By Michael Bettencourt, Globe and Mail - The Canadian Chevrolet lineup will once again expand beyond that of its U.S. counterpart with the addition of the Trax compact crossover, which will be based on similar architecture to the already announced Buick Encore.The five-seat Trax will arrive in Canada and Mexico during the fourth quarter of this year, and eventually in 140 countries, GM Canada announced this week, after it is publicly unveiled at the Paris auto show in September.
That will bring it in just ahead of the Buick Encore, now scheduled for a spring 2013 launch, even though the Buick has already been shown at various international and Canadian auto shows.
From a single released photo, the Chevy Trax looks to be an attractively swoopy mini-ute that could make increasingly fuel conscious Americans look longingly over their borders. GM Canada already sells the Orlando company seven-seater that's not available in the U.S., though its practical but more homely body likely holds less design appeal than the Trax promises.
According to Chevrolet's U.S. office, the Trax won't be marketed there "because of the strong position of the Equinox," a vehicle that has sold similarly well here in Canada.
The Trax, and the Encore, will be derived off the platform used in the Chevrolet Sonic, a small sedan or five-door hatch that currently straddles the compact segment in between its larger Cruze sedan sibling and the upcoming smaller Spark subcompact hatchback.
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