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2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less Bigness

14K views 54 replies 37 participants last post by  kts350 
#1 ·
2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less Bigness
A NEW SEASON DAWNS FOR CHEVY'S EQUINOX.
Car and Driver
BY Alexander Stoklosa
April 2016



What It Is: The next-generation Chevrolet Equinox crossover, seen here in prototype form and covered up for testing.

Why It Matters: Although it has many superior and vastly newer rivals, Chevrolet Equinox sales have been on the rise in the past few years, growing from 238,192 in 2013 to 277,589 in 2015.

Platform: Like Buick’s recently introduced Envision crossover, the new Equinox will seat five people in two rows and use General Motors’ latest Delta architecture, which also underpins the new Cruze

Powertrain: The Equinox’s engine roster should parallel the Buick Envision’s, with a base 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine and an uplevel turbo four. (An intercooler for the turbocharged powertrain is visible in one photo where the Equinox’s front bumper is removed.)

*Full Article w/Pictures at Link
 
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#5 ·
Re: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less

Even with the camouflage, I can see they are using a similar interior design as the the Cruze and Malibu. It is a nice design, but it would be nice to see something different. But to be sure, we'll have to see it when it is uncovered.
 
#9 · (Edited)
Re: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less

How are any of these a mistake? The mistake is trying to cover three segments with two vehicles. Chevy's rectifying that with its expanded lineup. Trax, Equinox, Blazer, and Traverse will occupy the industry-standard subcompact, compact, intermediate, and large segments, the latter virtually exclusive to GM. Even if the Equinox and Blazer cannibalise one another, their combined sales surely will far exceed that of just the Equinox.

Depending on which competitors one compares to, there won't be any holes in the new lineup. Trax = Juke, Equinox = Escape/Rogue, Blazer = Edge/Murano, Traverse = Explorer/Pathfinder. More or less. I'm guessing that C1YC Traverse is likely to be a bit trimmer than the current Lambda to close the gap between it and Explorer and Pathfinder.
 
#11 ·
Re: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less

How are any of these a mistake? The mistake is trying to cover three segments with two vehicles. Chevy's rectifying that with its expanded lineup. Trax, Equinox, Blazer, and Traverse will occupy the industry-standard subcompact, compact, intermediate, and large segments, the latter virtually exclusive to GM. Even if the Equinox and Blazer cannibalize one another, their combined sales surely will far exceed that of just the Equinox.
We don't know what the size of the Traverse (and Enclave) are yet, I assume they'll be like the Acadia/Blazer on a slightly longer W/B, providing 3-Rows with a little more room behind the 3rd Row.

The EcoSport will match-up with the Trax when it gets here.

The Equinox currently covers the Escape & Edge; going forward it will match up with the Escape, and with the Blazer & Traverse being on both sides of the Explorer, Ford then essentially covers the Blazer & Traverse with the Explorer.
 
#12 ·
Re: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less

Why It Matters: Although it has many superior and vastly newer rivals, Chevrolet Equinox sales have been on the rise in the past few years, growing from 238,192 in 2013 to 277,589 in 2015.
In 2013 Chevrolet sold 48,000 Captiva Sport's, in 2015 Chevrolet sold 55, as in Fifty-five, not a typo - So Equinox "growing" by 39,397 units over those 2 years is misleading.

(and I've looked at the fleet numbers and mix of the Equinox, they support the shift of sales)
 
#15 ·
Re: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less

In 2013 Chevrolet sold 48,000 Captiva Sport's, in 2015 Chevrolet sold 55, as in Fifty-five, not a typo - So Equinox "growing" by 39,397 units over those 2 years is misleading.

(and I've looked at the fleet numbers and mix of the Equinox, they support the shift of sales)
Really?
 
#18 ·
Re: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less

What is this rumor about a Blazer returning?

And I agree with those who state the smaller size is a mistake. The present Equinox is a strong selling point. The only reason I can see for shrinking is for worldwide markets. Yet, GM might want to look at what the top sellers are doing with their vehicles. Honda upsized their new Civic while the Cruze grew marginally. The next CRV, the Equinox main competitor is going to grow with a third seat option. Yet the Equinox is shrinking? What about the Traxx?
 
#25 ·
Re: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less

What is this rumor about a Blazer returning?

And I agree with those who state the smaller size is a mistake. The present Equinox is a strong selling point. The only reason I can see for shrinking is for worldwide markets. Yet, GM might want to look at what the top sellers are doing with their vehicles. Honda upsized their new Civic while the Cruze grew marginally. The next CRV, the Equinox main competitor is going to grow with a third seat option. Yet the Equinox is shrinking? What about the Traxx?
Cruze didn't need to grow that much...It was already one the biggest cars in its class if not the biggest.
 
#22 ·
Re: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less

hopefully still has the sliding rear seat. that feature is actually more useful than i expected. plus i have more legroom in the equinox than my dads SRX because of the flexible seating/storage system
 
#28 ·
Re: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less

How can you actually tell how much smaller it is? It may be inconsequentially smaller but will likely gain a smaller entry price and better fuel economy. I do think GM made the wrong bet on Crossovers a few years ago and are now left kicking everybody off the boat so they can re-organize around where the industry settled (Subcompact, Compact, Midsize, Large, Extra Large). This is the only way to really grow Crossover sales and profit margins and Chevy is missing out on the sweet spots in some areas. It's likely Chevy will have a large selection of Crossover than the industry leader (Ford) in just a few years, depending on when Ford's subcompact crossover comes out.
 
#33 ·
Re: 2018 Chevrolet Equinox Spied: New Platform, Less

No problem with the gas powertrains but I think there's a big enough market to also offer a full hybrid powertrain like the Malibu Hybrid as well as the extended range EV powertrain from the Volt. More and more auto makers are announcing plan to offer electrified SUVs, GM can provide a better product with the stuff it already has on the road today.
 
#48 ·
I agree with the reduction in size. Although the current generation Equinox has good sales, not one of the top vendors in the segment. With reduced dimensions, Chevrolet can make it more efficient in every way and improve their competitiveness.

Furthermore, the reduction will not necessarily mean less interior space. The current CR-V, despite having smaller external dimensions, has a very good interior space. Look what happened with the previous Opel Astra, it was one of the larger models in the segment, but at the same time, offering the smallest interior space; due to the inefficiency of the design.

GM has the advantage of developing almost simultaneously the Crossover's compact, medium, and big! If my bills are not bad, they were gestated while Mary Barra was head of Product Development; as well as the latest models like the Cruze and Malibu. That is, there is strong reason to trust that it will be a successful strategy.
 
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