(Full disclosure: Victorian American Imports thought Track Shun was so cool and knowledgeable, they asked us to write an advertorial on the Chevy Tahoe, one of the many American cars they import to Australia. Consider supporting a company that supports a grass-roots automotive blog.)
I was in Flagstaff, Arizona. From the town centre, perched on the side of a mountain and surrounded by tall pine trees, the cabbie told me about his career playing bluegrass guitar. He drove me to a man in a suit with thick-rimmed glasses and silver hair that had a touch of class from a different era, and I was handed the keys to my champagne-coloured Chevrolet Tahoe LT that I would use to cover thousands of miles in only four days.
The LT is a step-up from the basic LS, with heated leather seats and a Bose stereo (amongst many features), but is below the range-topping LTZ that boasts standard features you would expect to find in a Porsche Cayenne. The handsome exterior was matched with a 5.3 litre Vortec V8 motor that produced a surprising 240kw of power and 450nm of torque, but you can option it with the 6.2 litre V8 when ordering through VAI.
I shot off down the freeway with a big smile on my face, setting the cruise control to a comfortable 120kph as I familiarised myself with the car. My iPhone cable plugged into the USB port and streamed some roadtrip playlists as I pointed the car north towards the Grand Canyon. I was happy to be sitting there. I arrived at the Canyon just as the sun was on the horizon. That golden light cast shadows across that amazing place. I soaked it in before jumping back in the Tahoe setting off again.
The drive from the Grand Canyon to Las Vegas was spectacular. The light at dusk was some of the prettiest I've ever seen and kept going for hours as I chased the sun. I kept my eye on the fuel gauge of the Tahoe, thinking that this American SUV would be sucking down the petrol like Coca-Cola, but the needle barely moved during the many hours of driving. Late into the night and without much left in me, the car drove over a peak and revealed a carpet of lights in the valley of Las Vegas.
In the context of the Australian market, the Tahoe makes a lot of sense. The car can be optioned with the 6.2 litre V8, which not only has a lot more power, it also makes servicing the car at your local Holden dealership a lot more convenient. They come in 2WD or 4WD, depending on what you need. They can be optioned with up-to eight seats and with a towing capacity of 5.5 tonnes. But the thing that makes the most sense is that the Tahoe is significantly easier to drive and (I suspect) live with than most Japanese seven-seater SUVs.
Like most Aussies, I expected the Chev to be an oversized, uncouth Yank Tank. But I couldn't have been more wrong. As the smaller sister to the celebrated Chevrolet Suburban, the Tahoe still boasts more than enough space for most people. But because it’s smaller, it’s easier to park and has better visibility. It has more useable space than a Toyota Kluger, but doesn’t feel too big for the road like a Toyota Prado can. The cabin is comfortable and has excellent build quality. There's a reason it has a consumer rating of 8.6/10.
I spent the next day driving everywhere. I’ll admit that I felt pretty good handing a Greenback to the valet and jumping into the captain’s chair of the Tahoe with my sunnies on. Around downtown Vegas the Tahoe was just as well-mannered and as easy to maneuver as ever, and looked spot-on in her metallic paint shimmering under the bright sun.
The following day I drove from Las Vegas to Salt Lake City, cruising through the enourmous cuttings that are a marvel to modern engineering. Normally after a few hours of driving, my years of bad posture tend to bite me in the lower back, but I was perfectly comfortable in the Chevy. The seats were big, not too soft (or firm), and had beautiful black piping trimmed throughout the leatherwork. Just over the border I had to fill-up for the first time since I’d started. Impressive considering I’d been driving for three days through a combination of city and freeway traffic. After swapping stories with a local uniform, I rolled into Salt Lake City to find my hotel.
The reason for my trip was Speed Week. Each year, the Bonneville Salt Flats hosts mad people from across the globe, trying to go faster than they ever have before. I arrived the following afternoon. With the summer heat radiating off the brilliant white salt flat, I was thankful for the powerful climate control in the Tahoe. I marvelled at the incredible machines that lined the pits as the roaring engines echoed in the distance.
My ambitious plan was to leave Bonneville that afternoon and make my way to San Diego, at the very bottom of the Californian coast. About 700 miles. I dialled in Pahrump, Nevada into my GPS and set off. It told me to head south on a back country road that followed the original Pony Express, right down the guts of the state. Two hours in I found my first town. Then nothing for another couple of hours. The scenery was absolutely spectacular. Rolls of hills, crumpled up like a rug that's been pushed, and a road that cut straight through them.
Once again, the car performed flawlessly. It ate up the miles as I passed through Pahrump and charged towards San Diego through the warm night air. I hit my destination and visited a friend the following morning before heading to Los Angeles Airport, reluctantly handing back the keys to the Chevrolet. I’d absolutely loved the versatility of the car, being just as comfortable on the highway as it was around town. It would be a perfect family car or dedicated tow rig for touring. Throughout the roadtrip it exceeded my expectations.
VAI imports the Chevrolet Tahoe to Australia and performs right-hand-drive conversions that are as high quality as the factory fit and finish. They can order the Tahoe (or any other type of Chev, GMC, or Dodge truck) to meet your requirements.
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