The Chevrolet Cruze has been one of the hottest selling new cars this year, but appears to be cooling off considerably as winter approaches.

Compact cars normally fall off at the end of the year, but the Cruze dropped off sharply in October. After averaging over 20,000 units per month all year long, it fell to just 14,000 cars sold in October, reports Bloomberg.

Small and fuel-efficient cars like the Cruze sold well earlier in the year, when gas prices were high. The Cruze also benefited from the fact that Honda and Toyota's compacts were hamstrung by the Japanese earthquake and tsunami.

However, once the Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic returned to full production, the Cruze's sales were hit. Both the Corolla and the Civic outsold the Cruze in October after months of lagging behind.

Now, General Motors is cutting production at the factory where the Cruze is made, as it currently has a surplus of the vehicle. The automaker previously added extra shifts to cover the high demand earlier this year.

One major selling point for the Cruze was its great fuel efficiency. Even if you don't have a brand new car with high MPGs, you can improve your fuel efficiency through auto maintenance, like tune-ups and oil changes.