so I made my way over to the dealer to find a $16,177 sticker on the windshield.

My girlfriend drove it the next day, fell in love with the heated seats and remote start, and drove away with a basically new Diesel Cruze rated for 46mpg highway, a $28,500 sticker price new, and they threw in an extended 36,000 mile 3 year bumper to bumper warranty.

Attached are some pictures, and don't worry folks, I'm going to throw on a Billet Racing Grill and LED fog lights as soon as I get the chance

 

Update on the cruze...

On a 250 mile trip from Indianapolis to Grand Rapids, MI, she averaged 56.5mpg.

Holy crap. I'm sold

 

WHAT !!!! Did you have a tail wind with your sail out?
That's awesome

 

5000 mile update on Diesel Cruze:

Car runs fantastic and had the opportunity to ride in a standard cruze... it felt like a matchbox and the engine sounded like it was working extremely hard. The diesel doesn't struggle one bit even with 4 fully grown men and a loaded trunk up a hill. The added insulation makes the car very quiet in comparison and blocks out all road noise and tire noise from those damned eco tires. I'm excited for winter to see how well the extra 350lb engine does in the snow.

Average fuel economy for her 20 mile commute to IL and back (40mph average) is 42mpg. She has a much heavier foot than I and I usually get 48-50mpg at 75mph on road trips. **VERY PLEASED WITH FUEL ECONOMY**


The bad: 50 miles after it was bought the engine clunked and it threw a code. The dealer cleared it saying it was a fluke or a particle in the exhaust. It threw a P1089 code last week and it will not go away, so it's going back to a dealer tomorrow. There's no performance issues, so I'm hoping it's nothing.

Has a GMPP warranty, so everything should be covered, but they keep mentioning a $200 deductable- not sure how that works

 

Bad Fuel pressure regulator and sensor... 2-3 weeks to order the part apparently.

On the bright side, it's a powertrain warranty issue

 

The bad: 50 miles after it was bought the engine clunked and it threw a code. The dealer cleared it saying it was a fluke or a particle in the exhaust. It threw a P1089 code last week and it will not go away, so it's going back to a dealer tomorrow. There's no performance issues, so I'm hoping it's nothing.