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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  Two Montes - 2007 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
  By Mark Coucke - August 16 - 12:26 pm

  I love my 2007 SS Monte Carlo, we just bought it this month. We already have a 2003 Monte Carlo and since we liked it so much we bought another one. We like the fact that it has a V8 engine. Our first one had a V6 and we really love them for travel and theyre beautiful cars.

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  2001 Chevrolet Monte Carlo SS - 2001 Chevrolet Monte Carlo
  By mccuts - August 16 - 8:43 am

  This is a pretty nice car. My wife drives very short distances with it. So the city mileage is low - 14 to 17 mpg. On the highway at 65 mph - 29 to 31 mpg. My gripe with this car is repairs! After having the car 6 months the drivers side air bag (the one mounted on the drivers seat) failed. Then when it got inspected a tie-rod end was bad. And the leather cover on the drivers seat keeps pulling away from the side air-bag mount. The stereo system is very poor. It is an SS so you would expect something really good - and it is NOT.

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  Excellent Car - 1998 Chevrolet Lumina
  By mellibean - August 16 - 2:00 am

  I bought this car thinking that I would just keep a year or two. It was a used car, but I love it. I usually drove Dodge vehicles and just lost my Stratus to a bad car accident. I have to say this car is wonderful. I intially thought it was a "Old lady" car. But its sharp even at its age. I have to say I lucked out it only had 15000 miles on it upon purchasing it. I think its a very sharp car. It had all the extras and even the rims are cool. I have had other Lumina owners say "wow" I wish I had all those options. It looks more like a Monte Carlo on the inside and it mentions that on the orignal sticker and the title.

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  Better than Ford Expedition - 2002 Chevrolet Tahoe
  By yoyohong - August 16 - 2:00 am

  I have own both and the tahoe has a better engine and build quality, though not perfect.

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  Got this after the 2015 Journey - 2017 Chevrolet Traverse
  By Jennifer - August 16 - 1:02 am

  Coming from a 2015 Journey, I can say that overall, I prefer the 2017 Chevy Traverse so far.I have the LT1, which I understand to be the mid range model. Much roomier, wonderfully smooth ride, captains chairs in the middle row bring more comfort for the backseat passengers and also make it easier to access the 3rd row. I feel it has a classier interior with the dual brown/gray color combination. Better fuel economy, much more storage space with both the 3rd row up and down and from the drivers perspective, much more fun to drive as it handles very well and as I said previously, has such a smooth ride. The down side? The infotainment center isnt as up to date and user friendly as the Journey, it wont connect to my iphone 5s so I cant use the texting or pandora features, it doesnt have the auto unlock feature where all the doors unlock when the driver grabs the door handle, it starts with a key instead of a button start which means I have to get used to having my keys out when I leave where before I could just leave them in my purse and my final gripe is that it doesnt have a digital speedometer!! I have had a digital speedometer since my 2012 DodgeCaravan and I am finding it hard adjusting to actually having to read the speedometer instead of just glancing down to see the digital number. I do believe that all of these features I dont like were eliminated with the 2018 Traverse so in 2 years when I turn in my lease, if I were to get another one and those features were upgraded, I would give it 5 starts

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  Jasons One Month Aveo Review - 2004 Chevrolet Aveo
  By jlion1 - August 14 - 10:00 am

  What sold me first on this car was the Mp3 player. I have a lot of music I like and it is hard to fit them all on one cd. It handled very well on the road test. When you look at it from the outside, it looks small. When you get in, you have plenty of room. And the gas mileage has been good.

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  I love my Avalanche - 2004 Chevrolet Avalanche
  By Barbara Foster - August 14 - 10:00 am

  As a female business owner, I found my personal car being messed up with work items. I like all the "bells & whistles" of a luxery car. Avalanche was the only logicial choice for me. Beautiful styling. It handles great & the convience of the covered bed is fantastic. Im really surprised how much I have used the bed and how easy it is to convert the back seat area to enlarge the bed size. Gas consumption is too high. I average approx. 13 mpg city. Im a short female & access is difficult. There is a running board, but needs a small step that pops out upon opening the front doors, access would be much easier for short or disabled people.

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  MPG - 2005 Chevrolet Equinox
  By rgeida - August 14 - 10:00 am

  This would be a great vehicle except for the fact that with only less than 2000 mile we hav never gotten more than 16 mpg. Vehicle was rated for 19/25. That is just not true.....

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  1500 LT - 2004 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
  By conv68rs - August 14 - 10:00 am

  A high quality vehicle, superior ride and comfort. The XM radio and Bose sound system make it a joy to drive. Leather seats are very comfortable.

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  Keeps Running - 1998 Chevrolet Prizm
  By DJ-123 - August 14 - 2:00 am

  So far so good. Reliability is the key.