The new Chevrolet Equinox for the 2010 model year is here, and seems to be based on an enhancement of the old Equinox’s front wheel drive GM Theta monocoque chassis as the wheelbase is the same (a shortened version is used for the Captiva), but there are some changes including a wider front track for better stability.
Two engines are available, a 2.4 liter direct injected inline-4 engine producing 182 horsepower, and a 3.0 liter DOHC V6 producing 255 horsepower. GM claims an achievable mileage of over 800km per full tank on both these engines, though this is probably with highway driving.
Safety features include 6 airbags which consist of dual frontal airbags, head curtain side airbags and pelvic/thorax seat-mounted side airbags. The interior features a center stack similiar to the one on the Chevrolet Cruze. The rear seats keep its predecessor’s “MultiFlex” feature which allows it to slide fore and aft by 203mm to vary 2nd row legroom and rear luggage space according to your needs. Maximum luggage space with the seats pushed the most foreward is 889 liters.
GM claims 30mpg highway and 21 mpg city for the 2.4 liter version, while the V6 gets 25mpg highway and 18 mpg city. That’s 13 liters per 100km, which is acceptable considering that’s city driving for a large engine powering a large vehicle.
