Chevy unveils 2025 Equinox

by Matthew Guy

Published: January 23rd, 2024

These days, given customer preferences and the current state of our car market in this country, the announcement of a new Equinox is as important to GM’s bottom line as was rolling out a new Impala back in the day.

Playing in the murderously competitive compact crossover segment, the Equinox represented a huge chunk of Chevrolet volume in the 2023 calendar year. Shifting 212,701 units, it was the largest seller – by a wide margin – of any model not named Silverado. Save for that pickup truck, the next best-selling rigs were the Malibu (oddly) and Traverse at roughly 130K and 123K units, respectively.

New sheetmetal headlines the ’25 changes, with LT and RS getting their own front fascia treatments plus an Activ trim shown here in the light green. This ‘nox is 2.3 inches wider than the old one and all but identical in length/wheelbase, showing up for duty in a set of clothes inspired by the brand’s truck line and taking much from the handsome new Traverse. Squared wheel openings and flared fenders do add a measure of visual impact while that C-pillar is clearly a case of Equinox designers looking over the shoulders of those working on the three-row Traverse.

The interior is revamped, as you’d expect, increasing the amount of digital real estate and making the most of that newfound width. Ahead of the driver is an 11.0-inch gauge cluster, abutted by a new 11.3-inch infotainment screen angled slightly toward the driver. The shifter moves to the steering column, though not like Uncle Walt’s old Silverado, heat is standard on the wheel and front seats, there’s hidden storage under the rear cargo floor, and one can open up 63.5 cubes of room with the rear seats folded. There’s just shy of 30 with them up.

Under the hood is a 1.5L turbocharged four banger making 175 horsepower and either 184 or 203 lb-ft of torque depending on the number of driven wheels. Equinoxesessses with all-wheel drive get the larger number along with an eight-speed automatic compared to the front-driver’s continuously variable transmission. When shod with AWD, the Equinox can tow 1,500 pounds which is comparable to other four-cylinder competitors but well south of a RAV4 V6 which can haul 3,500 lbs when equipped with a towing pack. Front-drive is good for just 800 pounds.

Given GM’s laser focus on EVs, don’t expect a V6 in the Equinox gasser any time soon. There was no mention today of a hybrid variant, flying in the face of Honda trotting out a CR-V Hybrid and Toyota doing big business with the twin successes of RAV4 Hybrid and RAV4 Prime plug-in. At least the Chevy no longer has a six-speed ‘box, I guess.

The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox will be available sometime later this year – probably sooner rather than later. Additional details, including pricing, will be available closer to the start of production.

[Images: Chevrolet]

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#Chevrolet #Chevy #Equinox #Crossover

Matthew Guy

Matthew buys, sells, fixes, & races cars. As a human index of auto & auction knowledge, he is fond of making money and offering loud opinions.

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2 of 38 comments

Sobhuza Trooper on Jan 23, 2024

"...This ‘nox is 2.3 inches wider than the old one and all but identical in length/wheelbase..."

We write it like that because we know that you all have the old one's measurements memorized. That's why we don't take a moment to cite that information.

This nit isn't just directed at TTAC, but every writer who thinks they are saving pixels by not including actual numbers. News Flash: We DON'T memorize all that. Seriously.

3 Reply
Jim52 on Jan 24, 2024

I stopped reading when the comparison was to the RAV4 V6, which has not been sold in several model years.

