Car_and_Driver_USA_July_2017

TESTED
Evolutionary
Success
Chevrolet’s all-new, 2018 Equinox is smaller,
better-handling, and just as practical as the
crossover it replaces. _by Don Sherman
NOW THAT COMPACT CROSSOVERS have surpassed sedans as
America’s preferred form of get-around, we’re wondering when
they’ll become fun to drive. Splicing car and truck genes is a boon
to kid and pet hauling, but enthusiasts expect more from their
steering wheels than a place to rest an elbow while dining. Honda’s
CR-V and Mazda’s CX-5 are great all-arounders, but what this class
needs to achieve lustworthiness is a half-price Porsche Macan.
Well, Chevy’s third-generation Equinox arrived this spring to
alter the status quo. Riding on a new Opel-engineered platform, it’s
hundreds of pounds lighter and 4.7 inches shorter but virtually as
spacious as its predecessor. Trimming the wheelbase 5.2 inches and
rehabbing the engine room with three choices of turbo inline-fours
(including the Cruze’s 1.6-liter diesel, later) moves the Equinox
into the realm of the interesting.
After testing an Equinox Premier AWD
with the base turbocharged 1.5-liter, we’re
convinced Chevy may be onto something.
This top-trim edition has every imaginable
safety aid except for adaptive cruise control.
Its interior is replete with stitched and
perforated leather, polished-metal trim
plates, and more than enough USB outlets.
As you’d expect with a sticker crowding
$40,000, all-wheel drive engages at the
touch of a button, the 8.0-inch touchscreen
is compatible with Android Auto and Apple
CarPlay, and the OnStar communication
system includes a Wi-Fi hotspot.
But this Chevy’s handling impressed us
more than its creature comforts and room
for four adults. While the electrically
assisted power steering, as usual, lacks feel,
there’s minimal center slack, the rise in
effort is linear and natural, and every wheel
Lighter,
leaner,
class-kicking
cornering and
braking.
Stuck in the
slow lane until
the 2.0-liter
turbo arrives.
command yields a lively response. We
measured 0.86 g of lateral grip provided by
humble Hankook 235/50R-19 all-season
radials, and with commendably little
understeer. That cornering stick tops both
that of the best handlers in this class and an
all-season-shod Macan S by wide margins.
Proving that it wasn’t a fluke, the Equinox
stopped from 70 mph in 161 feet, beating its
key rivals by 5 to 23 feet and the aforementioned
Macan by a remarkable 25 feet. On
our local crypto-Nordschleife, the Equinox
melded its steering, cornering, and braking
assets into a cohesive whole, feeling more
like a sports sedan than a sport-utility.
Unfortunately, the only powertrain
available at the time of our test was the
turbocharged 1.5-liter four making 170
horsepower (14 to 20 horsepower less than
the CR-V) and 203 pound-feet of torque
mated to a six-speed automatic transmission.
What that combo lacks in speed and
passing alacrity, it more than makes up for
in racket. The run to 60 mph takes an agonizing
8.9 seconds, and there are 81 decibels
of full-throttle din for accompaniment.
Sadly, the Equinox is slower than the
Toyota RAV4 and far in arrears of the quickest
crossovers, which hit 60 in the midseven-second
range.
But salvation is on the horizon: a turbocharged
2.0-liter packing 252 horsepower
abetted by an all-new nine-speed automatic.
Prophetically, that’s the same peak
power that Porsche bestows upon its
$48,550 base-spec Macan. We’ll be back.
2018 CHEVROLET
EQUINOX PREMIER
1.5T AWD
VEHICLE TYPE:
front-engine, front-/
all-wheel-drive,
5-passenger, 4-door
hatchback
PRICE AS TESTED:
$39,045
BASE PRICE: $35,330
ENGINE TYPE:
turbocharged and
intercooled DOHC
16-valve inline-4,
aluminum block and
head, direct fuel
injection
DISPLACEMENT:
91 cu in, 1490 cc
POWER:
170 hp @ 5600 rpm
TORQUE:
203 lb-ft @ 2000 rpm
TRANSMISSION:
6-speed automatic with
manual shifting mode
DIMENSIONS
WHEELBASE: 107.3 in
LENGTH: 183.1 in
WIDTH: 72.6 in
HEIGHT: 65.4 in
PASSENGER VOLUME:
99 cu ft
CARGO VOLUME:
30 cu ft
CURB WEIGHT: 3646 lb
C/D TEST RESULTS
ZERO TO 60 MPH:
8.9 sec
ZERO TO 100 MPH:
26.8 sec
ZERO TO 110 MPH:
36.6 sec
ROLLING START,
5–60 MPH: 9.6 sec
1/4-MILE: 16.9 sec
@ 83 mph
TOP SPEED: 124 mph
(drag limited)
BRAKING, 70–0 MPH:
161 ft
ROADHOLDING,
300-FT-DIA
SKIDPAD: 0.86 g*
FUEL ECONOMY
EPA COMBINED/CITY/
HWY: 26/24/30 mpg
C/D OBSERVED:
21 mpg
*Stability-control-inhibited.
100 . CAR AND DRIVER . JUL/2017
photography by MARC URBANO