• The Chevrolet Equinox is a gas-powered compact crossover SUV sold alongside the brand's Equinox EV.
• I was impressed by Equinox's handsome styling, good tech content, and well-designed interior.
• But I was disappointed with its engine's lackluster performance and the limited cargo space.

The Chevrolet Equinox has been General Motors' entry into the hotly contested compact SUV segment for the past two decades.

In 2025, Chevy introduced a new fourth-generation crossover variant that will be sold alongside an EV SUV of the same name.

The 2025 Equinox boasts fresh styling, a new interior, a revised drivetrain, and updated tech to help it remain competitive with segment leaders like the Honda CR-V, Toyota RAV4, and Hyundai Tucson.

I recently spent a week driving a 2025 Chevrolet Equinox RS AWD around suburban Atlanta and the winding mountain roads of North Georgia.

I was impressed by the new Equinox's handsome styling, good tech content, and well-designed passenger cabin.

I was disappointed by the Equinox's lackluster powertrain and limited cargo capacity.

My test car came to $40,370.

The base front-wheel-drive Equinox LT starts at $28,600, while the range-topping all-wheel-drive Activ and RS trims start at $35,000.

Fees and nearly $4,000 worth of optional luxury and technology features pushed the Mexico-made SUV's as-tested price to $40,370.

The Equinox's redesigned sheet metal is rugged and athletic.

Like other recent additions to the Chevy's SUV lineup, the Equinox's exterior design was heavily inspired by the brand's pickup trucks.

The most striking element of Equinox's new look is its front facia, which is dominated by a large, wide grille flanked on both sides by LED headlights with thin horizontal running lights up top.

The new Equinox is the same length as the outgoing variant but is 2.5 inches wider.

At 183.2 inches long, the Equinox is roughly the same length as the Nissan Rogue but about 1.5 inches shorter than the Honda CR-V and three inches shorter than the Mazda CX-50.

Under the hood is a small, turbocharged four-cylinder engine.

The Chevrolet Equinox's only engine option is a 1.5-liter turbocharged four-cylinder that carries over from the previous generation.

The motor, which produces 175 horsepower and 203 lb-ft of torque, is mated to a new eight-speed automatic transmission on all-wheel-drive equipped models. Front-wheel-drive Equinox's get a continuously variable transmission.

The EPA rated my Equinox RS AWD test car at 24 mpg city, 29 mpg highway, and 26 mpg combined. Front-wheel drive variants get one extra MPG in combined driving.

These figures fall short of the all-wheel-drive Honda CR-V and Nissan Rogue's fuel economy ratings of 28 mpg and 31 mpg, respectively.

The engine spoiled my experience driving the Equinox.

How was the Equinox to drive?

Let's start with the good part. It rode exceptionally well, successfully cushioning rough roads without feeling floaty. It also handled corners with relative ease.

But all of that good work was undone by the truly lackluster performance of its drive train.

Even with fairly smooth shifts from GM's Hydra-Matic eight-speed automatic, stepping on the gas pedal usually results in some intrusive engine noise but not much else. You can feel the little four-cylinder's 175 ponies trying their hardest to drag along the 3,600-lb SUV, but the Equinox is just woefully underpowered.

This was particularly evident when merging onto the highway or tackling mountain roads in the foothills of the Appalachians.

According to Motor Trend, the 2025 Equinox can make the run from 0 to 60 mph in a leisurely 9.2 seconds. This was the slowest of the nearly three dozen vehicles I tested this year.

On the other hand, the Equinox's interior is excellent.

Chevrolet did a good job with the Equinox's interior. Cabin ergonomics are excellent, with intuitively placed controls, a good balance between physical and digital controls, and oodles of useful storage.

There's also a good mix of different materials and textures, with red accents to add a pop of color to the cabin.

The red turbine-design air vents that felt out of place in the Blazer EV add an interesting visual element.

All trims come standard with a large 11.3-inch infotainment touchscreen.

The Google-based infotainment system is highly responsive, smartly designed, and a piece of cake to navigate. Built-in Google Maps gives Chevy one of the best integrated navigation systems around.

The Equinox also comes standard with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

My test car also came with the optional 360-degree surround-vision camera.

In front of the driver is a flat-bottom steering wheel with handy audio controls on the back.

Also in front of the driver is a configurable 11-inch digital instrument display that comes standard on all trims. The display looks great and can be tailored to show traditional gauges, active driver's assistance features, and Google Maps.

My test car came with this massive panoramic sunroof.

It was a $1,495 optional extra.

The heated and ventilated power front seats are stylish and offer good lumbar support.

The black seats, upholstered in an imitation leather called Evotex, feature attractive red accents and RS-branded headrests.

The rear 60/40 split bench seat offers plenty of room for two adults.

With 39.9 inches of legroom, the Equinox's rear cabin is larger than the Mazda CX-50 and Toyota RAV4's but trails the Nissan Rogue and Honda CR-V.

The rear seat passenger in my test car had heated outboard seats, dedicated AC vents, and USB sockets.

Open the liftgate, and you'll find 29.8 cubic feet of cargo space.

The Equinox's cargo compartment is half a cubic foot larger than the Mazda CX-50 but roughly five cubic feet smaller than the Honda CR-V and a whopping 9 cubic feet smaller than the Hyundai Tucson.

When the rear seat is folded flat, cargo capacity expands to 63.5 cubic feet. Under the rear cargo floor, there's also a small storage area and a spare tire.

