2023 Chevy Tahoe RST Performance Edition Gets 433 HP, Police Spec Upgrades
It hits 60 mph in 5.7 seconds and can still tow 7,600 pounds.
In every modern action movie, there are always blacked-out Chevy Tahoes driven by police, keeping up with baddies in some sort of reality-defying car chase. If you've ever wanted to know what it feels like to be behind the wheel of such a Tahoe, Chevy is now giving you the option. The Tahoe RST Performance Edition just launched at the Detroit Auto Show with more power and better handling inspired by the version that only cops could get before now.
For Performance Edition duty, Chevy pulled the chassis, suspension, and powertrain upgrades straight from the PPV police pursuit package. According to Chevrolet's Vice President Scott Bell, the Tahoe RST Performance Edition "leverages the proven capability of Chevy’s pursuit-rated police vehicle packages and motorsports success to offer a confident, engaging driving experience for our customers.” Never thought you'd read that about a Tahoe, huh?
To make it more agile, it gets police-spec springs, a police-spec chassis calibration, and a police-spec ride height that's 0.4 inches lower in front and 0.8 inches lower in the rear. It also gets special Brembo brakes that are 25 percent larger than the standard Tahoe RST's, and what Chevy calls "Performance calibrated brake feel." It can apparently stop from 60 mph in just 133 feet.
Power is also up ever so slightly, to the tune of 433 horsepower and 467 pound-feet—an increase of 13 hp and seven lb-ft, respectfully. The rumbling 6.2-liter naturally aspirated V8 engine still sends power to a 10-speed automatic transmission, helping the Tahoe RST Performance hit 60 mph in 5.78 seconds, versus the standard RST's 5.95 seconds. It also runs a 14.2-second quarter-mile at 97 mph, which is two-tenths of a second faster than the regular RST. The top speed is 124 mph.
The only way to tell a Tahoe RST Performance Edition apart from the regular RST will be the black "RST" badges on the outside. Inside, it gets a set of sport pedals. But that's about it.
Chevy didn't completely sell out in the name of police-grade performance. The rig can tow 7,600 pounds and seat seven comfortably, so it's still a family SUV—it just drives a bit more like a cop car, if that's what you're into. To get those police-spec Performance Edition upgrades, you'll have to put down an additional $8,525, and it's only available on 2023 Tahoe RST models. To sweeten the deal, that additional cost also includes the Luxury Package.
Production begins in the fourth quarter of 2022.
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