What Are Your Thoughts On the All-New 2019 Chevrolet Blazer Crossover/SUV

amxguy1970 · June 25, 2018

The Blazer name didn't have that much heritage with it, it didn't come up until what the early 70's and has been gone for over a decade? Not exactly a ton of history behind the name. As much as I want to see it be a BOF off road beast those don't sell (regardless of what a small majority says on a forum or site), they are in the business of building what sells. A off road beast would bring some buzz and probably be around for 3-5 years before sales start tanking, the newness wears off and they have to axe it like others before (FJ anyone?).

This fills a gap they needed, they had nothing mid size. If they brought the Colorado SUV here it would just lose comparison tests that are mostly on road to the competition except the 4runner (which it would probably fall short off road to) so it would come up short in reviews, eventually sales and then be dropped again. Maybe they will bring a special toy type off roader down the road if this sells well enough and makes them enough money, but I have my doubts. They will see how the Bronco sells first, this isn't a competitor to it off road (ditto the jeeps) but instead it is to go against the Murano, Edge, outback and other on road cuv's.

As nice as it would be for this to be built here they had some legitimate reasons it couldn't (mainly capacity) but also look at the costs. The line workers in Mexico make about $5/hr where workers here are somewhere north of $25 last I heard on average. That is one reasons why vehicles are getting expensive, we are paying hourly rates like that to screw in dash boards and put doors on. Unions were great back in the day when working conditions and pay were rubbish, now it is just gready and they wonder why manufacturers keep trying to get production to cheaper countries. When payroll and benefits are your biggest expense they find ways to cut those back and they start with pay and automation to reduce their worforce.

All in all it is a nice CUV, one I would consider in that size range. Certainly has a little more style, will be nice to see it in person and take it for a drive and see all the options and styles. Think GM did well with it on paper and in pics, we will see how it does in comparison tests and in the real world for the final judgement.

Tyler

Edited June 25, 2018 by amxguy1970

HondaHawkGT · June 26, 2018

On 6/22/2018 at 5:27 PM, Daly said:

Chevy didn't need a middle ground between the Equinox and the Traverse, they needed something different from left field (left field for GM anyway). With the Blazer nameplate they had a chance to do something worth while and built a JL Wrangler competitor. If this had been a 2 door, front engine, rear drive based SUV, on a Colorado chassis and had an optional removable roof, they would have hit this out of the park. But in typical GM fashion, as of late, they've taken something that could have been awesome and made it dull. They made another Crossover, Sport Utility wannabe, in a market already saturated with other look-a-like wannabe Sport utilities.

Ford's aspiration for the days before the fuel price spike (of 2005) is going to be their undoing and GM is playing it smart by not following them down that road. To me, GM seems to be following a strategy closer to that of Toyota: fuel efficiency first, performance 2nd, off-road worthiness last. It sucks that the Blazer isn't a RWD SUV but if it were, it'd be priced out of reach of most of the public. The 2020 Bronco is going to be equally overpriced and disappointing. Now that Ford is killing off their sedans, they'll need to compensate for their shift in CAFE average. The Bronco might have a low base price, but the stuff that 99% of buyers will expect as standard features will push the price well above $40k for a moderately sized SUV. The off-road worthiness will be disappointing and Ford will cut corners to keep weight+cost in check. The Bronco will easily hit $50k in the upper trim level.

Edited June 26, 2018 by HondaHawkGT

truckofwinandawesome · June 26, 2018

Ford's aspiration for the days before the fuel price spike (of 2005) is going to be their undoing and GM is playing it smart by not following them down that road. To me, GM seems to be following a strategy closer to that of Toyota: fuel efficiency first, performance 2nd, off-road worthiness last. It sucks that the Blazer isn't a RWD SUV but if it were, it'd be priced out of reach of most of the public. The 2020 Bronco is going to be equally overpriced and disappointing. Now that Ford is killing off their sedans, they'll need to compensate for their shift in CAFE average. The Bronco might have a low base price, but the stuff that 99% of buyers will expect as standard features will push the price well above $40k for a moderately sized SUV. The off-road worthiness will be disappointing and Ford will cut corners to keep weight+cost in check. The Bronco will easily hit $50k in the upper trim level.

Ford charges nearly $50K for their NEXT TO BOTTOM trim level F150; you will pay nearly $50K for just the privilege of having a V8 Mustang, they want nearly $80K for an Expedition Max, and the biggest Super Duty has cracked the Six Figure Barrier! Something tells me that Ford is going to go into a panic when gas prices spike again.

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okfoz · June 28, 2018

On 6/26/2018 at 10:33 AM, truckofwinandawesome said:

On 6/26/2018 at 10:33 AM, truckofwinandawesome said:

Ford charges nearly $50K for their NEXT TO BOTTOM trim level F150; you will pay nearly $50K for just the privilege of having a V8 Mustang, they want nearly $80K for an Expedition Max, and the biggest Super Duty has cracked the Six Figure Barrier! Something tells me that Ford is going to go into a panic when gas prices spike again.

I think your quite mistaken in your Ford prices. You can find new 2018 Mustang GT for around $30-35K all day long, even seen a few below $30K with the V8, but they are the base GT model. Granted, if you wanted the Performance pack 2, with Leather and all the goodies, you are getting to the $50K mark on the sticker. Bang for the buck the Mustang is a better deal, but the Camaro is a better car, if you can stand the awful seats and the view out of the camaro. The thing about the $50K next to the bottom Pickup is they are giving huge huge discounts on those, I just had a friend pick up a F150 XLT which stickered for $52K for $38K new off the lot. It is a pricing game with Ford, they over inflate their sticker price and give you a huge discount to let you think you are getting a deal. My friend has buyers remorse, wishes he got the GMC with Leather for about $4K more, even with the Chevy/GMC "frame shake" people are complaining about.

