Adventures With the Family

A Week of Fun in the 2021 Chevy Tahoe

Author Paulo Coelho said, “I can speak to my soul only when the two of us are off exploring desserts or cities or mountains or roads.”

Coelho was onto something. While 2020 may be a year none of us will ever forget (for more reasons than we can count), it has opened our eyes to the value of hopping in the car and escaping the pandemic woes. Part of that escape means sometimes going on a drive alone, grabbing the kids for an adventure, or sitting in the driveway with the radio on blast. And we have done it all, but none of it was quite as fun as when we did all of those things in the 2021 Chevrolet Tahoe. We were lucky enough to collaborate with Chevy and drive the brand new 2021 Tahoe GM loaned us for an entire week, and what we found was a beautiful vehicle that quite honestly exceeded expectation.

Kids Loved, Mom Approved

The car arrived completely sanitized and COVID safe which is a primary concern for my family and I. Once delivered, I grabbed our masks and got ready for some driving family adventures. Admittedly at first, I was worried it might be to much car for me but that worry soon disappeared in the rearview digital mirror (Standard HD Rear Vision Camera) the moment I hopped in. As a mom, reliability and safety mean everything to me in terms of what vehicle we choose to drive, but then it’s the little things that make driving easier, less stressful, and downright exhilarating that push us into a little on-the-road bliss.

You must go on adventures to find out where you truly belong. – Sue Fitzmaurice

The Tahoe sets itself apart from other luxury SUV’s in that for starters, Chevrolet has really stepped it up in terms of aesthetics. Not only is this a high-end, safe, cutting-edge technology-advanced vehicle, it’s also really pretty. The exterior boasts sleek lines, mirrors that close inward when you park and lock it, and is perfect for moms on the go with kids of all ages. The interior consists of gorgeous leather seats with accents of wood paneling all throughout the inside, seats that can be adjusted to give you more cargo space, and a trunk of ample size. But how would it function with a family of teenagers? To test this theory, I spent the week recruiting passengers* to really see how the Tahoe drives and functions—including bringing along my kids, my nieces, my partner, and took a break to enjoy a little me time on the road.

The seats are the first place to start with this particular family adventure. Both the driver and passenger seats have over 44 inches of leg room, and the passengers in the second and third rows have a good three feet of leg room (and then some), and another five feet of hip room. In other words, this is not a car where you feel cramped; it’s the kind of vehicle you can buckle up, stretch out and really settle into. In fact the first thing one of my teenagers said was, “This feels like a limo!” His elation was evident in the smile plastered across his face when considering the coolness factor of the Tahoe itself. As for me—the mom in the drivers seat—this is one of the more comfortable seats I’ve sat in. It hugs your shoulders, supports your lower back, and for those who are vertically challenged like myself, the seat adjustments make it seamless as you man the helm.

The Open Road

When I got settled and finally got the kids in and ready to head out, I looked around and realized the gear shift was actually on the dashboard. This might be one of the most convenient, space saving designs there are. By moving the gears to the dash, the center console is freed up for things like your phone (which are enormous these days), eyeglasses or sunglasses, and beverages (and you know us moms of teenagers can’t survive without water and caffeine!). There are several charging ports (USB) in the main console with large storage—and the bonus? The car has its own wifi connection point! When you have multiple teens in your car and they all want to tap into your hotspot, this wifi will save your life (and your overage charges).

2021 Chevrolet Tahoe

2021 Chevrolet Tahoe

In the spirit of the next family adventure, we wanted to do the Chevrolet Holiday Drive-In Movie experience, and have some fun in the Tahoe. We searched for drive-in movie theaters with showings, but in light of the COVID shutdowns there were event cancelations all over town. Plan B in motion. After reaching out to my friends at Ann Flower Communications that work with Concerts In Your Car, we were gifted Golden Tickets for the family to see the Holidays In Your Car lights experiences at the Ventura County Fairgrounds. This was the first time driving at night in the Tahoe, and it was also conveniently when we realized how incredible some of the built-in safety and navigation features really are. Now settled in, we were off on our first Tahoe adventure. Our first stop was at our local Finney’s Crafthouse in Westlake Village, where we picked up takeout for dinner (remember to support local eateries every chance you can!). Pizza, burger, salad and fries, the kids set up dinner in the third row, buckled up and we spent the next 40 minutes driving to Ventura County Fairgrounds. I do have to admit this was my first time parking the Tahoe so like a rookie, I parked in two spaces for fear I’d be too close to another car. Luckily the parking lot was scarce until another car pulled in opposite me. I apologized to them and as they looked at me like I was that lady, once I explained it was my first time parking it, they laughed and said: We totally would have done the same thing! (You can bet after that I parked like an expert! Crisis averted!)

Driving along the 101 heading north, the windshield of the driver’s side has a visual navigation system (Driver Alert System) and while at first it feels like you’re in a first-person video game, it becomes your guide to lane safety. The digital display lets you know when you’re too close to the driver in front of you and if you’ve strayed outside of the lane. The other safety feature is a seat notification, as in your seat actually gives you a little “buzz” when a car is too close to you, you may be weaving, or you need to pay closer attention and stay in the safety of your lane. It startles you at first but it’s an invaluable safety feature that should come standard in a vehicle.