The Equinox comes standard with an impressive suite of safety and assistance tech, including adaptive cruise control, lane keep assist, and blind zone steering assist.

Additional features like traffic sign recognition and rear pedestrian alert are available as optional extras.

My Verdict: The 2025 Chevrolet Equinox is a compelling compact SUV with rugged styling and a great interior undone by an underwhelming engine.

Chevrolet came so close to excellence with the 2025 Equinox. They nailed the styling, the interior, and the tech. But alas, the engine. No modern compact SUV can make do with just 175 horsepower. Even the similarly sized 1999 Chevy Blazer from a quarter century ago had 190 ponies. I recognize the importance of fuel economy standards in the decision-making process, but Equinox cries out for more power.

Fix the engine and you truly unleash the potential of the Equinox.

• The Buick Envista is a new subcompact, near-luxury SUV at an affordable price.
• I recently drove a 2024 Envista in its mid-tier Sport Touring (ST) trim.
• I was impressed by the Envista's elegant looks, surprisingly upscale cabin, and good fuel economy.

With the average price of a new car at just under $50,000, good, affordable cars, especially SUVs, are hard to come by these days.

But they are out there.

One example is the Buick Envista, which is all-new for 2024. It's not only the most affordable of the brand's quartet of near-luxury crossover SUVs; it's one of the lowest-priced offerings in the General Motors portfolio.

I recently reviewed a 2024 Buick Envista Sport Touring (ST) with an as-tested price of $29,070. I was impressed by the Envista's elegant design, surprisingly upscale cabin, and good fuel economy.

Here are 14 features that help make the Envista a great small SUV on a budget.

Sleek styling

The Envista's front-end design is bold and elegant. The Envista's front fascia draws heavily from Buick's recent Wildcat EV concept car and features thin "wing"-shaped LED running lights flanking the brand's newly redesigned Tri-Shield logo.

Its raked rear roofline blends seamlessly into the vehicle's overall design. Unlike many contemporaries, the Envista doesn't look like an SUV with part of its roof lopped off.

Affordable price point

The base Buick Envista in Preferred trim starts at $22,400, while the range-topping Avenir trim starts at $28,600.

My mid-tier Envista Sport Touring starts at $24,100. Freight fees, premium options, and upgraded Moonstone Gray Metallic paint elevated the Korean-made crossover's as-tested price past the $29,000 mark.

Tiny efficient engine

All Envistas are powered by a 1.2-liter, turbocharged, direct-injected three-cylinder engine that produces 137 horsepower and 162 lb.-ft. of torque.

The turbo three, shared with the Chevrolet Trax, is mated to a shiftable six-speed automatic transmission and drives only the front wheels. The little engine isn't the most powerful motor around and can feel overmatched when Envista is loaded with passengers and cargo.

However, it does deliver solid fuel economy. My Envista ST test car boasted EPA fuel economy figures of 28 mpg city, 32 mpg highway, and 30 mpg combined. I was able to easily achieve 30 mpg in mixed driving during my time with the Buick.

Upscale cabin

The Envista's cabin is well designed with solid material quality. The Envista's cabin is a masterclass in delivering an upscale experience on a budget. Buick clearly saved where it could, with hard plastics dominating the lower portions of the interior and going with a single-zone climate control system instead of a multi-zone unit.

But they didn't cheap out for the high contact areas. The armrests and the steering are covered in soft-touch faux leather. There are different patterns and designs to break up the visual monotony of a black plastic cabin.

As a result, their penny-pinching didn't really detract from the user experience.

Standard digital instrument display

The Envista comes standard with an eight-inch digital information display instead of a traditional gauge cluster, a rarity for vehicles at this price point.

ST branded seats

The heated black leatherette front seats feature Santorini Blue accents and "ST" branding on the headrests.

Standard Apple CarPlay

All Envistas come with an 11-inch infotainment touchscreen featuring standard wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility.

Stylish steering wheel

In front of the driver is a stylish flat-bottom steering wheel. As with other recent GM products, there are handy audio controls on the back of the steering wheel.

Remote start

The Envista's engine can be started remotely by pressing the "curved arrow" on the Buick key fob.

Remote Start was part of a $1,195 convenience package that also included heated power seats, keyless entry, and a heated steering wheel.

Spacious rear seats

The Envista's rear cabin offers great room for a vehicle of its size. With 38.7 inches of legroom, the Envista offers 2.5 inches more than the rival Mazda CX-30 and six inches more than the Toyota Corolla Cross.

Even with the raked roofline, headroom is more than adequate for most adults.

Teen driver mode

The Envista comes with a special Teen Mode that, when activated, can limit the vehicle's top speed, emit warnings when exceeding a pre-set speed, limit the audio volume on built-in and paired devices, and prevent the vehicle from shifting out of Park for 20 seconds when the seat belts have not been buckled.

Flexible storage

Open the power rear lift gate, and you'll find a solid 20.7 cubic feet of cargo space behind the rear seats. The Envista's 60/40 split rear bench seats fold down to expand cargo capacity to 42 cubic feet.

Spare tire

Spare tires are becoming increasingly rare these days, especially in lower-priced vehicles where the manufacturer is trying to keep the price point under control. So I'm glad Buick/GM has decided to keep them instead of giving us a can of fix-a-flat.

Safety and driver-assistance tech

The Envista ST comes standard with the Buick Driver Confidence Package, which includes IntelliBeam headlamps, a following distance indicator, forward collision alert, lane keep assist with lane departure warning, automatic emergency braking, and front pedestrian braking.

