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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  Awful car! - 2007 Chevrolet HHR
  By Brad - August 18 - 9:39 am

  I bought my HHR used from a local dealership, which was my first mistake. The car, had front struts replaced twice, had to buy new tires for the front, strut mounts replaced, and a bunch of other parts, so Ive been told, all before 40K. Had all the work done at the Chevy Dealership and its still not right. Rides rough, front end shakes, annoying rattling noise never goes away, and now the rear end is starting to make knocking noises. Also, when I stop it has started acting like it wants to shut off, was told nothing was wrong, of course. I regret ever looking at this car. After 7 visits to the dealership in just over 2 years this car is still a piece of junk! Will never buy GM again.

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  Dont do it - 2009 Chevrolet Aveo
  By Jenn - August 10 - 6:46 pm

  I got this car when I turned 16 as my first car. Ive never hated anything more than this! Truth be told, Ive wrecked it twice but in both the wrecks the air bags DIDNT deploy and onstar didnt come on. Its extremely hard to see long distances at night and when it shifts you feel it. My dad paid $16,200 after ttl and he regret paying more than $10,000. This car is HORRIBLE

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  I can not believe this failure - 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe
  By John - August 5 - 7:17 pm

  Bought my 2007 new and within 1,500 miles had to replace the radiator cooling fan because of a bearing failure. Dealer could not believe this failure and said this was a first. At 19,000 miles a bearing failure caused my transmission to fail. I do not drive this SUV off road. I drive this to work and back with a total of 26 miles a day. I have taken (2) trips and now I would be afraid going out of town. I will be trading this joke in very soon. I will not buy GM again. Oh and again (Dealer could not believe this failure and said this was a first). Same statement Following a transmission replacement. If you like to look at this SUV then this is the SUV for you. If want to drive this SUV then

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  truck awful - 2008 Chevrolet Colorado
  By marty - August 4 - 9:01 pm

  As far as Im concerned the thing is an underpowered piece of overpriced plastic junk. I have always been a Chevy guy, but this is the end of my Chevy days. My last one was a 2000 sonoma and I thought the plastic was too much. Now I go to open the console and its like lifting a piece of plastic milk jug, flimsy crap! For sale not driving it junk, junk, junk.

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  Will never buy another impala - 2006 Chevrolet Impala
  By Kim - July 31 - 11:22 am

  I brought this car new and for the first year it was ok. My water pump went out and of course I had to pay three hundred to get it replaced. The car is very cheap made. The cd player doesnt work right. They put all the room in the trunk when they should have put it in the back seat area. The gas mileage is a joke. Why put on paper it gets 31 mpg when they know it doesnt. The only car I ever owned that I hated more was a ford tempo. Dont waste your time or money on this car. Chevrolet really dropped the ball on this car.

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  Never Again - 2007 Chevrolet Corvette
  By lowdwn - July 29 - 3:38 pm

  If I would have only known the car would be worth a 3rd of my purchase price after 3 yrs of ownership and 15,000k, I would have never bought it. The build quality makes my Wonder why and how gm is still alive. But hey, the next guy who gets the car for next to nothing sure wont have much to complain about.

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  Money pit after 100,000 miles - 1997 Chevrolet Malibu
  By matty - July 17 - 8:27 pm

  I bought this Malibu with 50k on it. It now has 140,000. One thing I noticed on this car was that as soon as I hit 100,000 all the nickel and dime crap would break. I had to replace all the pulleys because a bearing went bad, replaced the ignition cylinder lock which turned out that if it fails you need to buy the ignition switch as well. I try to do my own repairs this repair went from 35 bucks to 285 in parts I had to buy both. (awesome engineering, way to go gm) the build quality with gm has been crap for many years as well as the other 2 manufacturers. Things break that shouldnt. Driving down the road one day and the overhead light just came off. Come on! Really? Average.

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  My review - 2010 Chevrolet Equinox
  By jFlo - July 17 - 6:12 am

  Horrible drive-ability. No power. Crude seat adjustments. Poor visibility on instrument cluster. EXTREMELY poor ventilation, NO VENTS in rear of vehicle. Vents in front cabin have limited angles and dont even hit the driver. AC is so loud you cant hold a conversation. Massive blind spots- even in the peripheral of the front wind shield!

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  Aveo, what a mistake. - 2009 Chevrolet Aveo
  By roadkilled680 - July 16 - 3:35 pm

  Where do I start? Theres so much wrong. It started with the accelerator being wired backwards. When you step down on the gas it stops when you let up it goes. The engine sputters on acceleration. The trans grinds into 2nd gear. Gas mileage very poor 30 highway at best with 5 spd. Now the other day the engine just died and I couldnt get it going again. Bought brand new 09 gm will not accept any responsibility

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  Worst car I ever drove in the city - 2010 Chevrolet Malibu
  By mike - July 13 - 1:10 pm

  This car is great on the highway, is a different story in the city, every imperfection on the roadway is an adventure. Bring your cowboy hat and boots, because youll think youre in a stagecoach,