2018 Chevrolet Cruze SS - IAB Rendering

Will feature a more powerful engine than the standard's 1.4L turbo unit.

Soon after the second generation 2017 Chevrolet Cruze Hatchback's unveiling at the 2016 North American International Auto Show, web reports speculated that the all-new model will gain a performance variant with a bigger and more powerful engine. Adhering to speculations, IAB's in-house rendering artist Shoeb Kalania has sketched the potential performance variant.

The performance variant could be named 'Chevrolet Cruze Hatchback SS', or more likely, 'Chevrolet Cruze SS'. With that thought, the rendered performance variant features an 'SS' logo on the lower grille. Modifications include mesh pattern upper and lower grilles, large air inlets featuring vertical LED fog light strips, fender vents, black mirrors, sticky low profile tires, light-weight wheels, 'Chevrolet' decals, black rocker panels and black roof, black shark fin antenna and new rear spoiler.

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The 2017 Chevrolet Cruze Hatchback will be available exclusively with a 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline engine good for 153 hp and 177 lb.-ft. (240 Nm) of torque, which would have to be swapped for a bigger engine or retuned to produce a much higher output on the SS. The performance variant, if launched, will rival the Ford Focus ST while another possibility is that it could be a high-performance variant like the Ford Focus RS and the Honda Civic Type R.