To add adaptive cruise control, lane change alert with side blind zone alert, and rear cross-traffic alert, you'll have to spend $595 on the Advanced Safety Package.

• GM has bowed out of the robotaxi race for now, halting its investment in Cruise.
• Only a few companies have made significant strides in the autonomous taxi space.
• Tesla and Waymo are the two frontrunners due to the progress they've made with self-driving.

General Motors' white flag in the robotaxi race on Tuesday just made the autonomous ride-sharing competition much smaller in the US, showing how challenging it can be for companies, even with the capital, to compete if they haven't already made significant headway in autonomy.

Eight years and more than $10 billion in investment later, GM said that the resource-intensive nature of Cruise and an increasingly competitive market has pushed the company to shift away from its robotaxi dreams. The company said in a statement that GM will be focusing on building up its advanced driver assistance systems for "personal vehicles."

The decision was seen by many analysts as an implicit ceding of the robotaxi race to a few companies who are already far ahead in the game, namely Tesla and Waymo.

"We believe GM's move also potentially implies that other companies (Tesla & Waymo) have better tech and/or that the market may not be appealing for later entrants," BofA analyst John Murphy wrote in a note. "Waymo is already offering a robotaxi service across several US cities and Tesla plans to launch its service in 2025."

While Chinese companies continue to make strides in autonomous ride-sharing services, including Baidu's Apollo, Gene Munster, managing partner of Deepwater Asset Management, told Business Insider that he believes autonomous vehicles in the western world will be "powered by two or three companies."

Part of the reason is because delivering robotaxis requires solving the autonomous driving equation and only a few companies like Tesla, Waymo, and Amazon have the resources — and shown the goods, to varying degrees — to do so, Munster said.

"We look at 2,000 companies a year that are cutting-edge tech companies, and we never see anybody trying to solve for autonomy," said Munster, who follows the autonomous vehicle industry. "The reason why is that this ship has basically sailed. It's going to be one of those three."

That GM has decided to pull back its Cruise operations is not an indictment against the business opportunity robotaxis itself presents — GM likely made a prudent move to shift its priorities, Tom Narayan of RBC Capital Markets wrote in an analyst note.

Safety incidents involving Cruise's fleet however kept putting the company at odds with regulators.

The company was stripped of its permit to operate in California after a woman was dragged underneath one of its vehicles last October, essentially paving a clear path for Waymo to get ahead of GM in the state.

Waymo began offering ride-sharing services to a few major cities this year and announced plans to expand to the Miami public in 2026. As of October, the Alphabet-owned company said it now provides more than 100,000 paid rides per week.

A Waymo spokesperson declined to provide comment.

Amazon's Zoox is gearing up to offer public rides in Las Vegas and San Francisco in 2025, differentiating itself from competitors through its unique carriage-style vehicles that don't come with a steering wheel. The company also recently hired a key Tesla autopilot executive.

Tesla has yet to provide commercial rides through its recently debuted Cybercab, but analysts are giddy about the company's timeline. CEO Elon Musk said during an earnings call in October that a $25,000 Cybercab will reach volume production by 2026.

Munster noted another advantage Tesla has is its potential to scale autonomous services, given that there are millions of Tesla vehicles on the road today. Those vehicles also provide large amounts of data to help Tesla fine-tune its Full Self-Driving feature.

"My sense is that this is a big data, large language model type of problem," Munster said. "I think that the advantages that Tesla will gain in data will outpace the disadvantage that they have in hardware."

Representatives for Zoox and Tesla did not respond to a request for comment.

• The Cruise founder Kyle Vogt criticized GM's decision to pull robotaxi funding.
• GM's decision to divest from Cruise comes as other tech giants forge ahead with robotaxi plans.
• Investors have appeared to welcome the news as GM looks to cut costs.

General Motors' decision to pivot away from robotaxis has one big critic: the Cruise founder Kyle Vogt.

Vogt, who resigned from the company in 2023, posted on the social-media platform X following GM's announcement that it would stop funding Cruise and fold it into the company's other driver-assistance efforts: "In case it was unclear before, it is clear now: GM are a bunch of dummies."

Vogt did not immediately respond to an interview request.

GM cited the hefty costs of fleet operation. Since taking control of the startup in 2016, GM has invested more than $10 billion in its development and operation.

The automaker has been trimming costs all year as demand for electric vehicles slows, and the company reckons with a longer road to profitability for these vehicles.

"Cruise was well on its way to a robotaxi business — but when you look at the fact you're deploying a fleet, there's a whole operations piece of doing that," GM CEO Mary Barra said on a conference call, according to CNBC.

Ending investment in Cruise's robotaxi business is the latest blow for the self-driving division. Commercial robotaxi rides have been on pause since October 2023, when one of its cars injured a pedestrian.

Vogt's departure last year came just weeks after the company suspended all autonomous operations. The company has since resumed autonomous-vehicle testing with safety drivers in Arizona and Texas.

The state of the robotaxi business

GM isn't the first legacy car company to scrap autonomous-vehicle funding. In 2022, its rival Ford pulled out of its joint venture with Argo AI.

Meanwhile, Elon Musk's Tesla is all in on robotaxis, and the tech giant Alphabet is barreling forward, with driverless Waymo rides open to consumers in many cities.

Still, some investors seemed to welcome GM's decision to pull Cruise's funding in favor of $2 billion in annual savings, sending GM's stock price up more than 3% in after-hours trading Tuesday. Shares fell more than 4% in trading Wednesday.

