2022 Chevy Traverse RS

[@fasteddy07]

It'll be interesting to see how the new Traverse Z71 will fare on the offroad test.

[@EngineAdventures]

I'll do my best to get one! I agree that, will be a fun one to test!

[@MoneyShot_CM]

I like the consistency of the off-road portion, great to see everything compared on the same obstacles, and with some vehicles most wouldn't test like this.

[@EngineAdventures]

Thanks for watching and commenting! That's the goal of the channel, test as many vehicles as I can (I skip some for fear of damage) over the same course.

[@stefman4444]

Thanks for the video! If you look at the rear driver side wheel at 19:00mins there for sure was lack of grab due those tires since the torque is being sent to the rear wheel which you can see is turning. Those Continentals are road only tires. I imagine with an AT tire, it would have faired a bit better! Seeing that rear wheel trying to grab tells me it was trying lol

[@EngineAdventures]

I'm not seeing the same thing as you at 19:00, but keep in mind that what I'm testing is the vehicle's ability to transfer torque to the wheels with traction. On this hill there are plenty of deep holes that will essentially lift one or two tires off the ground, or close to it. Having the right tires for the terrain is very important, however putting the best AT tires on this vehicle for this particular test on this day, it wouldn't have made it up the hill any better.

[@stefman4444]

@EngineAdventures no for sure I get it. On a cell phone KZbin allows you to zoom in on a video. Around 1906 you can see the rear driver wheel getting power on the ground that's all. Good video

[@EngineAdventures]

Thanks for sharing!

[@jacobjones1195]

You should do a diagonal test with the 2022 traverse awd!!!

[@EngineAdventures]

I think it would have made the diagonal test without too much effort. Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@giolats8179]

Great review, on and off pavement. Is the TC, which may cut power at full throttle despite disabling it, to be blamed for the failure to climb further? Torque from the V6 is enough at low rpm, isn't it? It would be interesting to test the platform-mate Acadia AT4 on the hill.

[@EngineAdventures]

Even with the 9-speed it still doesn't have great low end gearing. The traverse is also a bit heavier than most vehicles with this engine. I've only had a couple of crossovers make this climb (a BMW X5 and a VW Atlas Cross sport come to mind). Honestly you are right though, the power is there if it had a locker or good limited slip. Using the brake system to transfer power just takes too much torque.

[@sking2173]

@@EngineAdventures - “… the power is there if it had a locker or good limited slip.” - EXACTLY That engine is not a torque-monster, but it’s adequate, and peak torque is at a relatively low 2800 rpm - and to haul this fat-assed Traverse to 60 in 7.5-ish is certainly satisfactory.

[@wannaflyme]

That's not the blanks by the rear view camera. That's a washer nozzle for the rear camera.

[@EngineAdventures]

Thanks for sharing!

[@wannaflyme]

@@EngineAdventures No problem. I had owned the 2020 Traverse for about a year. How's yours holding up?

[@EngineAdventures]

This is just a media car that I had for a week, so I'll flip the question on you. How do you like your Traverse?

[@wannaflyme]

@@EngineAdventures Well.. To be honest I kinda liked it. The vehicle's size was great the power train was more than suffice. Just the matter of little rear camera going faulty from time to time. That was annoying. So I moved onto the ES300h which is completely different segment choice. But apart from that I changed tranny oil at about 36,000km and did oil change every 5,000km. Not one problem from Engine and Transmission nor the rear axle/ transfer case. I rode about 35,000km on that Traverse. Nice vehicle (for a year). Kinda want to own one again.

[@EngineAdventures]

@@wannaflyme thanks for sharing! I personally think that user experience is more important than what journalists like myself have to say.

[@austinfaith19]

I will be interested how the new 2024 Traverse Z71 would. It is expected to have the Colorados L3B 2.7. What would be great is if they make it RWD with a low range. Essentially just moving the colorados drive train over. But not sure if that would work with a unibody.

[@EngineAdventures]

Hopefully I get one to test!

[@austinfaith19]

@EngineAdventures What's funny is I didn't realize the new Traverse was being unveiled on the 17th. Looks like it's getting the 2.5 turbo and a twin clutch AWD system. Small lift, skid plates, and AT tires.

[@EngineAdventures]

Yeah I just saw that as well and wondered if you knew something I didn't, haha.

