Chevrolet: What's New for 2010

2010 Chevrolet Avalanche: The Avalanche's in-your-face styling seems to recall the fuel-gulping image that has compromised the appeal of trucks in the general marketplace, yet its multipurpose Midgate gives this four-door truck the availability of a full-length cargo bed, the sort of thing that actually suits the renewed emphasis on utility for pickups. A single-speed transfer case is now standard for 4WD models, while the two-speed transfer case for off-road capability is optional.

2010 Chevrolet Aveo: The Aveo doesn't get a lot of marketing dollars, but the small front-wheel-drive subcompact built by Daewoo in Korea has become a surprisingly familiar fixture on the American highway, making friends with its spacious packaging. The 1.6-liter engine makes 108 horsepower (2 hp more) for 2010, although the car still gets an EPA-rated 25 mpg city/34 mpg highway with an automatic transmission, while the car with the five-speed manual (some ratio changes this year) gets 27 mpg city/35 mpg highway.

2010 Chevrolet Camaro: Introduced to enormous marketing buzz, this stylish rear-wheel-drive coupe is the last of the retro-theme pony cars from the Detroit manufacturers to hit the street, and we'll see if it can sustain the impressive sales momentum it has already achieved.

If you start at the top, the Camaro SS offers a 426-hp 6.2-liter V8 when you specify the six-speed manual transmission and a 400-hp 6.2-liter V8 with cylinder deactivation for better mpg when you check the box for the six-speed automatic. The RS package is a desirable option, with its 20-inch wheels and HID headlights.

The Camaro LT is nearly as compelling thanks to its 304-hp 3.6-liter V6, and it gets good fuel economy besides. It's like a Cadillac CTS Coupe, only without the big badge on the grille. The EPA rating of 29 mpg on the highway (the same for either the manual transmission or automatic) is not too bad, either. And it's available with the RS option.

2010 Chevrolet Cobalt: This front-wheel-drive coupe and sedan returns for another year largely unchanged since the appearance of the Cruze world car is on the horizon. Yet the Cobalt is a world car in its own right, featuring a stout, good-handling chassis from the Opel Astra and the equally stout engineering of the American-designed Ecotec inline-4 engine. The XFE is built for fuel economy, the LS and LT models deliver surprisingly quiet, comfortable performance, and the turbocharged, intercooled Cobalt SS will get your attention.

2010 Chevrolet Colorado: Not much has changed in the 3/4-size Colorado since the S10 name went away, but since this is a truck, not much had to. An improved ABS brake system was introduced last year, and head curtain airbags are now standard. The XFE has the best fuel economy in the range thanks to its (no doubt breathless) 2.4-liter inline-4, while the 5.3-liter V8 has variable valve timing for a broader power band plus an improved tow rating of 6,000 pounds. Surprisingly, the ZQ8 Sport package still remains.

2010 Chevrolet Corvette: There's a broad range of models this year as the Corvette tries to maintain its legitimacy as America's most serious sports car in the face of competition from the Chevrolet Camaro, Dodge Challenger and Ford Mustang.

The entry-level Corvette continues in both coupe and convertible form with its 430-hp 6.2-liter LS3 V8. Launch control electronics are part of the six-speed manual transmission, while the six-speed automatic's programming has been simplified to expedite the return to automatic mode after use of the shift paddles. The convertible gets the rear spoiler from the Corvette Z06.

Meanwhile, the everyman's Corvette with the handling-oriented Z51 suspension upgrade now has a snappy new label, the Grand Sport. This car with its 430-hp 6.2-liter LS3 V8 includes wider wheels, wider tires and wider fenders, plus a specific calibration of springs, dampers and antiroll bars to match. There's an extra dimension of track-ready performance for the version with the six-speed manual transmission thanks to the presence of the same dry-sump engine lubrication, differential cooler and rear-mounted battery as the Corvette Z06.

Things get serious when you step up to the Corvette Z06 with its 505-hp 7.0-liter LS7 V8. This is also the lightest-weight Corvette in the lineup thanks to its aluminum frame and carbon-fiber fenders. For 2010, the 3LZ option package offers power-operated sport seats (yes, the passenger seat, too).

