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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  2008 chevy 2500 hd - 2008 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD
  By beikegm - January 9 - 7:21 am

  Major disappointment. Transmission problems since day one, door lock actuators fail repeatedly, overheats when pulling a trailer. Had rims and chrome trim replaced from corrosion, and its doing it again! gm wont replace it a second time. Trying to trade it off but cant find a dealer who will give me anything for it. Learned my lesson after 20 years of being a gm only owner its time to change.

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  Poor quality - 2018 Chevrolet Traverse
  By Cory Juntunen - January 8 - 8:12 am

  Owned for 2 weeks and noticed I have a roof rack rail that has bad finish as well a a spot on interior door panel that has a spot where color is off. Contact dealer and was told it would not warranty. Called gm and was told the same. There also a spot on dash than looks concerning, as well as two drip spots on exterior pain. GM does not stand by warranty or quality of their products. If you purchase one do a very close inspection of entire car to find blemishes because they wont fix once you take it home.

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  Disappointment - 2004 Chevrolet Colorado
  By Bmcmahan - December 31 - 10:00 am

  I bought this vehicle in April it is now June. It has been in the shop three times. (Once for Mold in the A/C, Water damage from a defective door, and had the transmission replace). I have had many Chevy Vehicles and IÂ’m beyond the point of dissatisfied with the Colorado Truck. This truck is fun to drive when it is not in the shop for repairs. Good on gas for a Truck. All in all I would be weary of buying this truck until they have a chance to work out all of the bugs.

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  where is the recall? - 1999 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
  By never again - December 28 - 12:06 am

  I bought my 99 Monte Carlo used with 22000 miles on it. It went good for 3 yrs and then antifreeze started leaking for the first time. Still under warranty, the dealership fixed the intake manifold gasket. GM knows they have a problem with the material the manifold is made of, it warps and antifreeze starts leaking. The car now has 170,000 miles and i just replaced the manifold gasket for the 4th time at about $450 each time. GM needs to own up to the issues they have with the cars they make. I wrote to them but received no response. I see so many issues they just ignore and that is no way to treat your customers! I for one will never buy a GM product again!!

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  Dont Buy This Car - Youll Regret It! - 2016 Chevrolet Malibu
  By Brian Kelly - December 3 - 2:33 pm

  My 2014 Odyssey was hit in the rear pretty bad a week ago. His name is Reggie, poor Reggie. It is in the body shop getting repaired. I have this 2016 Malibu Eco LTZ as a rental for two weeks from Hertz. To be fair, overall it is a nice car. Handles nicely like a German car - like our 2000 Jetta when it was new. The styling is nice, the technology is nice, the ride is sporty and fun to drive, the handling is sporty and fun to drive. HOWEVER, all the nice features fall apart because it is designed to completely stop and turn off when you come to a complete stop in order to save gas. It is a HORRIBLE and extremely ANNOYING feature!!!! Our Honda van has an eco mode that saves gas but it does not involve turning completely off at every single stop light. The eco mode of our van does not turn off to save gas but engages when the car is MOVING. This Malibu is a nightmare to drive because of this aggravating feature. We have begun making a game of it to keep from getting mad. If you turn the Air conditioning on (comfort mode not eco mode), the engine sorta turns off less. If you shift into Neutral as you stop at a stoplight, it keeps running. If you press on the gas lightly as you have your foot firmly down on the brake at a complete stop, it does not shut off. Even more of a JOKE, at a long stop light, the car will just UNEXPECTEDLY turns back on on its own if you are at a long long light. What a JOKE about saving gas! Thankfully, it is only a rental and I can turn it back into Hertz in two weeks. We have named the car Obama, as the president and his eco nut friends are probably very proud of themselves for inspiring such a junky car feature to save gas - eco nuts! Don’t buy this car if you are a car enthusiast or a enjoy driving like us, the shut off feature will drive you nuts unless you make it a game.

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  Wish I would have waited for next years - 2005 Chevrolet Equinox
  By Jen - November 27 - 9:00 pm

  I have been less than satisfied with my Equinox. I purchased it new in 2004. I have 13K miles and a nine page service record to go with it. Intermitent starting problems, steering column has been replaced 3 times! Clunk clunk noise in the rear. Stereo has been replaced. The drivers seat also replaced. Terrible highway gas mileage, and transmission sticks during acceleration.

