2025 Chevrolet Suburban High Country
Price: $114,310 CAD
Colour: Dark Ash Metallic
My regular readers are well aware of the eclectic and specific tastes I enjoy in the world of automobiles. One of my secret fetishes are full-sized, mother nature hating SUVs. It has always been the preserve of the American carmakers (with a few notable exceptions like the Nissan Armada), and it’s something they do far better than anyone else. I understand the inherent ridiculous excess of vehicles like the Chevrolet Suburban, and I just don’t care. I know I can’t park it anywhere. I know it ruins my financially every time I fire it up. I also know there is no legitimate reason one would buy and run such a vehicle that doesn’t surround the stroking of one’s ego. All of this I know – and I don’t care. How big is too big? I’ll let you know when I find it.
Power & Performance
You can get the 2025 Chevrolet Suburban with a 5.3L and 6.2L V8 or a thrifty diesel. Which one you opt for depends on how close you relate your displacement and cylinder count to the effectiveness of your man bits. This tester comes with the big blue pill 6.2L V8 and while I could never recommend it, it is the one you want for your Suburban. I’ve advocated for the diesel on the Suburban’s cousin the Escalade before and I stand by those words. But seriously, you need an obnoxiously oversized engine to haul your obnoxious 3-ton status symbol. You know it and so do I.
While the fuel economy was as punishing as you imagined it would be there was a surprise during my time with this car. While it never went under 17L/100km (14mpg) in the city, it knocked my wool socks off with an incredible 11.5L/100km (20.5mpg) on the highway. The trip was nearly 200kms all in and this was sufficient to generate this incredible result. I wasn’t expecting it and while it doesn’t justify the big V8 it was a pleasant surprise.
Exterior
We’ve had the current body on the Suburban for 4 model years to date. It’s a handsome brute. Even with the extra couple of feet at the back it has nice proportions. It’s enormous and imposing and cuts nobody any slack as you cruise the Costco parking lot desperately trying to find a space that will accommodate you.
Interior
Big. Very big. There are no other sufficient words to describe the interior of the Suburban. Rather than rattle off bits of information about the interior spec I want to tell you a story that highlights just how big and (strangely) useful this vehicle can actually be. I had the occasion to go camping for a night while I had the big Chevy. It was last minute and (as is the way of these things) poorly planned. My oldest son (for the record he is 15 years old, 5’10” tall and about a 150lbs) opted to join me and we met my brother-in-law at a local campsite. Given the weather habits here on the west coast we gave up on tents a long time ago. Instead, we started vehicle camping as an alternative. It involves sleeping in the car while staying dry and secure from the ravages of mother nature. My son and I have developed a strange affection for climbing into our vehicle of choice and flopping down on a foam mattress in the back, firing up a movie and enjoying our evening. Sometimes this works okay and other times, it doesn’t work at all. Turns out cars aren’t really made for sleeping in and adapting them for that purpose can be difficult. The Suburban however was born for this. We folded the 2nd and 3rd row, put down our sponge and were stunned by how much space we both had. It was the most comfortable car camping experience we’ve ever had. Remember, my son is 15 years old and he had no complaints about our accommodations – not a one. ‘Nuff said. We were perfectly flat with plenty of room on either side. We could see the screens on the back of the headrests of the front row perfectly and enjoyed our screening of Back To The Future. My brother-in-law was jealous and miserable in his RAM 1500 as he tried fruitlessly all night to find a comfortable position. The cherry on top was the nighttime starlight display we were granted through the panoramic glass roof. We drifted off to sleep under the stars that night and it was amazing.
Quality
Initial quality on the 2025 Chevrolet Suburban is quite good. Nothing fell off and we couldn’t break anything during our camping excursion.
CQI – 8.
Value
What’s the value of the ultimate car camping vehicle? Priceless. No two ways about it.
Final Thoughts
There was a time when I would have penned a review savaging such a large and ridiculous vehicle. Times change however, and so have I. I’ve seen the light. I now understand the 2025 Chevrolet Suburban completely. It’s one of my automotive spirit animals and I love it. I’m going to sell off my youngest child for the down payment to buy one. If I can convince someone to overpay for my wife, my oldest son and I have will have our dream car camping oasis. God bless America.
