2017 chevy trax turbo9/27/2023 ![]() ![]() A firm ride and good body control give the Trax a feeling of solidity, and quick steering makes it agile in parking lots and urban areas. The six-speed automatic is smooth enough but often executes sluggish shifts and is sometimes reluctant to downshift. Around town, the engine’s turbocharger provides a decent amount of low-end punch, but as soon as you need to pass or merge on the highway, the engine runs out of steam. The turbocharged 1.4-liter inline-four makes 138 horsepower, a low number for this segment, and it’s buzzy and unrefined. Only one engine is offered in the Trax, and it’s not a great one. The top trim level is also renamed Premier, replacing LTZ. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are now standard, and several new active safety features join the option list. The Trax received a visual freshening for 2017 that brings a more handsome exterior and a modernized interior. The Trax is worth considering given its solid handling and generous list of standard equipment, but less expensive alternatives like the Honda HR-V, Kia Soul, and Mazda CX-3 are better to drive and nicer to live with. Chevy’s littlest utility vehicle has bland styling and a lackluster engine, making it a middle-of-the-road choice among more interesting competitors. It has got the height, but the Chevy still needs to develop its skills before it can advance to the pros.The crossover market has been flooded by a wave of subcompact SUVs, some of which pack an outsize personality into a small package. Maybe the Trax, then, is less like DeMarcus Cousins and more like a high-school basketball player who just hit a growth spurt. It wouldn’t be our first choice in this segment (that’d be the 10Best Trucks and SUVs–winning Kia Soul), and if you’re set on a Chevy, the Sonic, although vertically challenged, strikes us as a better buy. There’s not much that really stands out about Chevrolet’s smallest SUV-it’s not the cheapest in its class, nor the most entertaining, nor the roomiest, nor the best looking. That idea of competence without enthusiasm sums up the Trax overall. The CX-3 is more fun to drive, but the Trax is competent where it counts and gives an overall impression of solidity. The little Chevy also is eminently maneuverable, with quick steering and a short wheelbase that make parking a cinch. Body roll is kept in check and the ride is comfortably firm, while the brake pedal provides progressive feel. With a decent 0.83 g of grip around the skidpad and a short, 164-foot stop from 70 mph, the 2017 Trax is far less tippy and precarious than its styling suggests. The Chevrolet makes up for its accelerative deficiencies with competitive handling and braking performance. A 145-pound-heavier all-wheel-drive Trax we tested in 2015 was slower still, at 9.4 seconds. When it’s time to merge onto the highway or execute a pass, though, the little 1.4 struggles against the Trax’s 3151-pound curb weight-as confirmed by the sluggish 9.3-second saunter to 60 mph. A mostly well-behaved six-speed automatic and a competitive 148 lb-ft of torque help the little engine deliver a decent amount of peppiness around town, at least in the lighter front-wheel-drive Trax we tested. A turbocharged 1.4-liter inline-four providing a paltry 138 horsepower is the only engine choice. The dashboard’s materials are improved somewhat, although certain pieces such as the shifter and the climate controls still look and feel cheap, a more egregious offense in our tested $27,290 Trax Premier than in lower-priced models like the pictured Trax LT.Ĭhevrolet didn’t update what’s under the hood, an area where the Trax needed work. Push-button start, forward-collision warning, and lane-departure alert are now part of the options list, while a 7.0-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto comes standard on even the base LS. The updated interior does benefit from several new features. ![]()
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