The Results Are In: The 2010 Chevy Equinox Exceeds 30 MPG on the Highway
By Tim Herrick
Chevy Equinox Chief Engineer
Last month I told you about the difficulties I was having in keeping the keys to the new 2010 Equinox in my hands. All the folks on my team wanted to get some seat time in this baby, and for good reason.
Today, the news got even better. We had already boasted of hitting the 30 MPG highway fuel economy mark with the Equinox – making it the 9th Chevrolet vehicle to reach that point. Well, we’ve overachieved on this one.
We exceeded our initial estimates, reaching an estimated 32 MPG highway fuel economy with the Equinox. This number is far better than either the Toyota RAV-4 or Honda CR-V, and even better than the Ford Escape Hybrid model. We’re quite proud of this, and we hope and think it will draw even more customers away from the imports and into the Equinox.
By the way, this improved highway fuel economy takes the range of the Equinox to 600 miles! You could drive from Detroit to Washington, DC on one tank of gas.
We have some more great news on this vehicle related to its quietness and other features we’ll talk more about soon. Thought you’d want to know about the great news on the fuel economy. Look for the Equinox in your dealerships next month.
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You’ve got to put that normaly aspertated DI motor in a Cobalt, just to see what it would do. I’m thinking diesel mpg here, no stickshift nessesarry but please make one avilable anny way. No sleep till 50mpg higway.
Jason
Oh yeah, the crossover is beautifull too, It’s like a Chevy Traverse that I could park in the city without bumping stuff, Brilliant.
Jason
“We exceeded our initial estimates, reaching an estimated 32 MPG highway fuel economy with the Equinox. “
Not bad for what’s really a car, or what in the 1950’s and 60’s we would have called a station wagon. Just think what one of your cars such as the Equinox would get with a modern turbo-diesel.
Have you ever thought of licensing Volkswagen’s TDI technology to put in cars like the Equinox?
Very nice looking vehicle, and 32 MPG for a vehicle like this is commendable. Could you please answer some questions that I cannot seem to find on the web?
1. What is the percentage of domestic content.
2. Where is the engine manufactured?
3. Where is the transmission manufactured?
4. What plant assembles this vehicle?
Great questions. Did anyone ever answer you ?
32 mpg?!!? That’s in the territory of my little bitty Toyota Matrix. I’m not the biggest fan of SUVs — prefer the feel of a car — but at 32 mpg, the extreme penny-pincher in me might be convinced to look at an Equinox.
I noticed that all the new Chevy’s have a same front styling look that delineates them from other cars. It is handsome and I like it.
Some previous versions of the Equinox were sold with engines manufactured in China. Are the mileage ratings for the 2010 model based on US or Chinese powerplants? I would hope the practice by GM of outsourcing engines to cut costs has been stopped, since it hardly supports the notion of “buying American”.
Well, (technically) the Equinox isn’t AMERICAN as in USA american. It’s built in Canada. But enough with protectionism it’ll be the death of us yet.
How is this even possible? I thought all GM vehicles got atrocious mileage and were mobile envronmental disasters?
“You could drive from Detroit to Washington, DC on one tank of gas.”
But can OnStar find DC for you? Where was this vehicle last fall when the Detroit 3 flew to DC? Oh yeah, under development – under the hood of a Torrent.
All kidding aside 32 mpg for a SUV of any shape or size is great, but here is a question I don’t know the answer to. Was this test with only driver aboard or driver and one passenger? And what is the mileage drop with the vehicle fully loaded with passengers and cargo, you know, the way some people drive. It would be nice to have a handle on what effect weight has on real world mpg.
The Motor and Trans are all SpringHill Ten, as far as I know.
The GM powertrain information is allways like six months to a year old so it’s hard to check, annybody ?
Jason
Nice work on the Equinox. The styling is great, and the interior looks even better. It appeas that GM is up for the challange of building better products, that are better for the environment. Glad to hear that it beats the imports on the fuel econemy!
QUESTION: We’re probably buying a new Equinox later in the summer. We’d certainly consider the 4-cylinder, but it seems the towing package is not available with the smaller engine. For a light motorcycle trailer, I would think 182hp should be fine, I mean that’s about the power of the old Equinox’s original V6. Any thoughts of letting us trailer and get the better mileage of the 4?
Chief,
The mileage was from the standard Federal Test Procedures. More information can be found here.
http://www.epa.gov/fueleconomy/regulations.htm
WOW and SUV that gets 32 mpg. Good for the SUV customers.
