It took a while for an American automaker to deliver a $35,000 long-range EV, but it’s finally here. The vaunted $34,995 Chevrolet Equinox EV 1LT is shipping to dealerships now, meaning Americans will imminently be able to get their hands on a well-sized electric crossover for a hair under 35 grand including freight.
Wait, didn’t the Equinox EV already land in showrooms earlier this year? Well, yes, but not this version. Likely due to a short 2024 model year, Chevrolet elected to delay the introduction of the cheapest Equinox EV to the 2025 model year. That model year is finally here, which means Americans have a new cheap EV option with some specs that sound great on paper.
Let’s start with qualification for incentives. The Equinox EV 1LT is eligible for the full $7,500 EV credit, meaning the net price works out to $27,495 including freight. Yes, that should make it effectively cheaper than a combustion-powered Chevrolet Equinox, which feels like a big deal. Sure, the end price is a few grand higher than the $30,000 pre-freight price Chevrolet touted when unveiling the Equinox EV, but it’s still cheap, especially given the direction of the overall market.
So, what do you get for the money? Well, the least expensive model won’t have standard two-tone paint or all-wheel-drive, but it does claim an EPA-estimated range of 319 miles from an 85 kWh battery pack, and a peak DC fast charging rate of 150 kW. Those definitely aren’t numbers to sneeze at, as they put the base Equinox EV in the competitive set with more expensive EVs like the Volkswagen ID.4 Pro and the Tesla Model Y. Good stuff.
At the same time, don’t expect the base Equinox EV to be a slouch. That single electric motor up front kicks out 220 horsepower and 243 lb.-ft. of torque, meaning it ought to keep up with traffic no problem. Chevrolet claims a zero-to-60 mph time of eight seconds flat, and in the grander competitive set of compact crossovers regardless of powertrain, that’s very much a sufficient number.
So, what are you missing out on with an electric vehicle this inexpensive? Well, mostly creature comforts. Sure, you get a massive 17.7-inch touchscreen infotainment system, but that’s about it. If you want heated front seats and a heated steering wheel, be prepared to shell out an extra $1,455 for the Comfort Package and $545 for the bundled Active Safety Package 2, the contents of the former also including a textile-wrapped steering wheel, a 360-degree camera system, an eight-way power driver’s seat, adjustable lumbar support, and traffic sign recognition. I reckon that’s good value, but if you want more, things get dramatically more expensive. For instance, if you want illuminated vanity mirrors, the cheapest way into those is by way of the $8,300 Convenience Package. Weird.
Still, it’s hard not to see huge value here. While not as inexpensive as the previous-generation Bolt, the base model Equinox EV offers substantially more range, a roomier and larger form, and three times the peak charging speed, all for $34,995 including freight before the tax credit or $27,495 after it. America needs cheap EVs and it seems like it’s finally getting them.
(Photo credits: Chevrolet)
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Our friends just had to trash a 115k mile Traverse (beautiful vehicle, red, good looking, practical, everything I love in a kid-hauler) because of some transmission problem. Left them stranded 400 miles away from home, quote from the 3rd party blackmailer was $7500 for a remanufactured transmission. They took the train home with what they could carry, kids in tow.
No chevies for me unless they are leases, rentals, someone else’s, SS’es or Vettes.
So true! I had a cousin get food poisoning once from Wendy’s. Now I won’t eat at any Wendy’s unless someone else is paying, I have coupons, or for Baconators or frosties
Precisely 😀 – ok for fun and self-inflicted suffering, not ok for anything serious, needed daily, or that I need to actually rely on 😛
I look forward to these showing up in the great white north.
The $4500 Federal rebate helps. As well, Costco Canada members get a $1200 rebate on any GM EV now until Dec 2. So if you are buying a GM EV in Canada, definitely pony up for a Costco Canada membership first!
I wonder if a similar rebate is available in Costco USA?
They should call it the Cheapuionox, am I right?
My favorite argument for EVs not having Car Play or Android Auto “The infotainment system needs to be able to communicate with the car and let you know where to find charging stations”.
But you shouldn’t have range anxiety?
$8,300 for illuminated vanity mirrors. I love it! Finally a punitive narcissist tax!
It’s worth noting that the 2025 Equinox doesn’t have the NACS (Tesla) charging connector: https://gmauthority.com/blog/2024/07/2025-chevy-equinox-ev-not-getting-nacs-connector/
That would be a big reason to wait until 2026/27, for me at least.
Unless public charging at fast chargers regularly, it won’t be an issue. Even then, using a NACS to CCS adapter is not the end of the world. I use adapters for my Tesla when public charging. It’s simply not an issue.
