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2016 Chevrolet Cruze

# 6 out of 20 in 2016 compact cars.

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$ 8,848 - 13,206

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$ 16,120 - 24,370

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2016 Chevrolet Cruze Review

Other Years:

U.S. News Rating

The 2016 Chevrolet Cruze finishes in the top third of our compact car rankings. It boasts outstanding fuel economy, a cushioned ride, and user-friendly cabin tech.

Excellent fuel economy

Easy-to-use touch screen

Cushioned ride quality

Limited rear-seat headroom

What's New for 2016

Fully redesigned

Features and Specs

22-30 City / 35-42 Hwy

138 - 153 horsepower

Chevrolet Cruze Rankings

The 2016 Chevrolet Cruze's #6 ranking is based on its score within the 2016 Compact Cars category. Currently the Chevrolet Cruze has a score of 8.2 out of 10, which is based on our evaluation of 19 pieces of research and data elements using various sources .

• # 6 in 2016 Compact Cars
• # 12 in 2016 Affordable Small Cars
• # 44 in Used Compact Cars $6K to $10K
• # 83 in Used Small Cars under $10K
• Critics' Rating 9.1
• Performance 7.6
• Total Cost of Ownership 9.1
• Interior 8.0

Where This Vehicle Ranks

2016 Mazda Mazda3

$12,425 - $18,124 AVG PRICE PAID

2016 Honda Civic

$15,206 - $18,852 AVG PRICE PAID

2016 Kia Soul

$9,520 - $16,042 AVG PRICE PAID

2016 Buick Verano

$11,974 - $14,954 AVG PRICE PAID

2016 Volkswagen GTI

$16,403 - $19,607 AVG PRICE PAID

$8,848 - $13,206 AVG PRICE PAID

2016 Cruze Photos

2016 Chevrolet Cruze Overview

Is the 2016 chevrolet cruze a good used car.

A used 2016 Chevy Cruze is an excellent choice for compact car shoppers. It has a smooth ride, a powerful engine, and some of the highest fuel economy estimates in the segment. Additionally, the Cruze has an upscale interior with roomy, supportive front seats. However, it has a below-average reliability rating, and tall passengers won’t be happy with its poor back-seat headroom.

Browse local Chevrolet Cruze listings »

Why You Can Trust Us

Our used car rankings and reviews are based on our analysis of professional automotive reviews, as well as data like crash test scores, reliability ratings, and ownership expenses. We researched 23 Chevy Cruze reviews to help you decide if it’s the right used car for you.

The U.S. News Best Cars team has been ranking cars, trucks, and SUVs since 2007, and our staff has a combined 75 years of automotive industry experience. To ensure our impartiality, our staff never takes expensive gifts or trips from car companies, and an outside team handles the advertising on our site.

How Much is a 2016 Chevrolet Cruze?

Based on more than 4,800 listings, the average price for a used 2016 Chevy Cruze ranges from about $11,000 to $16,000. The average price paid for a used 2016 Cruze is about $13,300. However, your pricing will vary depending on the car’s condition, mileage, location, and features.

See the Best Used Car Deals »

How Much Does the 2016 Chevrolet Cruze Cost to Own?

The 2016 Cruze has estimated five-year ownership costs of more than $23,000, including gas, insurance, maintenance, and repairs. Some competing compact cars are less expensive over time, including the 2016 Mazda3 , which has five-year ownership costs of just over $20,350.

Is It Better to Buy a Used or New Cruze?

A new 2018 Chevrolet Cruze will typically cost you about $19,200, while a used 2016 Cruze has an average price of nearly $13,300. Purchasing a used model could save you nearly $6,000 over a new model. For the additional cost, the 2018 model gets you a slight bump in fuel economy, and it comes standard with Chevy’s Teen Driver Safety monitoring system, which limits the car’s maximum speed limit and stereo volume for others driving your car. The 2018 model is also available in a hatchback body style or with a diesel engine, neither of which the 2016 model offers. However, if you’re not interested in a hatchback and can do without the diesel engine and minor feature updates, the 2016 model is the better value.

Read about the new Chevrolet Cruze »

If you’d prefer a new 2018 compact car, know that it will cost you more than a used 2016 Cruze. There are few compact cars that are cheaper than a 2016 Cruze. In fact, many top-ranked 2018 subcompact cars are also more expensive.

See the Best New Car Deals »

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How Reliable Is the 2016 Chevrolet Cruze?

The 2016 Cruze has a reliability rating of three out of five from J.D. Power. This is an average score across the automotive market, but it’s a bit below average for the class. Rivals like the Kia Forte and Toyota Corolla have slightly higher reliability scores of 3.5.

Read more about Cruze reliability »

2016 Chevrolet Cruze Recalls

As of this writing, the 2016 Cruze has three safety recalls. One relates to the electronic park lock lever allowing the driver to remove the key from the ignition without putting the car in park. That increases the risk that the car will roll away. Another recall reports misaligned headlights, which could reduce nighttime visibility. The third recall involves the increased risk of injury during a crash; the front seatbacks can break due to incorrect welding.

See more information on Chevrolet Cruze safety recalls »

Which Model Year of the Chevrolet Cruze Is Best?

The Cruze was fully redesigned for 2016, so it’s a great used model to consider to get many of the car’s latest features. The 2016 model received a lighter frame for better handling and an all-new turbocharged four-cylinder engine that increased fuel economy over previous models. The 2016 Cruze comes with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, and it’s available with safety features like side blind zone alert, rear cross traffic alert, lane keep assist, and forward collision warning. Aside from the addition of the Teen Driver safety system, a diesel engine, and a hatchback model, the 2017 Cruze is largely the same as the previous model year. Therefore, you may want to consider a nearly identical 2016 Cruze to save money.

Compare the 2014, 2015, and 2016 Cruze »

Which Used Chevrolet Cruze Model Is Right for Me?

The 2016 Chevy Cruze sedan is available in four trims: L, LS, LT, and Premier. The Cruze L comes with a vast standard features list that includes a 7-inch touch screen, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, a rearview camera, Bluetooth, a Wi-Fi hot spot, and remote keyless entry. Few rivals come with as much standard technology. The Cruze LS trim has an available automatic transmission. The Cruze LT comes with cruise control and satellite radio, while the Cruze Premier adds leather upholstery, heated front seats, proximity keyless entry, and a remote car starter.

See 2016 Chevrolet Cruze trims and specs »

2016 Chevrolet Cruze Safety

Score: 9.3/10.

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety gave the 2016 Chevrolet Cruze the highest rating of Good in its side and moderate front overlap crash tests. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration gave the Cruze a perfect five-star rating in front crash testing, and four out of five stars in its overall, side, and rollover safety evaluations.

The Cruze comes standard with a rearview camera. There are many available active safety features, including rear parking sensors, rear cross traffic alert, and blind spot monitoring. These features are part of the Driver Confidence package, which is available only in LT and Premier models. The Driver Confidence II package, available only in the Premier trim, adds forward collision warning, lane departure warning, and lane keep assist.

2016 Chevrolet Cruze Versus the Competition

Which is better: 2016 chevrolet cruze or 2016 ford focus.

If you prefer spirited driving to comfortable cruising, the Ford Focus will better suit you. It has a range of powerful engines and sharp driving dynamics. Still, the Cruze is the more practical option for daily commuting. It features a more user-friendly infotainment system, a larger cabin, a better reliability rating, and more available active safety features.

Which Is Better: 2016 Chevrolet Cruze or 2016 Toyota Corolla?

