The new Chevrolet Equinox is the everyman's EV (2024)

The Chevrolet Equinox is the company's best-selling vehicle that's not a pickup truck. That makes the new electric version, called Equinox EV, an extremely important vehicle for Chevy.

If Equinox EV's 319 miles of range, reasonable price and helpful technology can't convince Americans to go electric, perhaps nothing will for years to come.

"We are at a turning point where EVs will be the mainstream choice for the next generation of customers and Equinox EV will lead this charge for us," said Mary Barra, Chair and CEO of General Motors said in a statement. "With the flexibility of GM's Ultium Platform, we are bringing to market vehicles at nearly every price point and for every purpose."

Chevrolet will sell the Equinox EV in RS and LT trim levels, a lineup similar to the popular Trax SUV.

The purpose of the 2024 Chevrolet Equinox EV is to transport five passengers in relative comfort and speed to whatever daily duties their life requires. When there is a need to charge on the road it can grab about 77 miles in 10 minutes on a DC fast charger. When charging at home it takes longer, returning about 34 miles of range per charging hour.

The 2024 Equinox EV looks similar to the Equinox but with a smoother and slipperier façade to cut through the wind. The Equinox RS looks sportier with red accents while the Equinox LT is a little less so. the lineup offers 19- to 21-inch wheels, lighting choreography when an owner approaches or leaves, an automatic tailgate and a two-tone roof.

The single-motor Equinox EV delivers 213 horsepower (hp) and 236 lb-ft of torque (lb-ft) while all-wheel drive, two-motor versions deliver 288 hp and 333 lb-ft of torque, which is a good for a sprint to 60 mph in less than 6 seconds.

It offers one-pedal driving with automatic braking to regain lost energy along with paddles on the steering wheel to manually brake and regenerate.

The all-wheel drive model is good for 285 miles on a charge, about 35 less than the front-wheel drive Equinox.

The single-motor Equinox isn't annoyingly slow, but it's right at the limit where expressway entrances take a little planning and run-up. But, for daily driving it works well, and the torque from the electrics make it feel quick, momentarily, when taking off from a stoplight. The Equinox EV with all-wheel drive is downright quick and vaguely entertaining to drive.

Sport mode in both RS and LT trims quickens the accelerator making the Equinox slightly zippier. The all-wheel drive version, surprisingly, has noticeably more torque steer that the front driver despite the same front motor.

The brakes aren't perfectly firm, as they help with the regeneration, but thanks to solid one-pedal driving they only need to be used in a panic situation.

The steering is easy and direct on the front-wheel drive model, though the tuning in the faster all-wheel drive models leads to heavier, but no more communicative, steering. As with most EVs, the Equinox handles better than expected with a low center of gravity and the battery weight spread out over the wheels.

The cabin is spacious and quiet, but there's a little bit of wind noise on the expressway that's only noticeable because of the lack of engine sound.

The 17.7-inch touchscreen infotainment system is standard on the Equinox EV, as is an 11-inch digital driver information screen and Google Built-in with Maps, Assistant and Google Play store.

The volume knob is attached on the left of the screen above permanent screen icons for settings, lights and one-pedal driving. Similarly, mode and climate icons are also permanently available on the touchscreen, making them easy to find no matter the situation. The climate temperature is also adjusted via convenient knobs.

The front seats are big and comfortable with heating and plenty of adjustment for a safe driving position. Visibility is good rearward and foreward, where there is a mile of dashboard that stretches away from the driver.

There are tons of small item storage spaces for phones and purses for front passengers in the center, in the armrest, under the wireless phone charging tray and on the doors.

The RS trim tested here featured cool red accents and turbine-style air vents like the Chevy Camaro, along with perforated seats and an available glass roof.

The rear seat area is large even for adults. It's comfortable for a six-foot tall man sitting behind another six-foot tall man, and there is plenty of space for car seats, should the need arise. With those seats folded down the Equinox will swallow 57.2 cubic feet of cargo.

There are also two USB ports for rear passengers to charge their devices.

Chevy Safety Assist safety and driver assistance technology comes standard and it includes emergency braking, a following distance indicator, forward collision alert, lane keeping and lane departure warning. Also standard are rear park assist, rear emergency braking, blind zone steering assist, rear cross traffic braking and adaptive cruise control.

Equinox EV can be equipped with GM's Super Cruise hands-free driving system, far and away the best on the market at its capability level right now. Over an hour of test driving, the system never flinched, changing lanes as necessary to pass traffic.

A few times it tucked in behind a slightly slower driver, but then changed back when the area ahead was clear, a situation that would be similar to how a non-automated driving experience would go. Like in the Chevrolet Silverado EV, when we approached construction zones the system would give a notation to stay alert.

Equinox models are now shipping to dealers, except for the least expensive 1LT, which is coming later this year. The Equinox EV RS has a starting price of $43,295 before EV tax credits. The base Equinox EV LT will start at $34,995.

That RS price puts it in line with the Tesla Model Y at $43,000, near the Polestar 2 at $49,900, Nissan Ariya ($39,590) and Volkswagen ID.4 ($41,160).

The Equinox is up in the sales charts with giants like the Toyota RAV4 and Honda CR-V, models that come as hybrids, but not battery-electric vehicles.

The 2024 Chevy Equinox EV is the most normal EV on the market, a huge advantage as buyers wrestle with whether it's the right time to buy an EV. Chevrolet sold more than 200,000 in each of past two years and 165,000 the year before. If the company can convert a quarter of those buyers, the two-row EV will be a hit.