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Bouzouki Cadillac (aka GM!!) made so many mistakes over the past 40 years, right up to today, one could make a MBA course of it. Others have alluded to them, there is not enough room for me to recite them in a flowing, cohesive manner.Cadillac today is literally a tarted-up Chevrolet. They are nice cars, and the "aura" of the Cadillac name still works on several (mostly female) consumers who are not car enthusiasts.The CT4 and CT5 offer superlative ride and handling, and even performance--but, it is wrapped in sheet metal that (at least I think) looks awful, with (still) sub-par interiors. They are niche cars. They are the last gasp of the Alpha platform--which I have been told by people close to it, was meant to be a Pontiac "BMW 3-series". The bankruptcy killed Pontiac, but the Alpha had been mostly engineered, so it was "Cadillac-ized" with the new "edgy" CTS styling.Most Cadillacs sold are crossovers. The most profitable "Cadillac" is the Escalade (note that GM never jack up the name on THAT!).The question posed here is rather irrelevant. NO ONE has "a blank check", because GM (any company or corporation) does not have bottomless resources.Better styling, and superlative "performance" (by that, I mean being among the best in noise, harshness, handling, performance, reliablity, quality) would cost a lot of money.Post-bankruptcy GM actually tried. No one here mentioned GM's effort to do just that: the "Omega" platform, aka CT6.The (horribly misnamed) CT6 was actually a credible Mercedes/Lexus competitor. I'm sure it cost GM a fortune to develop (the platform was unique, not shared with any other car. The top-of-the-line ORIGINAL Blackwing V8 was also unique, expensive, and ultimately...very few were sold. All of this is a LOT of money).I used to know the sales numbers, and my sense was the CT6 sold about HALF the units GM projected. More importantly, it sold about half to two thirds the volume of the S-Class (which cost a lot more in 201x)Many of your fixed cost are predicated on volume. One way to improve your business case (if the right people want to get the Green Light) is to inflate your projected volumes. This lowers the unit cost for seats, mufflers, control arms, etc, and makes the vehicle more profitable--on paper.Suppliers tool up to make the number of parts the carmaker projects. However, if the volume is less than expected, the automaker has to make up the difference.So, unfortunately, not only was the CT6 an expensive car to build, but Cadillac's weak "brand equity" limited how much GM could charge (and these were still pricey cars in 2016-18, a "base" car was ).Other than the name, the "Omega" could have marked the starting point for Cadillac to once again be the standard of the world. Other than the awful name (Fleetwood, Elegante, Paramount, even ParAMOUR would be better), and offering the basest car with a FOUR cylinder turbo on the base car (incredibly moronic!), it was very good car and a CREDIBLE Mercedes S-Class/Lexus LS400 alternative. While I cannot know if the novel aluminum body was worth the cost (very expensive and complex to build), the bragging rights were legit--a LARGE car that was lighter, but had good body rigidity. No surprise, the interior was not the best, but the gap with the big boys was as close as GM has done in the luxury sphere.Mary Barra decided that profits today and tomorrow were more important than gambling on profits in 2025 and later. Having sunk a TON of money, and even done a mid-cycle enhancement, complete with the new Blackwing engine (which copied BMW with the twin turbos nestled in the "V"!), in fall 2018 GM announced it was discontinuing the car, and closing the assembly plant it was built in. (And so you know, building different platforms on the same line is very challenging and considerably less efficient in terms of capital and labor costs than the same platform, or better yet, the same model).So now, GM is anticipating that, as the car market "goes electric" (if you can call it that--more like the Federal Government and EU and even China PUSHING electric cars), they can make electric Cadillacs that are "prestige". The Cadillac Celestique is the opening salvo--$340,000. We will see how it works out.
Lynn Joiner Lynn JoinerJust put 2,000 miles on a Chevy Malibu rental from Budget, touring around AZ, UT, CO for a month. Ran fine, no problems at all, little 1.7L 4-cylinder just sipped fuel, and the trunk held our large suitcases easily. Yeah, I hated looking up at all the huge FWD trucks blowing by, but the Malibu easily kept up on the 80 mph Interstate in Utah. I expect a new one would be about a third the cost of the big guys. It won't tow your horse trailer, but it'll get you to the store. Why kill it?
Lynn Joiner Just put 2,000 miles on a Chevy Malibu rental from Budget, touring around AZ, UT, CO for a month. Ran fine, no problems at all, little 1.7L 4-cylinder just sipped fuel, and the trunk held our large suitcases easily. Yeah, I hated looking up at all the huge FWD trucks blowing by, but the Malibu easily kept up on the 80 mph Interstate in Utah. I expect a new one would be about a third the cost of the big guys. It won't tow your horse trailer, but it'll get you to the store. Why kill it?
Ollicat I am only speaking from my own perspective so no need to bash me if you disagree. I already know half or more of you will disagree with me. But I think the traditional upscale Cadillac buyer has traditionally been more conservative in their political position. My suggestion is to make Cadillac separate from GM and make them into a COMPANY, not just cars. And made the company different from all other car companies by promoting conservative causes and messaging. They need to build up a whole aura about the company and appeal to a large group of people that are really kind of sick of the left and sending their money that direction. But yes, I also agree about many of your suggestions above about the cars too. No EVs. But at this point, what has Cadillac got to lose by separating from GM completely and appealing to people with money who want to show everyone that they aren't buying the leftist Kook-Aid.
Jkross22 Cadillac's brand is damaged for the mass market. Why would someone pay top dollar for what they know is a tarted up Chevy? That's how non-car people see this.