A limited lineup for the diesel-powered 2018 Chevrolet Equinox has resulted in official pricing that ranges from a low of $31,435 (including delivery) for the Equinox LT to a high of $35,680 for an Equinox Premier AWD Diesel with no options.
Maxed out, according to CarsDirect, the Equinox Diesel becomes a $40,195 compact Chevrolet crossover once the Sun/Sound/Navigation and Confidence/Convenience packages are added to the Premier AWD.
But how much extra does the diesel-powered Equinox actually cost?
That’s more difficult to determine.
Because the diesel-powered Premier isn’t equipped like a Premier with the 2.0T, there’s not a perfectly direct comparison. The 2.0T Premier, for example, is more expensive than the 1.6-liter diesel because it includes dual exhaust, a higher tow rating of 3,500 pounds, and 19-inch wheels, a GM spokesperson told CarsDirect.
At the lower end of the spectrum, the Equinox LT Diesel requires a $1,345 premium over the 2.0T; which is already $2,395 more costly than the basic 1.5T.
Missing, of course, are diesel versions of the basic L and LS Chevrolet Equinox, prices of which begin at $24,525.
Although the EPA hasn’t yet posted fuel economy figures for the Equinox Diesel on its website, GM expects ratings of 32 miles per gallon city and 40 highway for front-wheel-drive versions; 31 mpg city and 37 mpg highway for the all-wheel drive Equinox Diesel.
Direct competitors will be limited to the marginally more costly GMC Terrain Diesel, an Equinox fraternal twin, and the yet-to-be priced Mazda CX-5. But it’s unlikely any of these vehicles will sell remotely as often as the Toyota RAV4 Hybrid, which is priced from $29,990. The RAV4 Hybrid AWD is rated at 34 mpg city and 30 highway, enough to save roughly $300 per year compared with regular all-wheel-drive RAV4s.
Toyota sold 45,070 RAV4 Hybrids in the U.S. during calendar year 2016. With GM expecting only 5 percent of its customers to select the diesel and Mazda only 10 percent, this new trio of diesel-powered compact crossovers, combined, isn’t likely to attract as many U.S. buyers as the RAV4.
The 2018 Chevrolet Equinox Diesel produces a meagre 136 horsepower but a 240 lb-ft slug of torque at just 2,000 rpm.
[Image: General Motors]
Timothy Cain is a contributing analyst at The Truth About Cars and Autofocus.ca and the founder and former editor of GoodCarBadCar.net. Follow on Twitter @timcaincars.
Not too bad…let’s just hope the dealers don’t just stock the lots with the top of the line 40,000 dollar one and then wonder why they don’t sell.
Doesnt that seem rather expensive. I know that its due to the trim levels but darn. Its like they dont want to sell them.
I had two Equinox for company cars, 09 and 11 or 10 and 12 honestly I do not remember.
Both were 1 LT AWD 4 mils. I liked them for what they were, but 35k is way too much even at a higher trim package the value is not there.
Timeless, bold exterior design, GM!
http://carphotos.cardomain.com/ride_images/1/3120/4181/7799590002_large.jpg?v=0
People still use Cardomain?
To ridicule General Motors.
MySpace & PeekYou, too.
We need a new host for TTAC. Can’t even link, let alone embed image? Is this “2000-and-late?”
Not as bad as I thought it might be. Don’t forget the cost of having to add DEF on a regular basis along with the diesel upcharge.
As for the power numbers, as one of the people on the TDI forums says – “hp is for show, tq is for go”.
“hp is for show, tq is for go”.
kind of benighted on their part since their “beloved” 2.0 TDIs have less torque and way less horsepower than every 2.0 GTDI engine on the market.
Not that it’s saying much, but I can outrun easily out accelerate things like Subarus or Corollas in my Sportwagen. Similar horsepower numbers, but much more off the line torque with the TDI. Torque makes a big difference in my experience.
“Not that it’s saying much, but I can outrun easily out accelerate things like Subarus or Corollas in my Sportwagen.”
I highly doubt they’re trying to keep up with you. Imaginary racing isn’t really a convincing argument.
and by the way, I specifically referred to “GTDI” engine for a reason.
