<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"It&amp;#039;s not often that General Motors markets a car in other countries before letting U.S. drivers behind the wheel, but that&amp;#039;s exactly what the company did with the . That the Cruze has sold around 250,000 units in over 60 markets around the world should be enough to tell you that it&amp;#039;s a pretty good compact car. For the U.S., the Cruze will come equipped with a pair of inline-4 powerplants. The base model, priced at $16,995, will come with a naturally aspirated 1.8-liter inline-4, while the high trim levels will get a turbocharged 1.4-liter variant. (The naturally aspirated version of this powerplant, incidentally, powers the electric motor in the .) For the Cruze, this smooth-revving turbo 4-cylinder produces 138 bhp and 148 lb.-ft. of torque\u2014that&amp;#039;s nearly 100 bhp per liter. For our test drive, we drove the RS model, which has a sporty look and 18-in. aluminum wheels.   The big story with the Cruze is the , which General Motors execs say will achieve 40 mpg highway. The fuel saving comes via weight savings (helped by a switch to forged aluminum wheels instead of cast alloys) and aerodynamics. When I drove the car the official fuel economy numbers hadn&amp;#039;t been released, but GM assured us that the figures will match or exceed the mpg of the Cruze&amp;#039;s competition.   The most impressive thing about the Cruze was its handling. The body is super rigid and the suspension\u2014which consists of MacPherson struts up front and a torsion beam rear axle with lateral locating arms\u2014was tuned on the sporty side, providing excellent roll stiffness through an array of turns. On some of the bumpy roads we drove, the thing almost felt stiff, more European than American. As for the power, there was ample torque down low\u2014aided by the 6-speed automatic transmission\u2014but the engine did start running out of steam past 5000 rpm. Still, it felt as peppy as a 2.0- or a 2.5-liter engine...not a paltry 1.4. The Cruze also looks good from every angle. The new Cruze, with its excellent fuel economy, class-leading safety equipment and low price tag, will definitely give the imports a run for their money and help GM get back to doing good business in the U.S. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.roadandtrack.com/new-cars/first-drives/reviews/a16103/2011-chevrolet-cruze-3/?src=global_footer>