Smaller than a Tahoe but bigger than an Equinox, that’s why the 2025 Chevrolet Traverse has some people calling it “The Baby Tahoe.” This midsize SUV has grown more mature with its current third generation, now sporting a tougher-looking exterior and a turbocharged four-cylinder engine to replace its previous V6. Ready to see why the brand-new 2025 Chevrolet Traverse stuns everybody? Keep Reading until the end.
Engine
Engine-wise, the 2025 Chevy Traverse is no doubt All-American at heart, with its 2.5 L I4 turbo LK0 engine made by none other than General Motors, assembled right at the GM Spring Hill plant in Tennessee. If that name sounds familiar, it’s because it’s a tried and tested engine used in a few other crossover utility vehicles, now including the Chevrolet Traverse.
Four cylinders and turbocharged, the engine generates 328 horsepower for the new Traverse, together with an impressive 326 lb-feet of torque. That much power in the hands of the 2025 Chevy Traverse means it’s good for more than just commuting to work and taking the family on road trips. As you’ll soon discover, that much power can help you haul an impressive load and take things off-road if you ever feel like it.
Transition from V6
People familiar with the Traverse and its evolution over the years might remember that the model used to carry a V6 engine. Well, that’s changed with this third generation, beginning with the 2024 year model. Chevrolet seems to have found a good thing with this engine, which explains its decision to carry it over to the 2025 model as well.
Why mess with success, right? But why did they decide to switch away from the V6 engine in the first place? Two words: government regulations. Long story short, the engineering team at Chevrolet says their decision was influenced by emissions and efficiency considerations set by the NHTSA or the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Simply put, the turbocharged engine produces fewer emissions and is more efficient overall than the V6 in previous generation Traverses.
Fuel Economy
Oh, and some car buyers might be disappointed by this, but Chevy still has not built a hybrid or an all-electric version of the Traverse. So, you’re out of luck if that’s what you’re hoping for. Fuel efficiency-wise, with all this talk about emissions and efficiency, what kind of fuel economy do we have on the 2025 Traverse with that turbocharged engine? You can expect to enjoy a combined fuel economy of 23 MPG.
More specifically, a gallon of gas will take you 20 miles on city streets and 27 miles on the highway. That’s not bad at all, especially when you weigh those numbers against those of comparable three-row SUVs on the market right now.
Transmission
Transmission-wise, a turbocharged engine and nice fuel economy aren’t much without a good transmission. The 2025 Chevrolet Traverse comes with an 8-speed automatic transmission as a standard feature across all trim levels. That applies to the base LS trim, the slightly better LT trim, the off-road-ready Z71 trim, and even the sportiest and most luxurious RS trim levels.
All those trims come standard with front-wheel drive, while all-wheel drive is optional. That is, however, except for the Z71 trim, which only comes with all-wheel drive. That makes perfect sense if you think about it—can you imagine taking the Traverse off-road with only front-wheel drive? Maneuvering would be pretty challenging, to put it mildly.
No matter which one you choose, though, you’ll be controlling the transmission with what Chevrolet calls the Electronic Precision Shift. As the name suggests, this means that the gears on the 2025 Traverse are controlled electronically, as opposed to more traditionally mechanical connections on other Chevy models.
That might mean shifting gears by pushing or pulling buttons, but in the Traverse, you’ll operate the Electronic Precision Shift using a lever on the steering column. Not only does that mean your hands can stay on or near the wheel at all times, but it also means you’ve got some extra room in the middle where a conventional gear shifter might sit in other vehicles.
Towing Capacity
Towing-wise, an SUV’s worth doesn’t just come from its ability to move people but also to move stuff around. The 2025 Chevrolet Traverse’s abilities are quite stunning in this department too, with its ability to tow as much as 5,000 lbs. That’s enough to tow a camper trailer for a weekend outdoors or even a fully loaded U-Haul to help your buddy move into his new home.
Own a couple of horses? Well, 5,000 lbs of towing capacity is enough to transport about four of them in a trailer too. Imagine that! And don’t worry if you run out of room on your trailer—fold the rear seats down in the Traverse and you’ll instantly free up another 98 cubic feet of space. That’s not enough to fit a few horses, but you’ll definitely have loads of room for tools, luggage, and other types of cargo.
