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:

• 

  NO MPG EITHER !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - 2014 Chevrolet Cruze
  By macrobert - March 5 - 7:55 pm

  No highway mileage.Best i can get is 27.7 this is hwy with cruse control set at 65. After a week at the dealer The dealers final words were ."I WISH THERE WAS SOMETHING BETTER I COULD DO FOR YOU "but gm says there is nothing wrong with the car .

• 

  The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly - 2007 Chevrolet Impala
  By marnet - February 27 - 2:29 am

  The Good: Split bench seat with column shift lever, comfortable suspension, generally good driver visibility, huge trunk. The Bad: Large blind spots at C pillars. The Ugly: 1) Tire pressure monitor / key fob / antenna took 3 tries to fix under recall in first few months. 2) Problem in steering column fixed under recall in first year. 3) Power steering pump failed at 30,000 4) Water pump failed at 35,000 5) Part of wiring harness burned up at 45,000 6) Now at 50,000 fuel pump noisy, a/c/heater blower not working properly, motor mounts broken, and transmission slipping. All these major problems despite adhering to the "severe use" maintenance schedule.

• 

  70000 miles+ Average car - 2011 Chevrolet Cruze
  By stcornish - February 21 - 11:25 am

  I have a 2011 Cruze with 1.8L engine with automatic transmission. I have had the car in for I major issue. The transmission housing broke. Chevy replaced it under warranty. The dealer said it was something they never seen before. The good is the car is quiet and the ride is comfortable. I am needing new tires so 70000 miles is good. Also I got 3 years of oil changes in the deal so I so far have no out of pocket expenses. The bad is the fuel mileage of 27.8 ave. I was hoping for 30+. The ugly is the transmission program. It alway is going to the highest gear as fast as possible. There is a three second delay for down shifting as it finds the right gear which almost got hit.

• 

  Great value... - 2003 Chevrolet Malibu
  By elbarto247 - February 4 - 12:44 pm

  Purchased the car in 2004 with 9K miles. always taken care of the care by doing the maintenance myself. Car has had no major problems since i purchased. Just had my transmission oil and radiator flushed a replaced. Car still performs very well. Taken it on multiple trips a year and always average between 26-28 MPG. Have highly rated All season tires and always perform regular oil changes. Acceleration always begins to be a problem right before oil changes are necessary, but the car performs very well otherwise. Interior is differently not of high quality and things do brake but nothing a little lover and attention wont fix.

• 

  My third & final review - 2011 Chevrolet Cruze
  By tat1739 - February 4 - 9:00 am

  I now am looking forward to selling my Cruze. Tomorrow I will be back in the garage for a third transmission leak issue. In addition to a water pump recall and an additional leak, and a radiator leak, and a recall on brakes, and a loose motor mount, I am officially done with this car. I remain satisfied with the interior, but feel that the exterior is looking dated with new car styles coming out. It does still get 40 mpg, when I drive on cruise, within the speed limit, on flat hwys and without cargo or passengers. Otherwise, expect 27-32 mpg. As a former Civic owner of 10 years without even one single issue, the car does not impress.

• 

  Mislead - 2008 Chevrolet HHR
  By cmmarob - February 3 - 10:26 am

  I owned a VW Passat wagon. I was getting 26-28 MPG on the highway. A friend told me about the HHR and that I would receive better gas mileage. I traded for the HHR and got between 24 and 26 MPG. Very disappointing to say the least! Also the space in the back with the seat down is probably around 12 cubic feet smaller than the Passat. Another great disappointment. The interior uses a lot of cheap plastics and the window switches are on the center console. I have owned the car for 2 years and I still have to look for the switches every time I go to use them.

• 

  Wont buy another GM vehicle. - 2008 Chevrolet Impala
  By md_jake - January 28 - 8:14 pm

  Car was my first new one in over 30 years. Bought new against my usual practice of buying used. This car has the worst blind spots of any vehicle I have ever driven, including my pickup truck with a bed cap on it. I have 73k on it now and have already had to replace all four rotors once, had the bottoms of the front doors and right rear fender in the shop for rust work (under warranty) and now my AC compressor is broken ... in the middle of January of all times. Also, my stereo has never worked properly and only plays music through the rear speakers 99% of the time.I think I will trade it in while it has the most trade-in value and try a foreign car or another Ford product.

• 

  dont buy ever - 2001 Chevrolet Cavalier
  By dontbuythiscar - January 13 - 6:23 pm

  I bought this car in 2008 and had it for 7 years put to much into the car to say always a problem with something just an all around bad car

• 

  2007 LTZ Avalanche - Read the complaints before spending the money - 2007 Chevrolet Avalanche
  By aq67 - January 8 - 4:30 pm

  50/50 chance once the problems start. I read so many good things about this vehicle that I wish I would have known the key words to research the bad. Like "Low Oil - Shut Off Engine" and then the "Traction control off", "Stabilitrak off", "Reduced Engine Power", "High Oil Consumption", threads & threads of people having problems with the same issues and GM is aware of it. Do your research a little deeper and look up what I mentioned here, then after reading about engine replacements - decide and I wish you the best - I truly do!

• 

  Stiff and Uncomfortable Ride - 2014 Chevrolet Impala
  By brianl19 - January 6 - 10:41 am

  Pros: - Great exterior design - Great interior design - Got all the little things right Cons: - Got the most important thing wrong: the ride is terribly uncomfortable. Extremely stiff ride. Feel every bump and road imperfection in the car. Enough to make me hate getting in the car to drive anywhere. Also feel much more engine vibration through steering wheel, frame, and seat than I would expect from this level of car. There is enough vibration to give me headaches on my commute to and from work. Dealership says it is normal for the car and thinks it rides smoothly. If thats GMs definition of a smooth ride, then it is time to look elsewhere.