The Traverse: A Hidden Gem in the Chevy Lineup

When most people visit a Chevy dealership in search of a new SUV, they usually head straight over to check out the Chevy Equinox. Or, if they are in search of a super-large family car, they’ll know coming in that they are shopping for a Chevy Suburban. However, hidden between those extremely two popular models is the Chevy Traverse, which has just been fully redesigned for the 2018 model year. So while it’s tempting to scope out the Chevy SUVs that are so beloved and popular, do yourself a big favor and take some time to consider the 2018 Chevy Traverse.

Plenty of Room for All

What makes the Chevy Traverse an SUV worth considering? Well, for starters, it joins big brother Suburban in its ability to seat up to 8 passengers and it’s copious cargo area. While the Suburban offers a staggering 39 cubic feet of cargo room even when all of the seats are up, the Chevy Traverse offers an equally impressive 23 cubic feet of cargo space when all of the seats are engaged – in fact, according to U.S. News & World Report, “the Traverse has one of the most generously sized cargo holds among 3-row SUVs, letting you carry more stuff than with the Ford Explorer, Honda Pilot, and even the Chevrolet Tahoe”. Best of all, the Chevy Traverse has some really cool hidden cubby-hole style spaces, including a storage bin cleverly disguised in the cargo floor. Although keep in mind that all of these hidden spots are not only awesome for hiding your belongings and snacks, little passengers will also love to hide all sorts of snacks as well, so be sure to give them a quick check every once in a while… no one wants to find a school of Goldfish crackers hidden in their SUV!

The cubby holes are definitely a neat feature, but what really makes the Chevy Traverse a great family car is the fact that Chevy didn’t try to cram as many passengers as possible in the SUV and neglect to make it an enjoyable ride. Rather, the Chevy Traverse has some awesome amenities that will make even the way-back passengers happy. For starters, the seats are wide and very comfortable. There are air vents in the ceiling, which means that the front-seat passengers are going to be freezing while the backseat passengers are sweltering while breathing in stale, stuffy air. There’s also a pass-through between the second and third-row seats, which means you won’t have to worry about flipping seats down and trying to bust out an advanced yoga technique to get into the back row.

Interiors that Meet Your Needs

The Chevy Traverse is also a great SUV because it gives buyers plenty of options to suit both their budget and their wants or needs. The Traverse is offered in a choice of seven trim types, while the Chevy Suburban is offered in three and the Chevy Equinox is offered in four. The seven trim types found on the Chevy Traverse are the L, LS, LT Cloth, LT Leather, RS, Premier and the High Country. With starting MSRPs ranging from $29,930 for the Chevy Traverse L and $52,050 for the Chevy Traverse High Country, it’s certainly simple enough to find a Traverse that will make you happy without breaking the bank.

One thing to note about the Chevy base model L is that it is actually a build-to-order trim, so you won’t see one sitting on a dealer’s lot. For that reason, it’s more practical to consider the Chevy Traverse LS, which has a starting MSRP of $32,030 and comes extremely well-equipped for a base model. A few of the amenities you’ll find in the 2018 Chevrolet Traverse LS include heated mirrors, Onstar connectivity, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, Chevy’s MyLink infotainment system, a seven-inch touchscreen display screen, engine stop-start, LED running lights, xenon headlights and seating for up to eight passengers. The Chevy Traverse LS is available in all-wheel drive and it sits on 18-inch wheels.

While there are the other trims to take into consideration, let’s jump straight to the top of the lineup and explore the 2018 Chevrolet Traverse in High Country to get a feel for just how loaded your SUV can be. If you choose to make the Chevy Traverse High Country yours, you’ll be enjoying a ride with heated front and rear seats, driver seat memory settings, automatic high beams, a power-folding third-row bench, LED headlights, hands-free liftgate, a ten-speaker BOSE sound system, a towing packing and a sunroof. This list is not all-inclusive – Chevy has managed to include a  staggering amount of convenience and technological amenities into its top-tier model.

Supersized Performance

At this point, you would be forgiven for thinking that the Chevy Traverse sounds more like a maxed out minivan than a powerful SUV. However, you’d be mistaken. The Traverse comes with two engine options, a powerful 3.6-liter V6 that gets up to 310 horsepower and 266-pound-feet of torque or a 2.0-liter four-cylinder that gets 255 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque. The 2.0-liter is only available with the RS trim, all other trims come with the 3.6-liter V6. That V6 engine not only offers a strong performance on the highway, but also an economical one at the gas pump: it gets an EPA-estimated 18 miles per gallon in the city and 27 mpg on the highway, which is on par (if not slightly better) than many of its competitors in the Midsize SUV class.

Safety Above All

The last thing you should know before heading to the dealership to scope out the Traverse for yourself is that it’s an SUV that you can feel great about putting yourself and your family in, thanks to its 2018 five-star overall safety rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Available with copious amounts of advanced safety features including General Motors rear-seat reminder technology and Chevy’s Teen Driver Technology, the Traverse is not simply well-equipped when it comes to cool amenities and powerful engines – it’s well-equipped where it really matters: in protecting you and your family

Check Out the Traverse

Don’t get us wrong, we still love the Equinox and the Suburban too. However, the Chevy Traverse certainly offers something special to the Chevrolet family of SUVs and you’d be remiss in not taking a peek at what it has to offer you today!