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Chevrolet Trax: first look at Holden small SUV

By Tim Beissmann
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The first image of the all-new Chevrolet Trax baby SUV has been revealed overnight, giving Australians a preview of the city-sized soft-roader sister brand Holden is expected to add to its crossover line-up in the near future.

Parent company General Motors says the Trax will be sold in more than 140 countries around the world beginning with Mexico in the fourth quarter of this year.

The small SUV category is the fastest-growing new-vehicle segment in Australia this year, with sales up more than 50 per cent across January and April compared with the corresponding months in 2011.

Holden does not currently have a vehicle in the small SUV segment, with its Chevrolet-sourced Captiva 5 officially classified as a medium SUV by industry sales publication VFACTS.

Despite its introduction to our market seeming a formality, Holden spokeswoman Kate Lonsdale said the local manufacturer had no announcement to make about the launch of a rebadged version of the Trax at this stage.

Lonsdale confirmed Holden was currently assessing the business case for the car, and said the brand was keeping a very close eye on the growth of the small SUV segment, which accounted for more sales than the large car segment for the first time last month.

The Chevrolet Trax will make its world premiere at September’s 2012 Paris motor show ahead of its European showroom debut in the second quarter of 2013.

If launched by Holden, the Trax would be unlikely to hit our shores before the middle of next year, around the same time as Ford will launch its Fiesta-based EcoSport small SUV.

The Trax would become the fourth SUV in Holden’s line-up, sitting beneath the Captiva 5, full-size Captiva 7, and the more rugged, ute-based Colorado 7.

The Barina-based Trax – teased in patent images revealed in March (middle and above) – shares its underpinnings and basic design with the Buick Encore and the Opel Mokka, the former designed primarily for the US and China, the latter for Europe and potentially also Australia.

GM is yet to reveal the specifications of the Trax at this stage, although the details of the Mokka give us a good idea of what to expect from Chevrolet’s version of the new small SUV.

The Mokka is 4280mm long, 1775mm wide, 1646mm tall and rides on a 2555mm wheelbase, making it a similar size to the Mitsubishi ASX.

The five-door, five-seater will be available in front- and all-wheel-drive with the choice of six-speed manual and automatic transmissions. Three engines – an 85kW/155Nm 1.6-litre petrol, a 103kW/200Nm 1.4-litre turbo petrol (from the Cruze), and a 96kW/300Nm 1.7-litre diesel – will be offered in the Mokka depending on the market. The Encore also features the 1.4-litre engine.

Although unconfirmed at this stage, GM is expected to source the powertrains for the Trax from the list above.

The Captiva 5 currently starts at $27,990 before on-road costs, suggesting that if the Trax is launched in Australia, it would likely start at under $25,000, undercutting the popular Subaru XV, Hyundai ix35, Mazda CX-5 and the Toyota RAV4.

  • Smart US

    no way any good… but market wants it so what can you do… Captiva 5 is just so small and big enough to accommodate some family stuff… this car of this size has no reason for existence

  • Westie

    So if there’s no room in the back, will it be called Captiva 2?

  • Sumpguard

    At least it manages to look a little masculine. Unlike the crying blowfish that ford released pictures of recently.

           It will sell. Perceived efficiency is the new order of the day in the auto world. Hence why our car parks are full of small cars nowadays.

    • Des

      This thing is the most ugly girly thing in this class bar none. NOTHING at all masculine about this look, it’s just Barina frumpy and ugly. NO style whatsoever.

      • Sumpguard

          Trust me I’m no fan (the side profile is aweful) but that small ford SUV looked like it wanted to burst into tears and that is about unmasculine as it gets!

        • Sumpguard

             Regardless they will both sell because that is where the market is heading. Smaller, more efficient.

          • Ch

            Lol no.. Perhaps it will do alright with fleets..

            But how many people will purchase that? Who will spend their money on something that is ‘small’ when you can get something big and strong?

          • Sumpguard

              The people who want an SUV but can’t afford something big and strong?

    • Chris

      Agreed, the Trax is much better looking than that ugly squashed looking Ford ecosport

  • Marcuspetraska

    something of that nature – 6sp auto with 4wd and a small diesel would suit me – depending on final finishing and pricing i would seriously consider one. i also like the subaru xv – but feel its a bit underpowered – i need to be able to tow a 16ft boat.

    • Des

      My ride-on mower would have more chance of towing a 16′ boat than this!

  • Valet Dabess

    the front bumper is a bit too low to the ground

    • Crummydore

       Spot on… the front looks way too deep – especially compared to the Tiguan.

  • Blair Waldorf

    It’s a nice looker, but as said above the front bumper is too deep. The 1.4 turbo with a manual transmission should be a pretty decent car though…

  • Shak

    Good looker IMO, and theres no reason Holden wouldnt want it. Any model that can help Holden go toe to toe with Toyota is a good thing.

  • Noddy

    Haha that front overhang! Understeer would seem to be the order of the day.

  • filippo

    Holden Trax? Hmmm… with Cruze already in the GM vocabulary, one must wonder what is planned for the future. How about a Chev/Holden Traycee, Kyteisha, or Jaxxon? At least there’s no longer any doubt about the demographic they are trying to attract.

  • Yuppi

    Don’t bring it here, I don’t think Australians are interested in tiny cars, let alone tiny SUV’s

    Is there any more exciting cars left in the world? Everything coming out nowadays is weak, gutless, small and boring..

    • Legnab

      And very ugly, like that horrible spark rubbish , front looks like a grass hopper  , more korean junk or is it made in mexico , who cares .

    • Adelaide_john

      Rightly or wrongly Australians are interested, look at the VFACT figures and what was that segment that appeared quite a few years ago …VUS ? USV ? VSU ? SVU ?…. oh thats right SUV and now all the SUV categories that have been spawned!!!

  • Paddo

    Good looking small SUV looks like another winner for Holden, should take the fight up to the run away selling Mazda CX5

    • Adelaide_john

      CX5 not in this category of car / SUV

  • Toby777

    Personally, I think these cars are suited to singles and/or couples.  Not those who have kids or plan to start a family, they’d venture in to the bigger SUV’s.  Bing a single male, I wouldn’t mind owning one of these.  It definately looks a lot more attractive than the Ford EcoSport.

    • Toby777

       Further to this, I currently own a 2005 RAV4 and was disappointed with Toyota upsized its RAV4 line.  They had the Kluger for crying out loud.  Anyways, with the RAV4 in its current form, I find it is too big for me!  I think it’s a good idea for car companies to release mini/baby SUV’s.  There’s definately interest and a market out there for them.