I’m a tall guy, 6’3″ to be exact. When you’re tall, finding things that fit is a challenge, from pants to cars. I happen to have landed on two crosstown rivals — the 2013 Equinox and 2013 Edge for the very reason that I seemed to fit well into both, besides the fact that I was drawn to the styling of both crossovers. Both of these are more alike than they’re different: both are on the smaller side of midsize, and both are offered with similar features and options.
Having picked out the vehicles, the next decision was to select either the four- or the six-cylinder engines. Admittedly, I’ve been driving a ’96 Integra for the greater part of the last decade… and the car was good for roughly three horsepower. So I took preference in the V6, partly because I despised getting owned by Grandma in her station wagon at every light.
| ENGINE: | V6 |
| DRIVETRAIN: | 6-SPEED AUTOMATIC W/ MANUMATIC & AWD |
| INFOTAINMENT: | COLOR TOUCHSCREEN, BLUETOOTH AUDIO STREAMING |
| CONVENIENCE: | BACKUP CAMERA, BLUETOOH |
| SPACE: | GOOD FIT FOR A 'TALL GUY', GOOD FRONT SEATS, AMPLE 2ND ROW SPACE AND CARGO ROOM |
Some other items of consideration included a good infotainment system with a decently-sized touch screen and Bluetooth audio streaming along with a backup camera. Living in Colorado, I wanted AWD, along with an automatic gearbox that I could throw into “manual” mode whenever I felt compelled to have more control of the car’s shifting. I also needed the back seat to not suck, while still having ample amounts of cargo room.
While those were my main requirements, I did find a few more items that led me to make up my mind about the CUV I wanted to ultimately buy after spending some time with each. To that end, I took each car for an overnight test drive. Each cradled a V6 with AWD and each was equipped with the model’s flagship infotainment system.
| DETAIL | 2013 FORD EDGE | 2013 CHEVY EQUINOX |
|---|---|---|
| LENGTH: | 184.2 | 187.8 |
| HEIGHT: | 67 | 66.3 |
| FRONT TRACK WIDTH: | 65.4 | 62.9 |
| REAR TRACK WIDTH: | 65.2 | 62.1 |
| WHEELBASE: | 111.2 | 112.5 |
| WIDTH (MAX W/OUT MIRRORS): | 76 | 72.5 |
| PASSENGER CAPACITY: | 5 | 5 |
| PASSENGER VOLUME: | 108.4 | 99.7 |
| FRONT HEAD ROOM: | 40 | 40.9 |
| FRONT HIP ROOM: | 54.8 | 54.6 |
| FRONT LEG ROOM: | 40.7 | 41.2 |
| FRONT SHOULDER ROOM: | 58.9 | 55.8 |
| REAR HEAD ROOM: | 39.3 | 39.2 |
| REAR HIP ROOM: | 56.1 | 51.1 |
| REAR LEG ROOM: | 39.6 | 39.9 |
| REAR SHOULDER ROOM: | 58.7 | 55.3 |
| CARGO VOLUME (BEHIND SECOND ROW): | 32.2 | 31.5 |
| CARGO VOLUME (SECOND ROW FOLDED): | 68.9 | 63.7 |
| MINIMUM GROUND CLEARANCE: | 7.9 | 6.9 |
| CURB WEIGHT: | 4056/4234 (3.5L V6 FWD/AWD): | 3777 / 3922 (2.4L/3.6L) |
| ENGINE: | 3.5L V6 / 3.7L V6 / 2.0L I4 TURBO | 2.4L I4 / 3.6L V6 |
| TRANSMISSION: | 6-SPEED AUTOMATIC | |
| DRIVETRAIN: | FWD/AWD | |
Measurement details:
- Length in inches
- Volume in cubic feet
- Weight in pounds
Engine
Let’s start with the engine. The 2013 Equinox’s 3.6L V6 LFX is rated at 301 HP and 272 lb.-ft. of torque compared to the 2013 Edge’s 3.5L V6 Duratec and its 285 HP and 253 lb.-ft. of torque. Both are great numbers for a V6… on paper. But  on the road, the direct-injected LFX felt like a completely different powerplant. In fact, the V6 LFX-powered 2013 Equinox felt so much quicker, so much more responsive, so much more fun, that after driving the 2013 Edge V6, I had to check the window sticker to make sure that I didn’t get a four-pot by mistake. The Chevy’s V6 had a smoother power band, left the line in a hurry, and the gearbox shifted exactly when it was supposed to. The Ford’s V6, on the other hand, felt like it was forced (rather than wanting) to leave the line, needed to down-shift early and often to really get moving, and wound up like a 4 cylinder when I really got on the throttle. In other words, both engines’ specifications simply don’t tell the whole story , and you really owe it to yourself to drive each to notice the (subjective) difference.