Both the Cruze and Toyota Corolla have smooth, cushioned rides. In addition, these compact cars deliver great gas mileage and have easy-to-use infotainment systems. Still, the Cruze has a bit more to offer, including a livelier engine and a larger suite of standard and available technology and safety features. However, those in the back will prefer the Corolla’s roomier rear seats.

Which Is Better: 2016 Chevrolet Cruze or 2016 Kia Forte?

The Kia Forte has a few advantages over the Cruze. The Forte comes with more options, including three available engines and three body styles. It also has a spacious interior, and even tall passengers can fit comfortably in the back seats. The Kia sedan has a similar trunk capacity to the Chevy, but the Forte hatchback offers several more cubic feet of space. A Cruze hatchback is available with the 2017 model, but not the 2016. Still, the Cruze offers a more comfortable ride than the Forte, along with several additional standard and available features.

Compare the Cruze, Focus, and Corolla »

2016 Cruze Performance

How does the 2016 chevrolet cruze drive.

The front-wheel-drive 2016 Cruze is powered by a turbocharged four-cylinder engine that makes 153 horsepower and delivers more than enough power for getting up to highway speeds. A six-speed manual transmission is standard, though most models come with the available six-speed automatic. The Chevy Cruze glides smoothly over bumps, delivering good ride comfort. It handles well around corners, though its steering could use better feedback.

Does the 2016 Chevrolet Cruze Get Good Gas Mileage?

Fuel economy numbers are excellent; the Cruze can earn up to 30 mpg in the city and 40 mpg on the highway.

Read more about Cruze performance »

2016 Cruze Interior

How many people does the 2016 cruze seat.

The Chevrolet Cruze seats five on cloth upholstery. Those seated up front will enjoy plenty of headroom and legroom, as well as good thigh and back support. However, back-seat occupants may wish for more legroom. Heated front seats, heated rear seats, and leather upholstery are available.

How Many Car Seats Fit in the 2016 Chevrolet Cruze?

For securing child seats, there are two sets of lower anchors on the rear outboard seats and three top tether anchors behind the rear seats. The 2016 model was not rated by the IIHS, but the very similar 2017 model received a Marginal rating for its ease of use. The IIHS noted that attaching car seats can be difficult because the lower anchors are located deep in the seats.

2016 Chevrolet Cruze Features

Chevy equips the Cruze with a long list of standard tech and convenience features, including a 7-inch touch screen, a Wi-Fi hot spot, Bluetooth, a USB port, a rearview camera, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, which integrates some smartphone functions into the infotainment system. The user-friendly touch-screen system responds quickly to inputs and has straightforward menus. The Cruze Premier is available with an 8-inch touch screen and a navigation system.

See 2016 Chevrolet Cruze specs »

Read more about Cruze interior »

2016 Chevrolet Cruze Dimensions

Chevrolet cruze cargo space.

The base Chevy Cruze has a 14.8-cubic-foot trunk, which is one of the largest in the class. Its rear seats also fold to further expand the cargo area. However, upper trims lose a few inches of space, dropping to 13.9 cubic feet.

2016 Cruze Length and Weight

The Chevrolet Cruze has an overall length of 183.7 inches and a curb weight of 2,932 pounds.

Where Was the 2016 Chevrolet Cruze Built?

The 2016 Cruze was manufactured in Lordstown, Ohio.

Other Years

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• 2016 Chevrolet Cruze

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starting MSRP

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View all  2016 Chevrolet Cruze specs .

• Smooth, refined engine
• Unobtrusive stop-start system
• Cabin comfort
• Materials quality
• Connectivity features, especially LT and Premier
• Estimated gas mileage
• Feels sluggish when cruising at 55 to 60 mph
• Occasional abrupt shift from automatic transmission
• Minimal steering feedback
• Only one USB port
• Automatic emergency braking not part of collision warning system
• Less effective climate control when engine is in auto-stop mode

Starting msrp listed lowest to highest price

Premier Auto

Wondering which trim is right for you?

Our 2016 Chevrolet Cruze trim comparison will help you decide.

Notable features

• Redesigned for 2016
• Five-seat compact sedan
• Hatchback, diesel models on the way
• Turbo four-cylinder gas engine standard
• Apple CarPlay, Android Auto smartphone integration standard
• Two years of satellite radio, OnStar (LT and Premier)

2016 Chevrolet Cruze review: Our expert's take

By Mike Hanley

The verdict: The second-generation 2016 Chevrolet Cruze sedan builds upon the qualities we liked in the original, such as a quiet ride, with the addition of a more refined turbocharged four-cylinder engine and greater in-car connectivity, but I wish the driving experience were more engaging.

Versus the competition: There are a lot of compact-car contenders, and it’s a corner of the market that’s constantly evolving; along with the redesigned Cruze, the Honda Civic and Hyundai Elantra have recently been overhauled. Within this set, the Cruze stands out for its overall quality and refinement, and surpasses most with its available connectivity features.

The redesigned Cruze has been a long time coming — the U.S. model first was shown back in June 2015 — but it’s on sale now and has a starting price of $17,495 (including an $875 destination charge) for a base L trim level with a manual transmission. I tested the top-of-the-line Premier trim, which comes with an automatic transmission and starts at $23,995 including destination. Optional features such as a power moonroof, navigation, a Bose premium stereo, automatic air conditioning, wireless device charging and heated rear seats raised the as-tested price to $26,855. To see how the Cruze’s specs compare with the Civic, Elantra and Mazda3, click here . 

Chevrolet also is readying a hatchback body style of the Cruze that’s scheduled to arrive this fall as a 2017 model, and a diesel-engine version that’s slated to arrive early next year. Exterior & Styling The 2016  Chevrolet Cruze looks considerably sleeker than its predecessor even though it’s less than an inch lower than the prior model. Contributing to the look is greater windshield rake and a swept-back front end. It’s a tidy-looking small sedan, and the design is quite modern overall.

How It Drives The refinement we’ve liked in Chevrolet’s recently updated cars such as the Malibu midsize sedan and full-size Impala is present in the Cruze, and it’s particularly evident with the new turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine. Rated at 153 horsepower, the four-cylinder goes in all Cruze trim levels and drives the front wheels through a six-speed manual or a six-speed automatic transmission. (Most Cruzes come with the automatic.)

The turbo four-cylinder sounds refined when accelerating, even under full throttle, and power builds smoothly. Acceleration is adequate; it feels about as swift as the 2016 Civic with the base 2.0-liter four-cylinder. Still, the Cruze’s turbo four-cylinder does have some reserve power at highway speeds for passing.

The six-speed automatic made a couple abrupt shifts during a day of driving, but gear changes were otherwise smooth and the transmission readily kicked down a few gears for more passing power. Like the four-cylinder engine, the transmission’s overall refinement is on par with what you’d experience in an entry-luxury car.

The one aspect of the drivetrain that’s a little annoying is its lack of power when cruising at 55 to 60 mph. With the automatic, engine speed is around 1,700 rpm at those speeds and the small four-cylinder feels sluggish at that rpm. Some willingness on the transmission’s part to stay in a lower gear — or the inclusion of a Sport mode or shift paddles for more driver control (the  Chevrolet Cruze doesn’t offer either) — would be welcome.

All automatic-equipped  Chevrolet Cruzes have engine stop-start technology, which is designed to save gas by automatically turning off the engine when you come to a stop and then restarting it as you lift your foot off the brake pedal. Unlike many stop-start systems, you can’t turn the system off in the Cruze; it’s operational whenever the ignition is on. Thankfully, it’s an unobtrusive system, and I didn’t feel the urge to turn it off, even if I could have; engine restarts are smooth and accompanied by just a hint of engine noise.