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  We got a lemon - 2005 Chevrolet Malibu Maxx
  By GLen - November 24 - 2:30 pm

  Right up front, the stock tires are crap in deep snow. The car does fine with replacement tires from Firestone, but you should add the cost of new tires if you get severe winters where you live. At 17,000 miles the timing chain snapped and destroyed the engine. At 34,000 miles the steering column and other parts of the power steering had to be replaced defective. Since the 36,000 mile warranty ended both ball joints and control arms have been replaced as well as the right CV. And from about 40,000 miles on its idle and general feel have been getting generally bad in feel, like something else is about to go. Worse than the 175,000 mile Ford Taurus we traded in for it.

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  Worst car I have ever owned - 2012 Chevrolet Cruze
  By Karin - October 29 - 3:13 am

  I love the look and interior of the car, beautiful. It has pretty good acceleration, but lags and the turbo sounds like a weedeater. The weird jumping forward while braking is kinda scary. At 50k miles driving down the highway the turbo blew- without warning. No lights came on until about 10 minutes later, the famous catch all- stabilitrac light. Folllowed by a bevy of every light in the car. The turbo also caused the engine to blow. Pulled into an NTB (nearest thing) they looked at for $100 determined it was something to do with engine- so warranty. Towed it to dealer. After some run around, turning in every maintenance record- they decide to replace engine and turbo. Then would not reimburse me for the tow or the $100 fee I paid at NTB- very long BS story even after I gave them receipts. 2 days after I got it back- the car would not start. I panicked, called dealer and had it towed again. Guess what- just the battery went dead. So, not warranty and would not pay for tow. Six months now- on the brand NEW engine- coil pack has gone bad, not warranty and the coolant hose is leaking- not warranty. DONE!

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  Horrible build quality - 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe
  By Johnny Bradabadowski - October 25 - 11:39 pm

  I have been driving Tahoes or Suburbans since the mid 90s and always found them to be very comfortable and reliable with decent build quality, BUT this 2007 Tahoe LTZ is the exception to the rule. My wife and I hate this truck. There is a constant problem with something. Usually with the build quality. Following is a list of problems that we have encountered with an expensive vehicle that has less than 100k. The fake chrome is peeling off of the door handles, power fold in mirrors stopped working and now passenger side outside mirror is loose and will not stay set for proper view, button to release rear window latch keeps falling out, dash is cracked in 4 places and rattles ( we park it inside the garage ), navigation cannot even find my house, the + and - paint on the dial for the heat / ac fan speed has completely come off, Black paint on steering wheel near controls is coming off, DVD player only plays when it wants to, power rear hatch pops and jerks when raising, tire air pressure sensors will not stay fixed and this causes a warning light to stay on ( have had them replaced twice at almost 100.00 per wheel in the last 10,000 miles ), remote start stopped working, and last but not least the engine is an oil burner. This Tahoe seems to be falling apart! Luckily we did not trade in our 2003 Tahoe with 273,000 miles that has never had ANY issues at all ( absolutely zero ). My wife drives the 03 almost always because its just a much better vehicle than this 07. Also I have a 2003 Avalanche with 158,000 miles that is a great truck. What happened?? Why did GM ruin these vehicles after 2006?? Im looking to sell or trade this Tahoe. It makes me sick that I spent so much money for this truck thinking I would have a vehicle that would last us for years and many miles and now we will probably take a huge financial loss just to get rid of it. Im probably going with a Nissan Armada or Toyota Sequoia, or maybe a Ford Expedition. Since I try to pay cash for my vehicles, I certainly hope that I make a wiser choice in the future. This Tahoe is horrible! Edmunds sent me an email and wanted an update so here it is. Since the original review the power lift-gate stopped working, interior lights would not work when opening the passenger side doors, and the brake lights would work part time only. Bulbs and sockets are O.K. The police pulled us over because of this issue. It has also developed a loud roaring sound coming from the rear of the vehicle. I traded this piece of junk in for a Ford Expedition Limited and boy am I glad I did. We love the Expedition and it has power flat folding 3rd row seats. Goodbye Chevy and hello Ford.

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  JUNK BUYER BEWARE - 2006 Chevrolet TrailBlazer EXT
  By Senecio - October 19 - 3:00 pm

  To sum it up I have been trying to give it back since 3 days after I bought it. In one year no exaggeration it has been in the shop at least 50 times. Four times LAST week with another appointment set up for next week. This vehicle is poorly made, maintained, assembled and all around junk.