In mid-September, Chevrolet unveiled the new 2023 Chevrolet Tahoe RST Performance Edition.

For just $8,525, Chevrolet includes a performance induction system and a fruitier exhaust, which bumps the power to 433 horsepower and 467 lb-ft of torque. That's 13 hp and seven lb-ft over the current RST. Chevy also included a few suspension and brake upgrades to keep the truck-based pointing the right way up.

It could have been even more potent, according to a source familiar with the car's development, who claims GM considered using the supercharged LT4 motor. The idea was ultimately dropped, though the source failed to provide a concrete reason.

Not that a reason was needed because it doesn't take a genius to figure out why. A 6.2-liter V8 RST without the package costs just under $71,000, destination charge included. Add the package price, and the RST is close to $80,000.

That's a reasonable price point, allowing the Chevrolet Tahoe RST Performance Edition to compete in its category of one. Neither Ford nor Toyota offers a direct rival, and all the European rivals are all five-seaters and much smaller.

Adding the LT4 would bump the price to between $100k and $110k, including the cost of additional heavy-duty components in critical areas. One does not simply add 640 horses without upgrading stopping power, even if the car in question already has powerful brakes.

But there's an even better reason why, and it's likely a case of the GM mothership telling Chevrolet to back down.

The Cadillac Escalade-V made its debut in May 2022 and was immediately marketed as the most powerful full-size SUV ever. The words "full-size" are the most important, as the Aston Martin DBX 707 and Lamborghini Urus are more powerful but only have room for five.

If Chevrolet was allowed to bolt an LT4 under the hood, the most expensive Caddy would have lost its most crucial bragging right to a more humble Chevrolet, and that simply wouldn't do. While the money ends up going to the same place, we're willing to bet that the profit margin on a 'Sclade is much higher than it is on a Tahoe.

Putting an LT4 in the Tahoe would have been a tremendous gamble, but a gamble, nevertheless.

The car-buying public would have gone one of two routes. They'd either pay the additional $50,000 for the Cadillac because if you're already paying six figures for a car, why not go the whole nine yards? Or they would have saved a decent chunk of cash and purchased a Tahoe. The latter seems a more likely scenario to us.

It's much better to spread a wider variety of vehicles across a broader price range, as GM has done here. The Tahoe RST Performance Edition is a seven-seat go-faster SUV, while the Escalade-V is priced as an American alternative to European rivals like the Mercedes-AMG GLS 63.