I sat in a pre-production version at the Calgary Auto Show and was underwhelmed by the interior and very plain exterior. That car had tiny little alloy wheels that appeared to be 14" in size and purchased from the local Canadian Tire. Happily, in these pictures, the Cruze looks very handsome, especially the interior. It does bear a striking resemblance to the Acura CSX from behind though.
I think the 1.4 turbo is going to be a big draw in this class. While horsepower numbers are so-so, that fat torque band, available so low in the rev range, will make these car very nimble, especially around town. Add to that the expected high fuel economy, and the current sales leaders (Civic, Corolla, Mazda3) are going to gave some serious competition.