By Mark Borlace
Last updated on: January 12, 2018 at 2:55 pm
The Holden Cruze was a well-priced, large ‘small car’ when it was launched and was made more attractive by a generous level of inclusions. It didn’t take long for the Cruze to fall out of favour with the buying public though, as it suffered a series of common faults when it was pushed out to the public.
Holden Cruze 2011 specs
Average kilometres – 88,000km
ANCAP rating – 5 stars
Used car safety rating – 4 stars
Green vehicle guide rating – 4.5 stars
These issues have ranged from transmission faults that caused Holden dealers to replace the transmission assembly or its electronic control unit, through to oil leaks from the diesel engines. If the transmission should fail outside of any form of warranty, it could cost $3500-$5000 to get it back on the road.
There have also been reports of coolant hose fittings failing and leaking, leading some repairers to recommend the replacement of all cooling system hoses and fittings before or at the 60,000km service as a preventative measure to stop major engine damage.
Other complaints have been about engine oil cooler failures, which leave a milky residue in the coolant header tank.
So, the short answer is there are better used cars out there, but if you have your mind set on a Cruze make sure you find one of the newer models that has had any recalls looked after, with the lowest kilometres and a perfect service history.
That said, the things that make it attractive are its features for a vehicle in the small car class, especially its high level of safety features.
All have air conditioning, cruise control, dusk sensing headlights, power mirrors, steering and windows. The CDX even has heated front seats, rear parking assist, leather accented trim and steering wheel. The SRiV, meanwhile, has a rear spoiler and a body kit but loses the leather trim for cloth trim and the heated front seats.
Holden has sold almost twice as many of the CD Cruze sedan variant as any other variants so it will be the easiest to find, but the one to look out for is probably the SRiV as it has everything the CDX has, plus satellite navigation and a rear spoiler. The satellite navigation costs about $179 to update and can only be done at an authorized dealer.
The 1.8lt non turbo engine has a timing belt that needs to be replaced every 120 months or at 150,000km (whichever occurs first), and will cost about $2200 at a Holden dealer. The turbo 1.4lt engine has a timing chain that doesn’t need replacing, but the same 150,000km service is still going to cost more than $1000, so beware of vehicles with high kilometres.
The Cruze was a good value package when new but, in the used car market, there can be some with expensive repairs waiting, so be prudent in choosing the ones you shortlist before you offer it a home in your carport.