NOW, where’s the luxury sedan with small V-8 that scores 30+ mpg for GM car enthusiast buyers? Sure, we know that GM V-8s get 30 mpg in real life, but let’s have one that scores that way on the window sticker.
“How is this even possible? I thought all GM vehicles got atrocious mileage and were mobile envronmental disasters?”
David, I can assure you, that my brother’s Pontiac G6 (3.5 V6, 201 HP) gets clearly a better mileage than my neighbor’s BMW 325 (2.5 6-cyl., 189 HP) station wagon under similar driving conditions. So, environmental disasters, as you call it, may rather come from other manufacturers than GM.
“Have you ever thought of licensing Volkswagen’s TDI technology to put in cars like the Equinox?”
Angus, recently we have been driving with a two year old Volkswagen Golf TDi on the Autobahn. Honestly spoken, this TDi-engine didn’t impress me much. Admittedly it offered decent mileage, but the engine was annoyingly noisy. In comparison to my LPG-fueled Olds Alero I couldn’t stand such a booming engine at daily driving, not to mention this permanently smudgy Diesel-pumps, when the car has to be filled up.
well if it’s two years old then your obviously not driving the new CR (common Rail) Tdi. It’s much quieter and more powerful. Give it a spin you might like it.
Gerry,
The current equinox is built by CAMI, a JV between GM and Suzuki in Ontario. I would assume the new Equinox will be built at the same facility.
“Some previous versions of the Equinox were sold with engines manufactured in China. Are the mileage ratings for the 2010 model based on US or Chinese powerplants? I would hope the practice by GM of outsourcing engines to cut costs has been stopped, since it hardly supports the notion of “buying American”.”
The old 3.4L was from China. The new Equinox has new engines. This info could be gleaned by doing 5 minutes of research on the vehicle. GM did not “outsource” the 3.4L engine. It was already being produced in China for Chinese vehicles and they allocated some engines for the Canadian made Equinox. It was not a matter of shifting US production to China. Ecotec engines for US products are made in the US. I don’t know where the transmission will be made though. It wont be China.
Bob L i towed 2 racing motorcycles on a trailer with a iron duke 4 cylinder engine in a citation back in the 80s with no trouble.
I notice that GM is touting the highway mileage of a lot of its new cars. What about the CITY mileage of the Equinox? It isn’t even listed on the Chevy website yet. What is it? I think most buyers (at least me anyway) live in urban areas and will be more interested in the city figures. Are these also class-leading figures? I’m assuming they’re not or GM would be advertising the figures.
Gereon,
My comment was facetious. I know GM vehicles get great mileage, it’s just that most customers seem to be unaware of it.
Chris,
I’d suggest having a look at the HHR, and maybe the upcoming Chevy Orlando. Until Chevy has a station wagon version of the Volt, it is the lighter weight crossovers that lean more to the car side that are going to get you the best city mileage.
Chris, city fuel economy for this model is 22 MPG. That compares to 20 MPG for both the Honda CR-V and Ford Escape, and 22 MPG for the Toyota Rav-4.
Hi David,
I see… ;o)
Hi Sheth,
very interesting comment. Regarding the “Buying American”-subject, I’d like to add the following: Some people claim, that GM would transfer too many production capacities abroad. What should the Germans say? Maybe two or three years ago, I was reading a report (unfortunately don’t know anymore where), telling, that so-called “truly German” brands by far are not as German as many people may think. If I remember the numbers correctly, just about 40% of a Volkwagen Golf’s value truly is German. Also Mercedes-vehicles reportedly just consist of maybe 50-60% German value. In comparison to that GM is producing cars, which in numerous cases rather can be regarded as really domestic than the Germans. A time ago, I found that overview: http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2007-03-21-car-content-chart_N.htm
22 mpg city? That’s pretty good for a non-hybrid compact SUV. I’m impressed! I’m not personally in the market for this type of vehicle, but I think the new Equinox looks like a great package.
Great looking vehicle and exceptional gas mileage. Is this vehicle manufactured in the U.S.?
Chris:
Almost every automaker advertises highway mileage in their ads because its the HIGHER number. Toyota and Honda do the exact same thing, not that you would mind. The Equinox is supposed to get 22/32 according to what I’ve seen. I don’t believe any competing crossover gets more than 22mpg in the city. Keep in mind that is better city mileage than the MUCH lighter Mazda 6 or Honda Accord four cylinder models.
Not only does the Equinox match its competitors in mileage, it does so with class leading hp. The RAV4, CR-V and Escape have less power.
