The Chevy Traverse Offers More Than the Toyota Grand Highlander
Three-row SUVs are widely appealing, with automakers happily obliging the skyrocketing demand by doubling down and building models packed with innovative technologies, modern styles, and engaging powertrains. The bar has never been higher. We see as much by comparing the 2025 Chevy Traverse vs 2025 Toyota Grand Highlander.
Toyota and Chevrolet have outstanding reputations for building long-lasting, reliable models. The Traverse and Grand Highlander live up to their reputations, but the Toyota falls behind in 2025. With the 2025 Traverse reimagined from the ground up, the truck-like SUV boasts head-turning aesthetics and feature-rich packaging that guarantees more for your money.
Chevy packs the 2025 Traverse with upgrades where it matters most—from a turbocharged heartbeat and cutting-edge driver-assist technologies like Super Cruise to a functional and thoughtfully designed cabin. These enhancements speak directly to the needs of drivers who want and need the best of both worlds. The 2025 Traverse offers cutting-edge technology, confident performance, and rugged capability in a stylish, modern package.
So, how do these characteristics solidify the 2025 Traverse’s position as the better choice? The 2025 Grand Highlander offers drivers significantly less, with fewer technologies, mediocre performance, and minimal features. Toyota plays it safe, giving Chevrolet every opportunity to appeal to customers like you with the 2025 Traverse. Here’s a closer look at how Chevrolet accomplishes this feat and solidifies the Traverse’s fate as the more attractive and value-rich option in 2025.
More Powerful and Rugged
As three-row SUVs, the 2025 Traverse and 2025 Grand Highlander have larger footprints. However, Chevrolet defies the status quo by proving a large SUV doesn’t have to be sluggish or underpowered. Chevrolet ensures the 2025 Traverse offers more standard horsepower and torque in its single engine lineup than what you’ll find under the hood of the 2025 Grand Highlander.
The 2025 Grand Highlander rolls off Toyota’s production line with a 2.4L turbocharged engine under the hood. Toyota pairs the 2.4L engine with an eight-speed automatic transmission, with smooth gear changes as the engine produces 265 hp and 310 lb-ft of torque. The output makes the Grand Highlander responsive and capable of towing up to 5,000 lbs. However, Toyota’s engine design can’t compete with that of Chevrolet.
The 2025 Traverse introduces a significant increase in power over its predecessor, courtesy of its turbocharged 2.5L engine and quick-shifting eight-speed automatic transmission. The engine makes an impressive 328 hp and 326 lb-ft of torque, ensuring the 2025 Traverse is leagues ahead of the Grand Highlander. Moreover, the 2025 Traverse boasts a slightly lower price of $40,700, guaranteeing more horsepower for your money when compared to the 2025 Grand Highlander, which starts at $40,860.[a]
Families are adventurous too, and Chevrolet knows as much by ensuring the 2025 Traverse is rugged and ready for life beyond the pavement. Unfortunately, Toyota doesn’t take this approach, limiting its off-road options to the Grand Highlander’s siblings like the 4Runner. The 2025 Grand Highlander family tree begins with the entry-level LE and progresses to the XLE, Limited, and Platinum, none of which are equipped with the components to tackle rugged terrain.
The 2025 Traverse tells a much different story, with its value-packed trim family including the feature-rich LT, luxurious High Country, robust RS, and rugged Z71. The Traverse Z71 combines its penchant for adventure with comfort, offering families exceptional versatility. You’ll experience this firsthand in the Z71’s twin-clutch AWD system and Terrain Mode, which finetunes the throttle, steering, brakes, and other components for heightened responsiveness. Suspension dampers add to the Z71’s handling and agility, ensuring a smooth ride and maintaining your control on all types of terrain.
More Technology Features
The 2025 Grand Highlander and 2025 Traverse are modern marvels packed with cutting-edge technologies and features. Chevrolet and Toyota ensure that their three-row SUVs feature vast digital landscapes with integrated tools to keep you connected, engaged, entertained, and informed. Yet, Chevrolet goes above and beyond to ensure the 2025 Traverse is more tech-savvy than its Toyota rival. How so?
Staying connected in the driver’s seat is paramount, with Chevrolet and Toyota recognizing as much. The 2025 Grand Highlander features a 12.3-inch touchscreen with the Toyota Audio Multimedia system that offers Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration. The center display complements the Grand Highlander’s large, digital gauge cluster that provides vital performance insights and real-time data as you navigate the road. Top-tier trims add a premium JBL sound system that delivers crisp audio throughout the Grand Highlander’s cabin.