The one problem I had with the stop-start system is that the climate control’s fan speed slows when the engine is in auto-stop mode, which noticeably reduced the system’s cooling effectiveness while I waited for a stoplight to turn green.

Things such as stop-start technology, a weight reduction of up to about 200 pounds and more aerodynamic styling have contributed to significant increases in EPA-estimated gas mileage: Automatic-transmission models besides the Premier are EPA-rated at 30/42/35 mpg city/highway/ combined. (According to Chevrolet, the extra weight of additional features and different tires with greater rolling resistance give the Premier a 30/40/34 mpg estimate.)

Like the Civic, Mazda3 and others in the compact-car class, the  Chevrolet Cruze has a taut suspension. You feel bumps in the road, but the setup handles them well; there’s no harshness as the suspension reacts to them.

The Premier’s suspension has an additional linkage on the rear torsion beam for better handling, but  while body roll is well-managed on winding roads, the  Chevrolet Cruze isn’t as fun to drive through corners as the new Civic. The Cruze’s center of gravity feels higher than the Civic’s, but, more significant, its steering isn’t as involving due to minimal feedback. It does take only a light touch to turn the steering wheel, which helps make the Cruze easy to maneuver in the city. (The Premier has a slightly quicker steering ratio than the other trims.)

Interior While the redesigned Cruze looks sleeker, the new exterior styling doesn’t compromise front-seat comfort. The Premier’s power-adjustable driver’s seat was comfortable for a day of driving, with side bolsters that weren’t overly restrictive.

The backseat also is pleasant for adult passengers, offering decent legroom and headroom, but views out the side window are restricted by that sleek roofline; I was staring at part of the headliner when looking out the window.

The cabin has a high-quality appearance. Some of the plastic trim pieces, including the upper part of the front doors, have a thin rubberized coating that gives them a nice low-gloss finish. The coating doesn’t carry through to the rear doors, though. Ergonomics & Electronics Control knobs for stereo volume, station tuning and climate control functions as well as easy-to-decipher buttons make interacting with the  Chevrolet Cruze’s various features straightforward. Polarized sunglasses, however, make it hard to read the automatic air conditioning’s digital cabin temperature setting.

The standard 7-inch touch-screen multimedia system supports Apple CarPlay and Android Auto , which let you interact with select smartphone apps such as Pandora and Apple or Google Maps that are mirrored on the dashboard screen. An optional 8-inch touch-screen for the LT and Premier models also supports CarPlay and Android Auto, and it took only a few seconds for the multimedia system to recognize my iPhone and display apps on the screen. Overall, it’s an easy way to use your phone’s media in the car and to more safely use your phone’s navigation capability when you need it. (A built-in navigation system is optional for the Premier.)

Bluetooth streaming audio is standard; a CD player no longer is offered. There’s one USB port in front of the gear selector for a wired device connection, as currently required by CarPlay and Auto. Wireless charging for devices that support it is optional for the Premier.

In an effort to appeal to tech-savvy car buyers, the LT and Premier trims come with an extended-length trial of the  Chevrolet Cruze’s connected services. Dubbed 24/7 Promise, it includes two free years of Sirius XM satellite radio, two years or 24 gigabytes (whichever comes first) of 4G LTE data for in-car Wi-Fi, and two years of the OnStar Guidance Plan. The Guidance Plan includes automatic crash response, roadside assistance, stolen-vehicle assistance, turn-by-turn navigation and the ability to use a RemoteLink smartphone app to lock and unlock the doors, and remotely start the car (if equipped with remote start).  The 24/7 Promise also includes two oil changes and tire rotations in the first two years or 24,000 miles, whichever comes first.

The two-year satellite radio period is significantly longer than the typical three- or six-month trial that most of the  Chevrolet Cruze’s competitors offer, and Chevrolet says the program’s 24-GB data trial provides up to 800 hours of streaming music or 1,600 hours of web browsing via the car’s Wi-Fi hot spot. Data-intensive content, such as online video, will burn through the free trial considerably quicker.

Cargo & Storage In Chevrolet Cruze LS and L trim levels, the trunk measures 14.8 cubic feet. It’s about 1 cubic foot smaller in the  Chevrolet Cruze LT and Premier. Lifting the trunk lid reveals a large opening. A folding backseat is standard, and a 60/40-split folding backseat comes in the LT and Premier. There’s a small ledge where the trunk floor and lowered rear backrest meet.

Cabin storage includes an average-sized glove box, a small bin under the center front armrest and door pockets for small items. Safety The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety gave the  Chevrolet Cruze its top rating of good for its performance in moderate-overlap and side-impact crash tests. As of publication, the car hasn’t undergone the tougher small-overlap crash test, and its optional crash-prevention technology hasn’t been evaluated.

A backup camera is standard. Optional active safety features include blind spot warning, rear cross-traffic alert, lane departure warning and prevention, and forward collision warning. Unlike some collision warning systems that will automatically brake the car to avoid a crash or lessen its severity, the  Chevrolet Cruze’s system warns the driver but doesn’t apply the brakes.

For a full list of safety features see the Features & Specs page . Value in Its Class There are sportier compact cars than the Cruze, but Chevrolet’s redesigned sedan ranks as one of the most refined. For the car’s $17,495 base price ($19,995 for the least expensive version with the optional automatic transmission) you get a lot of in-car connectivity, and that should appeal to the young car buyers Chevrolet hopes to reach.

Consumer reviews

• Comfort 4.5
• Interior 4.4
• Performance 4.2
• Exterior 4.5
• Reliability 4.3

Most recent consumer reviews

I hac d A 2016 Chevy Cruze and on my way to work smoke started coming from under the hood I lost all power and in order to get out of the car I broke the drivers side window and jumped out it crossed the highway and was on fire I lost everything.

• Comfort 3.0
• Interior 3.0
• Performance 2.0
• Exterior 3.0
• Reliability 2.0
• Purchased a Used car
• Used for Commuting
• Does not recommend this car

Great small car

I've had my Cruze 6 months now and I think its a great car. It's my first GM, and I am glad I gave it a shot. Great features and excellent on gas

• Comfort 4.0
• Interior 5.0
• Performance 4.0
• Exterior 5.0
• Reliability 5.0
• Does recommend this car

Decent little car

I have a 2016 LT RS with 70k miles on it. It is my daily driver. I just never had to drive very far for work. My only issue with this car is that I need to use higher octane fuel in the spring/summer. If I do not then it drives so slow when using the AC. It also jerks from time to time when coming to a stop. That only happens in the warmer months. Other than that I have no real issues with it. I don't drive it hard.

• Comfort 5.0
• Exterior 4.0
• Reliability 4.0
• Purchased a New car

Have questions about warranties or CPO programs?

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• What's My Car Worth?
• Buyer's Guide

Tested: 2016 Chevrolet Cruze 1.4T Automatic

You'll never guess what it's as smooth as.

The Cruze is a seriously smooth car, from its slippery shape to the way its doors shut with a muffled wumpf . In large part, the Cruze’s smoothness is derived from its impeccably compliant suspension. In car terms, it is refined. And the Cruze doesn’t come much more so than the mid-grade LT tested here, with the automatic transmission and 16-inch wheels. The available Premier model with the largest wheels available (18-inchers) may be less smooth, while the base Cruze L with its 15-inch tires and their taller sidewalls may be smoother still. Yet cut the lineup down the middle and you’re still talking baby-bottom smooth.

