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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  I love Blazin! - 2003 Chevrolet TrailBlazer
  By TRAILBLAZERLOVER - September 22 - 2:00 am

  I simply love my Trailblazer, from the first time I saw it I was amazed at its style and appearance. Its power is unbelievable and handling so far is great. I would recommend it over the Durango and Explorer in a second!

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  After One Year of Leasing - 2016 Chevrolet Malibu
  By Collin - September 21 - 4:03 am

  After leasing this car for a year now, I cant wait until the lease is up. I have actually considering trading it in, however the value on the car is severely low, and I dont want to lose $6k+!! The Pros: 1) I love the look of the car, its much sharper than the previous model year. 2) ability to remote start from phone. 3) quality feel of the dash and surroundings (however, seats need extra padding). The Cons: 1) the Start/Stop feature is horrible, after sitting at a stop light for longer than a minute or two, the car starts back up and when it does, it loves to jolt the car. 2) I dont get the gas mileage that the car claims to have. 3) Within the first week of having the car, I noticed a rattle noise coming from the engine that sounded like tin vibrating whenever you would accelerate. Im extremely OCD when it comes to noises from my cars, so I took it into the dealership 3 separate times to have them take a look, had multiple things replaced on it, including a muffler, none of things they did fixed the issue. Then they tell me that somewhere in the engine there is a design flaw that causes the noise, but they cant do anything else for me, and they cant spend anymore time on it. So for the past year, I have just tried my best to ignore the noise as best as I can. 4) the resale value is HORRIBLE. 5) Wish the car had more HP, as the car is sluggish. For such a sporty looking car, I would expect it to have some more WOW. Conclusion: I REALLY dont care for this car and I dont think Ill ever buy a Chevy again after this car.

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  2006 Monte Carlo SS - 2006 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
  By Chris Paffett - September 20 - 1:06 am

  I have driven the front wheel drive 2006 SS for a year now and been happy for chosing it over the other 300 hp 2 door sedans available. Although, not the most refined road manners compared to Swedish sedans Ive owned, it delivers 26 mpg on sustained highway trips. It is roomier, lighter and faster than it looks. City mileage is 18 mpg at best, not to mention it should only be fueled with 93 octane. The Goodyears Eagles are a bit noisy between 45-60 mph, but grab very well at high speed manuvering. Not as refined as say the Infiniti GX35 coupe nevertheless Ill take the roomier cabin over flashy interior. Torque steer is noticable when you hard throttle at low speeds, but managable.

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  Too many corners cut! - 2010 Chevrolet Traverse
  By dswiss - September 19 - 1:39 pm

  I bought my 2010 Traverse brand new and it now has about 65,000 miles on it. Thats averaging less than 12,000 miles per year. I have had quite a few nagging (and recurring) problems with this automobile, but it has served me relatively well as a commuting and family vehicle. First, the pros: - Good size with plenty of seating and storage options. I have 4 kids and we can all ride in the vehicle comfortably without too much trouble getting in and out. - General ride and handling are pretty good, but not great. Now, the cons: - The original dealer I bought the vehicle from was awful to deal with for service. They were a complete nightmare. They couldnt evaluate even simple problems. There were always new Service Reps when I went in (that type of turnover should be a clue). At one point they had my car for 4 days to evaluate a problem before they finally hooked it up to the "computer" to retrieve the error codes. Im no auto mechanic, but with todays technology shouldnt that be step number 1? - After one particularly terrible experience with the service department at this dealer, GM sent me a link to an online survey via email. I went out and took the survey and explained the horrible experience. The survey asked if I would like someone from GM/Chevrolet to contact me and I selected YES. I never heard back from anyone from GM/Chevrolet. - Eventually I switched dealerships for service and the new dealer has been significantly better. - I have had to replace a gear for one of the Heating/AC system actuator doors 4 times already. The same part failed over and over in a 3.5 year period. The last time they fixed it they must have used a higher quality part or done some other repair as this time that gear has lasted for almost 2.5 years... fingers crossed. - I had to replace the "throttle body" at about 42,000 miles. Ive never had to replace a throttle body on any car I have ever owned previously. Thankfully GM agreed that the throttle body shouldnt have gone bad that quickly and, since I was only a few thousand miles out of warranty, they agreed to cover the repair. - Recently I was informed that I need to replace the timing chains at only 62,000 miles. The estimated cost was almost $3,000. Once again, GM agreed that the timing chains should not need to be replaced at only 62k miles, but they only offered to cover $1,000 of the cost for this. - Other general design and aggravation issues exist with this vehicle as well. The rear windshield wiper can not be replaced DIY. In fact, last time I checked, car parts stores do not even stock the wiper blades and will tell you to go to the dealership to have it replaced. What a major pain in the neck. I also recently had a headlamp bulb that needed to be replaced. The manual states that you need to go to your dealership to have it replaced and after finding some instructional videos on YouTube I understand why. In order to simply change a headlamp build you have to jack up the car, remove the front tire on the side to be replaced and then remove a protective panel inside the wheel well just to get to the back of the headlamp assembly to change the bulb. Who in the heck designed this thing? Did someone win an 8th grade engineering design contest? - Most recently, the front windshield wiper motor failed and needs to be replaced. In summary, I have purchased new cars 6 times in my life and I have never had a vehicle that had this many issues where parts simply failed in such a short life span. It leads me to believe that lots of shortcuts were taken in the design and manufacturing of this car. I dont know if this is still an issue on newer model Traverses but my 2010 LS is simply not a very high quality automobile.