"While some bulls may have hoped for external funding to give Cruise a life extension, we strongly believe that most investors did not want to see GM commit more capital to Cruise," Joseph Spak, a UBS analyst, wrote in a note to clients.

• General Motors just pulled the plug on Cruise's robotaxi dreams.
• The self-driving venture has been in doubt since a pedestrian was seriously injured last year.
• GM's decision shows that time and money may not be enough when it comes to robotaxis.

General Motors' decision to pull the plug on Cruise shows that building a robotaxi business is hard, really expensive — and fraught with risk.

The automaker invested more than $10 billion in Cruise since taking control of the self-driving startup in 2016.

Along with Google-backed rival Waymo, Cruise moved quickly to get its fleet of driverless Chevrolet Bolt robotaxis on the road.

Both companies got the green light from regulators to operate their robotaxis as a ride-hailing service in San Francisco in August 2023. Just months later Cruise was banned from operating in California after one of its driverless cars seriously injured a pedestrian.

The incident prompted Cruise to recall its entire fleet of robotaxis. An investigation by California's justice department subsequently found Cruise had failed to disclose key details about the crash to regulators.

The company struggled to recover, while rival Waymo raced ahead. CEO Kyle Vogt resigned in November 2023, and Cruise laid off nearly a quarter of its staff a month later.

Cruise restarted testing its self-driving technology earlier this year, and even announced a partnership with Uber to offer robotaxi rides on the Uber app in August, but that wasn't enough to stop GM from pulling the plug.

CEO Mary Barra cited "the considerable time and expense required to scale a robotaxi business in an increasingly competitive market" on a call with analysts.

John McDermid, professor of software engineering at the University of York in the UK, said: "I think it's a recognition of how challenging it is and how hard it is to make money in the robotaxi business. Even if you can solve the technical problems, it's a tough place to be."

Saber Fallah, professor of safe AI and autonomy and director of the Connected Autonomous Vehicle Research Lab at the UK's Surrey University, told Business Insider that Cruise had moved too quickly in deploying its driverless robotaxis at scale in San Francisco.

He said the AI technology underlying robotaxis such as Cruise's and the regulatory processes for certifying driverless cars were not advanced enough to ensure they could handle the kind of complex scenarios often found in urban environments.

Rivals may have 'better tech'

Analysts at Bank of America said in a Wednesday note: "We believe GM's move also potentially implies that other companies (Tesla & Waymo) have better tech and/or that the market may not be appealing for later entrants. Waymo is already offering a robotaxi service across several US cities and Tesla plans to launch its service in 2025."

Waymo has been by far the most successful, with the robotaxi startup now offering 150,000 paid rides a week and planning to expand into a host of cities next year.

Waymo has also faced regulatory scrutiny. It issued two recalls this year after incidents in which its robotaxis collided with a towed pickup truck and a telephone pole.

Amazon-backed Zoox, which has begun rolling out its toaster-shaped robotaxis in San Francisco and Las Vegas, is also facing regulatory investigations over two crashes involving its self-driving tech and whether its steering wheel-less robotaxis comply with federal safety rules.

Tesla's Cybercab is on the horizon

Tesla, meanwhile, has perhaps the most ambitious plans of all. In October Elon Musk unveiled the "Cybercab," an autonomous robotaxi with no steering wheel or pedals, in October.

Musk said the $30,000 vehicle would enter production in 2027, and that Tesla owners would be able to operate a fleet of Cybercabs as their own ride-hailing business.

Tesla also plans to have unsupervised fully-autonomous Model 3 and Y vehicles on the road in California and Texas next year.

Experts previously told BI Musk's plan would face huge regulatory challenges, with the EV maker also facing a federal probe into its Full-Self Driving assisted driving system after a number of crashes.

Fallah said companies such as Tesla and Waymo looking to build robotaxi fleets were likely to face similar problems to Cruise.

"The idea of robotaxis that can be driven anywhere, anytime without human involvement is really more hype than reality," he said. "We need much more advanced AI in order to solve this problem."

Some industry players may be starting to agree. GM said it would switch its focus from robotaxis to advanced driver assistance systems that require driver supervision.

General Motors declined to comment.

• Auto execs see an opportunity to roll back state EV mandates under President-elect Donald Trump.
• Nissan and Toyota say state rules requiring a rapid uptick in EV sales are unrealistic.
• Automakers are facing slowing EV demand, job cuts, and competition from China.

Some auto executives see an opportunity with the incoming Trump administration to roll back state rules requiring a rapid uptick in electric vehicle sales.

Executives at Nissan, Toyota, and the auto industry's largest US lobbying group say it will be impossible for the industry to meet aggressive timelines to phase out gas-powered cars and trucks by 2035 in a dozen states including California and New York, as well as Washington, DC. In six states, a target kicks in in 2026, when at least 35% of new car sales must be EVs.

"It will take a miracle to be achieved," Jérémie Papin, senior vice president of Nissan, said this week during an event in Washington, DC. "That's where others need to do a reality check on what's possible."

He noted that EVs accounted for about 9% of new car sales nationwide in the third quarter — a record, but still far short of what regulators are requiring by 2026.

Automakers, facing lower-than-expected demand for EVs this year, are pulling back on production, and some companies are cutting jobs to save costs. At the same time, they have poured billions of dollars into EVs and executives say they are committed to the transition, especially to stay competitive with China as it churns out more affordable EVs. That balancing act has put the industry in a delicate position with Trump who railed against EVs on the campaign trail, vowing to kill tax credits and other incentives encouraging Americans to buy them.