Pretty silly to pick some of the slowest cars out there to compare against though. And even then no TDI model can really significantly out-accelerate any of those cars. It just feels relatively spry because the torque peak comes relatively early and the DSG transmissions that VW pairs with the TDIs is very quick, but the problem is that the motors quickly run out of steam. It’s too bad that the US never got the high power (170HP) TDI motor that Europe got but it would never have a chance in hell of meeting emissions regulations.
People who don’t understand the difference between force and power often say that.
It doesn’t make them right.
DEF is very cheap if you buy the larger jugs at Walmart, though last time I went with the cheapest brand they had and there was a weird off-scent in my exhaust. They carry a slightly less cheap one that I’d probably go with next time.
The gas version has a *higher* tow rating of 3500 pounds? Wouldn’t one of the big reasons people would buy the oil burner be towing? From a family hauler standpoint, less than 3500 means it won’t even tow anything bigger than a pop-up trailer.
The showy bits and bigger wheels I don’t care about anyway, so hopefully that represents some cost savings.
Makes me wonder what other mechanical component they have cheaped out on with the Diesel.
And really, if they are going to compete with hybrids, they have to be priced competitively.
No one is buying a 1.6 liter diesel for towing.
Tim, I have picked on you in the past, but this is a sincere question. Why the comparison of a diesel to a hybrid vehicle?
Well, I am not Tim but I play him on television.
I can only assume that he is using the impression that both can save money on fuel in the long term. I dont think its comparison of overall performance.
Because the primary reason to buy a diesel vehicle like this is fuel economy? (don’t give me any of that garbage about torque.)
diesels improve economy by making the powerplant more efficient. Hybrids improve economy by shutting off the powerplant when it can.
DIesel also improves apparent fuel economy by packing more BTUs into a gallon. This usually requires more crude oil than a gallon of gas, and creates more CO2- about 1.2x more, IIRC.
IIRC that’s a byproduct of our refinery processes being tilted heavily towards gasoline production.
Hybrid’s big efficiency gain is by harvesting kinetic energy when braking.
Hybrid’s big efficiency gain is by harvesting kinetic energy when braking similar to F1 cars but without the turbo electric motor.
Take four compact crossover builers. Ask each to build an HFE version.
Toyota goes hybrid and doesn’t get the highest FE numbers, but it offers a more affordable price and sells exceptionally well.
GMC, Chevrolet, and Mazda get better numbers with their HFE effort, but they charge more for the privilege and acknowledge few will be sold.
You could also ask, “Why bother comparing the Equinox gas and diesel? They’re different after all.” But when people are considering massive expenditures, comparisons are useful. The hybrid/diesel conundrum is different in different jurisdictions, but the U.S. consumer’s willigness to go hybrid — and the scarcity of diesel options — makes the comparison particularly interesting and valid.
Unless you rack up a ton of miles it seems like a hard sell over the 2.0T.
$3740 for the diesel engine.
Too much.
whoo-hooo…. they can keep it
How does the equinox essentially match the city mpg of the Cruze but is much worse on the highway?
Aerodynamics count for much more on the highway, and the Equinox punches a bigger hole in the air than the Cruze does.
I’m sure discounts will be large, sooner rather than later,but it may still be a tough go, especially since the Rav 4 Hybrid owners routinely get 38mpg.
Diesels are cooler,and this Equinox looks like it has a nicher interior
Our local Chevy dealer had a 2.0T Equinox optioned up to $41k sitting on the showroom floor. It in now way feels like anything even worth asking $30k for, let alone $41k.
Despite half decent torque, 136hp is weak sauce. Why not a turbo on your diesel?
They put turbos in everything else that shouldn’t have one, but not on the one motor which basically requires one? Really?
28 cars, who said it isn’t turbocharged?
um, it is turbocharged. this is a shining example of how it’s not that diesels are great at torque, they just suck at making horsepower.
Astonishing. Europe’s moving away from these catastrophically unreliable money pits (Diesels)! What is GM thinking?
“Ms. Barra! We developed all these next generation diesel engines for Europe but they’re moving away from diesel! What should we do?”
“Put them in the American cars and crossovers! Make them the premium engine so we get as much money as possible!”
Something like that probably.