Making An Impression

As for how it drives, the one thing Jason and I couldn’t believe was how smooth the drive is. The Tahoe may be an SUV but it drives like a luxury sedan. The typical bumps you’d expect to feel in an SUV were non-existent. And oof is that motor impressive! You get so used to the smooth drive, you definitely have to keep an eye on your speed (hello inner Danica Patrick!). One of the other features I liked that made for more fuel efficiency is how the motor will actually shut itself off when you’re at a light or at a complete stop. It’s quiet and green, and I’m a big fan of fuel and energy efficiency. As for seeing the Holidays In Your Car, the kids were laughing in the back, took advantage of the glorious sunroof while we plodded along the sea of cars driving under 2 mph taking in the spectacular sea of lights, and jammed out to holiday tunes—and that alone was a huge success. It felt a bit like the normalcy of the holidays had officially arrived.

So what else did I do in the Tahoe over the next week? Masked up and drove to Los Angeles for a chiropractic appointment to enjoy a little me-time and see how the Tahoe does in L.A. traffic (and it passed with flying colors). I took my daughter to the drive-thru Starbucks and made it through the narrow driveway like a champ. Jason and I explored our neighborhood, safely in the car and socially distanced from others. I went grocery shopping and loved the trunk space and easy-to-use open-and-close trunk feature. And my two nieces came over and we parked in the driveway, pumped up the sound system, and had a dance party. Thanks to the vehicle loan, I now have a much deeper appreciation for General Motors and their family of vehicles like the Tahoe that make life safer, more luxurious, and easier for moms. As an aside, the safety features I’m now obsessed with is the seat sensor that buzzes your booty. I came to genuinely appreciate the engineering that would inevitably keep us all safe. All of it was spectacular and now, we’re missing driving that beautiful, well-made, safe, family-approved Chevrolet Tahoe!

Thank you to GM, Chevrolet, and Page One for the driving adventures, the collaboration, and the introduction to just how evolved the new Chevy Tahoe model is. For all the bells and whistles that we experienced, the sticker price of $70,000 is well worth it.

*NOTE: We have not strayed from a select group of people we’ve seen since the outbreak of the pandemic. Safety and the safety and well-being of others has, and will continue to be our first priority.

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SAFETY & DRIVER ASSISTANCE FEATURES

Airbags^: Frontal for driver and front outboard passenger; seat-mounted side-impact for driver and front outboard passenger; driver inboard seat-mounted airbag (bucket seats only);  head-curtain for all rows in outboard seating positions. Includes Passenger Sensing System

Standard Tire Pressure Monitor System; tire pressure monitor includes tire fill alert (excludes spare tire, if equipped)

Standard HD Rear Vision Camera^^, Forward Collision Alert^^, Following Distance Indicator^^, Front Pedestrian Braking^^ and Rear Park Assist^^

Driver Alert Package^^ is available on LS, LT, RST and Z71 and is standard on Premier and High Country. Content includes Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning, Lane Change Alert with Side Blind Zone Alert, Rear Cross Traffic Alert and Front and Rear Park Assist

Enhanced Display and Alert Package^^ is available on Premier and standard on High Country. Content includes HD Surround Vision, Head-Up Display, Rear Camera Mirror, Rear Camera Mirror Washer and Rear Pedestrian Alert

Adaptive Cruise Control^^ is available on Premier and High Country

^{^} Always use seat belts and child restraints. Children are safer when properly secured in a rear seat in the appropriate child restraint.

See your vehicle Owner’s Manual for more information.
^{^^}Read the vehicle’s owner’s manual for more important feature limitations and information.

The all-new Tahoe and Suburban’s interiors have larger displays, more connectivity options and a new rear-seat media system designed to keep even the most tech-savvy family members satisfied throughout their road trips.

The Chevrolet infotainment system³ is the centerpiece and it leads major competitors with a large, 10-inch-diagonal color touchscreen. It’s one of five connected and configurable screens offered in the redesigned SUVs:

• Chevrolet infotainment system³ with a 10-inch-diagonal color touchscreen is standard
• An 8-inch-diagonal, configurable color instrument and information cluster is standard on Premier and High Country; a 4.2-inch-diagonal color driver information center is standard on LS, LT, RST and Z71
• A 15-inch diagonal Head-Up Display, not offered by competitors, with a 3 x 7-inch color display is standard on High Country and available on Premier
• An available rear-seat media package includes dual 12.6-inch-diagonal LCD touchscreens

The new rear-seat media system in Tahoe and Suburban will be the most advanced and capable in the full-size SUV segment. In addition to their 12.6-inch size, the rear screens are positioned for optimal view for both second- and third-row passengers. Each rear screen offers independent connections, so passengers can watch different content on each side. Additionally, rear passengers can share content from one screen to the other, mirror content from an Android phone to a screen and “send” navigation points of interest, like restaurant suggestions or pit stop locations, to the central infotainment screen up front.

The new Tahoe and Suburban also feature a built-in Wi-Fi Hotspot with available 4G LTE data (3GB or 1-month data trial, whichever occurs first), Apple CarPlay, and Android Auto capability, multiple USB charging ports and, on all models except LS, wireless charging with charger cooling.

 

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