The dash and side panels are inoffensive plastic.Ĭhevy is offering just the right amount of enticement to lure buyers to a burgeoning market segment that’s expected to increase 43 percent between now and 2016. The seats are cloth and mechanically adjustable. The fit and finish of the lowest-priced Trax models are simple without feeling too bargain basement. There’s a drawer under the passenger seat to keep iPods out of view from smash-and-grab thieves and a small but fun detail – a pair of slots just aft of the gear shift to hold key cards or parking receipts. In addition to the usual glove box, there are cubbies above the 7-inch touch screen and right side of the dash. The front seating area is otherwise festooned with cubbies to hold the many mobile devices its young target buyer is apt to have. The front passenger seat also flips forward, should drivers want to carry unwieldy objects like surfboards, and still allow the tailgate to close. It does, however, mean the second row seat backs can fold entirely flat, which opens a surprising amount of space considering the car’s small profile. It just doesn’t extend all the way to the floor as with the Honda. While the Trax lacks the appropriately named “magic seat” of Honda’s upcoming HR-V, which acrobatically flips the rear seats out of the way, opening a unique cargo hold at the car’s center, the outer seats of Trax’s second row flip forward with a pull tab, creating a more open area. The five seats can be configured eight ways to accommodate everything from groceries to bicycles. The Trax is an urban lifestyle vehicle for folks who are childless and fancy free – whether they’re fresh out of college or have just dropped their last kid at a faraway campus it offers both low-cost versatility. The Trax launches in all-wheel drive to sniff out wheel slip, and if none is detected, it switches to more fuel-sipping front-wheel drive. My time with the Trax lacked rain, wet leaves or other slippery stuff to put the all-wheel drive through its paces, but its value is in the “what if.” Its operation is permanent. I spent most of my time in the mid-level trim of the Trax’s three versions, all of which can be enhanced with all-wheel drive for an extra $1,500. The Trax was surprisingly quiet.Īs I rolled along Chevy’s choreographed “urban adventure” on a route that was almost entirely city streets, the suspension adequately negated the ill effects of poorly maintained Southern California roads. To reduce wind noise, the windshield is also laminated acoustic glass and the side windows are Coke-glass thick. The Trax imported the dash matting from the Encore to stop engine noises from wafting into the cabin and forcing drivers to instinctively turn up the (optional) Bose. Road and wind noise were damped in a fashion more in keeping with a luxury marque like Buick than a budget brand such as Chevy. In markets other than the U.S., where the Trax has been available since 2012, it can be had as a naturally aspirated 1.8-liter or a diesel, neither of which are offered here. It is powered with the same 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder as the Sonic. The architecture is similar, but not the same, as Chevy’s subcompact hatchback. The rain cooperated, failing to kick in during my afternoon with a vehicle that begged the question: Is it an overgrown Sonic or an undersized Buick Encore? The Trax will be in dealers next week, but Chevy was offering media drives in San Diego on Tuesday. Small but not too small, utilitarian yet park-able, tall without being monstrous and just $21,875 to start, the Trax is rushing to fill a void for consumers who want the utility of a larger vehicle without the high price and bumper-car gamesmanship. Auto Show that saw the introduction of three new mini SUVs from Honda, Mazda and Fiat (coming on the market next year), Chevrolet is cutting to the quick with its all-new Trax. As gas prices continue their downward spiral, indulging our gluttonous automotive tendencies, small SUVs are poised to surpass sedans and become the Next Big Thing.
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