Insight vs Chevy Cruze Eco

[HybridNewGuy]

I have had an Insight on order for months and it in many ways is the ideal car for me. However, I continue to have some nagging doubts about the room in the back seat as I do, on occasion, have people sitting in the back seat. A Prius is out of my price range. The only car that I could see that might offer something halfway close to the mpg would be a Cruze Eco and on paper it has more headroom in the back seat. Has anyone that has an Insight sat in a Cruze? What were your observations about seating room and the car overall? Feel free to praise or bash either vehicle, but I am looking for specifics if you do. I do know that most Insight owners here are very satisfied and that is important to me as we tend to keep our vehicles forever. I can't find much on the Eco version. It is a manual transmission which is fine with me as we have always had one MT vehicle. Thanks for your observations.

[circa1986]

I have driven the Cruze Eco (I think, with the smaller engine but with automatic transmission), including around a performance track set up in a large parking lot at a GM test drive event. In my opinion, the Cruze is a better vehicle. It has a higher quality interior, rides better, looks better and is more stable. Probably also has better performance. Also much smoother transmission operation.

As far as which one you should buy, it really depends. If you get an Insight, expect to get about 30-35 mpg in true stop-and-go urban driving, and about 50-55 mpg cruising on the highway. I average about 40 mpg with 60% of the miles being unrestricted highway cruise, and the rest being stop-and-go traffic. I'm not sure what real-world Cruze Eco numbers look like. Probably nowhere near that.

For a commuter car, I'd say the Insight is just fine. Good running errands around town, too. Never underestimate the utility of having a hatchback! It can hold a lot of big stuff!