Edited June 28, 2018 by okfoz

shift_grind · June 29, 2018

On 6/24/2018 at 8:03 AM, michigan2500hd said:

Just looking at this is embarrassing. It's not a "Blazer" type vehicle. No frame, no ruggedness, just another car based "SUV". I say SUV because that's how people are referring to these crossovers now. I still correct them but it's a losing battle.
So Ford is bringing back the Bronco and Chevy is making another car and giving it a truck name. Brilliant.

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You and I have completely different memories of what a Blazer is.

I saw far more Blazer Xtreme's (which the RS reminds me of more so) than ZR2's

I rather like the new Blazer, a lot. Same with the Traverse. Equinox was a miss though.

michigan2500hd · June 29, 2018

10 minutes ago, shift_grind said:

You and I have completely different memories of what a Blazer is.

I saw far more Blazer Xtreme's (which the RS reminds me of more so) than ZR2's

I rather like the new Blazer, a lot. Same with the Traverse. Equinox was a miss though.

My uncle had a 70's K5 Blazer when I was young.. It was rugged, solid front axle, could off-road decent from the factory and was body on frame.

Then early 80's produced a smaller, IFS Blazer. I liked it though, cool truck styling but in a smaller package. It fit places the previous Blazer couldn't but the weak link was the independent front suspension.

I paid cash for a 2003 ZR2 in 2006. Awesome looking truck, still body on frame, decent running gear but build quality was questionable.

Now they're giving us yet another car. Cross overs are cars. Not a truck like all the previous Blazers.

I'm disappointed they didn't do something more off-road and utility minded with the Blazer name. In Michigan there are far more ZR2 Blazers than Xtreme's. On that note the Typhoon and Syclone were awesome but again, body on frame.

There are so many crossovers today and the body on frame technology is going by the way side just for a little mileage increase. Don't get me wrong, they have their place... Just not using iconic vehicles names.

TXGREEK · June 29, 2018

I remember years ago while attending the Auto show in Texas I saw an advertisement from Dodge raving about the Durango, saying it’s a big badass 4x4 taking on everyone. I thought wow! Couldn’t be farther from the truth disgusting pc of [emoji90] Crossovers do nothing for me, bet it’s garbage like most of the other crossovers on the road. Crossovers are a mixture between minivans and s10 blazers, unibody construction.

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shift_grind · June 29, 2018

2 hours ago, michigan2500hd said:

My uncle had a 70's K5 Blazer when I was young.. It was rugged, solid front axle, could off-road decent from the factory and was body on frame.

Then early 80's produced a smaller, IFS Blazer. I liked it though, cool truck styling but in a smaller package. It fit places the previous Blazer couldn't but the weak link was the independent front suspension.

I paid cash for a 2003 ZR2 in 2006. Awesome looking truck, still body on frame, decent running gear but build quality was questionable.

Now they're giving us yet another car. Cross overs are cars. Not a truck like all the previous Blazers.

I'm disappointed they didn't do something more off-road and utility minded with the Blazer name. In Michigan there are far more ZR2 Blazers than Xtreme's. On that note the Typhoon and Syclone were awesome but again, body on frame.

There are so many crossovers today and the body on frame technology is going by the way side just for a little mileage increase. Don't get me wrong, they have their place... Just not using iconic vehicles names.

Cherokee and Grand Cherokee are unibody.

Maybe they have a zr2 in the works for year 2. Or perhaps there will be a Trailblazer option or model. While these two models are not off-road, they don't pretend to be. Perhaps something that is off-road is in the works.

This and the Traverse are the only Crossovers I'd want to drive and that's not because of brand loyalty. I like some of the Mazdas, but find them to be a bit feminine.

Colossus · June 29, 2018

This was the style of full size Blazer I liked best.

TXGREEK · June 29, 2018

This was the style of full size Blazer I liked best.

Awwww, I had the 1996, first year of the new vortex motor, two door, sport package, black 4x4 Z71.

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Jchoi · June 29, 2018

18 hours ago, Colossus said:

This was the style of full size Blazer I liked best.

I always wanted one of those. I’m not sure what I think of the new one.

gmcleer · June 29, 2018

I always wanted one in white.

Edited June 29, 2018 by gmcleer

Colossus · June 30, 2018

I got to drive a few white ones. The Sheriff's Department I worked for had K5 Blazers, 80s-95 and then went to the 4-door Tahoe. They were all great. I was assigned an 89 GMC Jimmy K5 after it was retired from patrol use. Had the skinny tires though and not the wider type. That was my only gripe. All were great vehicles. The Broncos always got stuck.. Ford's 4X4 system sucked compared to GMs for whatever reason.

Edited June 30, 2018 by Colossus

SnowGoAK · July 1, 2018

I really wish they didn't use the Blazer name on this new crossover. I have fond memories of my '81 K5 Blazer with a manual 3-speed and a granny gear. It was a great truck that was both tough and capable.

Edited July 1, 2018 by SnowGoAK

KARNUT · July 1, 2018

I can relate. That’s the way I felt about the Impala. I’ve had 13, some SS. Even had two at once wife had the 69 I had the 68 fast back. Last one was the 94 SS had it 8 years. Then they went front wheel drive. Probably good cars, just can’t do it.

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