[Sheel]

Originally Posted by drmohitg

The direct competitors for this car, all boast of a robust chassis, suspension and go anywhere ability. At the same time they also have a unique USP to themselves be it the reliability of the Toyota or the feature rich list of upcoming Ford Endeavour. So why then should I put in so much money on this truck and choose it over the others? On top of that it does not even boast of a 4x4, so the go anywhere tag line is also ruled out.

You know, if I don't get choco-chips or dark chocolate ice-cream, I usually come back with the plain old vanilla. I never spoke for you or the other masses, I spoke my opinion

I have already stated as to why would I choose this over others but only in MT and a 4X4 format.

Over competition it might be lacking feature wise but for sure there is no answer to the crazy 500NM of torque. The water wading capacity, the GC, it being a CBU is far sturdier than competition as the reviewer has pointed out. In 4X2 format, it weighs more than its competitor in 4X4 AT format. From whatever I have read or know, Chevy trucks are as reliable as Toyota or Ford. Need I also tell you as to how comfortable it should be over its competition?

[speedmiester]

Just another product in the forgettable line up of Chevrolet.
Don't think there will be many takers to this SUV.

It seems no manufacturers are looking to fill the void of suvs in the 10-20L bracket. This is where the volume is and Mahindra is making the best of it with it's XUV.

[landcruiser123]

The Chevy Trailblazer is simply too old!
Some of the glaring misses:

• 4x4 Manual/4x4 AT (I don't care about the 2WD manual)
• 6 or 8 airbags
• Push button start
• Auto dimming IRVM

Come on Chevy, how difficult is it to provide more features? No one pays over 30 lakh INR for a car with the level of cost cutting.
And what's with the plain design?

Had this been 2009, Toyota may have had a challenge.

Just curious, what is the ARAI rated FE? Is it 11.xx kmpl?

[W.A.G.7]

Ha Ha! This car is already dead. By reading the review and looking at the pictures in the review, I am of the opinion that what they are offering, is a car that is 2-3 years old, many features missing; and with a wrong price. In a few months sales will trickle down and this car will be an also-ran from the Chevy stable. For once, nothing about the car excites me. Even though the engine may be good, the rest of the car kills it.

Best of luck to Chevrolet, to try and sustain good sales of this car. Only time will tell.

[n:CorE]

Excellent review!! Rated 5-stars! Team-BHP always does it right

Chevy have quite seriously endangered their fortune(r)s on this one. (excuse the pun please ) One could say its a tragic missed opportunity. I am a fan for what it has to offer, but not enough a fan to overlook what it doesn't. This product could have actually dented the Fortuners sales, it could have overthrown an undisputed king could have gotten GM India the much needed return in the market they desperately need right now.

What works for me:

Dynamically speaking, its quite there (well, almost). Strong ~200bhp, mammoth 500 Nm torque (that is actually a lot). I really do believe this is going to be one of the finer hairy chested engines (a test drive is surely in order). That said, FE is kind of in the red-zone

All around Disc brakes, bigger discs in the rear too! This is an absolute joy to hear, and coming from an existing Fortuner owner trust me it does matter a lot. You need adequate stopping power when you are selling 2-tonne trucks as luxury SUV's. Thats the least you can do!

Big thumbs up to all the safety equipment like TC, ESP, etc. but then again shocker see just 2-airbags. Figo gets 6 now, come on Chevy?

How much nicer would it have been if the rear got an independent set-up. But I guess its still acceptable in ladder on frame chassis segment on account of coil springs robustness?

Steering seems to be nicer and the ride more improved over the fortuner.

Interior (only thing): Camaro-themed instrument binnacle!! Class that!

I have an opinion on 4WD systems thats heavily influenced by points highlighted by GTO elsewhere on the forum. In our terrain, for all intents and purposes, a 4x2 with this much ground-clearance, chunky tyres is all you need to tackle bad/no roads. The hardware is justified for the more adventurous enthusiasts and more often than not the price gap between the 4x4 and 4x2, poorer FE - this car is anyways in the red-zone in the 4x2 guise, just imagine what a gas guzzler the 4x4 A/T will be, higher maintenance costs in the long run are serious enough to establish that 4x2's are much more practical.

They should have launched 4x2 M/T as well (at a reasonable price)! That would have actually helped Chevy gain traction for this product and then they could go ahead and launch the full monty 4x4 variant.



What doesn't work for me:

Cars in general are becoming smarter. After spending this kind of money, you do tend to expect some level of luxury and standard equipment. You do expect a complete package. Especially when you see a slew of new launches in lower segments with all the bells and whistles.

Come on, my 4 year old Cruze has way more equipment than this has right now and this is so much more expensive. Sunroof, Key-less entry & Go, Auto-dimming IRVM, Auto-wipers? Shockingly missing are the Auto-headlamps and even DRL's agreed not of much utility but it does eventually have quite a role in the front facia of the car and how it looks in the rear-view mirrors when its approaching. A well-designed one could definitely make it look much more meaner.

Even most of the switchgear and switches don't seem to be different from the ones in my 4 year old car (which is mind you, unacceptable to say the least). I hope it has decent build quality on the inside. They need to accommodate a facelift soon enough otherwise as it stands, honestly from the majority buyers perspective there are not enough reasons to buy this car for 30 big ones, it just doesn't make you feel special inside it.

I gather from the review there are quite a few other missing features as well. Would like other BHP-ians to chime in on this one.

Middle-row seat bench does not seem to be on runners, is that true? do you only get recline and cannot move the bench forwards or backwards to liberate back/forward bench legroom? What about Auto-up/down windows?

The reliability concerns however may not be too many thanks to the ladder on frame chassis and its famed robustness. However, Toyota have time and again proved their indestructible image and there is no questioning that. That with their stronger service backing and good A.S.S becomes a serious factor to consider the Fortuner to many, and rightly so.