With all that's happened in the last year, it's easy to forget the Corvette ZR1 that cracked the lap record for production cars at the Nürburgring Nordschleife last year. The supercharged, intercooled 6.2-liter V8 is still rated at 638 hp, and the presence of extensive carbon-fiber body panels sets it apart. Upgraded launch control now delivers more traction (less wheelspin) for more consistent (although perhaps less speedy) performance at the track.

2010 Chevrolet Equinox: The introduction of this compact crossover is Chevy's biggest news this year, because this Opel-derived package (remember the Saturn Vue) does the job better (not to mention more affordably) than competition like the Ford Escape, Honda CR-V and the rest.

The feature that sets apart the Chevy Equinox from its badge-engineered rivals from the other GM divisions — specifically the GMC Terrain and Cadillac SRX — is its direct-injection 2.4-liter inline-4 engine. While the Equinox is available with a direct-injection 3.0-liter V6, Chevrolet expects that fully two-thirds of Equinox buyers will choose the four-cylinder by virtue of its impressive mpg numbers.

The Equinox looks pretty good in person, taking many of its carlike interior styling licks from the Chevy Malibu, but we're most impressed with its rear seat, which slides fore and aft some 8 inches and allows you to configure this crossover for either maximum rear-seat comfort or maximum cargo capacity, and that's what we think the whole crossover thing should be about.

2010 Chevrolet HHR: The HHR looks like a Chevy utility truck of the 1940s and works like a Cobalt wagon of today, and that's a pretty practical proposition. Its split personality is best represented by the continuing availability of the workaday HHR Panel and the turbocharged HHR SS. A new rearview camera system will be introduced at midyear.

2010 Chevrolet Impala: It's easy to disdain this car as a bread-and-butter front-wheel-drive sedan, yet it still offers lots of passenger space in an affordable package, and the technology is not as old-fashioned as you think. Yet there are no real changes, as you'd expect in a car that sells largely based on its price, except for some new colors and revised option combinations.

2010 Chevrolet Malibu: This is the poster child for the new Chevrolet, a genuinely good car that isn't talked about enough to sustain its marketing image. It offers spacious passenger package with appealing styling that's powered by three good powertrains: 3.6-liter V6, 2.4-liter inline-4 (the smart choice) and affordable mild hybrid. The V6-powered LT2 gets chrome 17-inch wheels, while the four-cylinder LT1 comes standard with the six-speed automatic transmission.

2010 Chevrolet Silverado 1500/Silverado Hybrid: For 2010 the Silverado gets eco-friendly with E85 fuel capability for the 4.8-liter V6, 5.3-liter V8 and 6.2-liter V8, while both the V6 and small V8 get variable valve timing for a broader power band. Models with the 5.3-liter V8 get a six-speed transmission and a taller 3.08:1 final-drive ratio to improve fuel economy. Side curtain head-protection airbags as well as seat-mounted side airbags are now standard equipment, and there's a USB port for all but the base-model radios. The Silverado Hybrid with its two-mode hybrid system continues as before, offering a 40 percent improvement in city fuel economy and an overall fuel-efficiency improvement of 25 percent.

2010 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD/Silverado 3500 HD: The heavy-duty Silverado continues as before in its range of three cab styles, three cargo-box configurations and five wheelbase lengths.

2010 Chevrolet Suburban/Suburban 2500: The truck-based sport-utility seems out of fashion, yet no other vehicle delivers its wide range of everyday utility and recreation capability. The trick lies in making it affordable to drive. The Suburban 2500 makes an effort with the availability of a 6.0-liter V8 with variable valve timing and compatibility with E85 fuel. Meanwhile, option packages for every Suburban have been changed to increase the inclusion of adjustable pedals, remote start and sonar parking assist.

2010 Chevrolet Tahoe/Tahoe Hybrid: The short-wheelbase version of the Suburban has a 5.3-liter V8 with variable valve timing and compatibility with E85 fuel, while 4WD versions are equipped with just a single-speed transfer case (the off-road dual-range version is an option). As before, the Tahoe Hybrid with its dual-mode hybrid system offers a 40 percent improvement in fuel economy in the city.

2010 Chevrolet Traverse: Introduced last year as the final member of the family of full-size Lambda-platform crossovers developed by GM, the Traverse has the practical personality you'd expect in comparison to its siblings at Buick and GMC. Both front- and all-wheel-drive variants continue to be available, and the only significant addition is the inclusion of a USB port for the radio choices.