The Georgia countryside we traversed (sorry) included zero rock crawling or whoops, but the pace and smoothness of the Z71 across rutted, washboardy field roads and some gravel two-track impressed me nonetheless. The turbo-four hummed along as I switched between Off-Road and Terrain driving modes, the latter exclusive on the Traverse to the Z71 package.
Both modes tell the transmission to wait longer before shifting, while allowing for more wheelslip and yaw angle before traction control intervenes. A widget on the main touchscreen even allowed me to switch off traction and electronic stability control entirely in Off-Road. Terrain mode, meanwhile, adds a Hill Descent Control program that works just okay via engine and traditional braking pulses, with no speed selection possible.
Michael Teo Van Runkle/SlashGear
I eventually built up the courage to push a bit harder than I expected the Traverse to enjoy, but the suspension just gobbled up bumps without much clunking, and a bit of tail-happy fun thrown in for good measure, too. Such shenanigans aren’t really the point, though. Instead, Chevy hopes that families can use the Traverse for mild car camping or to hit dirt roads on the way to trailheads. Minor obstables may test the aluminum front and steel underbelly skid plates, but anything more difficult may require use of the red Z71 tow hooks. We’re a long way from the spectacular Multimatics and overall capability of the ZR2 Colorados, but the Traverse definitely does better off-road than I, or any of my compatriots on hand, probably expected.
2024 Chevrolet Traverse First Drive: Three-Row SUV Creeps Closer To A Mini Tahoe
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