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  On a trip w/ 06 Nox - 2006 Chevrolet Equinox
  By goobie - September 17 - 4:16 pm

  Have had vehicle for 7 weeks. Took trip from Colo. to Cal., went about 2400 miles r/t. Avg 21.6 mpg. Most driving was at or over 75mph on I-70 & I-15. Drove into head winds at times. Great vehicle. Comfortable. Easy, very easy, to drive. Good handling on snow packed mountain passes (in CO.) and off-road desert trails (in Ca.) didnt push it to the limit tho. Didnt need to as Nox AWD seems to have good traction control on all sorts of road conditions if its driven reasonably. In the back of my mind the biggest concern is the long term quality of the Chinese factory built engine. Engine purrs right now, will know more in 5/6 years or so. Hopefully not my last Chevy.

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  Silverado 2500 LS Ex Cab - 2003 Chevrolet Silverado 2500
  By MrMax23 - September 17 - 10:00 am

  You just cant beat a Chevy Silverado,Handles great plenty of power with the 6.0 Vortec! Dont make the mistake of buying a Ford or Dodge there is only one Superior truck and thats Silverado!

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  Chevy Duramax Diesel Rocks - 2003 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD
  By Comab - September 17 - 10:00 am

  I had a 90 Chevy work truck then switched to the Ford F250 Super Duty. Now Im back to Chevy with the 2500HD 4X4 Diesel. I found what I was looking for; all the things that the Ford didnt have. Much more comfortable ride. The LB tracks wonderfully on the interstate at 80-85 mph. Better fuel economy.The diesel has lots of power and acceptable acceleration. Easy to get in and out of and also low enough to work out of. The plastic in the grill seems soft and easily scratches with bug impacts. The tires and wheels are purposely small to max out the torque, but they look too small for the truck. When washed and clean it gets positive stares.

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  Bump - 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe
  By bama5029 - September 16 - 6:10 pm

  This is one of several Tahoes I have owned, I have vibration in steering wheel and bumpy ride, came with Bridgestone tires, the dealer has replaced the tires and seems to have solved the problem. I like everything about the 2007 Tahoe, except I think better tires should come on the Tahoe.

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  Awesome Car - 2000 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
  By niclin - September 16 - 1:54 pm

  Im 19 now bought this car after my 89 cutless rusted out. I saw this car at the dealership (in mid 2011) it caught my eye right away so I took for a test drive, liked it, bought it, took it home that same day. Ive had it for almost a year right now and I have to say its a very reliable car to have except the tranny is slipping at 188,000 miles, my driver side seat heater went out, had to replace the front right bearing, and the control arm. When I bought it it still had the original fuel pump so i had to replace that as well. It has great pick up for how heavy and big the car is which is pretty surprising, while getting good gas mileage about 22 city and 28 hwy.

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  Great reliable car - 2009 Chevrolet Malibu
  By Jenna Smith - September 15 - 8:48 pm

  Purchased used with 82,000 miles has been a great reliable car, has 107,000 now after 2 years and all Ive needed to do is regular preventive maintenance, has had a couple non-serious recalls that I sent to garage to fix, but looking at purchasing a new Malibu while mine is still worth almost what I owe on it.