Chevrolet Trax Premier LT – A blacked-out surprise from Chevy

The Chevrolet Trax doesn’t pop up often when one thinks of crossovers. It might be because the name Chevy is more associated with their popular Trailblazer. Once you see it though, it’s impossible to forget the Trax with its Camaro-ish front face that can stand wheel to wheel with the more expensive cars in Chevrolet Philippine’s lineup.

Chevy tried to improve the already stunning design by giving it a Premier treatment – blacked-out logo and rims, decals, a crossbar on the roof rails, a black fin-type antenna, integrated 1080p dashcam, carbon air ionizer, and a tray in the cargo area. Together in this ‘Pull Me Over Red’ color, the name Premier is very apt, as if it’s the car of a celebrity about to walk the red carpet.

Looks alone can’t make cars roll out of showrooms though so I took the Trax Premier LT for a drive to see if it’s a Miss Universe beauty-and-brains woman or just another cute vlogger with erroneous statements.

From the get-go, you can immediately feel that the Trax has a lively powertrain underneath, like it’s excited for you to just step on the gas pedal and never let go. It’s more responsive than the average crossover and the 140hp and 200Nm out of the 1.4L turbo engine doesn’t seem to mind the generously sized body it’s carrying. It’s helped by the 6-speed automatic that made the Trax really fun to drive. It still won’t pull your head back when you floor it, but it also won’t disappoint you in doing overtakes in between long-distance cruising.

Speaking of cruising, the Trax is more than prepared for the city thanks to its cruise control that can be activated at 25kph. It’s not-adaptive cruise so you still have to press the brakes, but you don’t have to do brake-gas-brake-gas in EDSA anymore. Just flick the Resume button and it will go back to its preset speed again.

Once my drive was over, I checked the fuel consumption and the Trax returned 6.9km/l which is tolerable given that I drove through heavy traffic, thanks to the closed U-Turn slots in EDSA. On average it does around 9.1km/l, though it depends how often you are on very congested roads these days.

The nuances caught up with me after the initial pleasure of driving the Trax waned. First is shifting the car to Park will also unlock the doors—convenient but not the safest. Next is the beautiful, wingspread-esque dashboard places the air vents very low, and for the driver that means air is blowing directly to your hands if they’re in the proper position on the steering wheel. The driver’s retractable armrest sits too low and doesn’t have a height adjustment. Even the speakers caught my attention because they’re labeled as “Performance Enhanced Audio Power Booster” but they lack bass and mids. It’s not noticeable for the average user, but something worth pointing out if you’re particular about your sound.

On the bright side, everything else feels premium from the driver’s seat. The 1080p dashcam is integrated well in the overall aesthetics and doesn’t stick out, the leather from the steering wheel feels like it was taken from the Malibu, then there’s electric controls for the driver’s seat with lumbar support, and the buttons click softly while the rotary knobs have a soft detent at every notch. The 7-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, though relatively small, is still pleasant to use even if you’re just connecting via Bluetooth.

Passengers won’t mind the back row too much unless they’re giants. There’s enough headroom and legroom for most people. There’s a center armrest with cup holders, a 230V socket on the center console, and not much else aside from the good leather on the seats.

As for the unseen guardians, the Trax has an impressive set of safety features. That includes 6 airbags, Electronic Stability Control, Traction Control, Hill Start Assist, Hill Descent Control, parking sensors, reverse camera, and tire pressure monitoring system, among others.

What’s really surprising for me about the Trax is how great it is to drive. It’s easy to forgive its quirks, when it’s more than ready to follow your bidding at every press of the pedal. Combine that with its stunning look, premium feel, adequate room, and a great set of safety features and you have a really good crossover. The catch? It costs a hefty P1,535,888. To be fair though, that’s the same price when the excise tax hit the local car scene back in 2018. Chevrolet Philippines didn’t have a price hike even when they added these exterior touches. However, it can’t be denied that it’s a tad steep.

Aside from the price, the Trax Premier LT is also threatened by its twin, the lower trim Trax Premier LS. For P350k less, you’re getting the same core of the crossover albeit with several key features pulled out. You’ll lose the projector headlamps, power folding mirrors, keyless entry, leather steering wheel, cruise control, push start, smartphone mirroring, and the special Performance Enhanced Audio Power Booster among others. Everything else remains – the engine, transmission, that intimidating look of the Trax, and the full suite of safety features it has, including the dashcam.

Despite its looks and damn good drive, it would be hard for the Trax Premiere LT to stand out in the face of more affordable adversaries, let alone against its twin. You need to love everything about it in order to shell out that much. That, or if Chevrolet puts out a mighty promo that will let the Trax LT compete in the value stakes. It has its faults but it doesn’t take away its great drive and functionality. If you get one, you won’t be disappointed.