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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  Super Happy with this purchase, and you will be too. - 2012 Chevrolet Cruze
  By sparkplug1990 - August 5 - 9:22 pm

  I looked long and hard before I decided on this car. I am GM all the way, so the other options were limited. The minute I test drove the car, I fell in love. Everything is configured right where I would have put it. I am a bit of a bigger guy, and the seats and drive are as comfortable as they could be. I stand a little over 6ft tall, and I have plenty of legroom. All of the features I needed were on this 1LT model, it fits my needs. I would have liked to get a 2LT or LTZ but I am still extremely happy with my choice.

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  After one month... - 2012 Chevrolet Volt
  By mwfromva75 - August 5 - 1:20 pm

  I figured I would wait a little while before I commented on this car. I can not say enough how good it feels to drive this car right past every gas station where I used to keep such a close eye at the prices of gas. Now I dont care! I have yet to use one drop of gas, 500 miles all on electricity! Its a wonderful feeling! The car itself is nice! It rides VERY well for a small car and it is super quiet! If youre thinking about this car I advise you to go drive one - you will find it hard not to buy it after one drive! Its THAT impressive!

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  I LOVE my Volt - 2012 Chevrolet Volt
  By bdc1963 - August 4 - 10:35 am

  This car is so much fun to drive. I have 100% renewable electricity so "fueling" the car is truly environmentally friendly and what little I spend to do so stays in America. This car is very smooth and quiet with good handling and braking.

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  Worst Car Ive Ever Owned/Driven - 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt
  By apex32 - August 4 - 8:50 am

  Just purchased this from ailing grandma. Ive driven and owned both American and foreign cars. Long and short of it, a 99 Ford Focus with 190Kmiles and a broken head gasket drives better than the cobalt with less than 16K miles on it. The cars braking is unresponsive and frighteningly unsafe on the interstate and city. The power steering is more of a suggestion than an actual option. Terrible understeer. Most days I can only attempt to "guide" it rather than steer it. Its a small cramped vehicle and Im 55 150lbs, no features, uncomfortable, unsafe to drive, and no Anti-Lock Breaks? What is this? The 1980s? Seems like ABS should be a standard safety feature as of 2005.

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  Feel smart for buying this car - 2013 Chevrolet Malibu
  By dgl7 - August 4 - 7:42 am

  The ride of this car is very smooth and very quiet.Its not going to win any contests in the 0-60MPH area, but it will get 30-32 MPG in mixed highway and city driving.Strictly highway driving will yield at least the 37mpg that its rated for and possibly more depending how heavy your foot gets.Previously had an Acura TL,and I can say that the Malibu outshines the TL in nearly every category.Interior materials including leather are high quality. MyLink system fully integrates with my iPhone including putting album art on the screen. This car is a joy to drive and when I look around at other sedans like the TL or the Lexus IS I feel pretty smart with my decision to buy the Malibu for much less

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  2 months/1600 miles- 10 gallons of gas- lots of fun - 2012 Chevrolet Volt
  By markgrogers - August 3 - 5:05 pm

  I have had this car for two months now and driven nearly 1600 miles in it. Not a single squeak, rattle or defect. I love the hatchback- plenty of room when rear seats are folded. Onstar works greatand its FREE for 3 years. Satellite radio is a blast. Great handling, very comfortable ride. I have spent only about $40 in gas for two months (and still have 5 gallons in the tank). Averaging more than 110 MPG when combining battery & gas usage (see voltstats.net for real world stats of more than 1500 Volts posted by owners-not by GM- many are doing better than me on mileage). Routinely averaging 45-50 miles on battery when driving carefully. Not a home run- a Grand Slam!

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  2010 to 2012 2WD Colorado Crew Cab LT2 Z71 - 2012 Chevrolet Colorado
  By nickz71 - August 3 - 11:13 am

  I have owned 2 Chevy Colorado Crew Cabs starting with an 05 LS Crew Cab and 2.8L engine and a 2010 Crew Cab with 3.7L engine. Both were 2WD. My family and I have found this configuration to be more useful and appealing than the purchase of a compact SUV. The reason I write this is because besides the great service and reliability, the new 3.7L in 2WD actually gets as good or better than the 2.8L. We routinely drive 330 mi. each way to a family cabin. On three recent trips (May, June, July) we got 26.3, 26.5, and 26.7 mpg on one leg. This was with AC on or off. It just confuses me how some say this truck get no better mpg than full size trucks. It gets 17-19 city and 24 to +26 highway.

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  Cheap, and it worked for a while. - 2005 Chevrolet Aveo
  By sssargon - August 1 - 8:44 am

  I bought a used 2005 Aveo automatic in 2007 w/ about 25k miles on it to replace my Toyota Echo. It runs (and the mpg was nice), but has large blindspots in the front corners, so watch for pedestrians while turning & is lightweight so the wind blows it around on the highway. In 2009, w/ 45k mi, while replacing tires, found out there was a bent inner tie rod, which requires replacing this whole chassis ($700-900) it caused tires to wear out faster in the front and the car to wobble between 50-65 mph. 62k mi & the clock broke. After only 64k mi & regular maintenance, the engine died. Better replace the timing belt before 60k mi. Too bad it wouldnt have been worth it anyway. Disappointing.

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  Air cond vents & actual gas mileage - 2011 Chevrolet Equinox
  By rheda - July 31 - 2:21 pm

  1) The placement of air conditioner vents on the dash is bad. If you are the driver, both of your vents are positioned where the air only hits your hands & the back of the steering wheel. I did not notice this when I bought the vehicle or I would not have purchased it. If they would have left out the little storage compartment & put the vents closer to the middle of the dash, you could feel the a/c but as it is, your face gets hot and your hands freeze. 2) Most importantly, this car DOES NOT get close to 32 MPH. Ive driven it for nearly 2 years now and even on long trips, the best mileage Ive ever gotten was 23.5. They need to be more realistic in advertising.

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  Key Stuck Problems - 2009 Chevrolet HHR
  By kingshahid - July 31 - 2:10 pm

  I bought this car in April 2012. My battery died and so I called GM. GM boosted the car with their roadside assistance resulting in a stiff steering wheel that couldnt be turned. My keys got stuck in the ignition as well. Both problems where resolved but my auto starter (oem) was blown in the process that was not fixed by local Chevrolet Bob Myers. So I had let the issue go with them since I thought they had done enough for me. 2 weeks later (mind you I barely drove the car in this period) the keys are stuck again in the car. Car is at 88,000 km.