Created in collaboration with the tuner Irmscher, the special edition Chevrolet Cruze Bumblebee pays tribute to the Bumblebee Camaro, the automotive icon that played a staring role as an Autobot in the two Transformers movies with its rally stripes and flashy running gear and will make its world debut at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September.
No matter what angle you look at the Cruze Bumblebee from, the car’s design is stunning. The new orange on black compact Chevrolet benefits from being lowered by 30 mm increasing handling performance and simply aesthetically pleasing. The mirror covers, fog light housings and rear diffuser have also been finished in the same bright shade of orange as the silver lined racing stripes. Out back the exhaust is finished off with a pair of unique stainless steel tips. Continueing the orange theme are a set of 18 inch Irmscher designed Turbo Star wheels wearing a set of sticky 225 mm wide tires, specially prepared for this unique Cruze. The Cruze Bumblebee is based on the automatic 1.8 LT version of the new Chevy and will be built upon request.
General Motors may be a long ways from getting back on its feet in the US, but in another country, the Detroit-based manufacturer is standing tall.
Despite a tenuous hold on the US auto market, GM can take comfort in the fact that they’re Chinese consumer base has more than picked up the slack, accounting for a whopping 814,442 vehicles in sales in the first six months of 2009.
It doesn’t come as the least bit surprising to us to see China establish themselves as the world’s leading auto market. After all, the country still comprises about 1/6th of the entire world’s population so naturally, that many people would entail a lot of customers too. GM also benefited through a number of stimulus policies the Chinese government has implemented, allowing foreign brands to import their products easier.
The latest in the Chevrolet E-Flex line up are a series of Chevrolet Cruze bodied extended range electric vehicles. In order for General Motors engineers to perfect the working parts of the future production Volt, Chevrolet has developed a series of test mules to work out all the kinks and prepare GM for the November 2010 deadline for a road going Chevrolet Volt.
The new Chevrolet Cruze feature bold styling cues, with an arching roofline, sloping rear-pillars that give it a lean profile and a neatly styled rear deck providing upmarket and handsome good looks.
At the front, the large, sweeping headlamp units wrap around the nose of the car, while other design themes include a concave shoulder line, Chevrolet’s trademark two-tier grille and a restrained use of exterior trim, giving it a solid, unfussy appearance.
Inside, the car features a twin-cockpit design, with a distinct centre console dividing the front into separate areas for the driver and passenger – a styling cue taken from various iconic Chevrolet performance cars.
The new Cruze is being offered with three engines: four-cylinder, 1.6 and 1.8-liter gasoline engine and the more powerful 2.0-liter turbo diesel. The 1.6-liter engine (113hp) is fitted as standard for base and LS variants, while the 1.8-liter (141 hp) is standard for LT and optional for LS. Both are available with a five-speed manual gearbox or the new six-speed automatic transmission. The 2.0-liter turbo diesel is fitted to LT variants only and the 125 hp version will be offered for base and LS. Both these engines will be available only with manual transmission.
Chevrolet unveiled today at the Bologna auto show the new Chevrolet Cruze WTCC that will compete in the 2009 World Touring Car Championship (WTCC).
The Cruze WTCC is the result from a team effort of different departments within GM Europe, coordinated by Phillip Zak, Director Exterior Design GM Europe.
The Cruze WTCC is currently under testings and its competition debut is scheduled for 7-8 March 2009 in Curitiba, Brazil.
Hans Demant, vice president of engineering for General Motors Europe announced that the 2010 Cruze will also get hatchbacks and station wagons version. Revealed at the Paris Auto Show, the Cruze will go on sale in Europe next March and replaces the Lacetti/Nubira, built by GM Daewoo Auto & Technology.
European models will initially be built in South Korea by Daewoo. Production in St. Petersburg, Russia, is expected in the future for the Russian market only. Production for the US market will be in Lordstown, Ohio.
GM executives want the Cruze to accommodate the "individuality" of markets around the globe, Demant said.
Sometime life is unfair. Europe will get the the Chevrolet Cruze in 2009. While we’ll be stuck with the Cobalt-only land until 2010, Europeans will take spare Cruzes out on the track. Chevrolet revealed today the Cruze World Touring Car Championship (WTCC) that will compete in the 2009 championship. The car is already being tested and will continue throughout the remainder of the current season and the coming winter.
The Chevrolet Cruze’s first competitive outing will be in Brazil at the opening round of the 2009 WTCC in Curitiba. The Cruze will be the replacement for the Lacetti as GM’s WTCC car.
Chevrolet will unveil at the Paris Auto Show the 2011 Cruze, a model that comes to replace the current Cobalt. Detroit News reports that the future model will cost more than its its competitors.
GM wouldn’t reveal the pricing of the Cruze, to be built in Lordstown, Ohio, but Chevrolet General Manager Ed Peper said GM needs to get more money per vehicle than its prime Japanese competitors, Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp.
He predicted that car prices will rise in general because the vehicles have more features than in the past, including better fuel economy. The Chevrolet Malibu, GM’s newest midsize entry, is selling for $4,200 more than the old model, he said.
General Motors gave a preview of what to expect at the Paris Auto Show later this month, and TopSpeed was there to spend some exclusive time with GM’s design chief Ed Welburn.
As we’ve reported earlier, the Chevrolet Cruze will be the new small car that GM will give to the world. It will first go on sale in Europe by 2009, but won’t start production in the U.S. until April of 2010. The Cruze is bigger than all of the current competition, and that may be due to the fact that it’s an international offering. When speaking with Welburn, he told us that because this car is essentially the same no matter if it in Europe, United States, or any other country, it grows to meet all standards. As an example, Welburn pointed out that to meet pedestrian safety standards of Europe meant raising and elongating the hood, then the rest of the car’s proportions had to grow to keep the balance.
In Europe, the engine choices will be a 112 hp 16-valve, 1.6-liter and 140 hp 1.8-liter gasoline engines as well as 150 hp 2.0-liter turbo diesel. Although the engine choices have not yet been announced for the U.S. spec Cruzes, a four-cylinder turbocharged, direct-injection 1.4-liter is rumored that could deliver up to 40 mpg in highway driving.
We will have more exclusive content from General Motor’s Paris preview as well as its hundredth anniversary later this week.
In a press conference GM revealed official images of some of their future model, including the 2010 Chevy Cruze, 2010 Cadillac SRX, 2010 Saab 9-4X, and the 2010 Chevrolet Equinox.
At the same event, GM also confirmed the 2010 Buick LaCrosse, 2010 Cadillac CTS Coupe and 2010 Cadillac CTS Wagon.
First to debut will be the 2010 Chevrolet Cruze at the Paris Auto Show. The Cruze will be based on GM’s Delta compact-car architecture and will be powered by a new 1.4-liter global engine that delivers between 120 to 140 hp. Sources say mileage could exceed 40 mpg.
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