2024 Chevrolet Equinox EV Review

This week I spent some quality time in the new 2024 Chevy Equinox all-electric SUV.  I like the business model GM is taking of late as far as electric vehicles.  With the Equinox, the Blazer, and the Silverado, there are gasoline versions of each, and you can easily make a comparison to the electric variant.  For those on the fence on whether to go electric or not, this is really handy.   

Exterior 

My test vehicle is the sporty 2RS version, which falls in the middle-of-the-lineup.  It has sharp looking body lines, beautiful 21” black aluminum wheels, a rear spoiler, and I love the Red Hot paint color. 

Flush door handles pop out to greet you when the key gets close to the car. This SUV emits a very sporty look, and you’d likely never know this was an electric car.

Powertrain

The Equinox EV is powered by an 85-kWh Lithium-Ion battery rated at 288-horsepower.  My tester is the all-wheel drive version, so it has electric motors in the front and the rear, a dual motor setup.  Range is always the big question and this one is rated at 285-miles and it was tracking on that mileage with the air-conditioning going strong, and a lot of highway speeds of 75-miles per hour.  You can go a single motor two-wheel drive version that will up the range to 319-miles, but you lose quite a bit of horsepower if you do.  On the gasoline side, you can get a 1.5-liter 4-cylinder turbo.

Interior   

Inside the Equinox 2RS has Evotex two-tone faux leather seats with red stitching around, red accents throughout the cabin, and although there is a lot of plastic inside, it is mostly soft to the touch.

As soon as you enter the cabin, you will notice a huge 17.7” touchscreen that looks awesome, especially for an SUV in this price range.  In front of the driver are the digital gauges which give you your speed, your battery range, the time, temperature outside, which gear you are in, and your odometer. It is easy to read and colorful.

The remainder of the big screen operates the stereo, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi hotspot, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, Google maps navigation system, Spotify, and a huge group of apps including Alexa, Waze, and the MyChevrolet app which you can use to direct yourself to the nearest of 174,000 public chargers that are available.  The center console has a couple of cup holders, a center glove box, and the air conditioning controls sit just above that.  I was surprised there was no wireless phone charger.

Moving to the back seat, there is a surprising amount of leg room and good headroom, and it has USBs, air vents, and a 110-volt power outlet for charging your devices. Cargo area is good at 57-cubic feet of cargo area with the two back seats folded down, and there is additional storage under the load floor.

Standard equipment includes remote start, power driver’s seat, heated front seats, rear seat reminder, heated steering wheel, ambient lighting, power liftgate, LED headlights and taillights, and there is a wall outlet charging cord included.

Safety

On the safety front, you get automatic emergency braking, forward collision alert, front pedestrian and bicycle braking, safety alert seat, rear cross traffic alert, blind spot monitoring, reverse automatic braking, adaptive cruise control, and HD surround view rear camera that works great!

Options

My review vehicle has $6,000 in options including the all-wheel drive package for $3,300 and GM’s terrific Super Cruise self-driving system for $2,700.  These are two items many will not want, and if so, this becomes a very affordable electric SUV.

Super Cruise

If you are not familiar with Super Cruise, GM has driven and mapped out almost 750,000 miles of divided highways across America.  On an approved road, you’ll get a green light on the dash.  Set the cruise control, hit the Super Cruise, and the vehicle literally drives itself. If you want to change lanes, turn on your blinker and it will make sure there is enough room and will change lanes for you. A small camera on the steering wheel monitors your eyes to make sure you are engaged, and if not, you get a verbal warning.  After that, the car will start to slow down, the flashers come on, and it will safely get you off the road and OnStar will call for help.  This is in case the driver is incapacitated. I’ve tested many of these systems, and still this one performs best in my opinion. 

Ride and Drive

The Equinox EV surprised me with a super quiet interior and zero road noise.  It has good acceleration, a great ride, and responsive steering.  I drove this one 90-miles and back to my lake house, and it was a great highway vehicle. 

One feature I really enjoyed was one-pedal driving.  Some people don’t like it, but when you get good at using it, you’ll only hit your brakes in emergency situations.  The Equinox immediately starts to slow down when you take your foot off the gas.  The friction from the deceleration sends a charge back to the battery to extend the range.  When the one-pedal driving system brings the SUV to a full stop, the Auto Hold brake comes on until you hit the accelerator again.

The other thing I liked, which was a first for me, is when you get in the driver’s seat with the key in your pocket or purse, the vehicle comes on by itself.  This was weird at first, but then I grew to really like the fact there was no start button.  Being electric there is no sound, but the entire huge screen comes alive.  When you put it in park and let your foot off the brake, it turns itself off.  This was a really neat feature.

Charging

Charging times are good.  With a fast charger, you can get 70-miles of range in 10-minutes, so in 40-minutes you can get real close to a 100% charge.  With a Level 2 charger like I have in my garage, you pick up 34-miles of range per hour.  With a 110-outlet, like in your wall plugs at home, it’s a long process. 

Friday afternoon at 4PM I was at my lake house and did not have a Level 2.  It showed it was 52% charged when I plugged it into a 110-outlet.  The car said it would be at 100% Monday morning at 7:30 AM.  As I always say, get a home charger if you are going to have an electric.

MPGe and What You'll Pay

Fuel economy is terrific at 101-MPGe in town and 90-MPGe on the highway, a combined of 96-MPG-e.  MSRP on this top-of-the-line, super loaded SUV with everything except a moon roof is $50,795.  The least expensive Equinox EV starts at just $34,995 before the federal rebate.  This 2RS, if you get a two-wheel drive and pass on the Super Cruise gets you down to $37,295 after the $7,500 federal rebate is applied, and that my friends is an exceptional buy for an EV that is this enjoyable.

Verdict

Electric or gas, this is an outstanding SUV.  However, if you are not a high mileage driver, and you have another vehicle for long trips, this would be one you’d want to consider going electric.  This is an incredibly enjoyable SUV to drive.