The Suburban is Massive and that’s How America Wants It

The United States has long been known for its Bigger is Better attitude, that has been exemplified by its love of large cars. We are still the only country where full-size pickup trucks are our best-selling vehicles, and there is a healthy market for SUVs based on the platforms of those large trucks. The granddaddy of all such vehicles is the Chevrolet Suburban. It is, in fact, over 90 years old. Writing for the Tribune News Service, veteran automotive journalist Larry Printz decided to take a look at the latest Suburban, and Twin Falls Chevrolet tells you what he found. 

Printz has a good time riffing off Chuck Norris-type jokes about the Suburban’s size: 

“Has its own zip code” 

“It doesn’t fit in a parking space. It colonizes” 

“…piloting a Suburban requires about the same spatial awareness as flying a Boeing 747.” 

Those are just some examples. But he does get around to mentioning the 11-inch digital gauge cluster and admittedly huge 17.7-inch center touchscreen, which still doesn’t overwhelm the dash presentation.  

His loaner was a high, but not top-end RST, which gave him a chance to appreciate the abundance of leather and what it’s like to drive the “sport” models of something so large, and more specifically the Super Cruise system. After describing the interstate as the Suburban’s “natural milieu,” he mentions that Chevrolet’s industry-leading hands-free driving system works “wonderfully. It steers, it brakes, it accelerates, it automatically changes lanes. It chauffeured me south for 85 miles on I-95 as I contemplated what I should do with my hands and feet.” He did point out that the system includes a driver-facing camera to make sure you aren’t tempted to start playing backgammon with the front passenger on the wide center console. The cabin doesn’t just have three rows of seating; it also offers plenty of room for adults in the very back and for everyone’s luggage behind the seats, even for an extended vacation. 

The RST comes standard with the 420-horsepower 6.2-liter V8 instead of the 355-horsepower 5.3-liter V8 that is standard on lower models. These are both normally aspirated, big-displacement, low-stressed engines that will barrel down a highway with a full load of passengers and luggage like a locomotive. The 6.2L V8 will simply reach those freeway speeds more quickly. And then of course, there is the 3.0-liter Duramax turbodiesel, which is ready to tow most anything within reason, which is to say under 8,300 pounds. He describes the available Magnetic Ride Control suspension as able to “transform the ride into something ethereal.“   

The United States is a big country full of big families, be they nuclear, extended, or makeshift, who like to explore the country via road trips, possibly with toys pulled behind. For over 90 years, the go-to vehicle for these trips has been the Suburban, and unless things change drastically, it will likely remain so for another 90 years. Test drive the Suburban or the not-quite-so-large Tahoe, or Chevrolet’s excellent selection of crossover models at Twin Falls Chevrolet.