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If you fancy an SUV just as capable as a police patrol vehicle, the 2023 Chevrolet Tahoe RST Performance is exactly what you want.
Chevrolet has been in the business of making trucks for quite some time now. While associating a massive full-size barn with the concepts of physics and speed seems odd, the reality is that’s what people want. Having a family of seven or eight doesn’t necessarily disqualify you as an enthusiast, but then do we call people driving around in G63s an enthusiast or a poser? The jury is still out on that.
Realistically though, if you are a gearhead with three or more kids, you’d probably have a full-size SUV and a spare sports car/coupe for your enthusiastic needs. Just because you have a family and need the validation of being called a petrolhead doesn’t mean you should purchase a high-performance full-size SUV. What you assumed an answer to all your problems is nothing more than a cocktail of compromises.
But we digress. Although the Chevy Tahoe is the last thing you’d think of when it comes to performance, the RST package is an attempt at saying otherwise. More importantly, the Tahoe RST is about bragging rights. If you fancy an SUV as capable at chasing as a police patrol vehicle, the 2023 Chevrolet Tahoe RST Performance is exactly what you want.
Quite a mouthful, we agree. But here are a few things about the truck. Firstly, RST is short for “Rally Sport Truck.” Secondly, it’s supposed to be a souped-up version of the regular Tahoe. We’ll leave you to be the judge of that. Chevrolet has taken the liberty of adding a few sporty items to make the Tahoe feel less SUV-like if that makes sense.
Vice president, Scott Bell, says, “the 2023 Tahoe RST Performance Edition is designed for those who want the best of both worlds — the everyday comfort and capability of a full-size SUV along with the driving excitement of a true performance vehicle.” Thanks to a revised exhaust system, the 2023 Chevy Tahoe RST Performance adds 13 horsepower and 7 lb-ft over the RST’s available 6.2L V8 engine. The run-of-the-mill 10-speed torque converter automatic stays unchanged.
With the performance package, the RST manages to hit 0-60 mph in 5.78 seconds (5.95 seconds on the base RST) and a top speed of 124 mph (112 mph on the base RST). Additionally, quarter-mile times improve two-tenths of a second over the base RST. Per Chevy, the new 2023 Tahoe RST Performance Edition leverages several chassis, suspension, and other elements from the pursuit-rated Tahoe PPV (Police Patrol Vehicle) package, with many of the vehicle’s dynamics calibrated by the same engineering team.
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Chevrolet is super-keen on highlighting the Tahoe RST’s pursuit capabilities, which is a fancy marketing term for calling it quick. As part of the RST Performance Package, you get police-spec springs, retuned dampers, and police-spec chassis calibrations. On top of that, a police-spec lower ride height of 0.4 inches (10 mm) in front and 0.8 inches (20 mm) in the rear adds to a better stance. Performance improvements do not end there. Brembo front and rear brakes with unique Torch Red calipers and performance-calibrated brake pedal feel are on offer. The front brake rotors are nearly 25% larger in diameter than the standard RST system. Lastly, the package adds police-spec Firestone Firehawk Pursuit 275/55 R20 tires with specific 20-inch aluminum wheels.
Chief Engineer, Dominique Lester says, “the pursuit-rated driving dynamics inspire excitement and confidence on the road, and we’re proud to have achieved this level of ride and handling in a full-size SUV largely through performance calibration and tuning.”
He further adds, “we have carefully tuned this vehicle to handle speed with confidence and control that is immediately apparent behind the wheel.” While we appreciate Chevrolet’s effort, we are unsure if all this manages to hide the RST's mass—all 5,661 pounds of it, to be specific. We’ll have to get behind the wheel to find out.
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Chevrolet will charge you $8,525 to have the Performance Package. In the grand scheme of things, the base RST is pretty good value versus the Performance Package. Are the 13-horsepower bump and a few tenths of improved acceleration justified with $8,000? Not quite. The 2023 Chevy Tahoe in its base RST 6.2L spec is plenty enough with 420 horsepower and 7,900 lbs of towing. The additional 13 horsepower won’t be noticeable in something as big as a barn. Moreover, the PPV-derived chassis tweaks will probably be invisible to the average Joe and Joanne. So really, best to stick with the RST base, but if resale is something of a preference, then we’d suggest ticking the RST Performance Package.
A relatively naive bloke in every aspect other than cars. The nuances of the motoring world fascinated him ever since he was a toddler. Fast forward 20-odd years, he graduated with a bachelor's degree in automotive engineering, and now pens down on all things motoring.