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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  Bye Bye GM - 2006 Chevrolet Malibu
  By Chevy Lemon - November 11 - 4:24 pm

  Rotors at 6K, lot rust..not, headlights shake, both units are loose, tap on the lense, youll see, no GM fix! Tie rods replaced at 12K along with rotors, again! Power train control module, door latches, security system, horn blows all by itself, check engine light, thermostat, blows all over the road, wind & road noise, car shakes so bad the visors move, rattles, clunking under the floor & pedals, 34K & going for another rotor "fix" as we speak #7, you can only file them so many times, replacement might work but no, tires are junk, told I needed 30K on them before they will replace under my warranty. What! No wonder GM is going under. Worst car ever. A roach! So much for "Buy American"!

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  08 Cobalt LS - glad I bought it - 2008 Chevrolet Cobalt
  By norb - November 11 - 2:42 pm

  Very good, solid car overall. Fun to drive, reasonably priced compared to the competition, and easy on gas. Ive put about 5000 miles on the car and have had no problems. Ive been getting 25-26 mpg around town, 31 mpg on longer trips, and I do have a habit of standing on the gas!

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  Good Enough - 2005 Chevrolet Equinox
  By theccur - November 11 - 2:29 pm

  This is a powerful and reasonably comfortable truck with enough cargo room to transport a fair amount of watever you normally haul as well as a good sized trailer or boat. It is even reasonably attractive. I like my truck but would not recommend going without warranty coverage. There are a host of minor (correctable) problems that GM fails to correct unless you complain, and then only at the owners expense. Brakes and coolant are ongoing issues. Fortuately my dealer is reasonably responsive. I dont feel my money was badly spent, but it could have definately been better spent.

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  You WILL be replacing a transmission - 2012 Chevrolet Cruze
  By rotary - November 11 - 12:52 pm

  I purchased a brand new (at the time) Chevy Cruze back in May 2012 and since then have put 70,000 miles on it over the course of 5 years. Pretty standard, Id say. Last week I was on my way to work and the check engine light came on, the engine started revving high, almost like it was downshifting, and when I pulled it to the side of the road it no longer would accelerate. I turned the car off, turned it back on, it would drive a bit but then the same thing would happen. In a nutshell, I took it to a transmission shop and I have to replace the whole dang thing. $3400. Apparently these transmissions are notorious for doing this which leads me to this: Why hasnt GM fixed this in affected vehicles? Wanted to make all aware that are thinking about buying this vehicle.

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  Go buy one today! - 2008 Chevrolet Corvette
  By Matt - November 11 - 11:33 am

  Ive been looking to buy a new Corvette for about 3 months. With GM reporting a sales decrease of 45% for October, I knew now was the time to pull the trigger. I bought the machine silver 2008 convertible with titanium interior and a black top. It looks great in the garage and I smile everytime I open the garage door. Absolutely no buyers remorse. The only reason I gave the interior design a 9 is because I cant plug my MP3 into the stereo... whats that all about? The NPP dual mode exhaust is cool as hell and the magnetic selective ride rocks. If youre thinking at all about buying one of these, dont wait any longer. Nows the time do get a great deal on a great American sports car.

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  WOW - what a difference 2103 vs. 2018 Traverse - 2018 Chevrolet Traverse
  By Scott S. - November 11 - 1:17 am

  We spent a couple months looking at all the 7 passenger options. (We had a 2013 Traverse - but had several concerns). The 2018 fixed them all and then added more capabilities and features. We knew you can get a great deal on a 2017 but waited for the 2018. Glad we did. In the end we decided on the Premier, but the dealer parked the Premier and High Country in the Iridescent White Paint option next to each other. For the small ($51k vs. $54k) price difference we went with the HIgh Country. I love the additional safety feature like adaptive cruise, etc. We also liked the interior color combination, polished aluminum wheels, twin rear axle clutch, power third row, and exterior trim. In our opinion, since we were spending that much money, and plan on keeping it a few years - why not. The dealer also closed the gap by providing a larger discount.

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  Please Die, I want a newer one! - 1993 Chevrolet Astro
  By Jim - November 10 - 10:33 am

  Bought because kids were fighting in car and needed more cargo space. Will tow anything, have taken seats out and put a cord of firewood, 30 sheets of plywood, dirtbikes, snowblower, appliances, you name it for the cottage. Will get 25 mpg at 60mph, one set of tires, brakes, shocks, and a muffler in 70,000 miles. Started outright dying on me 3 years ago, (got very excited) but only turned out to be a $11 pulse generator in the distributor. Sounds like a stagecoach on rough roads. I am trying to kill it by not changing the oil, 20,000 miles have gone by, why wont it die? I really want to buy a newer AWD model, but this one is worth nothing to trade in.I would buy again in a heartbeat!

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  Catastrophic failure of subframe cross - 2001 Chevrolet Tracker
  By Deborah - November 10 - 8:19 am

  I have loved this little car except for the exhaust system rusted out easily. I cant expect perfection from a car. But GM had issued special coverage with an extended warrany to 10 years or 150k miles for the catastrophic failure of the subframe crossmember which did fracture on my vehicle at 95k miles. Very dangerous. They have not sent me notification of this problem yet, they say they are notifying owners in waves due to part availability. Not smart.

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  Not that happy - 2006 Chevrolet Impala
  By Dee - November 10 - 8:09 am

  I currently am in a 4 year lease with my Impala with 11 months to go and counting! Not happy with the fact that it needed brakes and rotors all the way around at 24000 miles. Had and entire exhaust system put in this Aug, under warranty thankfully but now the warranty is up and I am terrified that this car is going to cost me during the last year I have it. Just put a tie rod in at my own expense. Other annoying problems. Lets see, rust spot that keeps reappearing on the trunk due to screws underneath trunk molding, clunking in the back end when you go over bumps, broken sun visor, fuel pump and hoses replaced after 1st yr. Passenger seat that clunks anytime someone sits in it. No more Chevys!

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  Hate my car. Really - 2012 Chevrolet Traverse
  By CHenk - November 10 - 7:53 am

  We started at 3,000 out of warranty with faulty airbag sensors in the seatbelt. 2 in 2 months. $2,000. 3 alternators. $2,400. Needs a torque converter. $1200. And today, the a/c quit working on the right side and rear. This car is bleeding us dry. And to update, we have replaced the torque converter - car still shudders. Have taken it to the dealership and besides the shuddering when shifting, it will almost die at times when you try to pass or quickly accelerate. They charged almost $400 to clean injectors because there was no check engine light. So, Ive spent $1600 and it shudders and shakes. Uggghhh.