Test Drive: 2012 Chevrolet Equinox LTZ AWD

By Kevin Harrison

The notion of ‘bigger is better’ is starting to become as obsolete as cassette players. More and more people are becoming more accepting to minimal excess. ‘Less is more’ is ringing true everywhere we look.

Our foods all have less sugar, less fat and less sodium, yet for the most part taste the same. Buying the ‘regular’ version of a food product over the low fat alternative these days will get you more stares at the supermarket than a sasquatch sighting.

Then there’s our electricity bills. We’re all encouraged to use less energy for monetary and environmental reasons so we litter our houses with compact florescent bulbs, low flow shower heads and unplug all our appliances all to discover that doing these simple things around the house isn’t so bad. But perhaps the biggest challenge we can’t seem to adapt to is using less gas. Part of the problem is it’s not quite as easy as using a different light bulb. We all chose to buy our cars for different reasons varying from space capacity to cargo capacity and often times using less gas means giving up those requirements.

SUV’s tend to be hard on gas, yet they remain quite popular even with rising gas prices. Therefore I have to assume that people buy them because they are a requirement for some people’s daily life activities. Sure, there are hybrid versions available but usually at a higher cost.

Could using less gas in an SUV be as simple as downsizing the engine? GM seems to think so as they’ve been using a 4-cylinder in their Equinox SUV for the past few years. In fact, GM has recently had to offer discounts on V6 versions of the Equinox to get them moving off dealer lots because all everyone wants is the 4-cylinder. Could the ‘less is more’ mantra really work in a heavy AWD crossover? I tried one to find out.

In addition to the assumed need of space and cargo capacity a lot of people buy wagons because they think they look better than minivans and wagons. While I am proud to exclude myself from that line of thinking, there is no doubt that the Equinox is an attractive vehicle. It has rugged cues for those of us laden with testosterone and softer-classier cues for those who don’t. The latter is especially true for the front fascia. It is more elegant than aggressive. Its side profile provides flared wheel arches and an extremely angled d-pillar for those who prefer a more dexterous look and the bulging tail lights out back help out in that regard as well. My tester was the LTZ model which is the top of the line trim level. It adds to the appearance (I say that loosely) with chrome door handles, roof rails wing mirrors and chrome 18-inch wheels. I’m not sure when GM is going to realize that chrome is about as played out as Charlie Sheen saying ‘winning’ all the time, but it doesn’t seem they are going to get it any time soon. Not to mention that the chrome add-ons just like strange with my tester’s light blue colour. It looks a bit tacky, but I imagine it works a bit better with darker colours.

Inside, GM really wanted to improve over the previous model’s interior and they relatively succeeded. The fit and finish is pretty good with the exception of a few cheap sounding plastics sprinkled throughout and the layout is both pleasing to the eye and logically laid out. When I say they relatively succeeded, I mean they’ve finally gotten quality materials and a good design, but they seem to have ruined it with the colour scheme. I’m not sure which decade it was where two tone seats in a family vehicle was ever cool, I’m certain it wasn’t this one. The different coloured piping around the leather seats as well as different colours sprinkled throughout the dash take away from an otherwise thoughtful interior. It’s as if GM was trying a bit too hard to make it stand out. I’m also not a fan of the teal coloured lighting for the instruments, but to each their own. The good news is that the information screen at the top of the centre stack is large and emits a crisp image.

Despite being the biggest in the crowded compact SUV segment, the interior isn’t as spacious as the exterior suggests. It’s by no means small, but I feel as though form took precedent over function here with those sleek exterior design cues and reworked interior. The older Equinox actually had 8.1 cubic feet more than this new one. Given this vehicle’s purpose and going on the previous assumption that people buy SUV’s because they need extra space, I’m not sure having a more attractive looking Equinox in return is really worth it. These compromises can be acceptable on something like a roadster perhaps, but not a people moving crossover. I used the Equinox to pick up my parents from their month-long trip to Africa for instance and while my father was glad I took the Equinox instead of his Volvo C30 (his newly acquired African drum surely wouldn’t have fit), I was a bit disappointed when I had to fold down one of the rear seats to accommodate all their luggage. They didn’t have an excessive amount of luggage either. Still, there is adequate rear legroom and headroom room, as my father pointed out.

No SUV is all that great at handling and the Equinox is no different thanks to being among the heaviest in its class, its larger overall size and complete lack of steering feedback to the driver. However the all-wheel drive certainly helps to keep the Equinox planted if it gets out of shape and those bigger 18 inch wheels also helped with stability. Brake pedal feel is fairly mushy, however stopping distances seem to be unaffected by that.

As I alluded to earlier, my tester was equipped with a 2.4 litre 4 cylinder engine with produces 182 horsepower and 182 pound feet of torque. What makes this engine so impressive is that it is able to make roughly the same amount of power as the outgoing 3.4 litre V6 and, of course, it’s much more efficient. It’s clear GM put a lot of hard work into this engine and it shows. The engine is generally smooth and refined at lower speeds, although it can drone and become intrusive to the cabin when you have your foot to the floor.  Then there’s the real brilliance of this engine. It’s rated at 6.1 L/100 kms highway which bests all of the Equinox’s competition and puts it at Chevrolet Cruze levels of efficiency. Add on the optional AWD system and that number dips a bit to 6.9 L/100 kms.

 

However in the real world, it’s a bit difficult to get those impressive numbers. During my week with the Equinox, I used all the fuel efficiency tactics I know (and I know a hell of a lot of them) in a good mix of highway and city driving and all that happened to my mileage was that it gradually got worse and worse. The problem really lies with the Equinox’s weight here. It’s a whopping 400 pounds heavier than its second heaviest competitor. Add in heavy all-wheel drive and you’d have a better chance of landing a date with Beyoncé  than achieving the fuel efficiency numbers on paper. To be fair, the weather was bitterly cold for a few days and that negatively affects fuel efficiency no matter what or how you drive.

But despite all this, the Equinox still captures the ‘less is more’ philosophy quite nicely. For someone needing to downsize, the Equinox certainly isn’t too small, it’s going to be much better on gas, it’s one of the better looking vehicles in the segment with an excellent interior to match as well as an excellent engine. It’s not perfect, but GM is certainly heading down the right path to perfection with less is more. I would encourage GM to keep at it. If they do, buying an SUV with a smaller and smarter engine could just become as common and as accepted as buying that low-fat cheese or a compact florescent bulb.

Base Price: $35,810

Pros:

  • Attractive exterior styling
  • Improved interior materials
  • Excellent 4-cylinder engine
  • Adequate rear leg and head room

Cons:

  • Chrome is tacky
  • Interior colour scheme is awkward
  • Engine noise when pushed
  • Difficult to acheive stated fuel efficiency

Overall: 7/10

Related Posts

No Comments Yet.

Leave a comment

You must be logged in to post a comment.