As young adults, we tend to chase after the blingy eye candy. The pushup bras and bare midriff shirts. The football muscles and coiffed hair.
Then, as we get older, we realize that those things are fleeting and that there are more important attributes to aim for. Boring can actually be a good thing.
The steady partner who may not have a midriff worth baring or a full head of hair becomes a realistic option.
Enter the Chevrolet Equinox.
The 2023 Equinox is good looking, but doesn't have the pizzazz that some other small utilities do. It's more likely the one you bring home to meet mom, though, with its focus on being useful, ergonomic, and a steady delivery.
The 2023 model Equinox gets an extra five horsepower added thanks to some tuning in the turbocharged four-cylinder engine. That pushes the little 1.5-liter chugger to 175 horsepower and 203 pound-feet of torque. Not terrible numbers for the current market.
Probably the best attribute of the Equinox, however, is not its powertrain. Instead, it's more about this everyday Chevrolet being steady about what it is.
This third-generation of the Equinox was introduced in the 2018 model year. It carried on from the previous generation and the generation before that. Like the committed boyfriend and steady girlfriend, the Equinox hasn't changed its core since the beginning. Its purpose is to be a comfortable, useful family hauler. That is all.
In that, the 2023 Equinox remains true to its roots. There are more appealing options or faster-paced rivals to choose from. There are options with taller roofs, bigger cargo spaces, more streamlined bodywork, or bigger engines. But there aren't many that are packaged like this one. Made to be the simple, practical, and comfortable daily.
The 2023 Chevrolet Equinox comes in four trim levels, but you'll have to special order if you want the cheapest base model. Most buyers will probably look to the sporty-looking RS or the option-laden Premier top trim as their choice.
But an argument is easily made for the second-tier LT trim instead, which can be optioned with a couple of packages like Safety and Infotainment that give this trim point the useful add-ons found in the higher trims without adding all of the costs. Every Equinox comes with a pretty decent list of standard equipment already.
Driving the Equinox in Wyoming, it's clear that the all-wheel drive upgrade is a must. It's mostly aimed towards all-weather use and works well on a snowy, but plowed road to mitigate slippage and wheel spin at the intersection.
On dirt roads, the Equinox's suspension is pretty good at absorbing much of the washboard to smooth things out. But on the highway, there is a fair amount of cabin noise (especially in cross winds) and the little 1.5L can struggle to keep an 80 mph speed when fighting wind or hills. This is largely due to the limited gearing of the six-speed automatic transmission. Somehow, Chevrolet neglected to add more gears to the Equinox despite the double-digit gear totals found in many of its other models.
The 2023 Chevrolet Equinox has comfortable seating for four and can add a fifth in a pinch. And it has about average cargo space behind that. The Equinox is just punchy enough in driving feel around town to stay interesting, but isn't as confident when ramping up to speed for the freeway. Fuel economy is rated at 30 mpg on the highway (AWD model) and, on a clear day without crosswinds, thats completely doable at 65 mph. Most Wyoming drivers can expect to average somewhere in the 28-29 mpg range with this one, given our speeds and winds.
Pricing for the 2023 Equinox starts at about $27,000, but most buyers will likely be in the $35,000 range on purchase.
Aaron Turpen is an automotive journalist living in Cheyenne, Wyoming. His background includes commercial transportation, computer science, and a lot of adventures that begin with the phrase the law is a pretty good suggestion, I guess. His automotive focus is on consumer interest and both electronic and engineering technology. Turpen is a longtime writer for Car Talk and New Atlas.
