Something beautiful happens when competing multinational automakers combine to produce a common product. In the SUV category, the Tracker is a descendant of another Japanese-American romance. This time, Chevrolet and General Motors collaborated with Suzuki to produce one of the best mini-SUVs to answer the growing fuel-conscious market. In the pick-up truck category, the Colorado was born from the parentage of Chevrolet and Isuzu. The Japanese virtue of efficiency fused with the American passion for power and durability, and now comes the Tracker.
The American Revolution wants everyone to know that you belong because you are a proud owner of a Chevy Tracker. Fuel efficiency is now a demand that every car user has been wanting, yet most Americans couldn’t give up their traditional preference for powerful engines. Dressing up your key with a Chevy Tracker key fob means you haven’t forgotten American taste in your car preference, even if Japanese fuel efficiency has become your number one concern.
The tracker comes by many names. It was originally marketed under the Geo small car and SUV product lines by General Motors as the Tracker, and was later sold by Chevrolet under the same name. Suzuki calls it its own version as Escudo. Asüna and Pontiac sold it as the Sunrunner until 1997. Suzuki named the model the Sidekick until 1999, when the second generation Tracker rolled off the assembly lines. Suzuki called this generation of the Tracker Suzuki Grand Vitara, a popular Japanese SUV in today’s market. In Mexico, the Tracker was still sold as the Chevrolet Grand Vitara until the last units came out in 2004. There are Tracker and Sidekick units manufactured at Suzuki’s Kosai assembly plant in Japan and at General Motor’s Ingersoll, Ontario plant in Canada.
Compared to other mini-SUVs on the market, which are mostly based on a strong truck chassis, the Tracker is designed with a solid four-wheel drive system. It has a strong front suspension fitted with a strong ‘recirculating ball steering box’. The light truck’s engine is backed by a 5-speed manual transmission or a 4-speed automatic transmission with a two-wheel drive or four-wheel drive transfer case in high and low mode. The shorings are like a conventional light truck with U-joint driveshafts connecting the coil spring front hubs to the differential case. This makes the model a bit ‘rough’, but the design’s inherent durability in rough off-road conditions is a great benefit that makes up for experiencing a bit of a bumpy ride at times.
Eventually, the Tracker’s legacy in terms of durability and performance will lead to a new concept model in the mini-SUV category. Chevrolet brand engineers are staunch patriots of the American Revolution and will always remember something important they learned from the Japanese. Eventually, the Tracker would spark a new concept or design that would lead to a future SUV.
Always carry a beautiful Tracker keychain with you to remind us of a great Japanese-American affair that gave rise to the Tracker. Available in round black chrome plate, oval stone-look metal, and genuine leather designs, these key trims feature the proud Chevy logo and “Tracker” model name protruding from a glossy black crystalline dome. This is a perfect gift at a very affordable price of $6.99.