Chevrolet TrailBlazer
Staying true to its inner truck |
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By Richard J. Newman
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NITS: The shifter and some of the other controls have a cheap, plastic-like feel.
G FORCES: The 4.2-liter inline six produces 275 horsepower, more than many V-8s. But hold on going around the curves. The TrailBlazer corners like the truck that it is.
GIZMOLOGY: Optional finger controls on the steering wheel make up for the stretch to the radio and air conditioning knobs. But do you really need a digital recorder overhead that records messages you can replay to yourself?
KID MARKS: It's a high climb into the back seat. Optional "assist steps"–tubular running boards–are essential for kids.
HOT OR NOT? Hot, like a bodybuilder. Not lean or elegant, but honed in ways that grab your attention.
MILEAGE About 17 mpg in mostly highway driving. That's scarcely better than a V-8 would do.
PRICE POINTS: Base prices range from $26,060 to $34,740. Price as tested: $36,400. (All prices include delivery fees.) About average for the class.
COPYCATS: Same platform as the Oldsmobile Bravada and GMC Envoy.
MORE INFO: www.chevrolet.com/
trailblazer/index.htm
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Model year tested: 2002
For a vehicle General Motors expects to exude "Chevy-Truck toughness," the 2002 TrailBlazer sure pampers its occupants. Dual-zone air conditioning is standard on all models. So are programmable door locks and power windows. The upgraded LT version comes with the OnStar concierge system and a heated rearview mirror. The fully loaded LTZ, kind of an oilman's special, will sense rain, warm your buns, lull rear-seaters with a DVD player, and go to considerable other lengths to keep you comfy.
The truck emerges once you turn the key. Chevrolet claims that a fancy suspension produces a "luxury ride." But unlike "crossovers" and other SUVs, there's no confusion about what kind of frame the TrailBlazer is built on. There's enough bounce on side streets to stir recollections of your first dirt road. The TrailBlazer can be lovingly churlish in four-wheel-drive mode at low speeds. And interior touches evoke–but only evoke–rough-and-ready driving. Chunky grooved rubber knobs on the radio and climate system, for instance, would be easy to operate with gloves on. The black molded-rubber dashboard looks like it could absorb all sorts of blows.
There's a bit of a dual personality here, but then again that's the whole SUV formula: Offer drivers a rugged image without making them uncomfortable. The TrailBlazer seems more honest than most on this score. The truck stays true to its roots–it evolved from the Blazer while offering moneyed baby boomers the buttons and dials they have come to expect. Drivers can select automatic all-wheel drive, where a computer determines which wheels turn-fast becoming the standard in SUVs that do little off-roading. But the TrailBlazer still comes with genuine four-wheel drive for tough terrain, including low and high modes. There are more evocations of toughness outside the TrailBlazer. Flared fenders and taillight covers and a bulging hood, for example, create the impression of muscularity.
The new Vortec inline six-cylinder engine, standard on all models, is a nod to smoothness. Its power compares favorably with many V-8s, but without the whining that often comes from a heaving six-cylinder. Chevy seems confident enough in the Vortec that it doesn't even offer a V-8 as an option. The inside, meanwhile, will get more civilized this spring, when Chevy introduces the EXT version with a third seat and seven-passenger capacity. Pop some popcorn and bring the family. They'll barely miss the living room.
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