New Chevrolet Cruze diesel to debut at Chicago Auto Show

General Motors Co.s Chevrolet brand will reveal the new Chevrolet Cruze diesel model during a Feb. 7 news conference at the Chicago Auto Show.

GM spokesman Terry Rhadigan confirmed Monday that the Detroit automaker will debut the Cruze diesel, expected out later this year, at the Chicago show. The Cruze diesel is one of 13 new or updated models Chevrolet will roll out in 2013.

GM plans to start production of the Cruze diesel in the second quarter, with vehicles hitting showrooms in April or May, a source close to the plan said Monday, asking for anonymity because GM has not announced when production of the new Cruze will begin.

General Motors Co. North America President Mark Reuss said in mid-December that GM would be "putting the Cruze out here (in the) first quarter."

"Im thrilled with the car," Reuss told journalists last month in Pontiac. "The cars going to be great."

Reuss also hinted that the company is interested in offering more diesel-powered options in the United States.

"Theres a place for diesels here. Theres a place for diesels in the future, as well," he said in December. "At the end of the day, its still the most efficient thermodynamics of combustion that we have. The mass piece of it in the U.S. has been problematic. But now were beginning to produce clean diesels. We need some stability in the quality of fuel across the country, which that would help us calibrate and bring to market more effectively."

The Cruze diesel will be built at GMs Lordstown Assembly Plant near Youngstown, Ohio.

In August, GM announced it was investing $200 million into the Lordstown plant and $20 million at a metal center in Parma, Ohio, for tooling and equipment for a new Cruze model. The automaker planned to produce the current generation of the Cruze at Lordstown through model year 2014.

Diesel sales among all light-duty cars and trucks rose about 25 percent to 125,000 units in 2012, up from 100,000 in 2011.

Many new diesel models will be introduced over the next two years, including a diesel Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Courtesy of Detroit News

2014 Chevy Cruze diesel unveiling expected to take Chicago Auto Show spotlight

General Motors Co. is expected to be one of the standouts this week at the 2013 Chicago Auto Show.

Following an array of debuts at the 2013 North American international Auto Showlast month in Detroit, GM will unveil its 2014 Chevrolet Cruze diesel.

Little has been released about the vehicle, but analysts expect it to grab a lot of the spotlight at the show, which starts Thursday with two Press Preview days.

“It’s a big deal that Chevy is bringing a diesel vehicle to the lineup in the United States,” said Brandy Schaffels, TrueCar.com senior editor and content manager. “These tend to be higher performance cars that are giving us diesel powertrains for fuel economy and performance.

“It’s really interesting to see a diesel engine come to a mainstream consumer vehicle.”

Diesels currently represents less than 3 percent of all U.S. sales. However, some companies expect that percentage to grow to 10 percent by 2020.

Robert Bosch, a global multibillion-dollar engineering and electronics automotive leader, anticipates more than 50 light-vehicle diesel models to be announced or released by 2017 in North America, including 22 new models in 2013.

European automakers – particularly Volkswagen – have dominated the diesel market in the U.S., which has increased from 235,500 units in 2008 to 301,300 in 2012, according toEdmunds.com.

“What diesel needs is more exposure in different brands,” said Jessica Caldwell, Edmunds.com senior analyst and director of pricing and industry analysis. “Chevy coming out, being a non-European car, in a volume segment with the volume car, I definitely think it can make more of an impact.”

Caldwell said Chevrolet and Volkswagen aren’t traditionally direct competitors, but with the limited amount of passenger car diesel options, that could change.

Excluding luxury vehicles, such as Audi and Mercedes-Benz, VW is the only automaker to offer a strictly diesel passenger vehicle in the U.S. since 2008, when Chrysler offered a Grand Cherokee diesel, which it will once again start to offer later this year.

Diesel-powered vehicles have remained a niche market in the U.S. for decades due to consumer perception, pricing and the fuel being more expensive than standard gasoline, according to analysts. Diesels cost about $2,000 to $3,000 more on average than a standard gasoline engine.

American automakers have remained reluctant to build anything but diesel-version pickup trucks and heavy-duty vans.

But now, “clean diesels” are 30 percent more fuel-efficient, produce lower CO2 emissions and maintain a higher residual value compared to traditional gasoline engines.

“People that buy them tend to know a lot about the automotive industry,” Caldwell said. “I think for a lot of commuters, diesel makes a lot of sense.”

The Chicago Auto Show,celebrating its 105th year, is open to the public from Feb. 9-18 at the McCormick Center, 2301 S. Lake Shore Drive. Dozens of vehicles from the world’s top automakers are expected to debut during the show’s press preview days Feb. 7 and Feb. 8.

Courtesy of MLive 

Kia shows new Cross GT Concept in Chicago

The Kia Cross GT Concept made its debut Thursday at the Chicago Auto Show. The concept is the next version of the Kia GT that we saw in 2011.

The Cross was penned in the Kia Design Center America in Irvine, Calif., the same shop that drew up the Trackster, KV7 and Soulster concepts and the 2014 Kia Forte.

The Cross GT is a crossover with a long wheelbase, short overhangs and a wide stance. Kia says the Cross GT is of the same bloodline as the Sorento SUV, but with an additional 15.7 inches of wheelbase, 8.4 inches of length, and almost 5 inches of width. The roofline, though, is lower.

Read full article  Kia shows new Cross GT Concept in Chicago

New Chevrolet Cruze diesel to debut at Chicago Auto Show

General Motors Co.s Chevrolet brand will reveal the new Chevrolet Cruze diesel model during a Feb. 7 news conference at the Chicago Auto Show.

GM spokesman Terry Rhadigan confirmed Monday that the Detroit automaker will debut the Cruze diesel, expected out later this year, at the Chicago show. The Cruze diesel is one of 13 new or updated models Chevrolet will roll out in 2013.

GM plans to start production of the Cruze diesel in the second quarter, with vehicles hitting showrooms in April or May, a source close to the plan said Monday, asking for anonymity because GM has not announced when production of the new Cruze will begin.

General Motors Co. North America President Mark Reuss said in mid-December that GM would be "putting the Cruze out here (in the) first quarter."

"Im thrilled with the car," Reuss told journalists last month in Pontiac. "The cars going to be great."

Reuss also hinted that the company is interested in offering more diesel-powered options in the United States.

"Theres a place for diesels here. Theres a place for diesels in the future, as well," he said in December. "At the end of the day, its still the most efficient thermodynamics of combustion that we have. The mass piece of it in the U.S. has been problematic. But now were beginning to produce clean diesels. We need some stability in the quality of fuel across the country, which that would help us calibrate and bring to market more effectively."

The Cruze diesel will be built at GMs Lordstown Assembly Plant near Youngstown, Ohio.

In August, GM announced it was investing $200 million into the Lordstown plant and $20 million at a metal center in Parma, Ohio, for tooling and equipment for a new Cruze model. The automaker planned to produce the current generation of the Cruze at Lordstown through model year 2014.

Diesel sales among all light-duty cars and trucks rose about 25 percent to 125,000 units in 2012, up from 100,000 in 2011.

Many new diesel models will be introduced over the next two years, including a diesel Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Courtesy of Detroit News