Sanding Off the Edges

Dimensionally, the Cruze’s wheelbase is 0.6-inch longer than its predecessor’s while overall length is up 2.7 inches, placing it at the large end of the compact class. Yet by sanding the edges off the previous Cruze’s upright, three-box sedan shape, Chevrolet lowered the roof by 0.7 inch and reduced nearly every major interior measurement save for rear leg- and knee room. Consider it a sort of packaging coup that the car somehow feels more spacious than before. The steeply raked windshield, which is located farther from the driver at the end of a deeper dashboard, gives front-seat occupants an airier environment, while the increases in back-seat knee room (2.0 inches) and rear legroom (0.7 inch) lend the aft quarters a whiff of limo luxury. Well, there’s plenty of rear-seat space down low—headroom in back remains tight.

The Cruze’s chassis tuning contributes to the sensation of greater size, too, by mimicking the comfortable, solid-feeling mid-size Malibu . General Motors’ excellence in suspension calibration is on full display here, where humble components—front struts and a torsion-beam rear axle—are tuned to deliver uncanny stability and comfort. Sportiness clearly wasn’t a target, but neither the Cruze’s stability nor the driver’s sense of control is compromised even while absorbing ruts and bumps like a larger car. This doesn’t show up in the sedan’s ho-hum 0.82-g skidpad performance or its 168-foot stopping distance from 70 mph, but what matters is that in aggressive emergency maneuvers such as quick lane changes or panic braking while turning, the back end stays planted, and when the car gives up grip, it’s with safe, predictable understeer. In keeping with the car’s general-use mission, the steering is light but direct, with a distinct on-center zone that allows the driver to maintain straight-ahead tracking on interstates using only a thumb on the wheel.

More Power, Less Weight, More Good

Replacing both the previous-generation Cruze’s base 1.8-liter four and available 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline engines is a single powerplant, an all-new 1.4-liter turbo four. ( A diesel variant will return in 2017.) Although similar in displacement to the old turbo engine, this one is 35 cubic centimeters larger, freshly designed, and features a block cast of aluminum instead of iron. It’s 44 pounds lighter than the old 1.4T—it’s also lighter than the old naturally aspirated 1.8-liter four—and backs up to either a six-speed manual or the six-speed automatic transmission fitted to our test car. With 153 horsepower and 177 lb-ft of torque, the new engine bests the old 1.4T by 15 horsepower and 29 lb-ft.

This more powerful engine has less Cruze to lug around. Chevrolet removed mass from nearly every area of the sedan, including 24 pounds from the automatic transmission and 53 pounds from the steel unibody. Our test car feathered the scales at 2944 pounds, 262 pounds lighter than a previous-generation Cruze LTZ we tested in 2010 and 199 pounds lighter than a non-turbo, more sparsely equipped Cruze LS we evaluated in 2011. That’s a big mass reduction, and it helps the 2016 Cruze scoot to 60 mph in 7.6 seconds, 1.3 seconds quicker than the previous 1.4T.

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This performance improvement is dramatic on paper, but it doesn’t feel like performance tuning. This engine is set up to operate at a relaxed pace, more diesel-like than fire-breather. Peak torque comes on at just 2000 rpm, and the six-speed automatic transmission chooses the highest gear possible to keep the engine in this zone. Hold down the accelerator, and the engine rumbles toward its 5600-rpm horsepower peak, but you won’t spend much time exploiting the 153 ponies unleashed there because the transmission upshifts between 5500 and 5700 rpm, well short of the 6500-rpm redline. (One look at the engine’s power curve reveals the shift programming is no accident—horsepower drops off precipitously after the 5600-rpm peak, leaving little point in holding onto gears beyond that engine speed.) The shifts themselves are surprisingly quick and, yes, smooth. The programming insists on choosing one gear above what a driver might choose, however, meaning that even when the transmission downshifts, the Cruze can feel flat-footed coming out of corners because it’s still in too high a gear. The upshot is that revs are kept low nearly all of the time, which contributed to our observed fuel economy of 33 mpg, and this reliance on the engine’s low-rpm torque means even small throttle applications accelerate the Cruze without an uncouth downshift. Smooth.

America’s Ride

Having established by now that the Cruze is ideally suited to, ahem, cruising , it’s time to discuss the car’s improved interior. While many small cars suffer from front seats with short cushions that leave occupants’ legs unsupported, the Cruze’s front chairs are big and cosseting, providing a consistent hug from behind one’s knees all the way up to the shoulders. Our Cruze LT came equipped with an optional power driver’s seat that offered adjustments for cushion tilt, seat height, lumbar, and backrest angle, all of which made finding a comfortable driving position easy. The main annoyance is that the brake pedal is positioned about two inches closer to the driver than the gas pedal, requiring more leg motion than should be necessary to apply the brakes.

Chevrolet classed-up the dashboard relative to the old Cruze’s unit, too, adding a rubberized plastic material to the surface while carrying over the unusual patches of cloth trim. There’s also a lot more chrome, and it has been applied in thick chunks; we’ll leave it to you to decide if you like it. Regardless, the cabin looks smart, even in our moderately optioned LT. Our car came only with the $1150 Convenience package and the $1495 Sun and Sound package, together adding things like heated front seats, that power driver’s seat, a sunroof, proximity-key access, a color driver-information screen, a larger 8.0-inch touchscreen in place of the standard 7.0-inch unit, and a Bose audio system. Thus equipped, our car cost $25,035, including $395 in special red paint.

LOWS: Could be more fun to drive.

And the environment works even better than it looks, with the touchscreen running Chevrolet’s easy-to-use MyLink infotainment menu and the hard-button controls operating with a well-damped smoothness. Usefulness abounds: There are storage cubbies in the doors, a stash spot for a phone ahead of the shifter, and a total of six cupholders. The front center armrest slides fore and aft. Android Auto and Apple CarPlay integration is built in, and when an iPhone is hooked up using a USB cable, the driver can call out Siri commands or manage music selections via the touchscreen or a secondary display in the gauge cluster using a steering-wheel control pad. (The same goes for an Android phone, albeit with Google, not Siri, as the personal assistant.) Yes, GM’s 4G LTE data connection and a Wi-Fi hotspot are standard, and, yes, we used both to send some emails while stopped on the side of the road.

Between its accommodating cabin, supple suspension, and strong but muted engine, the Cruze offers a lot to recommend it. Oh, and did we mention the trunk is a huge and usefully shaped hold measuring 14 cubic feet? Were it our dough on the line, we’d still choose a Mazda 3 or a Honda Civic , which are more satisfying to drive. But for buyers who are unconcerned with steering feel or knife-edged chassis response, the Cruze is a darned good car.

Specifications

SPECIFICATIONS

2016 Chevrolet Cruze 1.4T Vehicle type: front-engine, front-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan

PRICE AS TESTED $25,035 (base price: $19,995)

ENGINE TYPE turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 16-valve inline-4, aluminum block and head, direct fuel injection Displacement: 85 in 3 , 1399 cm 3 Power: 153 hp @ 5600 rpm Torque: 177 lb-ft @ 2000 rpm

TRANSMISSIONS 6-speed automatic with manual shifting mode

DIMENSIONS Wheelbase: 106.3 in Length: 183.7 in Width: 70.6 in Height: 57.4 in Passenger volume: 94 ft 3 Cargo volume: 14 ft 3 Curb weight: 2944 lb

C/D TEST RESULTS Zero to 60 mph: 7.6 sec Zero to 100 mph: 21.6 sec Zero to 120 mph: 35.8 sec Rolling start, 5-60 mph: 8.0 sec Top gear, 30-50 mph: 4.1 sec Top gear, 50-70 mph: 5.2 sec Standing ¼-mile: 15.9 sec @ 89 mph Top speed (governor limited): 132 mph Braking, 70-0 mph: 168 ft Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad: 0.82 g

FUEL ECONOMY EPA city/highway driving: 30/42 mpg C/D observed: 33 mpg

c/d testing explained

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GM’s Cruise will get $2.75 billion from Honda to build a new self-driving car

Funding secured.