I think a big asterisk here is the lack of Android Auto/Apple Carplay. That’s a massive buzzkill for me on a non-enthusiast vehicle. GM’s insistence on their own interface rather than screen mirroring is going to be a big turn-off for a fair number of people, I suspect.
I plan to buy an EV next year, but GM won’t be in consideration without CarPlay. No way I’d sign up for the General’s Infotorture platform when I can simply go elsewhere.
The platform is Android Automotive. I’m still learning it. I initially had some trepidations about that, but the car was for my wife and she doesn’t use it. So far, I like what I see but there are a couple of things I haven’t found a good workaround for.
The fact that it needs workarounds is a bit of a warn-away for me. Am I correct in thinking that it also needs its own internet connection? If so, that’s another negative for me. I already pay for home internet and internet on my phone, and paying for another subscription for my car to do the things my phone already does bothers me. (To be fair, I also HATE the idea of car subscription services for things that are already built in, as well)
For everyone wringing their hands about cheap Chinese EVs killing the US auto industry, this is the answer. Adequate power, decent range, fast charging. I’m impressed.
This vehicle is heavily subsidized. Just like China…
The difference is China subsidizes at the manufacturer level – enabling lower sales prices.
In the US, we subsidize at the consumer level – because we all know what US Corporations would do with subsidies…
(Stock buyback to go with your Superyacht, anyone?)
I brought this up because if GM can produce a $35,000 pig of an EV, it can also produce a $20,000 200+ mile highway range EV equivalent to a Chevrolet Cruze, and then apply the same subsidy, for a viable “$12,500” U.S. answer to a BYD Seagull, except superior in every way to the Seagull. Faster. Safer. Better built. More efficient. Then we don’t need to tariff/gatekeep the inexpensive Chinese cars out of the USA for GM to compete. Many people of modest means would actually be able to afford $12,500 for a new car with a warrantee and see net savings on their monthly expenditures vs using their 20 year old $5,000 ICE clunker. This Equinox doesn’t offer that sort of value proposition. No EV car on the market does. It’s a missed opportunity.
Instead, the subsidy the US is offering for the GM product is being used to enable greed and delay what actually needs to be done, this also being something GM had the capability/opportunity to do in the 1990s and passed in favor of forcing the SUV/truck paradigm onto the market.
As a result, Tesla and the Chinese are probably going to own the global EV market for decades while everyone else requests government bailouts.
I’d rather subsidize my neighbor’s new EV than another superyacht for a Billionaire.
For a family CUV that hauls kids to soccer, not everyone needs a sub 5 second 0-60. People may want buttons, too.
$27k these days is equivalent to about $20k 10 years ago. That’s a bargain in today’s car market.
I test drove the $40k Equinox model a few weeks ago and liked it very much. The lease deal offered was astounding: $270/mos. 0 down 36000. .
I think for some time Busyforks we’re going for less than $200/mo.
For a runabout beater it’s unrivalled.
It’s not my kind of car but I honestly don’t hate it in the slightest. And the 8s 0-60 is, in practical terms, totally fine for normal people. The important factors are range, charge time and cost, not whether you can beat everyone else to the next traffic light.
I wouldn’t touch an EV unless it had access to Tesla’s Supercharger network, the CCS network is unusable. 150KW charging is plenty fast, I hardly notice a difference in my Tesla between the 2. The stat that needs better reporting is the charging curve, particularly in cold climates. A 25 min charge could be a 90 min charge if the car lacks the ability to warm up its own battery en route, and throttles you to 20kw for 40 min until it warms up.
This was the Bolt’s Achilles’ heel, winter charging was painfully slow even at 50kw, but just comically slow at 15kw. Even on a warm summer afternoon, it would only charge at 50kw for a short spurt.
Definitely a short-coming on road-trip EVs. But as with a similar decision of “do I need that 3rd row”, it’s a matter of how much will you need it? Home and work charging may have you covered for 95%+ of use cases.
True, not everyone will take an EV on road trips. I used to believe I needed a gas car for road trips until I got a Tesla. It was not possible in any of the 4 EVs I owned previously.. now its just about as convenient as gas.
GM has access to the Tesla Supercharger network.
How does that work? Do they just need an adapter or has the port been changed? Huge win and it makes this a compelling choice, granted you can preheat the battery and it actually charges above 85kw for more than 10 min.
I’ll have to read up on charging times with this guy. I love my Tesla, but the network and simplicity of charging is its biggest pro – Type in your destination and the car navigates to your destination and/or charger on its own, preheating the battery automatically. No more Plugshare apps or 20+ charging apps and clumsy payment options/broken-offline chargers. With Tesla you just plug in and walk away.
