2015 Chevrolet Trax

The Trax is a global vehicle. Chevrolet launched the Trax in late 2012 in Mexico and Canada as a 2013 model and has sold about 90,000 units in more than 60 global markets, where it initially launched.

The 2015 Trax is currently on sale in global markets where Chevrolet vehicles are available, and arrived in U.S. dealer showrooms in early 2015.

For 2015, the Trax features just a single new feature — an LPO wheel lock set, as follows:

• (SFE) LPO, Wheel locks, includes 4 locks and 1 key

With its signature dual-port grille, prominent Bowtie emblem and swept headlamps, the Trax is immediately identifiable as a contemporary Chevrolet. Its grille design incrorporates chrome accents and emulates other Chevrolets, providing a more cohesive appearance across the brand’s lineup of crossovers and small cars.

Available cues such as front fog lamps and simulated front and rear skid plates lend a sportier presence, while vertical tail lamps flank the tailgate, accenting taught body lines and pronounced wheel arches that give the Trax a confident stance.

The Trax will be available in 10 exterior colors, including:

• Brilliant Blue Metallic
• Orange Rock Metallic
• Satin Steel Metallic
• White Pearl Tricoat
• Black Granite Metallic
• Summit White
• Silver Ice Metallic
• Ruby Red Metallic
• Deep Espresso Metallic
• Blaze Red

The Trax carries its distinctive exterior styling to the cabin. The familiar dual-cockpit instrument panel should make Chevrolet buyers feel at home. In the center, it houses a seven-inch, high-resolution, full-color display for the standard MyLink voice-activated infotainment system. The screen doubles as the displays for the available SiriusXM satellite radio and standard rearview camera, as well as the available GPS-enabled, app-based navigation system that customers can download to their phones and run from the phone using MyLink.

The instrument cluster is inspired by the bold design in the Sonic, featuring a large, performance-style analog tachometer combined with a prominent digital display for the speedometer and other readouts. A small-diameter, thick-rimmed steering wheel enhances the sporty ambience. In LTZ and some LT models, the wheel is wrapped in leather.

LS models feature cloth seating, with a deluxe cloth standard on LT. A cloth/leatherette seating trim is available. Meanwhile, LTZ models feature standard full leatherette trim.

Interior color combinations include:

• Jet Black
• Jet Black/Light Titanium
• Jet Black/Brownstone

Cargo

The rear seat folds 60/40 for versatility, and features a fold-down armrest with cup holders. Other conveniences include:

• Storage in all four doors
• Four bins in the dash
• Pockets in the seatbacks of the front seats
• Bins under the rear load floor
• A hidden storage drawer under the front passenger seat

The Trax offers 18.7 cubic feet (530 liters) of storage behind the split-folding rear seat and 48.4 cubic feet (1,371 liters) with the rear seat folded. In addition, the front passenger seat folds flat to extend the cargo length and accommodate items up to eight feet long.

Connectivity And Infotainment

The Trax will accommodate customers’ increasingly-connected lifestyles with available OnStar 4G LTE with built-in Wi-Fi hotspot, as well as its MyLink infotainment system — the segment’s only seven-inch color touch screen. In addition, Trax also will be the first in its class to offer Apple’s Siri Eyes Free technology.

The available Siri Eyes Free for iPhone iOS 6. iOS 7, and iOS 8 users enhances connectivity and convenience, enabling safe voice-controlled connectivity while driving. The technology enables drivers to keep phones stored and their hands on the wheel.

Additional standard and available features include:

• Seven-inch-diagonal color touch screen and additional USB ports
• Available Chevrolet connected by OnStar 4G LTE with built-in Wi-Fi hotspot
• Available next-generation OnStar and MyLink
• Available BringGo navigation app
• Available SiriusXM Satellite Radio (with three months of trial service), SiriusXM Travel Link and SiriusXM Tune Select (requires XM subscription)
• Supports playback of MP3 files stored on USB flash memory drives

With Chevrolet’s connected by OnStar 4G LTE connection, Trax provides an available Wi-Fi hotspot that allows passengers to connect up to seven personal devices such as smartphones, laptops and tablets to high-speed wireless Internet.

