2010 Chevrolet Equinox - Specs - First Look

How's the rest of the vehicle? It trades an inch of overall length for 1.1 in. of added width, and the roof comes down 0.7 in. The wheelbase is the same and the rear seat still slides fore and aft 8.0 in. to apportion the people and cargo space as needed, but somehow the rear legroom rating drops 3.0 in. Headroom front and rear is also eroded by slightly less than an inch, as is the cargo space (by almost 5 cu ft overall), but Chevy claims it's still best-in-class. The new interior looks classy too, with a choice of three contrasting color schemes pairing brownstone, gray, or tan with black. Much of the plastic you see is hard, but the sheen and texture are appealing, the armrests and touch points are soft, and the seats get contrasting stitching (at least on the topline LTZ model displayed). A first-in-class feature: a hydraulically actuated power liftgate with pinch protection. OnStar is standard, and if you get the model with Bluetooth connectivity, you can program the car to call OnStar via your own cell-phone, dodging the monthly OnStar access fee most users have to pay. Stiffer body structure, acoustic laminated glass, and triple door sealing are said to lower interior noise levels noticeably. A four-way power driver seat with electric lumbar is standard, eight-way electrics are optional, as is heating and memory for the front seats.

Will all this be enough to "disrupt the default decision to buy an import" as Chevy honcho Ed Peper hopes? Tune in this summer to find out.