The 2010 Chevy Cruze is still a year away from landing on U.S. shores, but that doesn't have anything to do with its World Touring Car Championship racer sibling showing up in China. The Rob Huff, Alain Menu and Nicola Larini-driven Cruze WTCC replaces the aging Chevy Lacetti racer and will be powered by a race-prepped 2.0-liter four cylinder. Come on GM... gimme, gimme, gimme!

CRUZE-ING TO VICTORY?

* Chevrolet unveils new WTCC contender
* 2009 car based on new Cruze global car
* British driver Rob Huff continues Chevrolet involvement

With a new global car on the way for 2009, the World Touring Car Championship is the perfect platform for Chevrolet to put its latest model in the public eye.

This is the new Cruze WTCC car, which replaces the successful Lacetti as Chevrolet’s contender in the 2009 series.

Powered by a 2.0-litre petrol engine, the WTCC Cruze has a hard act to follow, as the Lacetti won its final two outings for Chevrolet in Macau.

But Chevrolet’s drivers are confident that the new car will be a top performer in the series, which has gained global recognition as one of the most exciting tin-top series since its inception in 2005.

British driver Rob Huff (28) from Newmarket, Suffolk, who has been with Chevrolet since it debuted in World Touring Cars said: “The Cruze is a great car and feels fast straight out of the box. We are obviously still at the very early stages of development but already I can feel how much better it handles and what an advantage the car’s wider track will be in a race environment.’

Rob will be joined in 2009 by Swiss racer Alain Menu and Italian Nicola Larini. All three drivers also drove for Chevrolet in 2008.

The cars will be prepared for Chevrolet once again by RML Motorsport. The Wellingborough, Northants, based company has a history of motorsport involvement with Chevrolet’s parent company, General Motors, and has looked after Chevrolet’s WTCC involvement since 2005.

The Chevrolet Cruze, on which the 2009 WTCC car is based, will go on sale in the UK during the first half of next year, and will be sold in over 130 countries worldwide. It is one of Chevrolet’s most important new models ever, as it clearly illustrates a new level of styling and quality for the brand, both in Europe and in the USA. The car made its public debut to much acclaim at the Paris Motor Show in October.

[Source: GM]

CHEVROLET PRESENTS NEW CRUZE FOR 2009 WTCC
To Continue Chevrolet’s World Touring Car Success

ZÜRICH / WELLINGBOROUGH – Chevrolet Europe has shown the first glimpse of the marque’s 2009 World Touring Car Championship contender, today. The all-new Chevrolet Cruze, which recently premiered at the Paris Motor Show, will continue Chevrolet’s presence in the WTCC, in which the marque so far has won twelve world championship races.

Testing of the new race car – which is the first to start Chevrolet’s new design language in Europe – has already started and is on schedule, and will continue throughout the remainder of the current season and the coming winter. Developed, built, run and driven by the same team and drivers, the Cruze will be all but guaranteed the same speed, reliability and success. The Chevrolet Cruze’s first competitive outing will be in Brazil at the opening round of the 2009 WTCC in Curitiba. In 2009, the WTCC will again visit twelve tracks, in South and Central-America, Africa, Europe and the Far-East.
# QUOTES

Wayne Brannon: “Chevrolet has motorsport is deeply embedded in our DNA. With the new Cruze World Touring Car, Chevrolet continues to embrace its long tradition of winning on and off the track.. In the past four seasons, Chevrolet had distinguished itself in racing with an increasing number of victories, not so different from the record sales growth which has developed in Europe. Again this year, sales are up by 23 percent in the first six month, and we are very proud that customers are choosing us in record numbers. For our European dealers, the WTCC has been an extremely useful communications tool, and they look forward to the next season with Cruze. With Cruze, we again look to emphasize the synergy between product and motorsports, and the WTCC is the best possible platform to achieve this. The championship’s slogan is ‘Real Cars, Real Racing’, and that fits nicely with our philosophy to provide real cars for real lives, with expressive design, world class quality / reliability and an impressive list of standard features and content, all at an affordable price.”

Eric Nève: “The new Cruze will be the next milestone in Chevrolet Europe’s motorsports history. So far, we have achieved every goal we set in 2005, step by step: challenge the competition, score points, prove we can win and then become regular frontrunners against competition with an established motorsports resume. With the Cruze, we will put the bar even higher and firmly aim at winning the World Championship. Chevrolet’s unique ‘trump card’ is having worked with the same team, engineers and drivers for the past four seasons, with the success we all know. To be able to do this again with the Cruze will only help to increase our chances of achieving our goals.”

[GM Europe]