Used 2011 Chevrolet Cruze Consumer Reviews
Used Cruze for sale
Chevrolet got it right
datuttle, 05/22/2011
2011 Chevrolet Cruze 1LT 4dr Sedan (1.4L 4cyl Turbo 6A)
14 of 15 people found this review helpful
Had my Cruze for a week now. This is the first "small?" car that I have ever loved. Incredible fuel mileage, more power than you would expect and it is so much larger than its competition. I drove them all before buying this one. A comparable car from Toyota, Hyundai, Kia, Nissan, Ford or others is thousands more. You need to go with the BMW or Lexus to get the same ride and features of the Cruze. I drove them all and this car really stands out above them.
Terrified for when the warranty runs out
Lee, 05/10/2016
2011 Chevrolet Cruze Eco 4dr Sedan (1.4L 4cyl Turbo 6M)
19 of 21 people found this review helpful
Purchased this car 3 years ago with 40,000 miles, now it's at 80,000. The experience has been miserable. When the car is running well, it can be a fun car to drive but it is still only a middle-of-the-road commuter with nothing noteworthy or outstanding. The shifting is notchy and the electric throttle leaves the revs hanging too high for too long to shift quickly. The 1.4T is very sluggish in low RPMs, especially accelerating from a stop. This becomes much more prominent in warm weather. I've driven manual vehicles my entire life and have still stalled this car several times, even in stop-and-go traffic, simply because there is no power to accelerate. GM states in the owner's manual that the car can run on 87 octane fuel, but from my experience anything above 70 degrees requires at least 89 octane. Even with conservative driving, freeway speeds (70mph) will return, at best, 32mpg. The only time I've come even close to 40mpg is on two-lane roads keeping to 60mph or below. This is very disappointing for the Eco trim. The steering is reasonably responsive but the electric power steering really does remove all feedback. In all, I would say the strongest feature is the exterior styling, which GM really nailed in my opinion. Reliability has been abysmal, unfortunately. In my time of ownership, the car has been serviced three times for climate control issues, including a recurring noise that involved the removal of the dash multiple times. The blend door also had to be replaced due to binding. The 1.4T (I'm not sure about the 1.8) has two PCV valves, one of which is built into the valve cover and is not removable without replacing the valve cover. This is a horrible setup, but I had it replaced under warranty. The plastic intake manifold was also replaced at this time as it was cracked, most likely due to excess pressure from the bad PCV valve. At around 70,000 miles the turbo had to be replaced due to a bad bypass valve that was preventing the turbo from building boost. At 75,000, I had to replace the water inlet valve because the plastic valves GM used tend to crack. I discovered this after I found a puddle of coolant in my garage. I am very worried about the experience after the warranty runs out this summer. I am constantly wondering what will break next or need addressing. There are numerous other small quality-control issues that I've just learned to live with over the years. I am currently about $4,000 underwater on the loan due to insane depreciation and a too-high initial purchase price (GM certified pre-owned, all Cruzes in our area were similar quality, mileage and price). I prefer to do all of my own work and, prior to owning this car, historically I have performed all of my own maintenance, large and small. GM has tried to make their new cars as difficult to work on as possible for the average shade-tree or indy mechanic so I suspect that once the warranty is up I will still be going back to the dealer every 6 months for a 4-figure repair. I cannot wait until the day this car is paid off. It will be going up for sale that same afternoon, provided it is still running by that point.
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Amazed!
Nick1212, 09/17/2010
2011 Chevrolet Cruze LTZ 4dr Sedan (1.4L 4cyl Turbo 6A)
19 of 21 people found this review helpful
Finally an Compact American Car that can compete with foreign mpg and quality. This car is amazing in every aspect. It feels like I'm driving in a $65,000 luxury car when in actuality it only cost $21,000. I love this car and am very very happy with it. also, it gets 27 mpg in the city and 38 mpg on the highway.
let it go
tom, 09/23/2018
updated 03/25/2022
2011 Chevrolet Cruze 1LT 4dr Sedan (1.4L 4cyl Turbo 6A)
8 of 8 people found this review helpful
With over 240,000 miles on her, she started showing a code that I couldn't fix. It was time. At my age, I need something I could rely on so I picked up a 2016 Cruze LS . It dowsn't have some of the options that my 11 did but I hope the longevity will be there.
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Please do not buy this car!!
Camron, 04/27/2018
2011 Chevrolet Cruze LT Fleet 4dr Sedan (1.4L 4cyl Turbo 6A)
12 of 13 people found this review helpful
Please, do yourself a favor and do not buy this car! I have had my 2011 LT Cruze for 3 years now and it has been nothing short of a disaster. Everything was great throughout the first 6 months of owning the car and then things began to go downhill. For the past 2 years, it has been in the shop almost every other month with problems such as oil leaks, engine overheating, and my A/C going out. I have been left stranded multiple times on the side of the road due to my engine overheating. At times, I have literally had to stop and get out of my car due to smoke coming out from under my hood. There is an awful smell in the cabin, such as if something is burning. Every time the car is serviced, it always seems as if the problem is solved until the same issues reoccur. With many different opinions, we still cannot get down to the bottom issue, there are just so many. This car is a lemon and after reading other reviews, I am not alone. I have always been a Chevy fan but I will never buy a Chevy again! Please please do not buy this car. Writing this review so that others do not have to go through this.
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