2024 Chevrolet Trax / Sleight of Hand 

It’s been over 20 years since I owned a Chevy. But lately their design language has become more attractive. And the Trax is much cooler looking than any crossover out there. And some of the more reliable brands have had quality hiccups. So I bought the Activ a couple of weeks ago and am loving it.

Thank you for covering affordable vehicles!

I own a Trax 1RS and I love how it drives. Only downside is when making a U turn I need another lane to make it. Other than that everything is good. I’m not a fan of button start , leather interior and digital gauges that’s why I got the 1RS. Power is sufficient, it’s not a Corvette. Suspension is on the Hard side. If you want a softer ride this might not be the one for you. Body roll on corners 0 to none existent. Sweet spot is at 3400 rpm but can cruise 80mph at 2500rpm that’s a gas saver. I average 32mpg

I have a 2RS and i love it bravo to chevy.

While Chevy is a brand I avoid, the styling of Trax is something I noticed. Their exterior department did a good job

New to your site and have just watched a couple of your reviews. I think you've got a gift for this as you provide the important, practical info most car buyers need while not getting lost in the performance weeds. I appreciate the included reliability info based on what owners are saying on forums as well as your good, entertaining banter, and you get it all done in 15 mins or less without a lot of wasted words.

I'm just saying whoever designed exterior of the Trax should be getting a bonus, I know it always catches my eye when I see one lately.

Great video Tyler! It's nice to see something decent and affordable. Please keep the great videos coming!

The value looks amazing at first, but like many other Toyota folks, I wouldn't trust it out of warranty.

Really nice and thorough review. Thank you for sharing.

Great review, as always! We checked this one out at an auto show not too long ago, in order to directly compare smaller crossovers. In my opinion, the Trax had the most comfortable seating. The headroom was definitely tight, but I tend to prefer a more car-like driving position, so it wasn't a deal breaker. The price couldn't be beat, though. Also, I was surprised at how difficult it was to find a heated steering wheel in that class of vehicle for under $30k. I live at the beach, so I don't need AWD. The friend I went with was able to fit a rear-facing child seat (yes, they actually let us carry it around and try it out) in the back if that was a concern for anyone. If you had told me I would be putting a Chevrolet on my list for my next car, even as a long-shot consideration, I wouldn't have believed you.

Another great video brother

I think this fills a niche. No other SUV below $23k looks like a real SUV. You have to pay a lot more for a CX-30 and the back seat is not nearly as big. The CX30 was a better choice for me, but I can see this appealing to a lot of people as long as the engine holds up.

The Chevy Trax and the Buick Envista are great options for affordable practical vehicles. I would only pause due to the untested motor, but at sub $25k if you got 5 years of reliable use you can't complain.

Front wheel drive only is not a limitation!!! It's a highly desirable feature.

Only now noticed the integrated logo. Looks a lot better

He does not understand the genius of putting the mosut used steering wheel button on the back of the wheel. I LOVE that design I don't have a worn down area on my steering wheel and it's a HARD plastic that does not wear down.

There is only one other vehicle in this segment which has a real transmission (aside from the sister Envista)...the Mazda CX-30, which only fits very small people in the rear seats. So you put a set of Michelin Cross-Climate 2's on the Trax or Envista and have a set of tire chains handy. You can go most places. Some used 1.2 turbos have over 100K miles on them, the transmission is well known to be good. No other choices, IMO...until Mazda makes a CX-30 LWB.

I bristle a bit when I see it being compared to the Crosstrek and the like. I see the Trax competing with other FWD only vehicles such as the Kia Soul, Nissan Kicks, and the Hyundai Venue. While the Crosstrek start at the high end of the Trax price range, that base engine in the Crosstrek is lethargic IMO. I briefly had one with the base 2.0L engine. I know the 2.5L engine is better performing, but you'll have to spend in excess of $30k to get a Crosstrek with it.

Much like the Malibu Maxx hatchback of 15 years ago, the styling here reeks to me of 1980 Chevy Citation on stilts. Just compare the overall rear hatch shape. Sure enough, this Trax is nearly equal to the Citation in every dimension but height. Carry on. 🍻

Awesome. I enjoy my 2025 Trax Activ!!🎉

I have a 2rs and is great.

It finally happened. A car review almost took our boy out. xD

I have a 2025 T-Rax 2RS.. love mine

What does Consumer Reports, ISee Cars, and Edmonds say about their reliability of that vehicle?

I'd take this over any Volkswagen 😂

I've driven manuals for the last 25 years, and drove a Chevy loaner once when my car was in the shop for recall work. It was an automatic with the "paddle shifters." Omg, it was so lame, I just kept it in auto mode, lol. #SaveTheManuals

For the price and value sorry there should be no complaints....

