2017 Chevrolet Trax Premier AWD is a small SUV catering for any lifestyle with modern technology, a flexible interior, and impressive efficiency. A spent a week testing this vehicle around town to get a good feel for the car in the city, the subburbs, and in the wilderness. For my next car, I want to get an SUV, so it’s really great to test a few that are out there in the market. Small compact SUVs are very popular now especially for city driving as you can escape from the city and head off to close by adventures.
Exterior
The Chevrolet Trax is tall and not that long. It’s great for the city since it’s not too large to find into the small parking stalls. I had no trouble fitting this car anywhere.
With the rear facing cameras, parking was a breeze and I never had to break a sweat.
There is also has Side Blind Zone Alert, so when you’re changing lanes, it will alert you if any cars or objects are in that area. One of my favourite features of modern cars in definitely the technology that enables you to be a safer driver.
For a compact SUV, it has a pretty generic look when you compare it with some other models out there. For this year’s model, you’ll notice the slightly edgier look with the big, new hexagonal grille on the front of the car and the elongated LED headlights that sweep upward as they wrap around to the vehicle’s sides.
Interior
The trim inside is jet black/ brandy leatherette trim. It wraps around the dash and on all the seats. It adds a pop of colour on the inside, but doesn’t exactly give you that luxurious feel.
The push button start is a great feature since you don’t have to dig into your purse to get the keys. The remote also has remote starting, so you can turn the engine on while you are outside the vehicle.
Chevrolet’s signature MyLink infotainment system is operated via the seven-inch touchscreen, is fairly basic and had some features I didn’t need. I would be nice to have a basic map, but they do have the OnStar turn by turn navigation instead.
I found it a better experience plugging in my iPhone to activate Apple CarPlay. If you have an Android, you can turn on Android Auto. This way you can look at navigation, have hands-free calling and texting, and music playing from your collection.
Did you know, the car be be turned into a roaming Wi-Fi hotspot? The kids can stop complaining and stay connected. You can connect up to 7 devices too. All three trim levels include a 4G LTE wireless trial from OnStar that consists of three months of service or 3 gigabytes of data, whichever comes first.
The passengers seat is roomy and there is plenty of head room. The only complaint from passengers was that the seats were a bit stiff and the headrests were not as comfortable. There is a 120v outlet in the back too.
With their partnership with Bose, the audio is pretty awesome. With all the Chevrolet cars I’ve tried, all my passengers really loved the audio quality.
With the compact size of the car and roomy space for occupants, the trunk space does suffer a bit. It’s hard to carry a lot of large bags and luggage with a full car.
Drive
It was comfortable driving in this car. The suspension handles potholes and bumpy roads with minimal rattling inside the car. Steering is quick and responsive especially on turns. I still wouldn’t recommend you go off-roading. As I drove all around, the fuel efficiency is pretty decent.
When accelerating on the highway or going up steep hills, the engine could be a bit more powerful.
Final Thoughts
This car isn’t for everyone, but it’s worth a look for city dwellers who want to use it for city driving but also have the capability of going outside of the city for some adventure. It is packed with technology features that make driving this car fun and customizable to you. It’s definitely a solid car, but there is tough competition these days for a compact SUV as other automotive manufactures are entering this space.
Website: http://www.chevrolet.ca/
