GM Plans to Produce Diesel Chevrolet Cruze by 2013

Chevrolet was and still is a huge hit in the U.S., and considering this fact GM thought it was time to make it better. In order to that the Chevy Cruze will receive a diesel engine that could boost gas mileage to around 50mpg. This way the new Cruze would help GM meet the more-stringent government gas mileage requirements.

The new model would also rival the Toyota Prius gas-electric hybrid, which gets 51mpg in the city and 48 on the highway, according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Rumors are that the diesel Cruze won’t hit the showrooms until at least 2013 according to the Detroit Free Press. An estimated price of the car is for the moment unknown, but considering the higher costs of manufacturing a diesel engine we expect it to be a little more expensive .

The entry-level Cruze starts at $16,525, so we expect the diesel version to be a bit over the gasoline version. Over 25,000 Cruzes were sold by GM last month, bypassing the class leaders such as the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord to become the best-selling car is the U.S. Another thing worth mentioning is that Toyota and Honda had fewer models to sell because of parts shortages caused by Japan’s tsunami and earthquake. GM has had a previous positive experience when decided to introduce a 2.0-litre, four cylinder turbocharged diesel Cruze in Australia.

The auto giant had a concern regarding the impact that diesel engines would have in America. It feared that people won’t pay extra for a diesel engine. But if we are to consider the success that Volkswagen had with Golf and Jetta diesel compacts we come to see that there is a growing demand on the U.S market for this variants, so the diesel Cruze could prove to be a hit.