A car moving up a category when changing generations is relatively normal after a while. What never happens is that he goes down. But, after two generations of not selling so well, Chevrolet had to downgrade the Equinox. The SUV became smaller and moved to the low category to fit in. Result? It became the brand's best-selling car in the world.
The Chevrolet Equinox emerged in 2004 as a rival to the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Ford Explorer, positioning itself as a large SUV. At that time, it was 4.79 m long, 1.81 m wide, 1.76 m high and had a wheelbase of 2.85 m. In fact, the first generation is the largest of all.
The platform was the same as the Chevrolet Captiva, but in the Long Wheelbase version (lengthened wheelbase). This platform also served the Equinox clones: Pontiac Torrent, GMC Terrain and Suzuki XL7. Due to its size, it only used V6 engines, with the option of a 3.4 with 188 hp and 29 kgfm and a 3.6 with 268 hp and 35 kgfm.
In terms of aesthetics, the first generation Chevrolet Equinox had a look strongly inspired by the Trailblazer of the time – a model that, in turn, was closely linked to the Silverado, not the S10 SUV as we know it today. The front was marked by square headlights divided by a chrome strip that also separated the grille. The interior had a simple finish and was heavily criticized.
With clear evolutions on all sides, the Chevrolet Equinox reached its second generation in 2009. Originally made only in Canada, it also started to be manufactured in the USA from 2013 due to the increase in sales. Even without changing the platform, the idea was to make the SUV more sophisticated, which established itself as a large Chevrolet SUV.
But the shrinking process had already begun. It decreased slightly compared to the previous generation, reaching 4.77 m in length, 1.84 m in width, 1.68 m in height and 2.85 m in wheelbase. The SUV was offered with V6 engines, specifically a 3.0 with 268 hp and 21 kgfm of torque and a 3.6 with 305 hp and 38 kgfm. However, it gained a 2.4 four-cylinder engine with 185 hp and 24 kgfm, which later became standard.
The look featured elements alluding to other models of the brand, such as Captiva, Sonic and first generation Cruze. Furthermore, the Chevrolet Equinox adopted a more urban footprint. The reality is that it ended up looking like a giant-sized Spin. In fact, a characteristic element of the Equinox only appeared in the second generation: the third side glass connected to the rear window.
While the first two generations of the Equinox were designed purely for the USA, the objective now was to be a global model and make up for the lack of several cars within the GM lineup. As a result, the Chevrolet Equinox decreased. Instead of continuing to fight with a type of segment that only does well in the USA and which has a weak sales volume globally, GM repositioned the Equinox.
The rivals went from being the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Ford Explorer to putting the SUV in competition with the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4. This segment, in fact, also has a much higher sales volume in the USA. Furthermore, the brand already had other cars in the category. That's why GM's move made perfect sense. In fact, Chevrolet changed the manufacturing location to reduce costs.
Thus, the Equinox began to be manufactured in Mexico, with additional manufacturing coming from Canada. Additionally, China became the first Chevrolet manufacturing plant outside of North America. In its globalization, the Equinox shrank 12 cm in length, 2 cm in height and 13 cm in the wheelbase, but maintained its width.
Instead of maintaining the Captiva platform, it migrated to the Cruze base, becoming a derivative of it. With that, he also left aside the V6 engines to focus only on the four-cylinder turbo. In this generation, the Equinox was sold with a 1.5 four-cylinder turbo engine with 170 hp and 28 kgfm of torque (later 175 hp).
The big star, however, was the 2.0 four-cylinder turbo with 255 hp and 36 kgfm of torque inherited from the entry-level Camaro. The engine was discontinued in 2020 due to pollutant emissions, but it is still popular today. Furthermore, the third generation Chevrolet Equinox had a rare 1.6 four-cylinder turbo diesel version with 139 hp and 33 kgfm of torque. It was sold in the USA, but only lasted one year (2018 to 2019).
Present in Brazil, the Chevrolet Equinox 2025 has grown again, but timidly. It remained 4.65 m long and 1.66 m high, but became 6 cm wider, reaching 1.90 m wide. In addition, it gained 1 cm in wheelbase, reaching 2.73 m. Unlike other generations that always had larger engines, the SUV only has a 1.5 four-cylinder turbo engine.
To compensate for this, Chevrolet sells the Equinox in China with a PHEV hybrid package. It combines the 1.5 gasoline turbo with an electric package. For now, GM is not talking about selling this variant in other markets, but it could well be offered in Brazil.
In addition to all combustion generations of the Chevrolet Equinox, in 2024 the brand launched another Equinox. The all-electric model has no relation to the gasoline variant other than the name. In fact, it does not have the typical rear window connected to the last side window, a hallmark of the SUV's design.
Technically, it is the largest Equinox of all time, measuring an impressive 4.83 m long, 1.91 m wide and with a wheelbase of 2.95 m. However, he is also the shortest, being 1.61 m tall. It comes with four-wheel drive or rear-wheel drive versions, depending on the engine layout.
Did you already know the previous generations of the Chevrolet Equinox? Tell us in the comments.
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