GM will give you an adapter, and GM software update will do all the things the Tesla interface does in terms of finding a location and whatnot. Ford, Rivian and soon Kia are the same. I have a Kia without an adapter right now and you can use the Tesla app on your phone to use the network places that have the magic plug. Works fine for me for road trips currently.
I WILL get hate for this, but 8 second 0-60 on an EV is kind of a slouch in today’s world.
deservedly. only a handful of drivers even care about 0-60.
this is like complaining about the 0-60 in a base camry
It is slow, comparatively speaking, but it’s also more than adequate, especially in an EV. The situations when I tend to want full acceleration (e.g. passing, changing lanes in traffic, etc.) lend themselves to an EV’s instant torque. You just put your foot down and go, with no delay for a transmission to shift down or a turbo to spool up. An EV that can do 0-60 in 8 seconds feels significantly different in the real world driving situations than an ICE vehicle with the same 0-60 time.
I wonder what the 0 to 30 or 40mph is. How often are you going from a standstill to highway speed on any road? Or even the 30-60mph would be nice to see.
It’s an Equinox, nobody cares about 0-60 in any car with “Equinox” written on the back.
Seeing as I’m stuck behind the stupid things seemingly every time I have to merge onto a 70mph freeway, I would appreciate it if they had another 50-75 horsepower.
They don’t need more HP. The drivers need a little more lead in their right feet. 200ish HP is plenty if it’s called upon.
$27,495 before any other incentive is a pretty good deal. I wonder what will be the price range for the next Bolt EUV. It will probably have a smaller battery size but same motor as the Equinox EV.
If the Bolt is Trax or Trailblazer priced before EV credits, it will be Cavalier money. That’s a crazy deal
Saw one yesterday for the first time. Honestly looks pretty good…..
Agreed. I was kind of down on the looks from pictures, but after seeing a few on the road this past week I’m liking it.
I started to configure mine to carry a kayak (after having to search for the cheaper 2025 model) and depending on which package you get them in, it costs either $8,300 or $11,400 to add roof rails and then another $395 for the cross bars.
The same $8,300 or $11,400 upgrades are required to select the $925 factory installed trailer hitch.
I’m not at all interested until I see what the aftermarket offers, because I’m not paying $8,695 more to carry a kayak, or $9,425 to pull it.
Or you could just go to REI and get a Thule Wing Bar Evo (top of the line) rack system for about $660, then the Kayak holders for another $300.
No roof bars necessary.
Is that compatible? Does that work well, and without damage on this vehicle?
I hadn’t started my research as these cheaper 2025 models aren’t actually available yet, but you’ve given me a good starting point.
Whoever assembled the factory option package dependencies is completely clueless, or perhaps a bit evil. Not sure which.
Get the Hullavators too!
The Hullavators are genius.
I’m not sure I’d mount a Hullavator on something that doesn’t have hard-mounted roof rails. Have you tried them on a temporary-mounted roof rack?
Maybe I’m way too cautious about roof damage.
Agree on all that! My vehicle has front and back slotted channels that have a welded “nut” at the bottom of the channels to bolt the roof rails to so I just bolted the Thule rails that way. Bought two pairs, half price pro deal, still not inexpensive. Great for old codgers with tall vehicles. Good luck!
I would not do temporary.
The only way I’m buying a BEV with electric door handles is if the doors are built to be easily removable and there are aftermarket door options, like for the Jeep Wrangler.
I wouldn’t buy one of these for $1.
I remember a lot of people here saying this version wouldn’t exist, the price would be revised upwards, etc.
Now, of course it remains to be seen how many GM will actually produce, but lets at least acknowledge that this isn’t a $35K Tesla situation.
Right? Happy to see it be available soon. If they can advertise home charging incentives and options like Ford is, this may be a big hit (relatively speaking) in the appliance category of people movers.
Illuminated vanity mirrors aren’t on the base? That’s insane. I haven’t had a car newer than 2000 that didn’t have those!
Can’t tell if sarcasm or actually uses vanity mirrors…..
Haha not sarcasm. I don’t use them often, but I just have not seen unlit ones in so long that it shocked me.
My van doesn’t even have mirrors.
What is the van though? I mean my Miata doesn’t either, but it’s a 96 so it makes sense.
2019 Nissan NV3500 Passenger – due to the commercial nature, sure. But it’s an SL V8 “leather” heated seats, tri-climate control, navigation that’s woefully outdated, etc, so it’s an interesting omission on a passenger oriented version of the van,
Fair enough. Yeah that is weird.
