Once inside, press the brake pedal and push the start-stop button on the left of the steering to bring the diesel mill to life. At idle, the diesel clatter is actually quite evident – although it tends to diminish at speed. Slot the gear lever into ‘Drive,’ and, as you’d expect with a modern automatic transmission, this one also gives you the option of slotting it into ‘Manual’ mode to select whichever of the six speeds you deem appropriate.

The first thing you notice when you actually get going is that the engine still retains its torquey characteristic. The surge of power beyond 2000rpm is still satisfying. And the engine is exceptionally smooth all the way to its 4500rpm redline. The other thing you notice is the smoothness of the auto box – in fact, under normal driving conditions, you detect gear changes only when the tachometer needle moves within its chrome ringed dial. With the manual, you always had to ensure that you were in the right gear to keep the engine within its short powerband, which was between two-and-four-thousand rpm. With the auto, you can sit back, relax, and let the engine, gearbox, and computers do their thing.

The problem, unfortunately, arises when you’re in urgent need of forward momentum. Step on the accelerator pedal hard to initiate kick-down, and you’re left waiting until the transmission actually shifts to a lower gear. Then you’re forced to wait some more until the tachometer needle approaches 2000rpm and awakens the variable geometry turbo. Once you reach that stage, the Cruze will achieve three-digit speeds with ease, but if you’re the impatient sort, be forewarned. Moreover, the power delivery itself is a little muted as a result of the transmission. Again, these aren’t characteristics you’re likely to notice on a daily basis. When you’re stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic, you’ll probably give thanks for the lack of a clutch pedal and manual gearbox, but you will notice the trade-off when you really want to make progress. This is very much an automatic transmission in the traditional mould, which means that it’s entirely focussed on your comfort – rather than engaging you in the actual driving experience. And while it does offer the option of manual shifts that are exceptionally smooth, they’re also a tad lazy. The cockpit is still driver centric, but there are no steering mounted paddles to appeal to the boy racer in you.

At the end of the day, this is still a very competent, modern and refined diesel sedan that now comes with the added convenience of an automatic gearbox. But if you’re buying the car for the urgent power delivery of its 2.0 litre turbocharged diesel engine, stick to the manual transmission. The clutch pedal is light, and the gear lever has short throws to ensure that you enjoy extracting every one of the 148 horses from within the engine bay.