Gereon:
Very interesting link that everyone should check out. It shows that final assembly in America isn’t necessarily an indicator of high levels of domestic content. It also shows that in spite of all we hear about how American the Asian automakers are, they assemble MANY models in Japan and import them. This is especially true of Toyota.
“Honestly spoken, this TDi-engine didn’t impress me much. Admittedly it offered decent mileage, but the engine was annoyingly noisy.”
Sehr interessant Gereon.
My Jetta TDI has almost no perceptible difference from a benzin engine. When passengers ride with me for the first time, they are always amazed when I tell them it’s a diesel.
Chiefpontiac said: “All kidding aside 32 mpg for a SUV of any shape or size is great…”
Chief,
But is the Equinox really an SUV? GM’s Equinox website says it is a “crossover SUV” (whatever that is.) and it is also based on a car platform. It stands to reason it should get mileage with the 4-banger similar to what any car with a 4-cylinder gets.
If it’s really a car, but shaped like what we used to call SUVs, GM’s accomplishment is to be expected and nothing to get all that excited about. Good, but not nearly spectacular for a four-cylinder car.
For what it’s worth, I just finished a 400 mile round trip in a Pontiac Vibe using a bit more than 10 gallons of fuel. Actual average was 39.2 mpg. Perhaps that what GM should be crowing about. The Vibe configuration is nearly as useful as that of the Equinox, and I got great mileage.
gereon i agree with you about the diesel pump area at the filling station. here in the states where “do it yourself pumps” are everywhere the area around the diesel pump is a mess with “oil dry” as diesel fuel does not evaporate like gasoline when spilled so something must be spread to absorb the spill. also no lady would want the smell of diesel fuel on her hands or clothes. the extra cost of a diesel engine option takes year of mileage difference to make up with diesel fuel costing more than gasoline.
Good job, GM.
Now, get that technology into the segments of the market where people really care about fuel economy. Get this engine into the Malibu hybrid and the technology into the Cobalt.
“the extra cost of a diesel engine option takes year of mileage difference to make up with diesel fuel costing more than gasoline.”
Was on the Interstate in the upper Midwest earlier this week. Saw gasoline at $2.17 / gallon with diesel at $2.11 /gallon.
Lionel:
Some crossovers are based on actual car platforms and others are just unibody vehicles that come standard with FWD. The Equinox isn’t any more of a car than its counterparts from Ford or Toyota. All crossovers are car-like in that they are unibody and lighter than traditonal SUVs. The Equinox has 30 cu ft of space behind the 2nd row which is far more than any midsize car. The Vibe is OK but the Equinox is superior in terms of interior and exterior styling.
Hi Sheth,
thanks for your response and your appreciation for my comment. Best regards.
Hi Angus,
well, I do not deny that today’s Diesel-engines are running more smoothly than in earlier decades. But I have to repeat my statement about the mentioned trip with this Golf TDi. Well you know, there’s no speed-limit on the Autobahn and so we had been driving at about 100 mph. At these speeds the engine noise even was not that extremely loud, but still was well above the noise level of my Alero. At speeds of about 80 to 90 mph this Diesel was especially noisy, maybe due to a resonance phenomenon. 81 mph (130 km/h) is the officially recommended speed on our highways. That means: At this speed my car whispers, in contrast that certain Golf TDi of our friend is simply buzzing.
Maybe your Jetta has a slightly different TDi-engine, which is running more smoothly. Possibly it also depends on the engine size and whether you have an automatic transmission or a manual.
Hi Motorman,
I absolutely agree with you. We visited the USA twice for vacation in recent four years. The situation you have been describing regarding the Diesel-pumps is not at all different in Germany. I am anyway sceptic about Diesel as a fuel, since I anticipate Diesel-prices to soar in upcoming years due to growing demand from emerging markets. We enjoy filling up our cars with LPG. No nasty smells, no greasy pump nozzle and, even more important, no high costs (about 50% cheaper than gasoline, about 40% cheaper than Diesel). LPG is recognized as an alternative fuel over here, i.e. it’s sold under reduced taxes. The same is valid or CNG.
The old 3.4L was from China. The new Equinox has new engines. This info could be gleaned by doing 5 minutes of research on the vehicle. GM did not “outsource” the 3.4L engine. It was already being produced in China for Chinese vehicles and they allocated some engines for the Canadian made Equinox. It was not a matter of shifting US production to China. Ecotec engines for US products are made in the US. I don’t know where the transmission will be made though. It wont be China.
We had and continue to have room at the Tonawanda Engine plant in NY instead of China. The US had plenty of capacity for this engine, instead they chose China.
