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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  boring exterior - 2003 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
  By jeffrety - October 6 - 10:00 am

  should of been more flair to the exteior of this vehicle. no fog lamps and no real contour to the sides of the vehicle. should of put 19s int he front and 20s in the back for a better angle of the trucks appearance... overall a great vehicle fun to drive and head snapping power a little lite on the top end though top speed is 110mph a little boring for us that dont care anout spped limits.

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  Great Truck - 2003 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
  By Dave Dico - October 6 - 10:00 am

  Great ride. Quiet and comfortable. Well engineered interior, although kind of cheesy. No room behind seat and no right arm rest for driver. Handling is way above average. Turning radius isnt great, but very acceptable. Cannot exceed 98 mph because of a control module governor. Overall, excellent truck. Classy exterior design. Headlamps are awesome.

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  Love It!!! - 1999 Chevrolet Venture
  By Anna - October 5 - 2:00 am

  I have had my van for 3 years now, and my husband wants me to trade it in for a new sporty SUV. I cant-I have not found anything that compares to my van. I prefer the van to the SUVs. The van has everything I would want in an SUV (except the 4-wheel drive) for half of the price.

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  Its worth it - 1996 Chevrolet Camaro
  By Andee - October 5 - 2:00 am

  I just purchased a used 96 RS model, I am a young guy, I am 20.I look young also,hence, the cops here are all over me.Ive been pulled over in my RED camaro about 5 times in the last 3 months.Most of the times for no reason at all, or they would give some lame excuse.This car gets attention !! I believe its worth it though, it handles great,it is fast,and i get a lot of compliments on it

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  Not what I expected - 2008 Chevrolet Silverado 3500HD
  By Dan - October 4 - 4:00 pm

  A very strong tow vehicle and decent appearance.. but that is about it. The interior is very cheap with rattles since the first month of ownership. The blind spots are terrible. I average 11 MPG loaded or empty. As far as towing ability, no problem. As far as build quality... its not what you would expect for a 48K truck. My F-350 was far more roomy and comfortable. Also the base tires are too small for the truck. The tail gate is flimsy.

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  Great car poor dealership experience - 2013 Chevrolet Volt
  By Tom Spicer - October 4 - 11:36 am

  Love the car. Fun to drive. Zippy. Havent put any gas in it since I bought it 3 weeks ago. Doesnt stink up the garage like my wifes car when I start it. Usually recharges fully on 110 Volt circuit overnight. The bad. 2 weeks after getting the car the "service airbag" light came in. Took it to the Chevy dealership which was a super poor customer service experience and they told me that the passenger presence system had failed and to fix it would cost $775. No thank you. I will investigate other ways to fix it. The infotainment center is a nightmare and the stock sound system is pathetic. You can forget about finding or changing anything below the screen. Good luck trying to change the radio to usb too. For an almost $40 K new MSRP, they could have put some $12 speakers in instead of $2 ones. Perhaps the GM engineers should actually go out and listen to some music? Same thing for the seats. No lumbar support in a car of this value???? Come on. How long had GM made car seats? Have they learned anything??? No power drivers side seat adjustments either. Guess they skimped to save money. Too bad.

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  Love my car but.... - 1997 Chevrolet Lumina
  By mpt - October 4 - 2:00 am

  This was my company car for 2 years before I bought it so it a few miles on it at purchase time. The ride is GREAT and it has been the absolute family choise on all family vacations because of the interior comfortableness and trunk room. However, word of caution, re:fuel components. The fuel pump has gone out at a cost of $900 and I have had to service the fuel injecters several times. The last being a replacement(another high cost). Shop said this is not unusual for this car ( especially in Oregon because of the high condesation that gets in the gas) and parts are expensive (probably because they are no longer being made).

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  The car you ahte to love - 1996 Chevrolet Corsica
  By SBW - October 2 - 2:00 am

  2nd owner, this served me well 5 years. Want a different car, but this outdrives other used midsize sedans. I swear this will never die.

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  good dependable college car - 1991 Chevrolet Corsica
  By trendy - October 2 - 2:00 am

  I bought this car my senior year of high school. The next five years that I owned this car I had to put vary minimal amounts of money into the maintenance of this car. Major repairs included a new alternator and distributer coils (or something close to that). I recently bought a new honda accord and I am happy to say I actually do miss my corisca. I am happy with my honda but my corsica drove very similar to my honda.

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  2001 Chevy malibu - 2001 Chevrolet Malibu
  By dtownfb - October 2 - 2:00 am

  I have been pleasently surprised by this car. I did not expect to have such a good experience with a GM car. Ive owned a 1994 Accord before this car and Im not saying it is better then the current Accord but it is a nice car. Esp. for the price. Since it seems that GM has finally ironed out some of the problem areas, I would recommend this car to anyone.