Why The Chevy Captiva Was Discontinued In The US (And Where You Can Still Find One)

Chevrolet has arguably become as big a player in the SUV market as any major automaker on the planet. While names like Blazer, Equinox, and the legendary Suburban rank among the brand's more popular builds, one of Chevy's midsize SUV offerings has become a cult hit in the U.S. market since first donning the iconic Chevy logo more than a decade ago.

That model is the Chevy Captiva, which first made its way to markets across the globe in 2006. The first-generation Captiva was offered for sale to consumers in several international markets. But during the early days of its release, the mid-size sport utility vehicle held a truly unique place in the U.S. automobile market — it was never actually made available for sale to individual consumers. That is, it wasn't available to individual consumers as a Captiva Sport. Rather, it was available in the U.S. as a Saturn Vue.Chevy bosses re-badged the vehicle as the Captiva Sport shortly after GM shuttered its Saturn division.

Meanwhile, the 2011 Captiva Sport proved an exceedingly popular selection among mid-size SUVs in the U.S. rental arena. That's because the company made the unusual decision to market the build as a fleet-only offering, meaning you could only buy them in bulk. Popularity aside, Chevy never flinched at its fleet-only approach with the Captiva, and held that line until the model was discontinued in the U.S. market in 2014. As for the decision to pull the Captiva from American markets, GM spokesman Jim Cain told Edmunds the build had merely, "come the end of its natural product cycle."

Though the Chevy Captiva Sport's 2014 disappearing act from the U.S. auto scene might've come as a surprise, the fleet-only vehicle remained a part of several rental fleets for many years thereafter. As a consequence of its popularity as a rental, the Captiva Sport proved just as sought after when disavowed fleet models eventually began hitting the U.S. resale market.

Similarly, if you can track down used Saturn Vue, you'll essentially be behind the wheel of a Chevy Captiva. Chevy also continued to manufacture and sell the Captiva in international markets through 2018, when it largely phased the build out in favor of the Equinox. Despite the build its discontinuation in most international markets, if you're looking to pick up a used Captiva on the re-sale scene, you might have good luck finding one. If you watch the U.S. used car market closely, you might occasionally see on up for sale there too.

There are, of course, also shiny new 2024 Captivas for sale if you're dying to drive a next-gen model. But you'll need to head to Mexico, South America, or the UAE to do so as those rank among the bigger markets selling Captivas today.