Hard to believe there’s enormous concern where the vehicle is assembled. GM today with all the plant closures still has considerably more assembly facilities than any other manufacturer. GM assembles all of the vehicle sold in North America in North America except the Aveo, G3, SAAB’s, Astra and G8. Toyota on the other hand imported 45% of it’s total North American sales in 2008, tallying over 1.5 million vehicles. American’s don’t seem to be much concerned for Toyota massive use of importing.
Lionel,
I’d just like to remind you that the Vibe is not actually a GM vehicle. It’s a Toyota Matrix that is being sold as a Pontiac. Which is why I referenced the HHR, which is an actual GM vehicle, and except for not having AWD available is in many ways superior to the Vibe. It has more horsepower, handles better, gets better fuel mileage, has more usable interior space… You get the idea.
Great job, but I,m a little skeptical. The Outlook/Acadia were suppossed to get pretty damn good mileage, too, but they didn’t deliver in real world driving. I say bring on the hybrid!
“Last month I told you about the difficulties I was having in keeping the keys to the new 2010 Equinox in my hands.”
Looks like the early purchase program is working better for the Equinox than for the Camaro. Many people are having serious problems getting the keys to Camaros they ordered months ago.
“Toyota on the other hand imported 45% of it’s total North American sales in 2008, tallying over 1.5 million vehicles. American’s don’t seem to be much concerned for Toyota massive use of importing.”
Excellent point. Americans will argue that Toyota is partially American because they assemble a few vehicles here but get up in arms about a GM engine that comes from Asia. Its really unbelievable. A Chevy with an engine from China is still more American than a Toyota made in Japan. Even though GM is global, they still assemble more cars locally than Toyota or Honda.
If they would put the eco-4 and 6 cylinder in the Canyon/Colorado and get better gas mileage then they get now ,,like 18mpg in the 4-door 4-wheel drive they could really sell quite few of them, When gas prices went up last year I know a number of people including me went looking at newer small trucks and I could buy a full size truck that got better gas mileage then the smal trucks. They would also have to redesign the front end and put some storage behind the Isuzu designed Colorade/Canyon
“A Chevy with an engine from China is still more American than a Toyota made in Japan.”
Hi Sheth,
absolutely agree with you again. I just wanted to add, that, as anybody knows, GM found numerous loyal customers in China in the meanwhile. Considering this, GM also has a certain obligation to create some jobs there as well. Of course it is necessary to keep as many jobs in the USA as possible, on the other hand global trade is not a one-way road, otherwise the Chinese might turn to the competition, which actually creates jobs there. Considering the growing importance of the Chinese car-market, that’s something GM simply can’t afford. It’s all about to take and to give.
That Equinox would look absolutely amazing in my driveway but there’s one BIG problem preventing that from happening for me and a lot of americans today. That factor is price. Argue if you want about price but buying a new vehicle in this day and age is just a fairy tale for me. Although I have a pretty good paying job, being able to buy a $30,000.00 or so vehicle is just plain out of my reach. If the big three weren’t paying exuberant wages to it’s employees and astronomical salaries to it’s executives then maybe most hard working americans wouldn’t be too hesitant to buy a new vehicle if it was priced much less, say $20,000.00 for a loaded SUV or Fullsize pickup. I know for a fact that the wage I’m making now is about what my uncle was making about 20 years ago working in Youngstown(I think) Ohio.
AH, as usual Mr. Herrick, please disclose the real details of this vehicle’s MPG and drive train options. ONLY GM has NO small vehicle such as this one, with 4 WD and a 4 cylinder engine. Just look at Honda, Toyota, Ford, Nissan, ect. and you will find small SUV’s like this with a 4 cylinder engine. This is great vehicle 2 WD, but why again, over and over do you limit yourself by forcing the customer to a unnecessary V-6 engine if you want 4 wheel drive. I don’t want a V-6. That 4 cylinder is all I need with the 4 WD. I don’t care about 0-60 times, fuel mileage and 4 WD is what the customer wants. You take the back seat again forcing customers to buy outside of GM.
Jeff:
4WD is available with both engines. Where are you getting your information?
SORRY, I did not see the latest PR from GM. The last one I read in my newspaper said that the AWD was available with the V-6 only. Add to the fact that I had to buy a 07 Saturn Vue AWD with the V-6 as my only choice (so I thought they made a bad decision again). I am now very excited to trade in my VUE for a new Equinox. My information was wrong. I hope they get this 4 cyl. AWD feature to the their advertising people and make it a headline. I can’t wait to drive one.
sheth jones writes, “Excellent point. Americans will argue that Toyota is partially American because they assemble a few vehicles here but get up in arms about a GM engine that comes from Asia. Its really unbelievable.”