[@mrvang8077]

Best midsize suv by far. Features and layout are all perfectly laid out in the proper spot. Nothing looks funky and weird like all these other so-call brand SUV out there that are either way too compact with funky interior and exterior styling. It's got plenty of power more than any other midsize suv. It just feels good and smooth when you need that power to get on the freeway. Have you tried the manual shift mode? It's pretty fun shifting. I really don't know what you were trying to do on the gravel dirt road. And why you expect the wheel to not spin when you have disable the traction. It does not have craw control if that's what you're expecting it to do. It's not a 4x4, it's an all wheel drive and you're supposed to have traction control on to prevent wheel spinning and send power to the wheel that not spinning. And you don't even have the proper tires that is built for specifically off-roading.

[@EngineAdventures]

Thanks for watching and commenting! Welcome to the channel. I put just every vehicle that I think has a chance through this same test. Knowing exactly how your car functions can be very helpful. Some vehicles still use brake based limited slip when the traction control is off, so it's worth testing. Maybe you have a steep snow covered road to climb, now you know what settings to use for the best chance of making the climb. Having the right tires for the terrain is important, however this testing is more focused on the vehicle's ability to get power to the wheels with traction.

[@mrvang8077]

Ohhh...okay! I was confuse what you were trying to do on that dirt road because I didn't see the vehicle moving.

[@sking2173]

This isn’t the first V-6 that won’t climb the hill using a “brake-lock” system. The vaunted Jeep Cherokee with the 3.2 V-6 couldn’t make it until low-range was selected. These systems require large amounts of torque when they get both a front and rear wheel suspended; so if the vehicle doesn’t have a low-range, weaker engines vehicles are screwed. Very correct what you said about the tires not mattering if the wheels that had traction wouldn’t even turn - but try to convince Subaru fanboys of that …

[@EngineAdventures]

Thanks for consistently watching and commenting! I agree entirely with your comment!

[@chrisdrives8204]

Great review! It's nice to see it on some different terrain. How are you able to get these press cars?

[@EngineAdventures]

Thanks for watching. Short version: I've been writing for Pickuptrucks.com, Cars.com, and Car Revs Daily for over 5 years and I worked with them to make connections with the manufacturers who set me up with the media fleet managers.

[@lukethief]

Nice

[@haroldbeauchamp3770]

Way different result than with the Equinox. They’ve definitely got the awd programming messed up. That thing has plenty of power to spin all four wheels on that loose gravel. I can only guess why GM did that. Protect the tranny? Or is it programmed to be extremely cautious because of its intended clientele? Whatever the reason, GM will never say! Lol

[@EngineAdventures]

It's a heavy vehicle and this engine gets its power up high in the rpm range. My guess is that braking the spinning wheels takes too much power. I didn't think of this in my responses to others, but disabling TC allows for too much wheel spin and having it on cuts engine power too much. There is no happy median with this vehicle for difficult off-road trails.

[@sking2173]

The traverse AWD is over 1000 lbs. heavier than the AWD Equinox (3500 vs. 4600). Huge difference. And I really question how much the Traverse system is “cutting power” on the hill when two wheels are essentially locked down and the two wheels with traction just aren’t turning. A decent OBD scan tool would quickly tell you the throttle position, timing advance, and MAP (manifold absolute pressure), so power cuts could be detected. The truth of the matter is the vehicle has too much weight, too little low end grunt, and the gears are too tall for this type of obstacle. “Brake-lock” differentials only transmits half of the available input torque to a single loaded wheel compared to a locker differential, so it is very much unsuited for situations where one wheel is suspended.

[@sking2173]

@Harold - One more point: A week ago, EA tested a Blazer (heavier than Equinox) with the same engine but a twin-clutch rear differential, and it walked up this same hill with relative ease. The real difference: a proper rear differential for the job.

[@EngineAdventures]

I never thought about that, my OBDii reader that I use for 0-60 times will tell me all that info. I'm definitely going to consider that for future tests.

[@freshofftheplane]

@@sking2173 traverse used to have the twin clutch rear differential in its top trim but they got rid of couple years back

[@mrvang8077]

Put on some off road tires and do another test to see if theres any improvement. Maybe those stock tires just aren't built for that kind of off road condition.

[@EngineAdventures]

Thanks for sharing!

[@freshofftheplane]

Actually this is the fastest 3 row non-luxury cross over (pilot, atlas, highlander, telluride and the likes)

[@EngineAdventures]

I would have never guessed that, thanks for sharing!