| DETAIL | FORD EDGE 3.5L V6 | CHEVY EQUINOX 3.6L V6 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| HORSEPOWER: | 285 | 301 | |
| TORQUE: | 253 | 272 | |
| TRANSMISSION: | 6-SPEED AUTOMATIC WITH SELF-SHIFT MODE | ||
| FUEL DELIVERY: | SEQUENTIAL MULTI-PORT ELECTRONIC FUEL INJECTION | DIRECT SEQUENTIAL FUEL INJECTION WITH ELECTRONIC THROTTLE CONTROL | |
| FUEL ECONOMY CITY FWD: | 19 | 17 | |
| FUEL ECONOMY HIGHWAY FWD: | 27 | 24 | |
| FUEL ECONOMY COMBINED FWD: | 22 | 20 | |
| FUEL ECONOMY CITY AWD: | 18 | 16 | |
| FUEL ECONOMY HIGHWAY AWD: | 25 | 23 | |
| FUEL ECONOMY COMBINED AWD: | 21 | 19 |
Measurement details:
- Fuel economy in miles per gallon (MPG)
Infotainment
It’s not that I don’t like Chevy’s MyLink system in the 2013 Equinox… I actually do. But the MyFord Touch setup in the Edge has MyLink beat in almost every way, in my experience. Take, for starters, the Edge’s backup camera that features a superimposed computer-generated runway guide and audible proximity alerts. The backup camera on the Equinox was basically the same, although it didn’t have the guide or the proximity sensors (available on the LTZ).
Both systems are touchscreen-based, but the screen in the Edge seemed to be placed in a more ergonomic position. Meanwhile, the screen in the Equinox is located higher on the dash, necessitating the driver to reach farther to touch it. Ford placed the MyFord Touch screen lower by comparison, allowing for less reaching.
All that is to say that in the Equinox, I felt fatigue in my arm by scanning radio stations (this might have had something to do with my tall stature). But that’s what the buttons on the steering wheel are for… right? Nope, the steering wheel controls lack the ability to scan. The Edge, meanwhile, allows the driver to pretty much control all infotainment functions from the steering wheel (and then some), although button placement was a little awkward. To note, the steering wheel buttons in the Equinox are more ergonomically placed than those in the Ford, but they don’t do nearly as much. This, however, will be something that will be addressed once MyLink 2.0 makes its way over to the Equinox.
Rear Seating
Rear seat space seems to be all the rage with CUVs these days: how many do you get, what can they can do, how can they fold, and how many levers they have. For me, the 2013 Equinox tops the 2013 Edge in this department, although it’s a close call.
The second row seats in the 2013 Ford Edge recline (significantly and comfortably), while having the ability to be folded with the press of a button located in the cargo area (trunk). Meanwhile, the rear seats in the 2013 Chevy Equinox fold, but do so manually, and their ability to recline is minuscule — at best.
The real kicker in the Chevy, though, is the Multi-Flex system, which allows the seats to slide fore and aft eight inches — a nice feature, especially for families with kids: you can always squeeze them just a little more to fit that third beer-filled cooler in the back.
Ride And Handling
This one is simple: the 2013 Equinox feels studier, smoother, and more in control than the 2013 Edge. This is most likely thanks to the FE2 suspension with Dual Flow Dampers and hydraulic steering that’s part of the the V6-powered Equinox line. The 2013 Edge, on the other hand, had some noticable CUV sway and wobble when cornering, and the suspension was nothing to brag about. The Edge’s rapidly aging Mazda-derived platform probably didn’t do the Ford any favors, either.
Front Seats
The driver’s seat in the 2013 Equinox felt more comfortable than that in the 2013 Edge, with the one thing making me particularly content being the ample amount of knee room. You see, my right knee tends to lean up against some part of the center console in nearly every car I drive. The situation isn’t a choice or a benefit, but rather a problem, since adjusting the right leg isn’t really an option when driving (except for the rare instance of the car being on cruise control). The Edge wasn’t particularly uncomfortable, but my knee did have to rest on the outer edge of the center console, which eventually got annoying. This wasn’t the case in the Equinox, as my right knee didn’t even touch the center console. I’m not sure whether this was due to my height, the design of the seat, or that of the console… but my knee was happy and free.
