2009 Chevrolet Traverse

Chevrolet has in the past made some strange decisions regarding the styling and positioning of its sedans and minivans. In the early 90’s, they decided to release the Lumina minivan and Lumina sedan simultaneously, leading to much confusion about which vehicle was what and why they bore identical names. Adding to the furor was the fact that the Lumina sedan was being raced in NASCAR at the time, deluding many van owners into thinking that their 7-seat people mover was capable of tackling the high banks of Daytona at triple-digit speeds.

Older and wiser now, Chevrolet is still interested in adopting a cohesive brand style, but they go about it in a much less aggressive fashion, allowing each vehicle to have its own name and personality. The 2009 Chevrolet Traverse is a new crossover SUV that borrows heavily from the front end design of the much lauded Chevy Malibu. Based on the same Lambda platform that underpins the Saturn Outlook, the GMC Acadia and the Buick Enclave, the Traverse is also a minivan-esque vehicle that seats 7 passengers.

This new platform from GM is designed to completely replace minivans in their product lineup. General Motors is betting that people will want a vehicle that can still haul a good amount of cargo and passengers without costing an arm and a leg at the gas pump. The Chevrolet Traverse does offer good fuel economy for a vehicle in its class, in great part due to an all-new 3.6 liter V6. Chevrolet gets a direct injection version of this motor, which is also found in the other Lambda crossovers, and combined with a dual exhaust system this allows it to put out 286 horsepower – 11 more than its stable mates. It also gets 4 more foot pounds of torque for a total of 255 lb-feet. The decision to provide the Chevrolet version of the Lambda crossover with the prestige-building power bump is somewhat controversial, given the brand’s traditional standing as being slightly below Buick. The understanding is that the only reason there is a Chevrolet luxury crossover at all is at the behest of Chevy dealers, who did not want to be left out.

Whatever the reasoning behind the decision, the Traverse is quite good at what it is designed to do. A 4-wheel independent suspension is combined with either front-wheel or all-wheel drive, and a 6-speed automatic is more than up to the task of handling the direct-injected V6’s power. Buyers can opt for 17, 18 or 20-inch wheels, depending on how much of a premium they put on style versus tire cost. All seats behind the driver fold down into the floor, and like most GM vehicles, the Traverse comes with both Onstar and XM satellite radio, whose real-time traffic information is directly connected to the vehicle’s navigation system. The rear liftgate features powered raising and closing, and both the seats and the external mirrors are heated. Finally, parking assistance is available as an option, which should make parking this somewhat large crossover a much easier task – particularly in an urban environment.

The 2009 Chevrolet Traverse is an excellent vehicle that provides comfortable transportation no matter which seating position you occupy, something that is rare when it comes to vans or SUV’s. The key to the success of this crossover is whether it will face its stiffest competition from its own corporate cousins. Since the Traverse is coming out a year later than the Buick, Saturn or GMC variants, it is at a disadvantage when it comes to customer awareness. Buyers might also get confused between these 4 almost identical products, and the Traverse could suffer as a result of a poorly defined brand identity. This becomes particularly worrisome given the number of styling cues it shares with the Malibu. Only time will tell whether this addition to the Lambda family is welcomed in the same way as the others have been.






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June 8, 2008, 9:21 am