My sweet ride for last month’s mini-road trip to downstate Illinois and western Indiana was a Chevrolet Trax. I was given access to the vehicle for a few days to test it out, and I was not disappointed.
SEE ALSO: The 30 Most Amazing Things I Saw in Iceland
The vehicle drove as smoothly as any I’ve ever seen. The potholes of Illinois were not a problem as the vehicle handled the roads just fine.
The gas mileage was also fantastic (officially, it gets 34 mpg highway and 26 mpg city), and I appreciated the gauge that indicated precisely how many miles I had remaining before I needed a fill-up.
Read on to learn the details of my weekend road trip, as well as the secret to finding that pesky gas tank release on the Chevy Trax!
Driving the Trax to See the White Squirrels in Olney, Illinois
The Trax took me to the town of Olney, Illinois, which is known for its albino white squirrels. I got to watch one of the squirrels from the front seat:
In terms of amenities, the thing I loved about the Trax was the in-car wifi hotspot. I could stream music, connect to Google Maps and keep up with social media without having to use my cellular data. I couldn’t get enough of the satellite radio, either.
I hope they didn’t have a hidden camera in this vehicle, or else I’m going to end up on Youtube belting out karaoke renditions of George Michael’s “Faith” and the Verve Pipe’s “The Freshmen.”
SEE ALSO: Visiting the RV Hall of Fame in Indiana
After Olney, I headed to another kooky town: Santa Claus, Indiana. As you might expect, everything here is all about Christmas. Here’s the Trax in front of the Santa Claus post office:
Santa Claus is a fun town in southern Indiana. They have tons of holiday-themed gift shops, and there’s even a theme park called Holiday World and Splashin’ Safari Water Park.
On the drive home, I passed through Indianapolis and Gary. The whole thing took only one weekend. Here’s the basic route of my modest Midwest road trip from Chicago to Olney and Santa Claus in the Chevy Trax:
How to Open the Gas Tank on the Chevrolet Trax
The only challenge with the Trax? It took me 10 minutes to open the gas tank. I could not find a latch inside the vehicle to release the gas tank lid, and there was no latch on the tank itself.
I even read through the user manual and was surprised to find no mention of how to open the gas tank.
Finally, after some Googling, I discovered that all I had to do was push on one corner of the gas tank lid, and it popped open. Womp womp.
Is this typically how gas tanks open these days? Some of us aren’t used to driving brand new Chevys, so that detail may be worth including in the manual!
Aside from the issue with not knowing how to open the gas tank on the Chevrolet Trax, I enjoyed the vehicle a lot.
The Trax is marketed as a city-smart small SUV, and I found it to be a perfect vehicle for navigating Chicago’s busy streets. Hopefully this will not be my last experience behind the wheel of a Trax.
I think the jaunt to Santa Claus and Olney is one of the best weekend road trips from Chicago if you want to see some quirky sights.
See also our playlist of songs about driving, a list of road trip snacks, and tips for maximizing your vehicle space on a road trip.
Have you ever taken a Midwest road trip or had issues with a gas tank like I did?