Pricing
Taking into account the options I needed (wanted?), the Equinox was less expensive than a comparable Ford Edge. So while the Ford, was more expensive (by about $3,000), it also has a higher residual value, resulting in roughly the same lease payment (of about $350/month). It was nice to know my decision didn’t have to come down to the monthly payment amount.
The Final Choice
Having driven both the Edge and the Equinox and spending a sleepless night lamenting my decision, I ended up buying the 2013 Chevy Equinox 1LT in Tungsten Metallic.
I think both CUVs are great cars and you won’t go wrong with either of them, but the 2013 Equinox came out ahead in my opinion. I wanted to drive the Chevy, I liked driving the Chevy, I found myself excited to bring the Ford back to the dealer so I could buy the Chevy, and then drive it some more. It has now been a week, and so far, I’ve absolutely no buyers’ remorse. The Chevy’s 3.6L LFX continues to impress me and I thoroughly enjoy the driving experience. Grandma and her station wagon are now just a distant memory in my rear view mirror.
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Comments
Great article… just check your comparison chart headings. You call the Chevy Equinox a Ford. Lol
Yupp, typo. Corrected. Thanks for the heads up.
Is the Edge V6’s torque 253 (in “Engine” paragraph) or 283 (in stats chart)?
It’s 253, Tim. Our mistake, thanks for noticing 🙂 … and fixed.
Interesting comparison. How does the heavier, larger, and higher riding Edge come out ahead of the Equinox on fuel economy? Is this the price one pays for the better acceleration of the Equinox? I thought the transmissions in these vehicles had the same roots, essentially a collaborative effort between Ford and GM that began back in 2002. From the comments in the review here one would think the Ford had a poorly tuned DCT (like the early 2012 Focus), but I don’t think that is the case.
The edge did have Ti-VCT which would probably be why
Great review
IMO, while I understand this is a GM fan site with a thumbs-down rating function, but I have to hand it to the Ford Edge.
As a owner of a GMC Terrain SLT2 I went through the same process of Edge v. Terrain.
Engine I gave the nod to the Terrain over the edge. The Ford is good but I liked the V6 in the Terrain better. One does have to learn to drive these engines differently as they do need to rev.
Info system I was all for the GM system. I like it high up as it is not that far of a reach and it takes you eye much less farther from the road. Also the GM system as I learned later can control most things from the wheel too.
Rear seating is great and to be honest almost too great. We seldom have the seat all the way back. The rear seat could use better ventilation from under the seats.
As for ride and handling the GM product is much studier and solid. GM has a good compromise of ride and handling without getting too harsh. GM does pay the price in weight with this vehicle is the only real negative.
As for pricing there are many ways to option these but for a fully loaded model the GM product is a much better value. (not counting the Denali] We priced similar vehicles and the Ford always came out much higher out the door. It was a nice vehicle but not that nice to pay that much more.
Both of these are outdated and due to be replaced. In the next year I expect there will be some deals offered to clean out inventories so some better deals will be had if you ok with the out going model.
With the GM models they have sold better each and every year since they were introduced so sales have been good to say the least. I expect they will remain up till the new ones are nearly ready. This is a hot segment and GM did well but with age there are things to be addressed. GM should remain strong in this segment for years to come.
Good point about the infotainment system HHRSS, I didn’t pay attention to how far my eyes had to travel to see the screen.
The edge you do have to take your eyes out quite a bit in distance wise for the infotainment system since like you said it’s closer to the hands
Glad you went with the Equinox. They are really nice vehicles and quite popular in my neck of the woods.
When I purchased the Terrain I did have a 3 car comparison. So it was the Edge, Equinox, and Terrain. The Edge is nice but MFT does complicate my family a bit and it’s way too expensive and way over my budget in terms of what I look for in a car. The backend of the Edge just kinda looks boring also. The nox and Terrain are both nice vehicles too. I chose the Terrain because I got much of a better deal than I have for Equinox and I just fell in love with the bold macho looks of the Terrain. i do regret that I could of got the 3.6 though to have more power though.
I forgot to add that the reason I could of get the 3.6 because I have the 3.0 liter V6
We looked at a loaded Edge sport at the auto show. It is the one with the big wheels and appearance package. If I recall correctly it was around or just over $40K a couple years ago. We got out Terrain with everything but AWD and NAV that stickered around $35K out the door for $31K TAX and all. Not the best deal I ever made but on a good selling line you were not going to get much more. A year or so before we were offered $700 of sticker at two dealers for a NOX and I said no way.
