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I Drove A $40,000 Chevrolet Equinox. It's A Well-designed Suv — But A Weak Engine Holds It Back.
The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox RS SUV in Radiant Red Tintcoat. It's well-designed but held back by a weak engine.
Benjamin Zhang/Business Insider
- The Chevrolet Equinox is a gas-powered compact crossover SUV sold alongside the brand's Equinox EV.
- I was impressed by Equinox's handsome styling, good tech content, and well-designed interior.
- But I was disappointed with its engine's lackluster performance and the limited cargo space.
The Chevrolet Equinox has been General Motors' entry into the hotly contested compact SUV segment for the past two decades.
In 2025, Chevy introduced a new fourth-generation crossover variant that will be sold alongside an EV SUV of the same name.
The 2025 Equinox boasts fresh styling, a new interior, a revised drivetrain, and updated tech to help it remain competitive with segment leaders like the Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV4, and Hyundai Tucson.
I recently spent a week driving a 2025 Chevrolet Equinox RS AWD around suburban Atlanta and the winding mountain roads of North Georgia.The Chevrolet Equinox SUV was redesigned for 2025.
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I was impressed by the new Equinox's handsome styling, good tech content, and well-designed passenger cabin.
I was disappointed by the Equinox's lackluster powertrain and limited cargo capacity.
My test car came to $40,370.The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox comes in three different trim levels.
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The base front-wheel-drive Equinox LT starts at $28,600, while the range-topping all-wheel-drive Activ and RS trims start at $35,000.
Fees and nearly $4,000 worth of optional luxury and technology features pushed the Mexico-made SUV's as-tested price to $40,370.
The Equinox's redesigned sheet metal is rugged and athletic.The compact Chevrolet Equinox slots in between the larger midsize Traverse SUV and the subcompact Trailblazer.
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Like other recent additions to the Chevy's SUV lineup, the Equinox's exterior design was heavily inspired by the brand's pickup trucks.
The most striking element of Equinox's new look is its front facia, which is dominated by a large, wide grille flanked on both sides by LED headlights with thin horizontal running lights up top.
The new Equinox is the same length as the outgoing variant but is 2.5 inches wider.The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox RS AWD comes with optional 19-inch aluminum wheels.
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At 183.2 inches long, the Equinox is roughly the same length as the Nissan Rogue but about 1.5 inches shorter than the Honda CR-V and three inches shorter than the Mazda CX-50.
Under the hood is a small, turbocharged four-cylinder engine.The Equinox SUV's 1.5-liter, turbocharged, four-cylinder engine.
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The Chevrolet Equinox's only engine option is a 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder that carries over from the previous generation.
The motor, which produces 175 horsepower and 203 lb-ft of torque, is mated to a new eight-speed automatic transmission on all-wheel-drive equipped models. Front-wheel-drive Equinox's get a continuously variable transmission.
The EPA rated my Equinox RS AWD test car at 24 mpg city, 29 mpg highway, and 26 mpg combined. Front-wheel drive variants get one extra MPG in combined driving.
These figures fall short of the all-wheel-drive Honda CR-V and Nissan Rogue's fuel economy ratings of 28 mpg and 31 mpg, respectively.
The engine spoiled my experience driving the Equinox.The Equinox's front cabin has comfortable seats and plenty of storage.
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How was the Equinox to drive?
Let's start with the good part. It rode exceptionally well, successfully cushioning rough roads without feeling floaty. It also handled corners with relative ease.
But all of that good work was undone by the truly lackluster performance of its drive train.
Even with fairly smooth shifts from GM's Hydra-Matic eight-speed automatic, stepping on the gas pedal usually results in some intrusive engine noise but not much else. You can feel the little four-cylinder's 175 ponies trying their hardest to drag along the 3,600-lb SUV, but the Equinox is just woefully underpowered.
This was particularly evident when merging onto the highway or tackling mountain roads in the foothills of the Appalachians.
According to Motor Trend, the 2025 Equinox can make the run from 0 to 60 mph in a leisurely 9.2 seconds. This was the slowest of the nearly three dozen vehicles I tested this year.
On the other hand, the Equinox's interior is excellent.The Equinox's cabin features active noise cancellation technology
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Chevrolet did a good job with the Equinox's interior. Cabin ergonomics are excellent, with intuitively placed controls, a good balance between physical and digital controls, and oodles of useful storage.
There's also a good mix of different materials and textures, with red accents to add a pop of color to the cabin.
The red turbine-design air vents that felt out of place in the Blazer EV add an interesting visual element.
All trims come standard with a large 11.3-inch infotainment touchscreen.The Equinox's 11.3-inch infotainment touchscreen features built-in Google Assistance and Alexa voice assistant capabilities.
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The Google-based infotainment system is highly responsive, smartly designed, and a piece of cake to navigate. Built-in Google Maps gives Chevy one of the best integrated navigation systems around.
The Equinox also comes standard with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
My test car also came with the optional 360-degree surround-vision camera.
In front of the driver is a flat-bottom steering wheel with handy audio controls on the back.The Equinox's steering wheel is heated and comes with RS branding.
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Also in front of the driver is a configurable 11-inch digital instrument display that comes standard on all trims. The display looks great and can be tailored to show traditional gauges, active driver's assistance features, and Google Maps.
My test car came with this massive panoramic sunroof.The Equinox's panoramic sunroof floods the cabin with sunlight but reduces headroom by about half an inch.
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It was a $1,495 optional extra.
The heated and ventilated power front seats are stylish and offer good lumbar support.The Equinox RS's seats are also available with blue accents.
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The black seats, upholstered in an imitation leather called Evotex, feature attractive red accents and RS-branded headrests.
The rear 60/40 split bench seat offers plenty of room for two adults.The Equinox's rear cabin features a flat floor which provides extra legroom for the center seat passenger.
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With 39.9 inches of legroom, the Equinox's rear cabin is larger than the Mazda CX-50 and Toyota RAV4's but trails the Nissan Rogue and Honda CR-V.
The rear seat passenger in my test car had heated outboard seats, dedicated AC vents, and USB sockets.
Open the liftgate, and you'll find 29.8 cubic feet of cargo space.The Equinox RS comes with a smart, hands-free power liftgate.
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The Equinox's cargo compartment is half a cubic foot larger than the Mazda CX-50 but roughly five cubic feet smaller than the Honda CR-V and a whopping 9 cubic feet smaller than the Hyundai Tucson.
When the rear seat is folded flat, cargo capacity expands to 63.5 cubic feet. Under the rear cargo floor, there's also a small storage area and a spare tire.
The Equinox comes standard with an impressive suite of safety and assistance tech, including adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist, and blind zone steering assist.The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox RS comes standard with Intellibeam auto high-beam headlights.
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Additional features like traffic sign recognition and rear pedestrian alert are available as optional extras.
My Verdict: The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox is a compelling compact SUV with rugged styling and a great interior undone by an underwhelming engine.The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox RS AWD's upgraded Radiant Red Tintcoat paint is a $495 option.
Benjamin Zhang/Business Insider
Chevrolet came so close to excellence with the 2025 Equinox. They nailed the styling, the interior, and the tech. But alas, the engine. No modern compact SUV can make do with just 175 horsepower. Even the similarly sized 1999 Chevy Blazer from a quarter century ago had 190 ponies. I recognize the importance of fuel economy standards in the decision-making process, but Equinox cries out for more power.
Fix the engine and you truly unleash the potential of the Equinox.
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