By Andrew J. Hawkins , transportation editor with 10+ years of experience who covers EVs, public transportation, and aviation. His work has appeared in The New York Daily News and City & State.

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Cruise Automation, the self-driving unit of General Motors, is teaming up with Honda, one of the world’s largest automakers, the company announced on Wednesday.

The two auto giants will collaborate on a purpose-built autonomous vehicle that can serve a “wide variety” of use cases and be manufactured at high volumes for global deployment. Honda will devote $2 billion to the effort over 12 years, which, together with a $750 million equity investment in Cruise, brings the total commitment to $2.75 billion.

It’s another enormous win for GM’s Cruise

It’s another enormous win for GM’s Cruise. Just last May, it announced a $2.25 billion investment from the SoftBank Vision Fund, a major venture investment effort that was started by the Japanese tech giant in 2016. Today’s transaction brings Cruise’s post-money valuation to $14.6 billion.

GM bought Cruise in 2016 for $1 billion to jump-start its self-driving efforts. The company says it plans to deploy its fully driverless cars, without steering wheel or pedals, for commercial ride-hailing use as early as 2019.

So what will this new vehicle built by GM and Honda look like? It wasn’t immediately clear, although Cruise Automation CEO Kyle Vogt teased some possibilities in a Medium post .

Shouldn’t the car of the future have giant TV screens, a mini bar, and lay-flat seats? Maybe it should. We’ve been quietly prototyping a ground-breaking new vehicle over the past two years that is fully released from the constraints of having a driver behind the wheel. Building a new vehicle that has an incredible user experience, optimal operational parameters, and efficient use of space is the ultimate engineering challenge. We’re going to do this right, and by joining forces with Honda we’ve found the perfect partner to help make it happen.

What is clear is that this purpose-built AV won’t look anything like the Chevy Bolt vehicles that Cruise is currently using as a platform for its self-driving experiments in San Francisco and Arizona. The company has one of the largest fleets of autonomous test vehicles in the Bay Area, with over 100 cars and permits for almost 400 drivers in California.

Cruise has one of the largest fleets of autonomous test vehicles in the Bay Area

A deal this large will unavoidably have a ripple effect. Honda was rumored to be in talks with Waymo, the self-driving unit of Google parent company Alphabet, to build a self-driving delivery car. That deal would now appear to be moot, as Honda’s chief operating officer Seiji Kuraishi described the automaker’s partnership with Cruise as “exclusive.” However, in a call with reporters, executives declined to comment specifically on other companies. (A spokesperson for Waymo did not immediately respond to a request for comment.)

Deploying a purpose-built self-driving car without traditional controls in the US would require an exemption from the federal government’s motor vehicle safety standards. GM submitted a petition to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for permission to deploy its fully driverless Chevy Bolt earlier this year, and it would most likely need another one before putting its vehicles built with Honda out into the world.

GM is seeking to outmaneuver rivals both old and new

By committing to rolling out fully driverless cars in a shortened time frame, GM is seeking to outmaneuver rivals both old and new in the increasingly hyper-competitive race to build and deploy robot cars.  Ford has said  it will build an autonomous car without a steering wheel or pedals by 2021, while Waymo is preparing to launch its first commercial ride-hailing service in Phoenix featuring fully driverless minivans later this year.

There was a flurry of partnerships and investments around self-driving cars in 2016 and 2017, but that activity has since mostly died down, leading some critics to claim that the technology now finds itself in the “trough of disillusionment.” To be sure, there are still huge sums of money exchanging hands despite this lull. There was the Cruise-SoftBank deal in May. And in August, Toyota and Uber said they would join forces to build self-driving cars, in a deal that involved the Japanese automaker committing $500 million to the ride-hailing giant. There may be disillusionment in this trough, but there are huge piles of money, too.

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GM reportedly spent over $1 billion on a tiny startup that holds a key to the future of driving

General Motors announced on Friday that it would acquire Cruise Automation , a San Francisco-based self-driving-car startup founded in 2013.

Neither GM nor Cruise disclosed the deal price.

However, Fortune's Dan Primack and Kristen Korosec reported that GM bought Cruise for more than $1 billion , in cash and stock combined, as much as 10 times the company's valuation. A separate report in Re/code seemed to confirm the price.

GM declined to comment on how much it paid.

Cruise had raised $20 million from various investors. The startup was a product of the Y Combinator accelerator program.

The acquisition is expected to close in the second quarter, pending regulatory approval.

"GM shares a common vision for the deployment of autonomous vehicles at a mass scale — a clear and vivid vision," said Kyle Vogt, Cruise's founder and CEO.

He added that Cruise's 40 employees would remain in San Francisco but that the size of the team would be aggressively expanded. He declined to comment on how many new employees would join the company, which will be incorporated into GM's newly formed autonomous-driving group.

Vogt was previously involved with SocialCam and Twitch, the video-streaming site for video games that sold to Amazon in 2014 for $970 million.

In the past year, GM has been accelerating the pace of development for its electric- and autonomous-driving-vehicle technologies. The largest automaker in the US also made a $500 million investment in the ride-hailing service Lyft earlier this year.

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The carmaker rolled out its Bolt electric car at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas in January, with plans to have it on the road by the end of 2016. GM also created a stand-alone ride-sharing brand this year, called Maven, and has placed autonomous-vehicle development in a single business unit.

"We're here to win," said GM president Dan Ammann, who joined Vogt to make the announcement. "We're super excited, and we have a very clear vision. We are very serious about leading, and we're committed to investment."

Both Ammann, who now sits on the Lyft board, and GM CEO Mary Barra have indicated the golden opportunity for the automaker is autonomous, electric-powered ride-sharing. The disadvantages of trying to integrate those technologies and services in conventional cars and trucks are overcome, in the thinking of GM's leadership, if fleets of driverless electric vehicles can be used in cities to provide mobility to customers who don't want to own a vehicle.

Ride-sharing is a very obvious place for GM to use Cruise's technology, Ammann said, as the automaker seeks to "fundamentally change the future of mobility."

Fully autonomous vehicles haven't yet hit the street, but GM and others, including Tesla, are now bringing partial self-driving technologies online in their cars. Ammann stressed that he expected GM's acquisition of Cruise to enable GM to bring full autonomy to market.

The company garnered some media attention for its technology, which was undergoing testing on Audis in California. Inc. portrayed the company and its MIT-dropout founder as trying to beat the big names in self-driving vehicles , chiefly Google, to the finish line.

Business Insider's Alyson Shontell caught up with the company and its tech in mid-2104:

Called Cruise RP-1, the technology costs $10,000 to install and the process of hooking it up to a vehicle takes a few hours in the company's San Francisco facility. Right now, Cruise is only compatible with Audi A4 or S4 vehicles, but the team of mostly MIT engineers plans to expand the product line quickly. The goal of Cruise is to create a suite of products that will eventually turn any car into a driverless vehicle

After the GM deal was announced, Vogt didn't characterize Cruise's technology as an aftermarket bolt-on, but rather as an integrated hardware and software system, and he added that Cruise was among the few companies granted a permit by the California DMV to test self-driving technology .

Vogt told Business Insider that safety was the primary reason he dived into the self-driving world. " There are 30,000 people who die in car accidents per year in the US," he said.