For what the edge loaded up cost the Explorer with a mid level trim is much better of a deal. That is the problem for Ford the Explorer and the Escape are on both sides and better deals.
I bought a 2009 Equinox in February 2009 without the rear view camera or the Infontainment screen, but after four years, it has not given me any problems. I have the original 3.4 L V6 engine that has enough power (I can keep 65 MPH with less than 2000 RPM) and gives me 21 MPG when I drive it lightly. My wife drives it more in heavy traffic, and she gets about 18.5 MPG.
Every one of my family and friends are wowed at the leg room at the rear seat, but I already know how to slide the rear bench seat forward to gain several more cubic feet of cargo space. I fitted several ten feet long wood pieces (from Home Depot) inside with the trunk closed, so it is big enough inside.
When I bought it, I was actually trying to get a Ford Escape but all the Ford dealers were pushing the Explorer. Later I realized that Ford was in trouble, as GM was, so they had instructed their dealers to move the bigger Explorer. Now I am very happy that I bought the best CUV. BTW, one of my neighbors has two black Edges and one has a red one, so they are sold well. But another neighbors (also living on the same street has a gray 2008 Equinox, so my Equinox isn’t alone.
If GM made a BEV or EREV version of the Equinox, it will be their best vehicle (even better than the Volt)!
OMG, no comparison, the Equinox is the clear winner. Look at it! The Edge looks like an egg or something, the EQ looks like an SUV. The Edge has odd proportions. I see way more EQs than Edge’s- even in Los Angeles, so that says a lot. Friend of mine got a 2011 Equinox 4-banger, loves it, no quality issues. A bright spot at GM/Chevrolet.
Problem is on doing a Volt version is that it is way too heavy and boxy to do so.
The best you will see in this regard is something similar to the MPV they had in China a couple years ago.
Perhaps you overlooked it, but the Equinox and the Edge have a best in class feature not normally noted. Both have available a GOOD powered passenger seat. Try to find that in another SUV under $35,000.
I didn’t get the passenger powered seat, but I love the driver’s. I adjusts in about every way you can think.
Power passenger seat is only available on higher trim levels for Nox/Terrain because I know for sure that my SLE2 don’t have any haha
I’d love to see shootout between the terrain denali, edge sport, and the sorento sx
The Sorento is new if I recall. The Edge and Denali are older and due to be updated. Also for all you get the Denali is a poor value. For all you get the SRT2 with the 19″ is a better value.
I would wait for a year and with a new Ford and GMC coming the compare then.
SRT?
I think he means the Grand Cherokee SRT.
I think he meant SLT2. Also, Sorrento is only new on the chasis department shared with the Santa Fe Sport so I wouldn’t really call Sorento is new since everything else looks the same as the MY2013 sorento
@Andrew Froehlich – Most of what you would do on a regular basis with the MyLink system can be done very simply with the voice commands. I have a vehicle with MyLink and very rarely do I even need to touch the screen. It is a very simple system to use.
Guess it’s time to pull out the ol’ manual.
All the MyLink voice commands you can eat (remember):
http://gmauthority.com/blog/2011/12/here-are-the-chevy-mylink-voice-commands-youll-ever-need/
I bought a fully loaded edge 2 weeks ago and its now in the shop getting the AC fixed, and funny as it sounds, the Ford dealership rented a Chevy Equinox for me while I wait for it to be ready tomorrow. I must say I enjoy the Equinox much more then the edge and am online searching for a good trade in right now.
A few things I enjoy more about the Equinox. The Nav interface is friendly and easy to use. Its put together in a way thats fast and easy on the eyes, and has a built in visor to keep the sun out. Compare this to the edge’s microsoft based system that uses orange lettering thats rough to see, forces you to go thru multiple pointless steps to get anywhere, and honestly just sucks. My wife uses her phone to navigate and dosent even bother with it.
The dashboard numbers are also in orange and tough to read as well, and I have to remove my sunglasses to see my current speed.
As far as the engines, the edge definitely has a smooth ride and is easy to get going really fast. It drives a little heavier, because it is heavier, but the Equinox is definitely faster off the line. Both ride quiet and nice.
Another thing about the edge’s design is the dashboard is HUGE. I have to sit up high in my seat to see the road in front of me within 20 feet. This isnt an issue in the Chevy. These comparisons plus the 3k less in price for the Chevy really make me want to tell the dealership to let me keep the rental and except a check for the difference.
Zackly…
couldn’t believe that the Equinox in V6 version is actually lighter than the Edge V6