Cruze Diesel = 46 MPG Hwy
 

I'm putting this in success stories because I think creating the car with the highest highway fuel efficiency available in North America is a real success. And it has an Automatic transmission!

Click the link:

Chevy Cruze Diesel Bests Jetta TDI With 46 MPG | AutoGuide.com News

From the horse's mouth:
Chevrolet Cruze Diesel 46 MPG Sets Highway Fuel Economy Benchmark

I hope it's available with a manual as well, and gets the same rating in a manual. I'm hopeful about its potential rating, since the gas Eco with manual was rated higher than the auto. Sadly, I'm not hopeful about a manual being offered.

It's a success story, but that subforum is meant for members' accomplishments. Moved to general efficiency! :P

And, wow, that's quite the jump from the Jetta's highway number.

Just yesterday, Mitsu announced the fuel economy of the Mirage for Canada with a 4.4 L/100 km highway rating. That unseated the Cruze Eco highway rating as the previous best among non-hybrids in Canada. One day later, GM takes it back with Cruze diesel. :D

I love the competition!

The Jetta Hybrid, with a 7-speed DSG automatic, gets 48 MPG highway.

Forgot to add "non-hybrid" to my post... that's covered in the story. The Prius' EPA highway rating is also 48 MPG.

Looking at the "city" driving loop (varying speeds, acceleration, deceleration) I wonder if the hybrids actually get better real highway mileage than non-hybrids, i.e. cruise control set at a certain speed for long stretches of highway? Their hybrid systems wouldn't really be much benefit on level ground at steady speed?

I could see the Prius' aerodynamic shape being a great benefit, but what about other hybrids that are based on normal (good looking) cars?

Have the numbers for the Cruze Diesel and Mitsu Mirage been released in Canada, or are you just assuming based on the EPA numbers?

Oh, and agreed about the move to this forum. I was torn between the two, but the description for this one was a little off for the topic, I thought:

"Transportation & efficiency topics that don't really fit in any of the above."

I had a 50/50 chance and I got it wrong... happens all the time! :D

Hybrid: Reality - Road & Track
Conclusion: the Prius beat the TDI's mileage in ALL conditions, including cruise control highway. That may change with the new set of DEF-equipped diesels, though. The fuel burned during DPF regeneration really hurts the mileage, and DEF removes that problem.

My frugal mind is thinking, "How much does the Cruze Diesel cost??"

Answer, it will start at $25,600, according to the article. Ouch. 46 mpg is awesome, but it costs what, $9,000ish more than a regular gas Cruze? So, if we were speaking strictly on price, the Cruze diesel would never really break even over the 42 mpg hwy Cruze Eco, considering the cost of diesel is higher than the cost of gas. So, one would pay a lot more for the diesel option, then more for diesel at the pump and finally, more for diesel maintenance, correct? This is also assuming that one is set on buying a Cruze and no other car model.

Of course, I am basing this off of price alone and using EPA ratings and that article's estimations. I am not taking into account the gains that can be had by driving, modding, etc.

I am just throwing this out there as food for thought.

The Canadian Mirage fuel economy numbers came out yesterday (see here). The diesel Cruze numbers aren't out, but the EPA number is so much higher, it's going to beat 4.4 highway per NRCAN, no doubt.

We'll always be better off buying a $2000 Civic/Corolla/Metro/Saturn in terms of total cost of ownership. :D (And the guys who buy a $1000 Civic/Corolla/Metro/Saturn will be better off still.)

I'll never own a Cruze diesel, but I'm still impressed by the big numbers.