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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  Duramax - 2006 Chevrolet Silverado 3500
  By marv eiler - August 30 - 11:33 pm

  I had a Dodge and a Ford and I like the Duramax an overall truck. We pull to horse shows and when we get there we are not drained from the ride. The new Duramax is so quiet it is often mistaken for a gas engine. The power is equal to the Ford, the seats are more comfortable, so in closing I would say to look at the Duramax dually before you buy.

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  1/2 ton Long Bed Alright, Alright, Alright - 2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
  By Spotted123 - August 30 - 9:23 am

  New truck, no problems, 5.3 is strong, shifts smooth, rides great, looks good. Very happy with the 2008 1500 LT1!

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  An American made product - 2006 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
  By Jack Hayes - August 29 - 9:13 am

  Very comfortable and handles like a dream. Very responsive on acceleration. Its a pleasure to drive and nice to look at, and its a Chevy

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  Impala with a luxury feel - 2016 Chevrolet Impala
  By S Bera - August 28 - 9:49 pm

  I highly recommend. This is my 5th Impala, and this is the best of the bunch. A luxury ride and feel, and leather interior. Cloth in part of the seats for added breathability. Great steering and brakes. Radio display takes a little getting used to. View out the rear window is just adequate. Many other features to like such as smooth transmission, turn signals on rear view mirrors, great sounding radio with XM, comfortable seats. Everything that counts is included with this package.

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  Monte Carlo SS great all around car - 2003 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
  By SScrazy - August 28 - 2:00 am

  Ive look into buying a Monte Carlo for about 2 years now and test drove a few and I must say for the price you get performance and quality that you would normaly find in most higher dollar cars. I bought a SS yesterday and I love it.

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  Wouldnt change anything - 2003 Chevrolet Corvette
  By ferraf - August 28 - 2:00 am

  Handels like a dream, great performance, handeling, braking. I am huge corvete fan after this purchase. Great sound system, HUD display is a great feature. The eletromatnetic shock system new to the 03 model is a great feature, the wife enjoys the confort ride. The shocks tighten up in a snap for incredible tights cornering.

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  Very happy with 03 Silverado - 2003 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
  By RHBinDFW - August 27 - 10:26 am

  Ive had only one minor problem with my truck, more of a nuisance actually. The steering shafts tenon-and-spline compression joint requires additional grease packing to minimize some minor knocking noises on bumpy roads. Overall, a solid, reliable vehicle.

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  SS - 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt
  By Alberto - August 27 - 9:30 am

  Great car. Fun to drive. Comfy and accomodating interior. The exterior is sporty, yet livable. Ergonomics are great, nothing is out of reach. The shifter fits perfectly in your hand and requires only short throws. Effortless clutch activation and great brakes! No need to rev to the red line for power, the supercharger has almost no lag and kicks in low in the rpm range for great torque at low rpms. Shifter sometimes feels a bit spongy and hesitant, but overall, a great car, worthy of its SS insignia. Only 91 or above octane fuel on this car, anything less is a waste. 93 octane fuels work a miracle on this little four-banger. Not faster than the SRT-4 but certainly much more civilized and refined.

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  Fantastic! Base engine is definitely adequate - 2016 Chevrolet Malibu
  By James - August 26 - 9:56 am

  Spent 6 days and over 800 miles driving the new model Malibu as a rental. Surprisingly, this was the new 2016 model and not the 2016 Limited that you would typically find in a rental fleet. I currently own a 2015 Malibu 1LT and love it as well. I would say that the new 1.5L base engine in the new 2016 Malibu is definitely adequate. Acceleration is not going to push you back into your seat, but is certainly adequate, even for merging into high speed traffic in Washington DC with short on-ramps (I know, rare that you ever have to merge into "high speed" traffic in DC!). The seats were especially comfortable in the front. While I prefer the leather in my 2015 Malibu, the cloth seats were exceptionally comfortable for long drives (3+ hours at a time). My rear-seat, adult passengers did comment they felt the seats in my 2015 1LT were more comfortable than these in the new 2016; however, they did state that they werent uncomfortable nor did they feel cramped. I was very impressed with the fuel economy of the 1.5L base engine as, just like I get in my 2.5L 2015 Malibu, I averaged 40+ mpg on the highway at 60-65mph speeds. If you are willing to sacrifice fuel economy, the 2.0L turbo sounds like it provides very nice power; however, the fuel economy of the 1.5L combined with very adequate acceleration make this a definite winner in my book.

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  3 weeks - 2006 Chevrolet HHR
  By 6111 - August 26 - 1:40 am

  What a great car, mine is an LT1 with the auto 2.4. So far 25 MPG city 32 HWY. This thing simply rides like a large car, smooth and quiet. I took a PT for a test drive and its not in the same class as the HHR. Mine cost $17600 MSRP was $19500, for this price its a super car. Dont pay more than $18500 for an HHR if you do you got ripped off. The 3 dealers I went to in Omaha all dropped the MSRP by at least $1500. Sure I had to order it, but it only took 7 weeks. IMHO the $21000-$24000 HHRs are a huge waste of money.