On the bright side. Double DIN radio – so easy to update the vehicle compared to 95% of newer cars.
It’s a MegaVan. Duh.
That is weird. It’s like Honda not including variable intermittent wipers on the base CR-V LX or the lower Civic trims that knock on $30k. Civic Sport (nonhybrid) doesn’t have that yet has blind-spot monitor and keyless entry with remote start, go figure.
I have lighted vanity mirrors in my Mercedes.
I’ve probably used them 4 times in the past 11 years?
So not a deal killer.
Heated seats are more important to me – those get used all the time.
Oh I agree. It’s not a big deal, but it’s just been such a common feature of so many cars for so long that it’s weird to see not included. And I can’t imagine it’s saving them any money having to make the visors with and without the lights.
Little stuff like that adds up.
You can bet that fleet buyers will be speccing cars without fluff like this to keep their costs lower too.
$27,495 ain’t THAT cheap, especially for a Chevy.
For a brand new EV that can easily accommodate a growing family though, it’s a darn good deal. It’s a full 10k below a RWD Model Y, and the Chevy comes with an actual interior.
FWIW it’s less than the starting price of a CX-50, Rav4, CRV, and just about any other ICE in it’s class.
But why would you buy a NEW car for a growing family? Buy a used rental minivan instead, it’ll be cheaper and you won’t feel as bad when its covered in diaper blowouts and spilled juice.
The kind of person who is actually going to feel bad about a vehicle that kids ride in getting dirty isn’t going to care if its new or used (and probably doesn’t actually have kids).
By definition someone with a growing family has kids. Or has pets and is kinda weird.
Either way that car is getting messy.
Right.
My point is new or used, parents of young kids accept their vehicle is going to be dirty and don’t stress about it.
The type of person who is going to buy something used “so that I don’t care if it gets dirty” isn’t a parent (or hasn’t learned their lesson yet).
This is like another version of the “why buy a Hyundai Sonata when you could buy a used S-Class.”
Buying a questionably beaten on 4-5 year old van with 60k+ miles – which is where most vans in the mid-$20k range show on Carmax, even accounting for Carmaxflation – isn’t automatically a more sound choice.
Edit: Also this is like the same price or less as every other midsize sedan or compact/midsize crossover equivalent (CR-V, RAV4, etc).
Buying a questionably beaten on 4-5 year old van with 60k+ miles – which is where most vans in the mid-$20k range show on Carmax, even accounting for Carmaxflation – isn’t automatically a more sound choice.
How much is a 4-5 year old Chevy with 60k+ miles?
Traverses run about the same as the minivans. An Equinox is in the high teens or about 5-6k less…which is in keeping with the original MSRPs of the vehicles. Not really sure what used Chevy prices have to do with the minivan comparison you made however. The buyer of the new car isn’t making an irresponsible choice by opting for no miles, a full warranty, etc.
“Not really sure what used Chevy prices have to do with the minivan comparison you made however.”
Just looking for apples to apples.
“The buyer of the new car isn’t making an irresponsible choice by opting for no miles, a full warranty, etc.”
Unless the car is a complete POS I think they will take more of a hit in depreciation, especially with an EV, doubly so after the kids do their thing than with a used car. Whether new car smell and a warranty that may never be needed is worth that kind of drop in value is up to the buyer. If it were me, probably not.
I think oranges were already introduced when you mentioned used minivans to a new midsizeish crossover on the premise of things that might happen. And if we’re throwing in variables, financing a used 60k mile vehicle looks different from financing a new one at the same pricepoint. Plus – new parents often gravitate toward the safety features, which tips toward new cars too.
There’s no doubt a variety of options in the price range. I think anyone buying a new car expects some degree of depreciation. To what extent is a different matter and EVs suffer far more, but that’s not new or inherent to the Equinox here. Tying it back to growing families, more than likely if family needs grow beyond it, the EV becomes the secondary/runabout/commuter car (which maybe it is anyway- it’s priced in line with the highest volume model segments after all). That’s how it went for most of my friends with young kids now, and it was the case for my parents years ago.
Chances are someone buying a new car is planning to keep it long enough that depreciation isn’t high on the priority list. And if it’s a lease, then a lot of this goes out the window. “but the kids will dirty it!” I didn’t with our cars as a kid, but you referenced yourself below about cleaning products, a professional detail job is a lot cheaper than some maintenance and repair items might end up on the used van in the same time period. Heck I remember reading that a member on a Sienna forum researched from the parts department the cost of a new set of carpet, and found it cheaper than whatever interior protection the sales department was selling. Granted it has to be installed, but still.