Now the industry is strategizing how to influence Trump, including on EV sales requirements they view as too ambitious. Trump will likely take their side.

At a campaign event in Michigan in October, he said no state would be allowed to ban gas-powered cars. Trump during his first term tried to revoke California's authority to set stricter limits on tailpipe pollution than the federal government. California is granted that authority under the Clean Air Act but must get waivers from the Environmental Protection Agency. Biden restored the states' authority — a move currently being litigated and could reach the Supreme Court.

To avoid uncertainty, a group of automakers, including BMW, Ford, Honda, and Volkswagen, struck an agreement with California in 2020 to follow the state's rules through 2026.

The rules are stricter than federal regulations issued earlier this year by the Biden administration's EPA. Those federal rules aren't an "EV mandate," as Trump falsely said on the campaign trail. Rather, automakers can choose how to curb greenhouse gas emissions from cars, trucks, SUVs, and vans sold between 2027 and 2032. The agency estimated the rules could boost EVs to up to 56% of new car sales, with the rest from a mix of hybrids and gas vehicles.

'Not ready to go electric'

Dealers, which were the first to sound the alarm on changes in the EV market last year, have argued that state and federal emissions requirements are out of step with demand. As companies push to meet these requirements, dealers complain they are stuck with unpopular EVs on their lots.

"A majority of customers are simply not ready to go electric right now," Dave Kelleher, a Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram dealer in Pennsylvania, told BI. "Maybe with a new administration, some of those fines will become a thing of the past, or even mitigated."

Karoline Leavitt, spokeswoman for Trump's transition effort, said Trump will stop attacks on gas-powered cars.

"When he takes office, President Trump will support the auto industry, allowing space for both gas-powered cars AND electric vehicles," she said in an email.

John Bozella, president of the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which represents companies producing nearly all the new vehicles sold in the US, sent a letter to Trump in November asking that he ease emissions regulations but keep EV tax incentives fueling domestic investment in the supply chain.

An analysis commissioned by the Natural Resources Defense Council found that companies have announced $312 billion in planned investments in EVs and battery production since Biden took office in 2021, fueled partly by tax incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act.

One automaker, Toyota, supports doing away with EV mandates and subsidies altogether. In a recent op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, Toyota Chief Operating Officer Jack Hollins wrote that state mandates distort the market because companies funnel zero-emissions vehicles to those locations and ultimately limit choices for customers.

General Motors initially sided with Trump in his crusade against California's EV rules, but dropped its support of the legal battle after Biden won the 2020 election. It's unclear whether the automaker would once again side with Trump if he tries to roll back emissions requirements. Paul Jacobson, General Motors' executive vice president and chief financial officer, told reporters that ideally there'd be more consistency between federal and state rules. But the automaker will respect regulators' authority, he said.

"There's a lot at stake here," Jacobson said during the event in Washington. "That's why we talk about being nimble across the board, because sometimes it's the marketplace and sometimes it might be the regulatory environment. But we can't make excuses for poor performance. It's not just Washington. It's China, it's Europe. There's a lot of things going on all over the world and we have to be able to respond to that."

• General Motors expects to take a hit of more than $5 billion on its struggling China business.
• The automaker said it would write down the value of its Chinese operations by as much as $2.9 billion.
• GM and other foreign automakers have been hit hard by the rise of Chinese rivals such as BYD.

General Motors is set to take a hit of more than $5 billion on its operations in China amid an onslaught of competition from local rivals.

The Detroit automaker said on Wednesday that it would write down the value of its joint venture with SAIC Motor by as much as $2.9 billion and incur a further $2.7 billion in charges as it looks to restructure the China business.

The restructuring costs would include charges for plant closures and portfolio optimization, the majority of which the automaker expects to record before the end of the year.

GM's Chinese operations lost $347 million in the first nine months of the year.

The company said in a statement: "We expect our results in China in 2025 to show year-over-year improvement as a result of the actions our SGM joint venture is taking to make the business sustainable and profitable."

Shares fell 1.3% in premarket trading, but the stock is up almost 50% this year.

The announcement has come as foreign automakers face rising pressure in China's brutally competitive auto market from local rivals. Sales for the likes of BYD are booming because of their affordable EV and hybrid options.

Conversely, European manufacturers such as BMW and Mercedes-Benz have reported slumping sales in recent months.

Japanese automakers such as Toyota and Nissan are also struggling to maintain market share in the world's largest auto market, with analysts previously telling Business Insider they were suffering because of an underwhelming lineup of EVs.

GM has tried to adjust its strategy in China as a result of the growing demand for EVs and hybrids.

Sales in China rose 14% in the third quarter of 2023, its best result since 2022, with CEO Mary Barra praising the success of Buick's GL8 plug-in hybrid luxury minivan.

Barra said in October that the number of companies selling EVs in China was driving an unsustainable price war.

• Donald Trump's proposed tariffs could raise car prices, impacting US and European automakers.
• Tariffs may cost carmakers 17% of annual earnings and lead to credit downgrades, per S&P Global.
• General Motors, Jaguar Land Rover, Stellantis, and Volvo could be hit the hardest.

President-elect Donald Trump's new tariff proposals could hit American and European carmakers hard — and could push prices up for your next car.