Honestly Toyota is almost there with the Fortuner especially after the last extensive facelift. They already know what their product lacks and I'm seriously looking forward to see if they are capable of listening to us folk and delivering. Theres a high chance of the Trailblazer being absolutely devoured by the upcoming launches in this segment which is no more than 6-12 months from now, especially the one from the big T.

(No offence meant to any Chevy owner/enthusiast. These are purely just my views on the Trailblazer. I would just like to share my experience with the Fortuner and also having a Chevrolet in my garage).


Regards,

[vittalnrv]

Beautiful car. I guess it's pricing will be accepted only after launch of Endeavour 3.2 and new Fortuner.

[drive2eternity]

Brilliant review. 5 stars.

The Trailblazer is a good product, though with some missing equipment. An AWD MT may be available in the future. However, when we take into account the competition, the Trailblazer starts to lose steam.
Chevrolet should have gone the Toyota way, look where the prices of Innova and Fortuner started from and where they are priced presently. Its hard to imagine that Innova now occupies the same sphere which Fortuner began at, and yet sells like hot cakes.
Also, Toyota made the most of the 'First mover advantage'.
Trailblazer would have been a hit, possibly sold better than Fortuner, had it been launched 5 years ago. But now, like most TBhpians, I too feel it is too late for this massive SUV to make an impact.

[Karthik Chandra]

Wow!!! 197 BHP and 500 NM of torque is a new bench mark for the segment, the next best is Santa Fe with 194 BHP and 436 NM of torque.
Dual airbags at a time where manufacturers have started giving them as standard on their mass market cars??? the sub 10 lacs Aspire has 6, come on Chevy, this should have had 8 to make it stand out.
Also this competes against Fortuner, whatever people may call it, which sells about 1400 (avg) copies a month out of a total of say 1500 D2 SUVs, the D2 SUV market in India should be a whooping 450 crores portfolio (@ 30 lacs per unit for 1500 units) and is ruled by Toyota and getting a pie of that portfolio with this product will be a big challenge, IMO seems an effort to show Chevy also has presence in D2 segment.

Originally Posted by tanwaramit

Thanks for the detailed review. Very well written with nice pictures.

Any idea on the mileage for this ?

Spare tyre - Alloy ? (I hope so)

Also, does the system play movies while the car is moving ?

I seriously think, instead of CBU if GM would have brought it as CKD, the price would have been very attractive.

Mileage should be in the range of 6-8 since its kerb weight is 2068 kgs, about 200 kgs more than Fortuner and AT transmission

Yes, the spare wheel is a full size alloy.

I think system would not play movies while the car is running, not sure though

[karuvally]

I don't understand what the people at Chevrolet are thinking. The market already have a couple of solid off-roaders at this price range. The Fortuner with Toyota's reliability and Pajero Sport with go anywhere attitude. I fail to understand the true USP of this particular product. The company does not have much goodwill, the service is pathetic and most importantly, it lacks four wheel drive. I am better off with the other two, anyday.

[avdhesh15]

Awesome review... rating it a well-deserved 5 stars!

The car is great but would have been greater few years back at the time of the global launch. As a number of members have mentioned, with the new Everest (Endeavor) and Fortuner coming up in the next few months, this car's future seems to be bleak.

Chevy can't restart in India this way. They have to try something like the Kwid and not with a car 10x of that price band.

If I were in the market for a large SUV, I would go with the new Endeavor. Ford seems to have gotten the better strategy as compared to Chevy in a battle of the Americans.

[abbyanish]

Great first impressions! The highlight of this SUV is the torque figure - 500Nm is Supercar territory.

[Latheesh]

Looks like GM tied up with amazon for online booking, was surprised to see new Chevy Trailblazer listed!!

Credit, debt, and netbanking payment options are available. Sorry no cash on delivery option though!!

[NiInJa]

Great review as always ! Thanks Team-bhp.
Chevrolet must have had spent nights to get the price right by skipping some equipment as it is not going to be manufactured in India (atleast for now). I feel most of the goodies have been given a miss simply to keep the price in check against competition as importing means more tax and duty.

I see a lot of people already saying the car is dead etc. But I beg to differ, the car's (truck's) sheer size is going to win some hearts. Powerful people especially politicians and industrialists/businessmen from rural and semi-urabn background will find this car suitable for their tastes.
I own a Chevvy car and if I had that money and inclination, I would have bought this over a Toyota Fortuner.

Off topic : I hope they also bring the Spin in India quickly. These cars are atleast better looking than the GM-SAIC Chinese cars they introduced earlier.

[ACM]

Won't sell.

Too expensive for what it is but well priced for a CBU.

Endy has the platform laid out for it if it prices certain midels well.

Absence of 4x4, 6 Airbags, Auto Lights and wipers, Engine Start button with true keyless entry and also Steering reach adjustment are too many misses for the price point.

[NPV]

Excellent review .anshuman, eye for detail very evident as always
I think an all black interior or Black + Grey combo would have given an even more premium feel. Trailblazer's looks remind me of the upcoming Tata Hexa!

For someone paying so much moolah, those small things shouldn't be missing - sill/scuff plates, larger MID Dials, backlit switches, Auto dimming IRVMs, Steering reach adjustment to name a few.

Also, I have a suggestion for the official reviews - Please consider adding a "Conclusion/Recommendation" section either to the opening post or the last post.
Since the reviews are honest ones and from the perspective of a prospective buyer ("What you'll like", "What you won't like" for example) they can also have a conclusion/recommendation section that should recommend a Buy Vs Don't Buy considering pricing and specification/service & parts support comparison with the closest contenders in that segment. If not so assertive, at least a "do consider these other cars"