Now, one of the areas in which you'd think the Equinox with shine would be in the cargo and space domain. While it is quite a roomy vehicle for passengers with extremely comfortable seats and great visibility, total cargo space (with the second row down) didn't impress for the size of the vehicle.
As I'm soon to be expecting my first-born (the world has been warned) and would see the Equinox as an ideal family vehicle, I decided to ask a friend to help me with a stroller test. I wanted to see if a generic, one-child stroller would fit easily in the back of the Equinox.
Turns out, it won't. The trunk opening and trunk width just isn't large enough to accommodate a stroller no matter how you angle it. So, one of the rear seats had to be folded down and the folded stroller had to be angled in that way. I was not impressed, especially since that same stroller fit in my friend's sedan trunk without a problem.
The power-assisted liftgate system is quite useful, and worth the $520 extra in my opinion, however, the automatic closer does push quite hard on whatever's blocking it and I wonder how it would react to a small hand or body in the way if it pushed as hard as it did on the stroller when it tried to close.
Cargo issues aside, driving the Equinox is quite pleasant. Now, it is not by any means exciting. In fact, the 6-speed automatic transmission feels downright lazy; however, that laziness is designed to save you at the pumps with Chevrolet claiming the Equinox will do an astounding 6.1L/100km on the highway (let's not forget that the hybrid Lexus CT 200h achieved 5.5L/100km).
Unfortunately, I was not able to reach their claimed numbers and averaged 11L/100km throughout the week, which is good for the 4-cylinder. The 182 hp and 172 lb-ft of torque feel pretty non-existent most of the time, but then this isn't supposed to be a speed-demon vehicle.
Where the Chevy Equinox shines is in its urban comfort. It is a larger vehicle, but it doesn't seem that way at all. The rearview camera is well placed and I love the in-rearview mirror view. Driving on crowded downtown streets and even parking on smaller side streets was a breeze.
 |
| I wanted to see if a generic, one-child stroller would fit easily in the back of the Equinox. Turns out, it won't. (Photo: Sébastien D'Amour/Auto123.com) |
As I'm soon to be expecting my first-born (the world has been warned) and would see the Equinox as an ideal family vehicle, I decided to ask a friend to help me with a stroller test. I wanted to see if a generic, one-child stroller would fit easily in the back of the Equinox.
Turns out, it won't. The trunk opening and trunk width just isn't large enough to accommodate a stroller no matter how you angle it. So, one of the rear seats had to be folded down and the folded stroller had to be angled in that way. I was not impressed, especially since that same stroller fit in my friend's sedan trunk without a problem.
The power-assisted liftgate system is quite useful, and worth the $520 extra in my opinion, however, the automatic closer does push quite hard on whatever's blocking it and I wonder how it would react to a small hand or body in the way if it pushed as hard as it did on the stroller when it tried to close.
Cargo issues aside, driving the Equinox is quite pleasant. Now, it is not by any means exciting. In fact, the 6-speed automatic transmission feels downright lazy; however, that laziness is designed to save you at the pumps with Chevrolet claiming the Equinox will do an astounding 6.1L/100km on the highway (let's not forget that the hybrid Lexus CT 200h achieved 5.5L/100km).
Unfortunately, I was not able to reach their claimed numbers and averaged 11L/100km throughout the week, which is good for the 4-cylinder. The 182 hp and 172 lb-ft of torque feel pretty non-existent most of the time, but then this isn't supposed to be a speed-demon vehicle.
Where the Chevy Equinox shines is in its urban comfort. It is a larger vehicle, but it doesn't seem that way at all. The rearview camera is well placed and I love the in-rearview mirror view. Driving on crowded downtown streets and even parking on smaller side streets was a breeze.
 |
| The 182 hp and 172 lb-ft of torque feel pretty non-existent most of the time, but then this isn't supposed to be a speed-demon vehicle. (Photo: Sébastien D'Amour/Auto123.com) |