Versatile comfort
Suburban gets an overhaul: After 80th birthday, Chevy’s family hauler is more refined than ever
The Chevrolet Suburban turns 80 this year, making it the oldest nameplate in the automotive world. I can’t think of a better way to mark this SUV’s birthday than with an allnew design.
I just spent a week driving the 2015 Suburban, and while there are plenty of upgrades and cool doodads to like on this fresh generation, I’m even more impressed with the fact that the vehicle remains true to its roots after eight decades.
After all, some people think fullsize, body-on-frame SUVs are going the way of the dinosaurs, just waiting on an asteroid of high fuel prices or government regulations to kill them off. Even legends of the SUV world, like the Ford Explorer, have switched to car-based crossover designs to stay relevant.
It would have been easy for the folks at General Motors to shrink the Suburban or pluck out its truck-based backbone for this new generation — but they didn’t.
Thank goodness for that.
The Suburban remains one of the few family vehicles that can truly do it all. Road trips? This SUV feels like you’re driving in a covered stadium. Off-roading? You can get the Suburban with four-wheel drive and hit the trails. Towing? It can pull 8,300 pounds of toys and tools from the hitch.
The only downside to that crazy level of versatility is, of course, gas mileage, but even that is improved on this new version. The 2015 Suburban is rated for 16 mpg in the city and 23 on the highway, about 10 percent better than the outgoing model.
GM’s engineers made a lot of changes to the 2015 Suburban to hit that fuel-economy target, including offering a new 5.3-liter V8 engine, using an aluminum hood and liftgate panels and massaging the aerodynamics to make the vehicle more slippery at highway speeds. Just like on GM’s newest trucks, the Suburban’s doors are inlaid into the body to help smooth the airflow and eliminate wind noise in the cabin.
As a whole, the new Suburban feels noticeably more refined and modern, starting with the passenger compartment. Tighter gaps, better construction and upscale materials make the Suburban feel more like a luxury SUV than ever before, and the sense of spaciousness — both for cargo and people — is as astonishing as ever.
While the Suburban’s steering, braking and acceleration all feel uninspired, very much like a pickup truck, I thought its suspension was spectacular for long trips. It felt even smoother than the pricey Cadillac Escalade I drove a few weeks earlier, probably thanks to the Caddy’s ridiculously oversized 22-inch wheels.
With the right equipment, though, a Suburban can feel remarkably like a Cadillac. You can get the SUV with radar- and camera-based safety technology, wireless phone charging, Siri Eyes Free, a built-in Wi-Fi hotspot, a dual-screen Blu-ray DVD player, six USB ports and six power outlets.
The 2015 model is also available with a hands-free liftgate. If you’ve got the keyless entry fob in your pocket and your hands are full, you can wave your foot under a sensor to make the rear door lift upward without having to press a button.
As a complete package, this 2015 overhaul makes the Suburban feel like a thoroughly modern SUV with a long, long life still to come.