"Most of those accidents are caused by drivers, not machines. In a situation where the tech exists to solve this problem, we have a responsibility to solve that issue."

Cruise created a video in 2014 that showcased its technology. Watch it below:

Watch: The world's largest cruise ship landed in Miami — here's what it's like on board

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Used 2016 Chevrolet Cruze Premier Sedan Review

Consumer reviews

Read what other owners think about the 2016 chevrolet cruze premier sedan., most helpful consumer reviews, auto stop/start can be disabled, cruze premier very impressive, i love the car, glad i didn't purchase, edmunds summary review of the 2016 chevrolet cruze premier sedan.

Pros & Cons

• Pro: Standard turbocharged engine has very good fuel economy estimates
• Pro: cabin is attractive, especially with the two-tone color scheme
• Pro: plenty of rear-seat legroom
• Pro: appealing convenience and technology features.
• Con: No additional engine choices
• Con: cruise control isn't available on the L or LS trims.

Full Edmunds Review: 2016 Chevrolet Cruze Sedan

The 2016 Chevrolet Cruze has been completely redesigned. The previous-generation Cruze, now called the Cruze Limited, is also still on sale.

Edmunds says

Small sedans are getting better every year, and for proof you only need to check out the redesigned 2016 Chevrolet Cruze. You'll like the way the Cruze sips gas and how its handsome cabin has a surprising amount of room for you and your passengers. There's plenty of the latest safety and in-car technology, too. Ready to find out if this new Cruze is right for you?

Vehicle overview

Just like the midsize Malibu sedan last year and the full-size Impala in 2014, the compact 2016 Chevrolet Cruze has been transformed. Outside, the styling is sharp and adventurous, in stark contrast to the previous Cruze's handsome but still largely anonymous sheet metal. Inside, the inspired dashboard design includes upgraded materials and fresh technology features. This redesigned Cruze could very well be a prime pick for small sedan shoppers this year.

The 2016 Cruze has a fresh look, highlighted by sleeker curves and more pronounced fender arches.

For motivation, the 2016 Cruze comes with a standard turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine, which Chevy has revised from the previous model year to make 15 more horsepower and 29 more pound-feet of torque. This engine has less work to do, too, as Chevrolet says the 2016 Cruze has shed about 250 pounds. Pleasingly, the redesigned Cruze is also a bit roomier, particularly for rear seat passengers. Four adults can now fit with comfort to spare.

In keeping with other 2016 GM models, the new Cruze's standard MyLink touchscreen infotainment system (it used to be optional) provides quicker response times compared to last year's version, as well as both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone integration. Other newly available interior features include a Bose audio system, wireless phone charging, heated rear seats and a heated steering wheel. Moreover, safety-conscious shoppers can outfit the Premier trim with advanced technologies like lane-departure intervention and forward collision alert. Small-car drivers increasingly expect big feature content these days, and the 2016 Cruze is certainly poised to deliver.

If you're shopping for a 2016 small sedan, we'd also suggest taking a look at the redesigned 2016 Honda Civic , which broadly matches the Chevy's equipment while delivering better performance with its optional turbo engine. The 2016 Kia Forte is perhaps best known for being a good value, but it also drives well and gives you plenty of standard and available niceties. The 2016 Mazda 3 has the sportiest handling of the bunch and also impresses with its fuel economy, while the 2016 Ford Focus is an oldie but goodie that's rewarding to drive and benefits from many recent refinements. But if you're looking for a well-rounded small sedan with few, if any weaknesses, the totally transformed 2016 Chevrolet Cruze is a must-drive.

2016 Chevrolet Cruze models

The 2016 Chevrolet Cruze is a small sedan offered in four trim levels: L, LS, LT and Premier.

Standard equipment on the Cruze L includes 15-inch steel wheels, air-conditioning, a height-adjustable driver seat, a tilt-and-telescoping steering wheel, 60/40-split folding rear seatbacks, Bluetooth, a four-speaker audio system with a USB port, OnStar (with 4G LTE connectivity and WiFi hotspot), a rearview camera and the MyLink infotainment system with a 7-inch central touchscreen, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

The LS is similarly equipped but adds a front center armrest and carpeted floor mats. It can also be equipped with the automatic transmission and a range of dealer-installed options.

Every 2016 Cruze comes with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone integration.

The LT steps up to 16-inch alloy wheels, LED running lights, heated mirrors, cruise control, steering-wheel-mounted phone and audio controls, a rear center armrest with cupholders and a six-speaker audio system with satellite radio.

For the LT, the optional Convenience package adds keyless ignition and entry, heated front seats, an eight-way power driver seat and remote engine start (automatic transmission).

The Cruze Premier gets those features as standard plus 17-inch wheels, an upgraded rear suspension, ambient interior lighting, illuminated vanity mirrors, a heated steering wheel, leather upholstery and a height-adjustable front passenger seat.

Both the LT and Premier offer an RS Appearance package (18-inch wheels, foglights, rear spoiler, sport body kit) and a Sun and Sound package that includes a sunroof, a color driver information center, a larger 8-inch center touchscreen display and a nine-speaker Bose audio system. A navigation system is additionally available for this package on the Premier.

The LT and Premier are also eligible for the Driver Confidence package, which consists of rear parking sensors and a blind-spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert. The Driver Confidence 2 package, offered only on the Premier, adds automatic high beam headlight control, forward collision alert and lane-departure warning and intervention.

The Premier-only Enhanced Convenience package throws in an auto-dimming rearview mirror, automatic climate control, heated rear outboard seats, wireless personal device charging and a 110-volt household-style power outlet.

Performance & mpg

The front-wheel-drive 2016 Chevrolet Cruze utilizes a turbocharged 1.4-liter four-cylinder engine rated at 153 horsepower and 177 pound-feet of torque. A six-speed manual transmission is standard on the L, LS and LT trims and a six-speed automatic is optional. The Premier comes standard with the automatic. The automatic transmission also comes bundled with an automatic engine stop-start feature to save fuel when the car isn't moving.

According to the EPA, the Cruze should return 33 mpg combined (29 city/41 highway) with the manual, 35 mpg combined (30/42) with the automatic and 34 mpg combined (30/40) in automatic-only Premier trim. These numbers put Chevy right up at the top of the class.

All 2016 Chevrolet Cruze models come with stability control, four-wheel antilock disc brakes, full-length side curtain airbags, front knee airbags and front and rear side-impact airbags. Also standard is OnStar, which includes automatic crash notification, on-demand roadside assistance, remote door unlocking and stolen-vehicle assistance.

Optional safety equipment is limited to the LT and Premier, consisting of the Driver Confidence 1 and 2 packages detailed above (see Body Styles, Trim Levels and Options section).

Stronger engine output and reduced weight should add up to swifter acceleration for the 2016 Chevrolet Cruze, especially compared to the old 1.8-liter base engine. We've experienced the newly standard 1.4-liter turbo in the redesigned 2016 Malibu, and can report that it's a respectably refined mill with little in the way of extraneous vibrations or noises.

Only one engine is available for the 2016 Chevrolet Cruze, but it should provide a satisfying mix of performance and fuel economy.

Drivers will also appreciate the strong torque that comes on early in the rev range, meaning downshifts likely won't be required on many hills. Check back with us soon for detailed testing results and driving impressions of the 2016 Cruze.

We liked the outgoing Cruze's overall interior look, but the 2016 model's interior is noticeably more stylish. Materials quality is significantly higher, and the curving character line that runs diagonally through the dashboard is an unusually artistic touch for this segment. These updates, along with a larger backseat, make the Cruze's interior fully competitive in terms of both appearance and construction.