The Grand Highlander’s modern cockpit seems impressive until you climb behind the wheel of the 2025 Traverse. Chevrolet ups the ante by outfitting the Traverse with a standard 17.7-inch center touchscreen that pairs with an 11-inch Driver Information Center. Beyond seamless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, the feature-rich system offers many in-vehicle apps. Google built-in gives the Traverse another advantage, equipping the SUV with a virtual Google Assistant, Google Maps, and Google Play for next-level connectivity.
Driver-assistance technologies are also prevalent in the 2025 Grand Highlander and 2025 Traverse, with the automakers dedicated to keeping you safe on the road. This dedication begins with standard safety features that are part of the brands’ respective suites—Toyota Safety Sense 3.0 and Chevy Safety Assist. Features within the suites are comparable and include each brand’s version of automatic emergency braking, automatic high beam headlights, adaptive cruise control, forward collision alert, and lane-keeping tools.
While the 2025 Traverse and 2025 Grand Highlander have many similar safety features, the Traverse gains an undeniable advantage with a much larger suite of standard and available technologies. Aside from the six-feature Chevy Safety Assist lineup, the 2025 Traverse also has Rear Park Assist, an HD Rear Vision Camera, HD Surround Vision, Side Bicyclist Alert, Rear Pedestrian Alert, Blind Zone Steering Assist, Rear Cross-Traffic Braking, and Lane Change Alert with Side Blind Zone Alert. Top-tier trims offer Super Cruise, the industry’s first true hands-free driver-assist feature that transforms your experience cruising at highway speeds.
Distinct Interior Design
The 2025 Traverse and 2025 Grand Highlander share the same classification, but the SUVs showcase two distinct approaches to cabin design. While both SUVs feature plush seating and configurable layouts with seating for seven or eight, the Grand Highlander isn’t as spacious or passenger-friendly. Thankfully, Chevrolet’s ingenuity shines in the 2025 Traverse, which boasts a functional and spacious cabin perfect for passengers and cargo.
The 2025 Grand Highlander might be larger than its namesake, but that doesn’t mean much compared to the 2025 Traverse. The Grand Highlander’s cabin is cramped, with a total passenger volume of 153.3 cu.ft. and modest head, leg, hip, and shoulder room across its three rows. Toyota draws your attention away from these cozy quarters with the Grand Highlander’s plush seating, ambient lighting, and smooth ride. However, it’s impossible to ignore that the 2025 Traverse offers far better and roomier accommodations.
The 2025 Traverse has a total passenger volume of 157 cu.ft., a notable advantage. That total capacity translates to significantly more head, leg, shoulder, and hip room across each row. In fact, second-row passengers have far more room to relax and enjoy the ride than they would in the Grand Highlander. Moreover, the 2025 Traverse’s interior strikes the perfect balance between functional and well-equipped, especially on top-tier trims like the High Country, which features leather seats, heated and ventilated front seats, and exclusive finishes throughout the cabin.
It’s impossible to beat the 2025 Traverse’s class-leading cargo volume of 98 cu.ft.. Chevrolet successfully designed the Traverse to accommodate every need, from its spacious three rows of seats to its versatile cargo area. This keen attention to drivers’ needs is apparent when considering the dimensions and how well Chevrolet utilizes the Traverse’s available space, with the SUV offering 22.9 cu.ft. of cargo space behind the third row. In contrast, the 2025 Grand Highlander only has 20.6 cu.ft. of cargo room behind the backseat.
The Traverse’s best-in-class cargo volume complements its flexible interior, where drivers have a choice of bench seating or captain’s chairs. Chevrolet’s One-Touch Fold second row and power-folding third row heighten accessibility. The Grand Highlander also has folding seats, but the powered option in the Traverse is more user-friendly. Likewise, Toyota is more excited about the Grand Highlander’s 13 cupholders than helping you maximize the space to accommodate your passengers and all the necessities.
The Traverse Offers More
What three-row SUV is perfect for you? The 2025 Grand Highlander rightly earns plenty of praise, building on the features of its namesake and offering a larger platform. However, these characteristics aren’t enough to give the Grand Highlander an edge over rivals like the 2025 Traverse.
Chevrolet has shaped the global automotive landscape for over a century, attentively listening to and responding to drivers’ needs with more powerful, innovative, and engaging models. We see this firsthand in the 2025 Traverse, which offers an expansive digital landscape, a spacious three-row cabin, and a best-in-class cargo volume. To sweeten the deal, the 2025 Traverse is engaging and fun to drive. As your Chevy destination, we’re thrilled to help you find the perfect Traverse trim to add to your garage!
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