The trade-off is that the extra room means having fewer seats available for passengers, but hey, some road trips are better with fewer people anyway.
Off-Road Capabilities
Now, let’s suppose you plan on spending some time off-road. In that case, you’ll want to pay special attention to the Z71 trim of the 2025 Chevrolet Traverse. This trim is definitely the one you want when navigating over, around, or through tough terrain, thanks to all its special features.
As mentioned earlier, the Z71 trim is the only one that comes with all-wheel drive as standard. It also comes with a twin clutch that’ll give you much better time shifting gears while negotiating obstacles.
This trim also comes standard with 18-inch all-terrain black wall tires on a set of high-gloss black wheels. Those tires will ensure the Traverse handles obstacles well, and those wheels will make sure it looks pretty darn good while doing so. Big picture: the Z71 Traverse stands taller than other trim levels at 72 inches high, offering more ground clearance and an aluminum skid plate to go along with it. Meanwhile, other trim levels of the Chevrolet Traverse only stand at 70.9 inches high—more than a whole inch shorter.
Interior
Whether you’re taking the Traverse off-road or sticking to city streets, one thing’s for sure: the inside has room and it’s as comfortable as it gets. You can fit a maximum of eight people in this SUV across three rows without anyone feeling claustrophobic. As mentioned earlier, you can even fold the rear seats down at any time if you need more space for luggage and such.
From the driver’s seat, you can control the infotainment system using the 17.7-inch diagonal touchscreen—navigation, entertainment, you name it, everything is right at your fingertips. But where it gets really interesting is what Chevy calls the Driver Information Center (DIC) for short in the 2025 Traverse.
That includes an 11-inch diagonal screen that displays everything you need to know about the vehicle alongside the speedometer, odometer, fuel gauge, and everything else. One cool thing about that DIC is that you can customize it to your liking. For instance, you can enable or disable displays for speed signs, oil life, tire pressure, and a whole long list more.
Exterior
Over on the outside, all it takes is one glance at the exterior of this 2025 model to know that you’re looking at the third generation of the Chevrolet Traverse. That’s because Chevy has done away with the softer-looking rounded edges of previous generations in favor of a tougher-looking aesthetic.
Those in the know say that this is the result of Chevrolet’s highbrow design language, which takes inspiration from larger truck faces with dual-tiered headlights. It applies that to relatively smaller vehicles like the Traverse. As a result, you get a midsize SUV that looks less like a soccer mom’s car and more like a truck that’s ready for anything, be it on the road or off in the wilderness.
Wherever you might end up, undoubtedly, the aesthetics of the 2025 Chevy Traverse will give you a stronger, more noticeable presence while driving on the road or waiting at a stoplight.
You got the sense that you’ve seen all of this before? Well, you probably have. That’s because Chevy isn’t just using this sort of design on the Traverse; its other models, like the Tahoe, have also taken on a much tougher look to cater to the latest design trends and consumer demands. If you’re in the market for a tough-looking SUV that’s smaller than the Chevy Tahoe but with more room than the Equinox, then you can rest assured that the 2025 Chevrolet Traverse will suit your style just nicely.
Pricing
Prices for the 2025 Chevrolet Traverse start at $39,600 for the base LS trim and work their way higher up to the top-of-the-line RS trim level. That’s, of course, if you want your Traverse to come with all the bells and whistles, including the likes of bucket seats, Bose Premium Audio systems, and much more.
While the base trim level packs a lot of value for its price tag, you might be wondering if it’s worth the extra money to upgrade to the RS trim. Well, assuming that money is no obstacle for you, we certainly think that it’s worth it if you’re looking for the best comfort and tech available for the Traverse.
But if you’re planning on getting dirty by going off-roading every so often, you’re still better off with the Z71 trim, which starts at $49,715. Choosing the perfect 2025 Chevrolet Traverse trim level all boils down to the kinds of adventures you plan on having once it’s yours.