A roomier rear seat with added legroom is a key upgrade for the 2016 Chevrolet Cruze.

Another leap forward comes in the form of the standard MyLink infotainment system, which employs either the standard 7-inch touchscreen or the optional 8-inch version (LT and Premier only). That means even the least expensive 2016 Cruze is outfitted with a high-tech interface that boasts clear graphics and a pretty intuitive menu structure. The new Cruze also has the fortune of debuting right after Chevy enhanced the performance of MyLink across the board, so owners will benefit from the noticeably quicker responses relative to earlier iterations. Moreover, the standard inclusion of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto ensures that every Cruze buyer can enjoy a fully integrated smartphone experience.

Chevy says that the Cruze's trunk can hold 14.8 cubic feet of cargo (13.9 in Cruze LT and Premier trims), which is a bit roomier than average for this class.

Edmunds Insurance Estimator

The Edmunds TCO ® estimated monthly insurance payment for a 2016 Chevrolet   Cruze in North Dakota is:

Related Used 2016 Chevrolet Cruze Premier Sedan info

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General Motors acquires self-driving car startup Cruise Automation

Automotive giant looks to head off challenges to its dominance by tech companies such as Alphabet and Apple in developing driverless vehicles

Detroit automotive giant General Motors has acquired Cruise Automation, a Silicon Valley maker of driverless cars, as it moves to head off a challenge to its dominance from some of the tech world’s biggest companies.

GM’s acquisition of Cruise “provides our company with a unique technology advantage that is unmatched in our industry”, said GM executive vice-president Mark Reuss. “We intend to invest significantly to further grow the talent base and capabilities already established by the Cruise team.”

And it’s also a way for the company to take a bite out of two competitors: Cruise’s main product, the Cruise RP-1, was an autopilot system that could be installed in cars made by Audi (owned by Volkswagen) and Nissan (owned by Renault).

General Motors said in a statement Friday it was interested in the startup because of its “deep software talent and rapid development capability to further accelerate GM’s development of autonomous vehicle technology”.

The purchase comes as Apple , Alphabet , Uber and other tech companies are all working on self-driving car projects.

Sam Altman, president of startup fund Y Combinator and an investor in the company, said that Cruise’s software and hardware was far ahead of the curve and that the acquisition by GM would give it a chance to expand.

“There aren’t that many companies in the sector,” Altman pointed out. “There’s a handful of others but not a lot.” The technology is mostly the province of tech and auto giants from Apple to Daimler that have added automated driving to their R&D projects – Cruise is one of the few startups.

Cruise hadn’t yet shipped commercial units by the time of the acquisition but it was well into road-testing. In January, an autopilot-to-human-pilot transition went awry in San Francisco when the pilot computer overcorrected to prevent changing lanes; the resulting fender-bender with a Nissan Leaf caused no injuries.

Perhaps the largest problem with self-driving car technology is the variable condition of roadway markings that are easily readable by carbon-based drivers but less legible to their silicon counterparts. As dangerous driving jobs such as long-haul shipping inch toward greater automation, local governments have begun to “ brighten up lane-striping ” on highways in states such as Nevada, according to that state’s department of transportation. Cruise is currently legal only on California highways.

“The road to new technology is a really difficult one, so I’m sure there will be more accidents along the way,” said Altman. “But I think we’ll get to a point where it’s much safer than human.”

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GM's Cruise Is The First Driverless Taxi Operating In A Major US City

A fleet of 30 chevrolet bolt taxis will be operating in san francisco, california..

The dream of a driverless taxi has now become a reality – at least for General Motors and its autonomous vehicle company, Cruise. In a unanimous vote this week, the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has given Cruise the green light to operate in San Francisco. This makes GM and Cruise the only companies to operate commercial driverless ride-hail service in a major US city.

The keyword here is "major city" as Waymo was the first to offer autonomous vehicles as taxi rides to the public in 2020, albeit, in suburban Chandler, Arizona. Waymo has expanded since, even offering autonomous taxi services in China.

Gallery: GM Cruise Driverless Taxi

The exact date when the driverless taxis will operate wasn't disclosed but there will be 30 all-electric Chevrolet Bolt taxis that will roam San Francisco once the operation commences. Cruise said that it will roll out the fared rides gradually, with the aim to provide the smoothest customer experience possible. The company wants to focus on "delivering a magical and safe service for our riders."

As far as Cruise's timeline goes, the company's CEO, Kyle Vogt, first took a driverless ride last year. In February, the first autonomous taxi rides were offered to those who signed up on Cruise. The taxi rides were free and covered 70 percent of the city.

Driverless Affairs:

This time, the Cruise rides will be fared to cement the company's status as a commercial ride-hailing service. Cruise not only considers this as a piece of big news for them but also as a milestone for the autonomous vehicle industry in a shared mission "to improve life in our cities."

Cruise implores every San Franciscan to sign up on its website to start using and experiencing driverless taxis. The company also encourages users to leave feedback to continuously improve its service.

Source: Cruise

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GM Buying Self-Driving Tech Startup for More Than $1 Billion

General Motors (GM) this morning announced that it will acquire Cruise Automation, a San Francisco-based developer of autonomous vehicle technology. No financial terms were disclosed, but Fortune has learned from a source close to the situation that the deal is valued at “north of $1 billion,” in a combination of cash and stock.

Talks between the two companies originally related to a strategic investment by GM in Cruise, which was planning to raise a new round of venture capital funding. But that quickly morphed into an acquisition discussion with the entire agreement getting hashed out in less than six weeks.

Cruise Automation had raised over $18 million in venture capital funding, most recently at a post-money valuation of around $90 million. Investors include Spark Capital, Maven Ventures, Founder Collective, and Y Combinator.

The three-year old company is best known for having created an aftermarket “kit” that allows buyers to convert certain types of cars―namely Audi A4 and S4 models―into autonomous vehicles for highway driving. But GM appears to be more interested in integrating Cruise’s technology into its original manufacturing process.

General Motors spokesman Kevin Kelly said the company could not comment on the price or the terms of the deal. The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter. Cruise Automation will operate as an independent unit within GM and maintain its offices in San Francisco.

The plan is to grow the company aggressively and to get the best talent it can, Kelly told Fortune without providing further details on how many people might be hired. About 40 people work at Cruise Automation. The software company’s website, which has been updated to reflect the acquisition by GM, is currently listing 10 job openings mostly in engineering.

The acquisition follows GM’s recent move to create a team dedicated to the development of self-driving car technology within the company. The team of engineers and executives, led by Doug Parks, is responsible for all critical technologies in the car, including electrical design, controls and software, and safety integration, according to internal documents obtained by Fortune at the time.

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General Motors has been criticized for being slow to adopt new technology and for letting tech companies like Google take the lead in developing self-driving cars. However, GM has been quietly worked on self-driving technology, and its been one of the most aggressive automakers in adding Wi-Fi to dozens of new Buick, Chevrolet, Cadillac, and GMC models thanks to a AT&T 4G radio module providing the same kind of high-speed link one would expect from the latest 4G iPad or Samsung Galaxy.

And its preparing to roll out a level 2 semi-autonomous feature—a technical term that means two primary control functions are automated—known as Super Cruise will debut in 2017 on the Cadillac CT6 sedan, the only model on which it will be an option.

Over the past seven months, GM has also announced a number of initiatives that highlight its interest in unconventional transportation popularized by a new wave of startups, including a partnership and $500 million investment in ride-hailing startup Lyft .