A Friday note by S&P Global estimates a 25% tariff on Canadian and Mexican imports, coupled with a 20% tariff on light vehicle imports from the EU and UK, could cost some carmakers 17% of their annual earnings — and as high as over 30% — before factoring in interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization.

Higher tariffs could hit General Motors, Jaguar Land Rover, Stellantis, and Volvo hardest, S&P Global said. Meanwhile, BMW, Ford, Hyundai, and Mercedes-Benz may be less impacted.

"Donald Trump's re-election will likely intensify the headwinds the global auto industry will face in an already challenging 2025," the authors wrote.

These tariffs could push car prices higher and lead Americans to dig deeper into their wallets for another vehicle. Wells Fargo estimated Wednesday that tariffs could raise the price of cars made in the US by an average of $2,100. For vehicles fully produced in Canada or Mexico, prices in the US may increase between $8,000 and $10,000 higher, Wells Fargo estimated.

Kelley Blue Book data from October shows the average new vehicle transaction price in the US was over $48,600.

Trump announced on Monday that on his first day in office, he would sign an executive order that would put a 25% tariff on all goods from Canada and Mexico and would remain in effect until "drugs, in particular, fentanyl, and all illegal aliens stop this invasion of our country!"

The US relies heavily on its neighbors for its cars. Commerce Department data reveals that the US imports over 2.3 million cars annually from Mexico. Of all US trade over the first three quarters, Mexico accounts for nearly 16%, while Canada is 14.5%. Business Insider previously detailed the exact car brands and models that could be most heavily impacted.

Trump is also expected to cut the $7,500 tax credit for EV purchases included in President Joe Biden's Inflation Reduction Act, which would likely reduce EV sales.

Both Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have spoken against the tariff proposals.

Sheinbaum suggested Tuesday that Mexico may impose its own tariffs on the US, adding Mexico has been hurt by the smuggling of drugs and weapons from the US.

Trudeau on Friday said the tariffs would have negative impacts on both Canadians and Americans.

"Our responsibility is to point out that he would not just be harming Canadians, who work so well with the United States, but he would actually be raising prices for Americans citizens as well and hurting American industry and business," Trudeau said.

• President-elect Trump plans to levy 25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico, he said Monday.
• These tariffs could include vehicles imported into the US.
• There are dozens of Mexican and Canadian-made models sold in the US.

President-elect Donald Trump on Monday announced plans to enact 25% tariffs on goods made in Canada and Mexico when he takes office in January.

Mexico is the largest trade partner for the US, accounting for nearly 16% of total trade over the first three quarters of this year. Canada isn't far behind as the country's second-largest trading pattern, accounting for about 14.5% of trade.

Tariffs on goods from Mexico and Canada are especially problematic for the US automotive industry.

Mexico alone exports more than 2.3 million cars a year to the US, according to Commerce Department data.

Foreign and domestic carmakers like Ford, GM, and Nissan have invested decades of time and billions of dollars to establish a well-oiled, cross-border manufacturing and supply chain operation to make vehicles destined for US dealerships.

A 25% tariff would not automatically mean a matching price increase, though it would leave automakers — already struggling with shrinking profit margins — with little room to eat the cost without increasing the sticker price of their vehicles.

Large retailers like Walmart and Best Buy have already said consumer prices are likely to rise if businesses pass on cost increases to consumers.

Parts for cars, trucks, and SUVs sold in the US can cross the border several times during their production process, thanks to friendly conditions fueled by various regional trade agreements over the years.

Representatives from Ford, Honda, and the American Automakers Policy Council, a lobbying group representing Detroit's Big 3, did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Nissan, Stellantis, General Motors, and Toyota declined to comment.

This comes at a bad time for US consumers who have seen the average cost of a new car skyrocket more than $10,000 since 2019 to more than $48,000. Many automakers, meanwhile, are planning layoffs and plant closures amid a slowdown in EV demand.

Information from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration shows that several dozen vehicles made in Canada and Mexico are currently sold in the US.

Here's a closer look at these models, which range from pickups to luxury SUVs and EVs:

BMW Group

• BMW 2-Series Coupe/Convertible (Mexico)
• BMW M2 Coupe (Mexico)
• BMW 3-Series Sedan (Mexico)

Ford

• Ford Bronco Sport (Mexico)
• Ford Maverick (Mexico)
• Ford Mustang Mach-E (Mexico)

General Motors

• Chevrolet Blazer (Mexico)
• Chevrolet Blazer EV (Mexico)
• Chevrolet Equinox (Mexico)
• Chevrolet Equinox EV (Mexico)
• GMC Terrain (Mexico)

Honda

• Honda CR-V Hybrid (Canada)
• Honda Civic Sedan (Canada)
• Honda HR-V (Mexico)
• Honda Prologue (Mexico)

Kia

• Kia Forte (Mexico)

Mercedes-Benz

• Mercedes-Benz GLB (Mexico)

Nissan Motors Corporation

• Infiniti QX50 (Mexico)
• Infiniti QX55 (Mexico)
• Nissan Sentra (Mexico)
• Nissan Kicks (Mexico)
• Nissan Versa (Mexico)

Stellantis

• Ram 2500-5500 (Mexico)
• Ram ProMaster (Mexico)
• Jeep Compass (Mexico)
• Chrysler Pacifica (Canada)

Toyota

• Toyota Tacoma (Mexico)
• Toyota RAV4/RAV4 Hybrid (Canada)
• Lexus NX (Canada)
• Lexus RX (Canada)

Volkswagen Group

• Audi Q5/SQ5
• VW Jetta (Mexico)
• VW Taos (Mexico)
• VW Tiguan(Mexico)

• Formula 1 and General Motors announced that Cadillac will join the sport as its 11th team in 2026.
• The move reflects the growing push to popularize F1 in the US in recent years.
• The US now hosts three Grands Prix every year. 2024's Miami GP attracted record viewing figures in the country.

