Test drive Chevrolet Tahoe with a trailer
We inspect a Russian camping on a huge American SUV with a house to boot
At night, you need to open the vents to let in fresh country air. It's good that all rooms have mosquito nets. You can close the blinds so that the morning sun does not interfere with your sleep. In general, everything is as usual, only I do not spend the night at home - the bed, kitchen, wardrobe and bathroom are on wheels today. The RV is parked in a clearing next to other snow-white campers and a line of mighty Chevrolet Tahoe.
In the spring, Rosturizm and the Rosavtodor company signed an agreement on the development of automobile tourism and the necessary infrastructure. It is not known only how long it will take to wait for the results of the agreement, but, for example, throughout the summer Lake Pleshcheyevo welcomed surfers, and in Suzdal one could spend the night in a real camping. And big cars have always been held in high esteem in Russia. And the point is not that the powerful and roomy Tahoe allows you to comfortably cover distances - you can entrust it with everything that is most expensive: a boat, an ATV, a horse, or, in my case, even a whole house.
Tahoe is capable of carrying a trailer weighing up to 3,9 tons. But to manage this, you need a category of rights "E". But for small trailers less than 750 kg, the usual rights will be enough. For example, my trailer has multicolored SUP boards securely attached. All this is reminiscent of an American youth film, except that the SUV is not driving on the perfect surface of a Californian highway, but is heading along a country road to Suzdal, patiently coping with patching. It is important for the driver to constantly keep several things in mind: with the trailer, the length of the car has increased by almost five meters, and although it dutifully follows the trajectory of the Tahoe, after the holes and artificial irregularities, one should wait until the trailer chassis cope with them.
The SUV pulls its load measuredly and calmly, but it is better to constantly monitor the trailer in the mirrors and periodically stop to check the hitch. At the same time, it is not necessary to have special driving skills in order to travel with an additional load from the rear. At least until it comes to a U-turn or parking. The Tahoe comes off the assembly line ready to be towed.
Firstly, its frame structure is ideal for driving with a trailer and takes all the load on itself. Secondly, the standard equipment includes the Z82 trailed equipment, consisting of a seven-wire, short-circuit proof harness, a seven-pin connector and a square frame hitch port. To prevent overheating of the automatic transmission, the Tahoe has received the KNP system, which provides additional cooling in difficult operating conditions. For those who like to pull something heavier, a factory-fitted brake control unit is available. This mechanism, interacting with other electronic systems, is able to estimate how fast the car is slowing down and transmit information to the trailer.
The small trailer with colored boards doesn't have a smart braking system. But with the press of one button, you can put the car in Tow / Haul Mode, which will put the transmission in a gentle mode, soften shifting and will take care of reducing the temperature in the engine and box. By the way, the same button turns on the Grade breaking assistance mode. The system maintains the required vehicle speed when driving on a slope. Tahoe easily drags the trailer uphill: Hill Start Assist after the driver releases the brake pedal, for another two seconds, the pressure in the brake hydraulic circuit is maintained so that you can safely move your foot to the gas pedal and not roll back.
In fact, the Tahoe barely feels the extra 750kg. In any case, it is not difficult to drive with the house behind the fifth door - this is also the merit of electronics. For example, an SUV was equipped with an active lane keeping system. If earlier she only informed the driver about leaving her lane, now she is able to control the trajectory. Another thing is when there is a whole house behind the "stern" of the car. When transporting any heavy load, you must carefully monitor the swing of the trailer. In Tahoe, the Trailer Sway Control system does this - it is able to detect side swing and brake with one or more wheels so as not to aggravate the problem.
Although the rules require you to drive with a trailer 20 km / h slower than normal limits, it is almost impossible to maintain a speed limit of 70 km / h on an empty road. Under the hood, the Tahoe was fitted with a 8-liter V6,2. Its power is 409 hp. enough, probably, to attach a couple more houses. Fuel consumption is close to 16 liters on the highway, but does anyone buy a Tahoe to save money?
Inside the SUV is typical America: large buttons, spacious seats, an eight-inch multimedia screen, a wide leather armrest, a bunch of cup holders and roomy pockets. Ideologically, Tahoe has already come close to its brother Cadillac Escalade: it has become more luxurious and better quality, and also more comfortable and functional.
When fully seated, the trunk, although it seems like a mock, is quite capable of accommodating several travel bags. A real refrigerator is hiding in a niche between the front seats - it maintains a temperature of four degrees and can hold a supply of water and food for all passengers.
Another thing is that so far the infrastructure for auto tourism in Russia is not sufficiently developed. The journey has shown that even a cozy house coupled with the almighty Tahoe will be more of a burden. The SUV itself feels confident not only in the open spaces of Suzdal, but also in the metropolis. The time will come when the owner of the SUV will get tired of looking for free meters in the yard and will definitely go on a new journey. You just need to figure out what to carry in the trailer this time.
