Overview & Reviews

Chevrolet sells an impressively wide range of vehicles, from subcompact hatchbacks to huge vans and SUVs. If you're looking for a reasonably priced vehicle, odds are that Chevy will have something to fit your needs.

Chevrolet got its start in 1911. After William C. Durant had been ousted from General Motors, he joined forces with Swiss-born racecar driver Louis Chevrolet to found the Chevrolet Motor Car Company. The company's first offering was the Classic Six. Introduced in 1912, this five-passenger touring sedan could top 65 mph, fast for the time. Chevrolet's storied bowtie logo -- reportedly inspired by the wallpaper of a Paris hotel room that Durant stayed at -- made its first appearance in 1914.

By 1918, Chevrolet's profitability allowed Durant to purchase enough shares in GM to regain control. Chevrolet became another division of GM, and was its largest volume division by the mid-1920s. By 1927, Chevrolet outsold rival Ford, with sales in excess of 1 million units.

In the mid-1930s Chevrolet introduced independent front suspension, which provided a smoother ride over the rough roads of the day. The 1940s saw continued success with affordable coupes, sedans and pickup trucks catering to American families, farmers and businessmen.

By the mid-1950s, Chevrolet, GM's entry-level division, had added a V8 engine, power steering and brakes, power windows and air-conditioning to its list of available features, allowing luxury for those on a tighter budget. Around this time the iconic Bel Air model -- available in coupe, sedan, convertible and wagon body styles -- proved very popular. The company introduced its alluring Corvette in 1953; the vehicle was the first mass-produced car with a fiberglass body.

The 1960s saw the unveiling of the popular, air-cooled Corvair compact, which held the distinction of being the first domestic production car with all-around independent suspension. That decade also witnessed the launch of the compact Nova, the midsize Chevelle and the sporty Camaro, the latter Chevrolet's answer to the wildly successful Ford Mustang. The Camaro proved an instant hit, comprising 10 percent of Chevrolet's total sales in 1967, its first year of production.

In the 1970s, Chevy responded to changing preferences by introducing small cars like the Vega and the Chevette, and by downsizing larger models such as the Caprice and Malibu. The company combated the market domination of foreign nameplates in the 1980s by rolling out the Cavalier. By the end of that decade, trucks and SUVs had started to become increasingly popular with the general consumer, and the brand's mid- and full-size models continue to this day to be some of the most popular on the road.

The '90s and the early 2000s saw the company raising the performance bar with its Corvette (notably the Z06 and, later, ZR1 variants) and reincarnated Impala SS. Chevrolet's Silverado pickup truck and Tahoe/Suburban SUVs continued to be hits as well. By 2010, the Camaro had returned to the lineup after a seven-year hiatus.

Modern times have seen Chevrolet make significant improvements in its small and midsize car models and introduce the Volt plug-in hybrid. The latter provides a nearly 40-mile range on electric power alone, and adds to the company's already well-rounded lineup of cars, trucks and SUVs. Though today's marketplace is very demanding, Chevrolet seems poised to remain a power player through its affordable and innovative vehicles.

User Reviews:

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  Very Disappointed - 2015 Chevrolet Colorado
  By T. Wallin - December 29 - 8:51 pm

  First the good: The look of the Colorado is excellent. I think it is a very attractive truck. The options are great also. The one that I owned was loaded with all of the bells and whistles. The Dealership and Service Department was great also. (I just had to see them too much.) Now the bad: I also experienced the crazy shifting and total under powering of the truck as mentioned in other posts (The one I owned had the 6 cylinder in it). Several safety recalls, and having the torque converter changed out at 3,600 miles to try to correct the shifting problem, left me very disappointed in the Colorado. The dealer that I worked with was very understanding when I informed them that I did not buy a new vehicle to stay in the Service Department. I had an old car that was paid off if this was what I was interested in. Unfortunately, I decided to trade the truck in on a different vehicle. I had the truck 8 months, and felt like I would be better off just getting rid of the headache. Hopefully Chevrolet will get the bugs worked out in the coming years, but they totally missed the mark on this truck.

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  Enjoyable car, but not best of the best - 2015 Chevrolet Malibu
  By Brad - December 29 - 3:53 pm

  Ive had the car for a year now. Ive never owned a car that had an MSRP of over 25k, so I only have so much to compare it to. Overall I have greatly enjoyed owning this car. For the bad: In that time, I have had it in the dealership for issues three times. The first was the airbag module gave up the ghost (it just popped the warning light, nothing bad occurred). Second time was for an OnStar module recall. Third time was for the hands-free calling not working. Turned out the hands-free calling not working was because they put in the wrong OnStar module during the recall appointment. All of the work of course was done for free as it was under warranty. Each time they arranged a loaner car that was in impeccable condition. Each time the dealership was friendly and polite. For the good: I have found this car to be quite comfortable. It is by no means a luxary sedan, but six hour drives in it didnt overly fatigue me or expose uncomfortable parts of the seats. It handles quite competently under all the weather conditions Ive had it in (hot, cold, rain, and wintery mix) and has always made me feel safe. It has plenty of power to get up to highway speed by the end of the on ramps. I was originally skeptical of the electric power steering but have come to enjoy how precise it seems to be. I personally like the stop-start tech, and it does seem to legitimately boost MGP. Of course, it remains to be seen what the extra starts does in terms of engine wear. I like the styling in general, and I like the accent lighting and size of the buttons on the various dash controls (for when wearing gloves). I especially like that it has power seat high adjustment on the base model. Annoyances: in the base model, bluetooth does phone calls but doesnt support music streaming from your phone. This seems to be purely a software roadblock put in place to try to sell the higher trim levels. The times the start-stop does NOT kick in seem to be a bit random sometimes. I know it is based on battery levels and accessories in use and whatnot, but I see no reason why after driving 20+ minutes highway time in mild weather, with minimal accessory and HVAC use, why it would not stop the engine when you pull up to a stoplight at the bottom off your off-ramp, when you are not doing stop-and-go traffic. Also, while the transmission is largely competent, it does not seem as smooth or as intelligent as comparable Mazda models that my friends have.