Formula 1 has reached "an agreement in principle" with General Motors to support adding its Cadillac brand as the sport's 11th team during the 2026 season.

The announcement comes just months after Andretti Global's bid to join the grid as a US-based team, which was backed by Cadillac, was rejected. The team, led by the US' most successful F1 driver, Mario Andretti, had been pushing to join the sport for several years.

Instead of an Andretti-Cadillac team, a GM-Cadillac team has been granted entry, and the statement revealing the addition does not mention Andretti. Andretti said on X that he will be involved in the Cadillac team but not in its day-to-day operations.

Formula 1 did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

Traditionally, a total of 10 teams make up the F1 grid with a total of 20 drivers.

"With Formula 1's continued growth plans in the US, we have always believed that welcoming an impressive US brand like GM/Cadillac to the grid and GM as a future power unit supplier could bring additional value and interest to the sport," Greg Maffei, president and CEO of Liberty Media, the owner of Formula 1, said in a press release on Monday.

Americans have been increasingly exposed to F1 since the sport's 2017 takeover by Colorado-based Liberty Media. Three races are now held in the country every year: the Miami Grand Prix, the United States Grand Prix in Austin, and the Las Vegas Grand Prix.

Netflix's "Drive to Survive," a behind-the-scenes documentary about the sport, has also been credited with increasing F1's popularity in the US.

According to F1, 3.1 million people watched ABC's coverage of the Miami Grand Prix in March, breaking a record for the sport's largest US audience.

The previous TV record in the US was 2.6 million viewers, which was set in 2022 for the inaugural Miami Grand Prix.

In 2023, Logan Sargeant became F1's first full-time American driver in over 15 years, though his team, Williams, dropped him during the 2024 season.

• The Chevrolet Trax is a subcompact crossover SUV and the lowest-priced model in GM's lineup.
• I was impressed by the Trax's strong feature content, attractive design, and great value.
• The Trax lacks engine power when filled with passengers and does not offer all-wheel-drive.

The average price of a new car has risen by more than $10,000 over the past five years, making a good, affordable new car harder to find.

Enter the second-generation Chevrolet Trax, which launched this year.

With a starting price of $20,400, the Trax is not only the most affordable model in the Chevrolet lineup but also the cheapest model offered by General Motors in the US.

The subcompact SUV competes with the Toyota Corolla Cross, Nissan Kicks, Hyundai Kona, and its corporate cousin, the Buick Envista.

I recently spent a week driving a 2025 Chevrolet Trax 2RS around the streets of Atlanta.

I was impressed by the Trax's strong slate of features, competitive pricing, and attractive styling.

Unfortunately, the SUV's three-cylinder engine felt underpowered when loaded with passengers, and its lack of an all-wheel-drive option may be a dealbreaker for some consumers, especially in colder climates.

My test car came to $27,085.

The Chevrolet Trax comes in five versions, with the base LS trim starting at $20,400.

My top spec Trax 2RS test car starts at $24,300. Freight fees, a sunroof, and optional driver assistance tech pushed the Korean-made SUV's as-tested price to $27,000.

The Chevy design DNA is strong here.

The Trax features a muscular and athletic design with broad shoulders that GM says is inspired by the big brother, the Chevrolet Blazer.

The design gives the impression that the Trax is bigger and wider than it actually is.

Overall, I think it looks terrific.

The Trax is one of the larger offerings in the subcompact segment.

At 178.6 inches long, the Trax is three inches longer than the Toyota Corolla Cross and seven inches longer than the Nissan Kicks.

My 2RS trim test car came with optional 19-inch black-painted machined aluminum wheels.

The base Trax LS has 17-inch steel wheels, while all other trims have 17-, 18-, or 19-inch aluminum wheels.

Under the Trax's hood is a small, 1.2-liter, turbocharged three-cylinder engine.

All versions of the Trax are powered by a 1.2-liter, turbocharged, direct-injected Ecotec three-cylinder engine that produces 137 horsepower and 162 lb.-ft. of torque.

The turbo three, shared with the Buick Envista, is mated to a shiftable six-speed automatic transmission.

The Trax is front-wheel-drive only and does not offer an all-wheel-drive option.

My Chevy Trax 2RS test car boasts EPA fuel economy ratings of 28 mpg city, 32 mpg highway, and 30 mpg combined.

The Trax was fairly nice to drive, but its engine can feel underpowered at times.

The Trax isn't very sporty or particularly fun to drive. But it does offer reasonably responsive handling and a comfortable ride.

As with its cousin, the Buick Envista, the Trax's biggest shortcoming is its 1.2-liter engine.

The 137-horsepower, turbocharged three-cylinder has enough juice for daily errands around town. It struggles if you ask it to do anything more than that.

When you load the 3,000-lb SUV with people and their stuff, the tiny engine feels outmatched by the task, throttle response becomes lethargic, and there is noticeable turbo lag.

Motor Trend found the Trax accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in a pedestrian in 8.6 seconds.

The Trax's cabin is intuitively designed with decent material quality.