I think oranges were already introduced when you mentioned used minivans to a new midsizeish crossover on the premise of things that might happen
You are right, I did. That’s why I asked for an apple too.
And if we’re throwing in variables, financing a used 60k mile vehicle looks different from financing a new one at the same pricepoint.
Not something I consider but I get others do.
Plus – new parents often gravitate toward the safety features, which tips toward new cars too.
Also true which is unfortunate since that is exactly why so many oversized behemoths sit idling in front of America’s schools and soccer fields.
a professional detail job is a lot cheaper than some maintenance and repair items might end up on the used van in the same time period.
I was thinking more of a gallon of professional grade enzyme cleaner and a gas station power vacuum.
Peace of Mind.
The $7500 EV credit.
The “My smells and stains aren’t as bad as someone else’s smells and stains” mindset.
And repeat lease clients.
Besides – Someone has to buy or lease them new in order for you to get them 2-4 years later off-lease.
The Equinox EV 1LT is eligible for the full $7,500 EV credit, meaning the net price works out to $27,495 including freight.
Peace of mind comes at a price, that price being the steep part of the depreciation curve, higher insurance rates, etc, plus that peace of mind may be outweighed by the anxiety of waiting for that first bit of body damage.
“The “My smells and stains aren’t as bad as someone else’s smells and stains” mindset.”
Hard eyeroll. That’s what cleaning products are for.
“Besides – Someone has to buy or lease them new in order for you to get them 2-4 years later off-lease.”
I’m with you there. My point is simply that new parents make better used owners than new owners.
It’s new, has a warranty for anything major that goes wrong, likely needs full coverage insurance that will cover a major accident and the seat will mold itself to your backside. Being an EV there’s a high chance it’ll offer 5+ years of trouble free service.
That’s assuming, of course, that you qualify for the tax incentive. I know a lot of people who want an EV that don’t (me among them), and if I’m going to have to pay sticker price anyway, I’m going to look at an Ioniq 5 or something before I look at the de-contented Chevy.
That’s fair, but the income limits for not qualifying for a new EV are extremely high, 150k if filing separately or single, or 300k if filing jointly, which at that level of income, even in a high cost of living area, I suspect nearly nobody in that income range would be considering the uber-base model. The Ioniq lineup is far more compelling where Hyundai/Kia offers the 7500 as a cash incentive to match the credit, but it applies to all buyers, where in your case it would be a much better option.
Really the value play will always be an off-lease EV that’s 2-3 years old with under 45k miles, they’re effectively all at least half off MSRP if not more with plenty of battery warranty left.
I hadn’t realized that the income threshold had gone up. I was thinking it was still $75K for an individual. I’m still keeping my eye out for an off-lease Lucid Air or a Genesis G80 Electrified.
It is 75k for a used EV, but it’s double that for new, so it’s a weird in-between. Both also allow you to use your prior years income level, so if you got a promotion this year that bumped you up, you can still qualify so long as last year was below. Also believe the number is pre-tax but post-deductions like 401k/HSA, so there are ways to get down to the threshold if you’re close. Either of those would be pretty incredible, the used Lucid Air market seems to be extremely soft for that they offer.
If Cheap Bastard of people says it ain’t cheap then it ain’t cheap
COTD
https://infornicle.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/youre-god-damn-right.gif
It’s objectively cheap for a new EV CUV. But Cheap Bastards don’t buy new EVs, or they wouldn’t be cheap bastards.
It weighs less than 5,000 pounds too, which is a win for an Ultium car. Dear lord is that platform chunky…
I just bought a ’24 Eq EV. Here were the discounts/rebates/credits/etc. I received.
$7500 Fed Tax Credit
$5350 CO State Tax Credits
$1500 Competitive Rebate from GM (Own ’20 or newer non-GM vehicle)
$2500 Dealer price break from MSRP
0.9% GM financing for 36 mo.
I got the 3RS highly optioned (no super-cruise) MSRP $54380 for a selling price of $37530
Dayyymmnmm. Not too shabby.
Well done sure. Dang. That’s awesome!
Sounds like all but the $2500 dealer break will be applicable to this version too. Removing that, it’s a smoking hot $20,645 with 0.9% financing for the 1LT!
It should be. Financing was 0.9/36, 1.9/48,etc…
Colorado EV credits rule! Jealous
They sure do.
Do you have to trade in the non-GM car to get the Competitive Rebate, or just have one?
Simply had to show my registration.