Quote:
Originally Posted by Fat Charlie
Is rated ≠ gets.
Manuals give the driver much more opportunity for every kind of performance.
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That was true when automatics were slushboxes with a torque convertor and 1/2 the speeds of a manual. It is much less likely to be true now that many automatics have more gears than the manual and are increasingly manuals with a computer controlled clutches.
The Cruze's automatic can be left in auto or the driver can manually control the gears. In manual mode it will hold a gear from idle to redline. The gearing is also different between the two with the Manual having a shorting gearing in 6th so it turns higher RPMs at highway speeds.
Then there is the fact that the 1.8 NA is an older and heavier engine than the new 1.4L Turbo (which is different than the old 1.4 Turbo in the previous generation Cruze.) If you care about fuel economy the 1.8 NA is not the engine to select. An 18% fuel economy deficit is hard to overcome with careful driving considering the same driving can be done with the 1.4L engines.
Like I said above, I've driven plenty of Cruze rental cars with the 1.4L turbo and automatic. I've had no problem getting 40 - 42 mpg in mixed driving.