The Chevrolet Trax is a great example of delivering an interior on a budget without it feeling cheap. It would be a stretch to call the interior luxurious or premium, but it also doesn't punish you for being frugal.

Interior quality is good, and there are plenty of soft-touch materials in the high-contact area. The red turbine-design air vents that felt out of place in the pricier Blazer EV worked well here to add a pop of color and visual appeal to the cabin.

The black Evotex front seats with red RS badging and accents are heated in my test car.

The seats were pretty comfortable but lacked much adjustability.

In front of the driver is a stylish flat-bottom steering wheel.

The Trax is equipped with an eight-inch digital instrument display instead of a traditional gauge cluster. There are also handy audio controls located on the back of the steering wheel.

My test car came with an 11-inch infotainment touchscreen.

The Trax's infotainment system has fairly limited features, but what it does have is very intuitive to use.

There's standard wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility, as well as a backup camera.

The Trax offers an impressive amount of room for a subcompact crossover.

With 38.7 inches of legroom, the offers 2.5 inches more than the Mazda CX-30 and six inches more than the Toyota Corolla Cross.

Rear seat passengers also have access to dedicated USB-A and USB-C plugs.

Behind the rear seats, the Trax boasts a formidable 25.6 cubic feet of cargo space.

The Trax's 60/40 split rear bench can fold nearly flat to expand cargo room to 54.1 cubic feet.

The Trax 2RS comes standard with the Chevy Safety Assist.

Chevy Safety Assist includes key features such as forward collision alert, lane keep assist, and automatic emergency braking.

Adaptive cruise control requires an extra Driver Confidence Package.

My verdict: The 2025 Chevrolet Trax 2RS reminds us that cheap when done right, can be cheerful.

The 2025 Chevrolet Trax is an attractively styled small crossover with a comfortable interior and is generally pleasant to drive.

Though it could use more power and an option for all-wheel drive, the content it delivers at a sub-$30,000 price is very good. The value proposition gets even better when you look at the sub-$25,000 price point of the mid-grade LT and 1RS trims.

Dollars and cents aside, where the Chevrolet Trax really shines is that it feels more expensive than it actually is. And that sounds like a good deal to me.

• Major automakers around the world have announced layoffs and factory closures in recent weeks.
• Ford, GM, Stellantis, and Volkswagen Group all plan to lay off workers in the coming months.
• This is due to unprofitable EV investments, Chinese market losses, and more domestic competition.

Major automakers around the world have announced multiple rounds of layoffs and factory closures in recent weeks as they struggle to turn a profit on EVs and face a potential onslaught of cheaper competition.

Ford, General Motors, and Stellantis plan to slash thousands from their workforce in the coming months. Volkswagen has announced plans to shutter three of its factories in Germany, which could come with massive layoffs.

Unfortunately for the world's major carmakers, they aren't facing one issue but an agglomeration of several significant interconnected challenges at once. Add to that an ultracompetitive business with high overhead costs and low profit margins, and things quickly get very difficult.

When market dynamics, regulatory requirements, and financial costs shift dramatically in a relatively short period of time, the results can be dire. That's what we're seeing play out.

A massive and expensive pivot to EVs has failed to turn a profit

The auto industry has invested or announced plans to invest more than $300 billion in US EV and battery production since 2016, the NRDC estimates. That's led to a slew of new models on the market and (relatively) cheaper pricing for consumers.

But despite that growth — and with EVs accounting for roughly 10% of US auto sales — companies not named Tesla have struggled to make their EV businesses profitable.

GM, for example, has invested $35 billion in its EV and autonomous-driving businesses, which has led to new electric models like the Hummer EV and Cadillac Lyriq. Despite the warm reception from the public, the company's profits this year are entirely driven by the strong sales of its internal-combustion trucks and SUVs.

GM has said it expects its EVs to reach profitability sometime before the end of the year.

It's the same story at Ford.

The company's Model e EV division lost nearly $3.7 billion during the first nine months of this year, including $1.2 billion in the last quarter alone.

The rapid transformation of the Chinese market

The exponential growth in China's appetite for cars over the past two decades made it a steady profit center for global automakers like VW Group and GM. From 2014 to 2018, GM took in an average of $2 billion a year from its Chinese joint ventures.

But in recent years, Chinese consumers have increasingly turned to competitive domestic automakers like BYD and the Geely Group, whose brands have sold 1.6 million vehicles in the market so far this year.

GM's market share in the country peaked at around 15% in the middle of the last decade and was down to just 6.5% in the most recent quarter.

So far this year, Volkswagen Group's sales in China, its largest market, are down about 10% over last year, and the company predicts the situation may deteriorate further.

In response to the potential competition, European leaders have readied tariffs on cars imported from China. VW warned that potential retaliatory tariffs on European cars by China could only make things worse.

An increasingly competitive domestic market

Competition for automakers in their domestic markets has heated up.

In the US, Stellantis saw its sales plummet by 17% this year thanks to slower sales of its Jeep-branded SUVs and Ram pickup trunks.

Price seems to be a major factor. The average price of a Stellantis vehicle is around $56,000, far above the industry average of $48,000.

The company had to offer aggressive incentives (on top of lower production) during the third quarter to help dealers clear the glut of unsold cars off their lots. Analysts say inventory levels are improving at Stellantis and industry-wide as automakers react to a slower sales environment.

But uncertainty looms large as President-elect Donald Trump threatens tariffs on all goods imported into the United States and eyes ending tax credits for electric vehicles, which could be another headwind for sales, industry experts say.