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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  Worst Car Ive ever Bought - 2006 Chevrolet Malibu
  By robdiddy - April 3 - 8:27 pm

  I purchased this car with 4000 miles on it, rattle in dash at 10k. Torque Converter went at 40k. The stock tires were horrible and made loud noise on the road. The interior of the car stained when it rained. The dashboard rattle became louder as time went on. Despite attempting to tighten everything in the dash, nothing fixed it. The catalytic converter clogged at 50k. At that, I turned the car in and took my losses. I spent 4k on the car in repairs in 2 years and it was draining me.

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  Fun but Unreliable - 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt
  By Elizabeth - April 1 - 11:29 pm

  I loved my cobalt when I first got it it was fun and easy to drive. After the first year or so, a lot started going wrong, however. In the past 2 years Ive had to have 2 door handle replacements, the sunroof has gone offtrack twice, & in the past 4 months alone Ive had to fix a leak coming from within the hood of the car (they had to remove the passenger seats & headlights to figure out where it was coming from -- cost about $500 to fix), 2 tired replacements (wear very easily), had an alignment, and got a new battery because it went completely dead. Also the cruise control decides when it wants to work.

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  Worst Car I Ever Owned - 1992 Chevrolet Lumina
  By Brian - April 1 - 11:13 pm

  My Dad pushed me into this car while I was unemployed, after wrecking the family heirloom (again), the 87 Celebrity wagon. The Lumina was as unreliable as the 94 Grand Am GT Quad4 HO I used to have, but was totally lame on top of it, and had worse fuel economy than the GAGT. In typical 90s GM fashion, there were no catastrophes with the car (saving it from a 1 in reliability), but literally every month something needed attention to keep it running.

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  Just OK - 2006 Chevrolet Impala
  By H .Todd - March 30 - 10:16 am

  traded a 2003 for this one,should have kept the 2003. The 2006 gas pedal pushes very hard makes your leg cramp up after a hour or so of driving. Ddealer says its in spec. Passenger seat sits forward slopeing too much, very uncomfortable.Cruise control not stable in holding set speed varies 3 to 4 mph then shifts in and out of overdrive constantly when in cruse. Engine kept dying all of the time after starts dealer says it has something to do with the E85 fuel, but has failed to fix the problem. Gas mileage could be better, 2003 impl got on average 28 to 29 mpg. 2006 gets on average 21 to 23 mpg.

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  I am so disappointed - 2000 Chevrolet Venture
  By Stacey - March 30 - 7:00 am

  We bought this van brand new at the dealership nine years ago. The first three years went great. Then the warranty expired and the wiper motor is shot and they stay in the up position all the time, the gas gauge doesnt work because the float is stuck ($500), the head gasket is shot ($500), the air conditioning is broke, and it is rusting apart in the driveway as I write this message!!! It has 80,000 miles on it. This car is a piece of junk! I know 9 years is a long time for a vehicle but this stuff went bust after the first three years. I keep driving it because after having a 5 year loan to pay for it I am broke and can not afford to buy another vehicle. :(

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  weak econobox - 2001 Chevrolet Prizm
  By Bob - March 28 - 12:15 pm

  Base model with a few options. Looking for Totota reliability, but used car dealer cant seem to fix horn/cruise control issue (they dont work, and need a new relay). Low seating. Checked oil after 1 month, 3.5 quarts low! Yikes, that doesnt leave much. After filling oil, a month later it needs 1.5 quarts. Another reviewer noted his mother ran her Prizm 3 times with no oil maybe because it burns. Someone else said it burns oil at highway speed. Could be. I dont see any drips in the garage. 3- speed auto stinks on the highway, car really doesnt like going over 60. Engine is making lifter noises. If engine holds up, this will be good around-town econobox for my HS kid.

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  Doesnt start x5 - 2007 Chevrolet Equinox
  By Snix - March 25 - 10:19 pm

  I have to admit, this is a nice looking vehicle but UNRELIABLE. This is my daughters car and there have been 5+ times the vehicle would not start. The key would even get stuck in the ignition. Unfortunately, recently, we have found out this is not uncommon. Our dealership service dept is great but cant find out what the problem is, although they have done some repairs. Also headlight has blown twice. Definitely a cheap feeling vehicle to match the price, does accelerate well. I have had 3 trailblazers and there is no comparison. Would not downgrade that far. The ride is comparable to the Ford Escort. The equinox is a disposable vehicle. Come on Chevy, you gotta beef it up.

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  2nd in a row with transmisson problems - 2004 Chevrolet Suburban
  By Quality issues - March 25 - 12:14 am

  It is easy to drive with great performance and gas mileage that I accept, but the thing was slapped together design-wise and put together poorly with cheap materials. The coat hook is placed in the wrong place and most all of the plastic covers for the seat tracks and one rear door light cover fell off. The rear door lights never have worked. The transmission soon failed after the 35,000.00 mile warranty ended and cost over $1,800.00 to rebuild. The ignition switch failed that cost was $600.00 plus the car rental. A power window motor failed. The leather seat has not torn and has not come loose at a seam, but it is of such thin, poor quality it has worn though.

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  A solid but very basic car - 1998 Chevrolet Lumina
  By CarLuva - March 23 - 11:24 am

  The lifters started sticking when the engine was cold around 60K, but other than making quite a racket, there was no negative effect. Most of the work I had done was routine maintenance (battery, alternator, turn signal switch). Around 90K, it started having some more serious problems (the most expensive was a leaky intake manifold gasket), but nothing terribly out of the ordinary. The 3.1L V6 had adequate power, and the automatic transmission was reasonably responsive. The biggest shortcoming of the car was interior build quality: Both sunvisor clips and one cupholder broke under normal use. Gas mileage was very good for such a big car: I got 27 MPG highway going about 75 MPH.

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  Great looks, good ride, poor qualities - 2006 Chevrolet Equinox
  By jhay13 - March 18 - 11:20 am

  I love the way the vehicle looks, the decent power of the engine is sufficient and the transmission performs flawlessly. I dont like that I cant check the transmission fluid level. It has poor design quality of the interior(seating stiff). The leg room is exceptional and recommended for taller people, front and back seats. It is lacking in fuel economy, I avg.18mpg, and under performs around corners and steering quality is under performing overall. It is a great riding vehicle but I get a lot of road noise from the windows. The poor design of the rubber fittings on the windows allow for a lot of slipage around the windows when you roll them up, if you roll the window down you can pullitoff