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  severe buffeting/booming, truck bought back - 2015 Chevrolet Suburban
  By Suburban Owner - December 28 - 7:19 pm

  Drive it a lot before you buy. These trucks have an issue where the roof comes detached from the roof bows. This causes cabin booming like being inside a big drum. The roof will start to flex causing pressure changes that hurt your ears. It sounds like driving with a window down when they are all up. Our dealer reattached the roof bows but they came detached in a few months and the issues returned. We are having our vehicle bought back by GM. Beyond this issue the truck is great. Fuel economy is incredible for a vehicle of this size. The interior is best in class. Unfortunately, this booming/buffeting issue is to hard to live with.

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  Good for the money - 2014 Chevrolet Camaro
  By Steve - December 27 - 11:15 pm

  I traded in a 2012 Honda Civic ex and got a 2014 camaro LS. It really seems like a lot of car for the money you pay. Its pretty much the price of a same year civic coupe, maybe with an option or two or a trim level above base but still... Its not much more expensive then a Ford Focus either. You basically are just giving up fuel economy and getting a lot more car for the money. I mean the base model is 323 hp and you can get 1-3 year old used ones well under 20k that have only few miles on them. Very affordable! If you have money to spend you have a supercharged beast in the ZL1 and then the Z28 which has a 7.0 L V8. The car is a lot of fun to drive. the front seats are very comfortable. The back seats are very cramped however. Visibility out of the back isnt very good but Im getting used to that. Trunk space is great - but Id rather have more backseat space. Pretty sure the trunk ate the backseat. Also the sound system is decent but lacks a USB port for a flash drive or cell phone sync cord. A tad dissappointing considering the civic I owned had a usb and you could pick songs on a phone or iPod through the cars sound system while driving with relative ease. Now being stuck with an old aux cord you would have to scroll through your phone which is dangerous while driving. Next car Ill have to get that type of system again as it was extremely convient for playing MP3s. So to summarize, PROS are the cars looks performance, trunk space and comfort in the front seats for a very reasonable cost. CONS are the cramped back seats, rear view visibility and lack of a USB port, though that may be an option in a more expensive trim level. Fuel economy is fairly decent highway if you are on cruise control, otherwise its not great but not horrible.

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  Bought it, traded it in within 4 months. - 2015 Chevrolet Equinox
  By Keith - December 27 - 5:57 pm

  Cheap, slow, uncomfortable. I bought this against my better judgement. Never been a Chevy guy but the deal was great. After the first drive home on the highway I was miserable. Bought it in July yesterday went back to Hyundai and traded it in. I will never stray from Hyundai again

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  Gas saver - 2012 Chevrolet Volt
  By Dale todd - December 27 - 12:09 pm

  I bought this 2012 as a leftover on the lot in late 2013. Dealership titled it to save the tax deduction thus making it a used car with 800 miles. I own a pharmacy and we make deliveries for customers. I installed a rapid charger at Rx for about $600.00 and avg 220 mpg. I go months without fueling up. Plug ins are great for the right person and situation. In SC the weather does not impact the charge range as bad as up north. Worst I have had is 38 miles vs 44 in summer. Overall it is a great vehicle so far. No issues other than a recall notice I received and dealership handled. Not even sure what it was it gave me no problem.

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  disappointment - 2015 Chevrolet Tahoe
  By jim o - December 27 - 12:06 pm

  Worst tahoe ever. Took away front tow hooks, 373 gears,low range ,removable back seats, body panel are thin as a pop can . Dents easily. Body trim panels blew off in car wash. Computer went out. AC went out. Back door leaks. Constantly gear hunting and shifting. Terrible for town driving. Backup camera is useless on the radio screen! Door handles very cheep. Interior molding cheep end scratch and smudge easily. Lots of cabin issues on bumpy roads, uncomfortable rattling ect.

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  Better than some - 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt
  By corby weaver - December 27 - 2:30 am

  Clunks under car. Suspension noises at 130k miles. Road noise inside. 33 mpg at 70 mph. Not bad for a basic car. Alarm goes off , heater squeeks,

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  NO PROBLEMS WITH TRUCK JUST TO MANY RECALLS - 2015 Chevrolet Colorado
  By Charlton Parks - December 26 - 11:20 pm

  Had truck almost a yr now and had no problems with anything. I have just over 13,000 miles now. The only thing I dont like is the Chevy MyLink. Im not going to pay extra money every month for Navigation that sux. My Garmin is way better and its paid for.

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  love my chevy truck! - 2002 Chevrolet Suburban
  By gerry scotti - December 26 - 4:35 pm