Engine

Trax is powered by the power-dense Ecotec 1.4L turbocharged LUJ four-cylinder engine backed by an efficiency-enhancing six-speed automatic transmission. The engine is expected to be rated at an SAE-certified 138 horsepower (102 kW) and 148 lb-ft of torque (200 Nm) between 1,850 and 4,900 rpm.

The wide rpm range for the maximum torque – a specific trait of turbocharged engines – helps it deliver a more confident driving experience, with a strong feeling of power across the rpm band. The turbocharger’s on-demand performance also contributes to efficiency because it enables greater power when needed with the lower fuel consumption of a small-displacement engine when it’s not.

The turbocharger is integrated within the exhaust manifold, for reduced weight and greater packaging flexibility. A solid cast crankshaft and forged connecting rods deliver additional durability to support the engine’s pressurized power and torque.

Transmission

A Hydra-Matic 6T40 six-speed automatic transmission with TAPShift control is matched with the 1.4L turbo engine. It has a unique design, with the planetary gearsets positioned on the same axis as the engine crankshaft centerline, making the entire powertrain unit shorter fore-to-aft. This design enables a shorter overall vehicle length, increased interior space, enhanced safety crush zones and lower weight.

A “steep” first gear and a “tall” overdrive top gear to achieve a wide ratio spread of 6.14:1. This allows Trax to achieve robust acceleration, as well as fuel efficiency and lower engine noise at highway cruising speeds.

The 2015 Trax is based on a derivative of GM’s global Gamma vehicle architecture known as Gamma Plus.

Trax is built on a robust global platform and engineered with precise suspension tuning to deliver one of the segment’s quietest and most refined driving experiences. Available all-wheel drive seamlessly shifts power to the rear wheels when required for better traction and handling.

A 100.6-inch (2,555 mm) wheelbase and wide stance – 60.6-inch (1,539 mm) front and rear tracks – contribute to a confident driving experience, while a strong structure enables greater suspension precision and a quiet ride.

A MacPherson strut front suspension is used with coil springs, a large stabilizer bar and side-load-compensated front strut modules.

The rear suspension incorporates a compound crank (torsion beam) design, with a double-wall, tubular V-shape beam profile with gas-charged twin-tube shocks. It combines all the advantages of a conventional torsion beam axle, including minimal space requirements, with low weight and consistent camber control. Noise-damping urethane spring isolators improve ride isolation and dampen noise.

Trax also features a column-mounted, variable-effort electric power steering system that saves fuel compared to a conventional engine-driven power steering pump.

Sixteen-inch wheels are standard on LS and LT (aluminum wheels on LT). LTZ has standard 18-inch aluminum wheels.

The Trax body structure forms a protective cage around the passenger compartment, with 66 percent of the structure composed of high-strength steels, including ultra-high-strength steel. That structural protection is complemented with 10 standard air bags, including::

• Driver and front passenger frontal air bags
• Driver and front passenger knee air bags
• Front and rear thorax air bags for all outboard positions, including the segment’s only rear-seat-mounted thorax air bags
• Side curtain air bags for front and rear outboard passengers

Additionally, the Trax also incorporates technologies that help avoid crashes and protect occupants in case one occurs. Crash-avoidance technologies include:

• Standard rearview camera
• Standard StabiliTrak electronic stability control, incorporating traction control and rollover mitigation features
• ABS and electronic brake force distribution
• Cornering brake control and brake assist

Trax’s safety and security features are complemented by segment-exclusive OnStar technology with Advanced Crash Response System, emergency assistance, and more.

The Trax is available in Chevrolet’s traditional three trim levels, including:

• LS
• LT
• LTZ

The Chevrolet Trax competes in the subcompact crossover segment. Direct rivals include:

• Nissan Juke
• Mitsubishi Outlander Sport
• Ford EcoSport (outside of U.S. and Canada)
• Kia Soul (indirectly)

In addition, GM’s own Buick Encore and Opel-Vauxhall Mokka could be considered competitors. The Encore and Trax share the same Gamma Plus vehicle architecture.