2015 Chevrolet Suburban Initial Impressions

I recently had the opportunity to spend a few days and a thousand miles driving a 2015 Chevrolet Suburban. This model was the LT trim with a MSRP of around $55,000. I generally spend most of my time focusing on smaller vehicles so I was not looking forward to driving this large SUV around. This model year is an all new generation of Chevrolet's largest SUV, According to Chevrolet this model is all new, inside and out. Having been less than impressed with Suburbans in the past, I was not holding my breath.

2015 Chevrolet Suburban

On the outside, the first thing I noticed was that the styling wasn't as bland as previous generations. An updated grill with honeycomb inserts that seems to be floating in two sections, is separated by the Chevrolet bowtie logo. Headlight assemblies also have a much more aggressive styling as well. Viewed from a distance the combined styling cues resemble a chrome push bumper assemblies that has bee integrated into the actual vehicle. body lines are also much sharper and pronounced from the previous generation as well. It makes this body much more distinctive and memorable then the previous Suburbans.The base model 18" alloy wheels are a nice touch for those that like wheel's but don't feel the need to have everything swathed in chrome.

The interior on the 2015 Suburban is well laid out and comfortable

Climbing into the interior I was surprised not only by the sheer number of buttons and controls but by how well sorted out the fit and finish was of everything. The plastics didn't feel cheap, and most had a very soft feel, like what you would expect on a luxury sedan. Seat adjustments were plentiful as was a multi-memory system to record a drivers particular settings. I had the seat, mirrors, and infotainment setup in a matter of minutes and was on my way. The seats were very supportive and I had no discomfort during the three day, thousand mile trip. The steering wheel was of particular interest to me as well. GM always seemed to be lacking in the steering wheel department, usually uncomfortable to hold or change grips, and generally unappealing. I found this 4 spoke design to be comfortable to hold and easy to change my grip into a number of safe driving positions. Thumb controls on the front and index finger controls on the back operate a wide rage of the infotainment system without taking your eyes off the road. One neat feature we found tucked away in the interior is that the overhead glasses holder has a wide angle mirror built into it if you need to keep an eye on any unruly passengers in the back. The biggest gripe we had was the lack of cup holders for the passengers in the 2nd row captains chairs. For a vehicle this big there is a surprising lack of drink holders. Plenty of compartments and cubbyholes to store anything else you could ever need though.

When the wide angle mirror comes down your rear passengers know you mean business

The driving dynamics are just as impressive. The first feature I liked was not only the integrated rear back-up camera but the fact the camera had a digital ladder-bar distance meter that moved with the steering wheel. this allowed me an impressive amount of precision to back out of some tight spaces without having to even look out a window. We don't recommend this technique for a variety of safety reasons though.

Once on the road the vehicle had a surprising amount of power for it's size. Until I verified that it did have just the factory 5.3L I had almost convinced myself a 6.0L had been placed under the hood by mistake. The 355 horsepower and 383 pound-feet of torque are put to good use with a six speed automatic transmission. Fuel economy is rated at 16mpg city and 23mpg highway. Even with passengers and cargo our observed fuel economy was almost spot on with the EPA estimates.

Braking and handling are two other area's that have been improved. Body roll is minimal if you find yourself going too fast onto an on-ramp and the brakes feel very strong and responsive to help bring the speed back down. A couple panic stops showed little front end dive while effortlessly bleeding off the speed. Cruising at highway speeds yielded a very neutral ride with a surprisingly minimal amount of wind noise.

By the time I got back into town and it was time to turn the Suburban back over I was so impressed with the overall fit, finish, and performance of this SUV I would have no problems recommending this new generation of Suburban to anyone that has a requirement for an SUV with this much cargo and personnel carrying capacity.

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