It’s end game: a network of self-driving cars within Lyft’s service that can shuttle passengers around town without a driver. GM is also developing a car-sharing service, joining a growing list of major automakers pushing into new businesses to attract customers who don’t own vehicles. The new business division called Maven will combine and expand several of GM’s existing test programs under one brand.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated since first publishing with a response from GM.

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Driverless car startup Cruise's no good, terrible year

Cruise rolled out hundreds of its robotaxis in San Francisco this year. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

Cruise rolled out hundreds of its robotaxis in San Francisco this year.

A year ago, the future seemed bright for the driverless car startup Cruise. As 2022 wrapped up, CEO Kyle Vogt took to Twitter to post about the company's autonomous vehicles rolling onto the streets of San Francisco, Austin and Phoenix.

"Folks," he wrote , "we are entering the golden years of AV expansion."

Robotaxis, which give rides to any paying customer with no driver at the wheel, were one of the latest tech products to be fully unleashed to the public this year. Dozens of companies, including Alphabet's Waymo and Amazon's Zoox, have been competing to be king. Cruise, which is owned by General Motors, was one of the fastest growing of those startups.

GM had poured billions into Cruise as the company emphasized scaling up at an unprecedented pace.

"We're on a trajectory that most businesses dream of, which is exponential growth," Vogt said during a July call with investors. He boasted about the size of Cruise's driverless car fleet, adding that "you will see several times this scale within the next six months."

By August, California had given Cruise permission to run around 300 robotaxis throughout San Francisco. (Waymo deploys around 100). And the company had started testing in several more cities across the country, including Dallas, Miami, Nashville and Charlotte.

But then, in October, things took a disastrous turn.

California orders Cruise driverless cars off the roads because of safety concerns

On the night of October 2, one of Cruise's driverless cars struck a pedestrian in San Francisco leaving her critically injured and fighting for her life. Her identity has not been released.

A cascade of events followed that ended with Vogt resigning and GM announcing it was pulling hundreds of millions in funding. Cruise is now facing government investigations , fines that could total millions and an uncertain future.

"They were the bull in a china shop. They just kept charging ahead," says Missy Cummings, a George Mason University professor who runs the Mason Autonomy and Robotics Center. "When we sat around and discussed who was going to have the worst accident in that crowd, everyone knew it was going to be Cruise."

Tension was building

Even before the October incident, tension over self-driving cars was simmering in San Francisco.

Both Cruise and Waymo say their driverless cars are safer than human drivers – they don't get drunk, text or fall asleep at the wheel. The companies say they've driven millions of driverless miles without any human fatalities and the roads are safer with their autonomous systems in charge.

But, as robotaxis became increasingly ubiquitous throughout San Francisco, residents complained about near collisions and blunders. Local reports showed footage of confused vehicles clogging a residential cul-de-sac , driving into wet cement at a construction site and regularly running red lights .

Armed with traffic cones, protesters are immobilizing driverless cars

An activist group called Safe Street Rebel has been cataloging the incidents , which now clock in at more than 500. The group figured out that if they put orange traffic cones on the hoods of driverless cars , they would render the vehicles immobile. So, they started going out at night to "cone" as many cars as possible as a form of protest.

"When you start having passive aggressive protests like people putting orange cones on your cars, this isn't going to come out your way," says Cummings.

Protesters demonstrate against driverless cars in front of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) in San Francisco in August. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images hide caption

Protesters demonstrate against driverless cars in front of the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) in San Francisco in August.

Cruise and Waymo also ran into problems with San Francisco's police and fire departments . At government hearings, the agencies testified that the driverless cars were a nuisance. They tallied nearly 75 incidents where self-driving cars got in the way of rescue operations , including driving through yellow emergency tape, blocking firehouse driveways, running over fire hoses and refusing to move for first responders.

"Our folks cannot be paying attention to an autonomous vehicle when we've got ladders to throw," San Francisco Fire Chief Jeanine Nicholson said in an August hearing.

California allows robo-taxis to expand and emergency responders aren't happy

Despite public angst over autonomous vehicles, California state regulators voted to allow the companies to expand their robotaxi services in August. That prompted the city of San Francisco to file motions with the state demanding a halt to the expansion.

Seven days after the vote, a Cruise car collided with a fire truck, injuring a passenger.

A pedestrian incident and an alleged cover-up

After the fire truck collision, the California Department of Motor Vehicles told Cruise to reduce its fleet in half, to 150 cars, while it investigated the incident.

Then, just weeks later, the Cruise car hit the pedestrian. Based on police reports and initial video footage from Cruise, the woman was first struck by a hit-and-run human driver whose vehicle threw her into the path of the driverless car.

Cruise said its car "braked aggressively to minimize the impact." It provided some news outlets with video of the incident, which ended right after the driverless car hit the woman . Cruise also gave footage to the DMV.

Over the next few weeks, Cruise continued to expand – launching driverless robotaxi rides in Houston . Then, in a surprise announcement at the end of October, the DMV ordered Cruise to immediately stop all operations in California.

The DMV says Cruise withheld footage from the night of the incident.

The facts stated in the DMV's order of suspension for Cruise. California Department of Motor Vehicles hide caption

The new video footage showed the Cruise car striking the pedestrian, running her over, and then dragging her an additional 20 feet at 7 miles per hour as it pulls to the curb and stops on top of her.

Philip Koopman, a Carnegie Mellon associate professor and autonomous vehicle safety expert, says most human drivers wouldn't respond this way. "Before you move your car, you're going to find out where the pedestrian is," Koopman says. "The last thing you want to do is be driving over them, but that's exactly what the Cruise vehicle did."

Cruise says it gave regulators the entire video immediately after the incident. But the DMV says it was only after requesting the footage that Cruise handed it over – 10 days later.

It quickly snowballed for Cruise after that. The company recalled and grounded all of its cars nationwide – nearly 1,000 vehicles. It initiated a third-party safety review of its robotaxis and hired an outside law firm to examine its response to the pedestrian incident. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration also opened an investigation into Cruise .

Meanwhile, The Intercept reported that Cruise cars had difficulty detecting children , according to internal documents. And The New York Times reported that remote human workers had to intervene to control Cruise's driverless vehicles every 2.5 to five miles.

By mid-November, Vogt was gone. Nearly a dozen other executives stepped down and Cruise announced it was laying off nearly a quarter of its staff.

Ripple effect across the industry

Cruise will continue its work on driverless cars as a commercial product, says spokesperson Navideh Forghani. She added that the company's approach is "with safety as our north star." GM's spokesperson says it remains committed to Cruise "as they refocus on trust, accountability and transparency."

Waymo has avoided much of the public ire that built up over the summer. Its spokesperson told NPR that "safety is our mission and top priority" and that "we treat every event seriously by investigating it to understand what happened."

But Cruise's controversy still affects the self-driving industry overall, says Carnegie Mellon's Koopman.

"The whole industry, with one voice, has been promoting the same talking points as Cruise," Koopman says. "So, if one of them is discredited, it discredits the entire industry because they're all using the same playbook."

A lot of that is the claim of driverless cars being superhuman when it comes to safety, he says.

Both Cruise and Waymo have released studies saying their vehicles are involved in fewer crashes than human drivers. One Waymo study says it has an 85% reduction in injury-causing collisions and a Cruise study says it has a 74% reduction . Neither company has released the raw data of these reports.

Koopman says the safety narrative can unravel when people see the driverless cars on city streets making the same mistakes as human drivers. He says he'd like to see the companies focus on making sure the technology is actually safe.

"To be clear, human drivers will text, they'll be distracted. There's the saying, 'the lights are on, but nobody's home,'" Koopman says. "But it turns out, that happens to robotaxis too."

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