In 2022, Chevrolet announced the Equinox EV as its most affordable electric car, with a price tag of only $30,000. That was only slightly higher than the outgoing Chevy Bolt EV, which was heavily discounted following the battery fire scandal. At the time, GM management said that using the Ultium architecture would make the Equinox EV much more efficient to manufacture. However, CEO Mary Barra admitted in June 2023 that it would probably still not be profitable.
That is why not many people were surprised to see the Chevy Equinox EV launching this spring at a higher price, with the most affordable variant starting at $35,000. Even so, the LT base trim would not be available until "later in 2024," so the real price was actually much higher, at $43,295 for the 2LT variant. Thankfully, Chevrolet quietly started shipping the Equinox EV LT vehicles to dealerships for the 2025 model year.
The big surprise is not the fact that the MSRP is still $34,995, including destination charges. It's that you can order one from inventory at an already discounted price. The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox EV LT is listed as being "in transit" on the carmaker's website, with some dealers offering up to $2,500 in discounts. This makes the electric crossover retail for $32,495, or just under $25,000, when factoring in the $7,500 federal EV credit.
That's easily the cheapest electric vehicle you can buy in the US right now. However, unlike the Bolt EV, the Equinox EV is a modern vehicle with all the software bells and whistles expected from an Ultium-based electric car. Although it lacks many comfort features of the higher trims, the LT still comes with the 17.7-inch Google-based infotainment system and an 11-inch digital gauge cluster.
What you sacrifice is the AWD powertrain, as the base Equinox EV variant has only one electric motor driving the front axle. It develops 220 horsepower, and the 85-kWh battery provides up to 319 miles of EPA-estimated range. However, an AWD variant in the LT trim is also available for $40,295. The battery can be fast-charged at up to 150 kW, adding up to 77 miles of range in 10 minutes of charging.
The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox EV now has a simplified lineup, with only the LT and RS trims available to configure. This contrasts with the 2024 models, which were available as 2LT, 3LT, 2RS and 3RS trims. Both current 2025 trims can be ordered with either FWD or AWD, and Chevrolet prepared several optional packages to simplify configuration. Whether Chevrolet intends to expand the Equinox EV lineup with more models is unclear, but simplification will allow GM to boost manufacturing efficiency.
There are definitely Leafs, but not a crazy amoun. Teslas are still king. I think that Leaf lease thing was a weird hack that very few people actually pulled off.