Toyota advertisements don’t feature the words “American Revolution.” Nor are they taking bailout money to allegedly keep Americans employed.
Charlier:
Chevy is still more American than Toyota and the brand is an American brand. “American Revolution” doesn’t mean that EVERY component of EVERY car is from the United States. Chevy never said that, you did.
To get technical GM is using money the government doesn’t have. So really the Chinese and Japanese are funding GM and a host of other things our government ispaying for. Its not your tax money if the government has never collected it. If GM goes under you can rest assured that “your” tax money will go towards supporting all the workers who will hit the unemployment line. Taxpayer money will be spent either way. BTW, Toyota has taken plenty of tax money in exchange for job creation in the US. So has Nissan, VW, Kia and all the rest of the transplants. Do some research. The subsidies they get on the state level amount to tens of thousands of dollars per job created.
CharlieH:
One more note: I have seen numerous Toyota ads touting how “American” they are in which they boast about US investment (less than GM) and US employment (also less than GM) so you are mistaken if you think foreign automakers are immune from touting their connection with this country. Toyota goes so far as to include its dealer’s employees in its total headcount just to drive home how much they benefit the American economy. That’s interesting when you consider dealership employees don’t get checks from auto manufacturers. Toyota has no qualms about mentioning its long history in the US or its US manufacturing sites. Matter of fact- when does Toyota ever reference being a Japanese company? Never. Toyota sells more vehicles in the US (I believe) than in Japan so this country means more to its profits than its home market.
Wow, Equinox delivers in fuel economy at 32 mpg ! the older versions of equinox were boxy and not fuel efficient. the 2010 equinox shows how chevy and gm are turning around for the good. The fuel economy is just as good as the malibu. one question, what are the safety ratings? thanks
Does anyone know when the 2010 equinox will be available for purchase, summer 2009 isn’t very specific? Thanks.
Nathan,
If we’re really “lucky,” perhaps GM will have an early purchase program for the Equinox and then run it as they have the one for the Camaro.
Nathan:
It was mentioned earlier that they will be on sale in June.
Does any body know were the V6 engine in the 2010 Equinox is being manufactured? I have one on order. I have called and emailed to GM and they will not give the manufacturing country for the engine. They say it is protected information and still they put it on the window sticker. We are thinking of looking for a differant product if we can not get base line information from GM. We want to buy GM and own two GM products now. Why is it so hard to tell a customer about the product they have ordered when they publish the information on the window stricker.
GM Powertrain info: http://media.gm.com/us/powertrain/en/product_services/2010/gmna/10car_us.htm
2010 Equinox Engines:
2.4L I-4 VVT DI (LAF) Assembly site: Spring Hill, Tenn.
3.0L V6 VVT DI ( LF1 ) Assembly site: Ramos Arizpe, Mexico
2010 Equinox 6 speed Automatic Transmissions:
w/4cyl Engine – Hydra-matic 6T45 (MH7) Assembly site(s): GMDAT, Korea; SGM, China, GMNA, SLP Mexico
w/6 cyl Engine – Hydra-Matic 6T70 (MH2) Assembly site(s): Warren, Mich.; Ramos Arizpe, Mexico
It is very surprising to me to hear so much “American,U.S.A bashing going on in this country! We hate products made here,we hate our government,I don’t get it! Yet any thing produced in Japan, or Korea we believe to be superior! Our congressmen and senators who have been paid millions of dollars by foreign auto companies to advocate for them have become traitors against the country that has given them all of their opportunity to succeed!! Are we really that bad???We call ourselves lazy,not dedicated,slackers that are too apathetic to care about our ability to produce! Do you know that the Japanese domestic auto market is subsidized by it’s government,toyota,nissan,honda,and hyundai have all been given “handouts” from the U.S government to the tune of billions of dollars and no one says anything about this!!! Everyone talks about the”junk ” that the Big Three pushed on us for years,well what about the heaping piles of rust that the japanese auto makers sent over here in the 60′S AND 70′S that were falling apart before we could get them off the boats. This is a great country among many great nations,I just wish we would get some pride ,start believing in ourselves again,don’t give up on America, I work for a Japanese brand but that’s not my choice of vehicle to drive,I drive American Big Three, I drive GM!
I was all ready to get the new Equinox Hybrid until I read that it’s not even made in the US. When will the American auto industry learn that if you want the loyalty of the citizens then you should be loyal to the citizens first.
American brands should be built in the United States of America.