Got to be careful while driving on a mildly frightening road. 😅

Cheap but chevy i dont know

It looks pretty, but I’ll still always disagree with the premise of an SUV/CUV coming with FWD ONLY, and no AWD option. How many sales people will neglect to tell an average consumer that the cheap, new, easy to approve car sale provides the same powertrain as the vehicle they are “upgrading” from?

I like it. For a affordable car it’s not to bad

Still thinking about an armor-piercing paintball gun… 😊

I really like this car and am considering it but what's causing some hesitation is the engine. If the throw a 4 cylinder in there it'll probably be a strong option for me.

Great runaround first new car for a new driver. Not my cup of tea, especially with a three cylinder and being a Chevy.

I am between this one or the Kia Seltos 😮

yup, it's a car. and that's the nicest thing you can say about it.

Unpadded arm rests are your punishment for not buying an Envista

They look good, but man oh man are the complaints and problems rolling in just as bad as last the last generation.

Seems like the MPG's would be a little better considering it's only a 1.2 liter 3 cylinder. The Crosstrek gets better gas mileage with the over twice as big 2.5 liter boxer engine.

I'm surprised you give that tiny little engine that will probably wear out so much praise. A 1.2L with gdi and turbo. All that high pressure will probably wear the rings out and you'll end up with an oil burner or maybe blown gaskets. There are mowers out there with bigger displacement than this thing.

Lol, 1.2L. It's not about the power on paper, it's about how LONG it can do it. My wife's 2.4L NA Equinox was in the shop more than any car I or my parents have owned. Engine started burning about 2qt of oil between oil changes (back road driving). Rust everywhere (we are in the Rust Belt). Save your money, buy a car off that one island in the Pacific.

👍🏻👍🏻😶

Small engine, stressed all the time especially at speed. Turbo, Extra stress on engine, a lot more. Mistreating turbo. Never startup cold and use engine hard. Better to let sit and idle for a couple of minuets.. shutting down, if engine is hot never just power down. Let engine run for a minuet or so.This allows temps to even out. Important to do so the oil in the turbo oil supply line won't boil and block line which leads to premature turn failure.

A C T I V

It’s a great rental car.

This car has a timing belt... I'm 2024. Huge red flag

This car is made in korea. Its a korean car with a chevy name.

It’s the 2024 Chevy Cavalier ..

The last Chevy I owned was a Spark and it was one of the worst cars I've ever owned. I had so many unexpected repairs (stupid things like the power window regulator failing after

Nice looking, but it's a Chevy , and that 137 horses like dangerously under powered , I drove 152 horses last car ...never again !

These really small CUVs always surprise me with just how bad the highway fuel economy is. Those tiny engines have so little power they must have to rev like crazy at 70mph cruising. It's one of those counter-intuitive things where if you buy a bigger, more powerful CUV like a Rogue you can get 20% better MPG.

Subaru Crosstrek, Subaru Impreza, Corolla Cross, and Mazda 3 hatch over this trashcan on wheels all day (same with Envista).

21k isnt bad until you drive off the lot and its automatically 15k plus gonna have a ton of issues I would rather drive a 1999 honda civic

oil bath timing belt.....no thanks

It´s cheap because Chevy can built this Car cheap with cheap materials.

Trax is no longer 4x4 just get a Corolla or Corolla cross

Chevrolet is gone downhill & the Trax is made in Korea. The CVT transmission is absolute garbage they are now using now as its sluggish. The 6 speed automatics they used before were also bad but much better on acceleration. The 3 cylinder with the Turbo & the GDI is another issue as it wont last & will burn out around or before 100k. GM is making many models in Mexico as well as Korea & the quality control is bad there.

Typical GM. Show up to a gunfight and pull out a knife. What could possibly go wrong with a wheezy turbocharged Korean made 3 cylinder boosted to within an inch of it's life? Another throw away car.

It’s basically unanimous that the Trax is a vehicle to stay away from.

Still trash , don’t buy , buyer beware

Only a 3cyl ? What country is it manufactured in? If it’s China or Mexico then it’ll Never be in my driveway. When Ford first started manufacturing their vehicles in Mexico Ford was paying their workers $25 per week, which is a Lot of money for Mexico, but they never passed those savings onto their Customers. The Only thing that Mexico is good at manufacturing is children.

Folks don't listen to this reviewer. The Trax is a value budget vehicle for an budget consumer. Stuck to Mazdas buddy and Subaru which you believe are great vehicles......NOT!!!

Why do people always make up names like Leatherette, instead of just calling it what it is… Vinyl. Or Immigrant, which in reality is Invader. Or I expensive, “cheap” or Hoe, which is actually X-wife. Just say the correct word.

But I want an armor piercing paintball gun!😢 "Subaru was better." And more expensive and UGLY, at least the Crosstrek, the new Impreza looks much better without all that tacky plastic.

I never liked Chevy's design language but man this thing is ugly.

Direct injection so it’s junk