5 of my favorite features on the Chevrolet Equinox EV that make it a perfect family SUV

The Chevrolet Equinox EV

Nora Naughton, Business Insider

Access to Tesla Superchargers is a game-changer.
Little details in design make the Equinox EV feel special.
Equinox EV doesn’t sacrifice style for function, offering a ton of storage space.

I drove the new Chevrolet Equinox EV for a few days, and some features quickly jumped out as my favorites.

This isn’t the first time I’ve been behind the wheel of the Equinox EV — I first drove the crossover SUV over the summer on a short, pre-planned route.

What’s different this time is that I’ll have the car for seven days in total, and have already worked to integrate it into my everyday life to test Chevy’s claim that this is an electric vehicle for the masses.

From charging to styling to unexpected features, the Equinox EV has worked nicely as a family hauler built for suburban life. These 5 things have impressed me so far:

1. Access to Tesla Superchargers

A Chevrolet Equinox EV charges up at a Tesla Supercharger with an NACS adapter. — My NACS adapter allowed me to charge up at a Tesla Supercharger.
Nora Naughton, Business Insider

This is honestly a game changer. GM’s cars just got access to the Supercharger network in September.

I’ve driven the Chevrolet Bolt EV many times over the years, and the biggest struggle has always been finding a reliable place to plug in.

Tesla has always had the most robust and reliable charging network, and access to that has taken a ton of the stress out of keeping the Equinox EV juiced up.

Using the NACS adapter that GM provided me with for this test drive, I could fill up at any of the dozen Supercharger stations within driving distance from my house.

Charging up from 53% to 80% took about 35 minutes and cost $10.00.

2. Super Cruise for highway driving

Interior view of front cabin in a 2024 Chevrolet Equinox EV RS. — Interior view of front cabin in a 2024 Chevrolet Equinox EV RS equipped with Super Cruise.
Jim Fets, General Motors

The Equinox EV I have this week is equipped with GM’s hands-free highway driving system, Super Cruise.

As a suburbanite, I spend a lot of time on the highway getting to and from the city. Metro Detroit highways can be stressful to navigate, and having Super Cruise (with automatic lane change!) has taken a lot of that pressure off of my commutes.

Super Cruise is also easy to use. Like traditional cruise control systems, I activate it by touching a button on the steering wheel and deactivate by tapping the brake.

For automatic lane change, all I need to do is flip a turn signal, and the car changes lanes on its own when there is an opening. That is a Godsend in rush-hour highway traffic.

3. So much trunk space

An Equinox EV trunk full of groceries. — My weekly grocery haul didn’t even fill the trunk halfway.
Nora Naughton, Business Insider

The Equinox EV isn’t a big car from the outside, but like many other electric cars, it has a surprising amount of space on the inside.

As a mom in a house with a toddler, two dogs, and two cats, the amount of trunk space in the Equinox EV is a huge selling-point for me.

With the rear seat folded, the Equinox EV offers up to 57.2 cubic feet of maximum cargo room. That’s compared to 54.7 cubic feet of max cargo space in my Subaru Crosstrek, which is similar in size to the Equinox EV.

4. Door handles that greet me as I approach the vehicle

Flush handles on the Equinox EV fold out as the driver approaches.
Nora Naughton, Business Insider

The Equinox EV has a lot of little features that separate it from its gas-powered counterpart.

Perhaps the first one any driver will experience is the mechanical door handles, which are flush with the exterior when the car is locked and fold out to greet the driver when the car is unlocked. It’s also a helpful visual aid to remember if the car is locked.

This design cue is a direct nod to Tesla, which originated this door handle design. It’s also a nice touch.

On the Equinox EV, the automatic mechanical door handles make this capable and family-friendly crossover feel just a little more elevated. And if you’re worried about frozen door handles like Tesla drivers have reported, Chevy says it has addressed this with an ice-breaking algorithm built into the handles.

5. The Equinox EV has curb appeal

A Chevrolet Equinox EV parked in a gravel parking lot. — The Chevrolet Equinox EV
Nora Naughton, Business Insider

You can tell the Chevy team designed the Equinox EV to stand out from its gas-powered sibling.

The Equinox EV’s front end is more sleek, with a hood that swoops down into narrow headlights, giving the car a unique look at night.

The car has turned heads and started parking lot conversations since I started driving it around town, which is certainly not something I can say for gas-powered Equinoxes I have driven in the past.

Read the original article on Business Insider

This article was originally published by Nora Naughton at All Content from Business Insider (https://www.businessinsider.com/chevy-equinox-ev-features-family-suv-2024-9).

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