Video: 2024 Chevrolet Trax Review: A Value Leader

Why was it so good? Yeah, this was my favorite system by far. Everything was just easy to use, worked well, within easy reach, and just a beautiful, beautiful system, like the screens were modern graphics and really slick, high resolution, responsive, overall, just a really nice integration. Wireless CarPlay and Android Auto works seamlessly. Just very impressive system. It's gorgeous, it's responsive. It looks as modern as anything I've been in in higher vehicle classes. It just works really well, anything you want to do, any function, it's right there. It's fairly intuitive as far as controls go and where things are located. There's a nice little fixed bar along the side for main functions and it just looks good and it works, and that's not always the case. Yeah, the customization is really trick. The resolution and clarity, it's more BMW-like than anything else in this test. It's really good, and it's the whole package. It's wireless CarPlay, wireless Android Auto, and wireless charging, which you don't always get, so. Well, and the climate controls below it are just clear, they're big, they make sense as they should. They're just no nonsense. Yep, yep, definitely a standout in this class. Now, it was competitive in other areas too, like in cabin storage. Yeah, absolutely. There's a lot of nice little places to stash stuff, which I appreciate. And in a vehicle this size, again, it's kind of nice to have as much storage as you can. Yeah, and what I really appreciate, as much as we like that little cubby in the HRV, it's sort of enclosed. Everything here except for the console bin is still open, which gives you a height advantage, makes access a little bit easier. It's fairly well thought out. There's not a lot of room, it's not a very big vehicle, but they make do really well with what they have. Yeah, what surprised me in how well it actually did was in its powertrain score and acceleration. You know, we're talking three cylinders, turbocharged, not a whole lot of power by the specs, but it actually is pretty quick and responsive to drive. <v Jennifer>It surprised me because I'm coming out of the old Trax. That was the- That was a real dog and just not, that powertrain was not impressive in any way, so this is definitely a step up and it surprised me in its quickness. Yeah, it feels a lot quicker than what you might consider to be it's more likely competitors. And I think also part of that has to do with the six-speed automatic, which is just a much better transmission application than some of the CBTs we're seeing in competitors here. It's better at shifting, it's better at delivering that power linearly and quickly, and this might not be the most powerful in the test, but it didn't feel like it was so far behind. Right. The ones that were the most powerful. Yeah, below 40 miles an hour getting off the line, this thing is really responsive and it's got this surge in power from 3000 to 4,500 RPM that actually spin the tires, which caught me off guard, and it was the fourth fastest in zero to 60, so still faster than two of the other cars in this comparison. Cheap doesn't necessarily mean value. Expensive doesn't necessarily mean it has no value. It's features for the money, and this car is $26,000 and had features that other cars didn't, and I think you're getting a lot for your money with this car. It has a lot of things that you need at that price, which is impressive compared with the other vehicles in this test, which were missing a couple of things. <v Joe>For sure, you know, you're looking at heated seats, heated steering wheel, moon roof, and four USB ports, Which is more than others at this price. Yeah, I mean, at this price you're not getting that fourth cylinder. You're not getting even the choice of all-wheel drive, but the things you do get are things you don't find necessarily in all of these more expensive vehicles, and it really delivers on a lot of features for the money. So let's talk about what it doesn't have and what it doesn't necessarily do well. I think at top of mind for all of us was visibility. Yeah, absolutely, seeing out the back was tough. Those windows, the windows on the side are very small. That roof line really impedes rear visibility. It's not easy to see out the back. Yeah, it's a very aggressively shaped roof line with short windows and a rigged back windshield, and yeah, it definitely has a unique look, more of a hatchback type look and it looks sporty, but you'd pay for that. Yeah, and out the front too is a little bit harder than some of the vehicles here. You've got this raked windshield, you've got the high mounted side mirrors, but it's not as good as some of the others here, and in a comparison where some of these are really good with front visibility, that stood out to me. Yeah, and I thought the backseat was roomy, but you guys had issues in the backseat, so. My thing with the backseat was it just felt very much more closed in to me, and I think it was because of those smaller windows and that sloping roof line. It felt kind of cave-like back there. Yeah, and for me, the roof line really impeded my headroom, which is really the most unpleasant thing for me when I'm in a backseat is when my head is touching the headliner. I don't care for that at all. Well, and it's not a very nice place to be when you look at the features. <v Joe>There's that. It's a very cheap feeling back there. There's not a lot of padded plastic, there's no vents for climate, and there's no armrest that comes down like a couple others have. Yeah, in terms of interior quality, once you get past the front seat, there's nothing, there's no padding, there's no soft touch, anything in the backseat. <v Jennifer>It was forgotten. And we can get into whether or not fun nods in terms of styling are really worth it. This has some yellow trim that just, to me, seemed out of place. I think you thought it seemed out of place to you, Jen. It was really just strange. I did a double take when I came in. Just did not appeal to me. Bright yellow plastic, not my favorite. And it also didn't do well in car seat fittings. <v Jennifer>Yeah, we had a couple of problems with car seats. One, again, with the head restraints. Those, you know, prevented the seats from sitting flush against the seat back. The other was room, there's just not a ton of leg room for the rear-facing car seats, which take up a lot of space. And so the last thing I think we touch on with things that could have been better, handling. <v Jennifer>Yeah, that was a big problem for me. This felt like a much bigger, heavier vehicle to me in terms of around town maneuverability. The steering felt heavy, it just felt kind of lumbering and hulky and not indicative of its size at all. Yeah, I could definitely kinda see the cheapness in how it drives. Perhaps that was some areas of cost cutting. When you're turning and you go over a bump, it kind of feels like the wheels are flopping all over the place, so definitely some issues in handling and ride quality. If you wanna read more about how the Trax performed in our comparison, be sure to head to cars.com. (upbeat music)