Why Chevy Needs a True Off-Road Blazer Again
Since 2020, sales of GM’s combustion-powered Blazer have been in steady decline. Even the all-electric Blazer is a bit of a niche seller these days. Although it has seen significant sales growth, the declining-in-popularity combustion-powered Blazer still outsells its EV counterpart by more than double. A name once revered for its rugged, truck-like utility, the Chevy Blazer was resurrected in 2019 as a midsize, unibody family crossover, much to the dismay of longtime Blazer enthusiasts who adored the model for its old-school, truck-frame capability. Now, the model faces an identity crisis. With the recent resurgence in popularity of midsize body-on-frame SUVs, brands like Ford, Jeep, and Toyota have capitalized on demand with models such as the Bronco, Wrangler, 4Runner, and Land Cruiser. My question is: why hasn’t GM?
Chevrolet
The Case for a Body-On-Frame Return
It’s not as if GM doesn’t have a capable platform quite literally ready to go. The Ford Bronco sits on the Ranger pickup truck’s underpinnings, the Wrangler shares its bones with the Jeep Gladiator, and the Toyota 4Runner shares its chassis with the venerable Tacoma. So, then, the existence of the Chevrolet Colorado and the GMC Canyon begs the question: where is the SUV version? After all, that’s precisely what the Chevy Blazer used to be: an SUV that shared its platform with Chevrolet’s midsize pickup truck, the S-10 (the Colorado’s predecessor).
Chevrolet Performance
As the unibody Blazer sees steady sales declines, perhaps it’s time for GM to reconsider its direction for the model. I think that, for its next generation, a true-to-its-roots K5-style Blazer might prove a more successful strategy, poised to rival the Ford Bronco and the Jeep Wrangler just as the K5 Blazer did so many decades ago—especially as demand for old-school, genuinely rugged SUVs skyrockets. So, with the help of Adobe Photoshop, Midjourney 7.0, and Gemini 3 Pro, I’ve put some renders together to take an imagined look at what a next-gen Chevy Blazer could look like if GM decided to take the model back to its roots, thereby offering buyers a desirable combination of authenticity and rugged utility. Disclaimer: these renders are purely fictional and do not depict any actual Chevrolet or General Motors products.
Cole Attisha Using Adobe Photoshop, Midjourney 7.0, and Gemini 3 Pro
Imagining a K5-Inspired Next-Gen Blazer
I’d love to see the Chevy Blazer return to its ladder-frame roots, and the Chevrolet Colorado offers the ideal platform for such a creation. With a shortened wheelbase and retro-modern proportions that evoke the boxy style of the original K5 Blazer, a modern midsize off-roader from Chevrolet could benefit from two- and four-door body styles, as seen with the Ford Bronco and Jeep Wrangler. With wheels pulled from the Colorado ZR2 Desert Boss, boxy proportions that evoke the original K5, modern LED headlights that emanate the stacked look of past GM trucks, and wraparound rear window glass that adds plenty of natural light into the cabin and enhances outward visibility, these renders offer an enthusiastic glimpse into the potential future of GM, should they come round to their senses with the Blazer.
Cole Attisha Using Adobe Photoshop, Midjourney 7.0, and Gemini 3 Pro
Powertrain Possibilities for a Rugged Blazer
Under the hood, since it’d likely share its underpinnings with the Chevy Colorado, I’d imagine it would also make sense for it to share its powertrains with the pickup truck. That could mean the inclusion of the Chevy Colorado’s turbocharged 2.7-liter four-cylinder engine, which produces up to 310 horsepower and a whopping 430 lb-ft of torque, and is paired to an eight-speed automatic gearbox and four-wheel drive with a dual-range transfer case. I’d love to see it offered with a proper manual gearbox too, since both the Ford Bronco and the Jeep Wrangler can still be equipped with the magical lever of driver engagement.
Taking more of its party tricks from the Colorado ZR2 Desert Boss, the hypothetical revived Blazer could also feature the off-roader’s Multimatic DSSV dampers, electronic lockers, a 3-inch lift, and 33-inch MT tires on beadlock-capable wheels—as it’s depicted with in the accompanying renders shown here. Additionally, I—and likely many others—would love to see something like this also offer a proper small-block V8. To compete with the Wrangler’s 6.4-liter V8 offering, I’d imagine the 6.2-liter unit that’s available in the Chevy Tahoe would make for a fitting rival, as it produces 433 horsepower and 467 lb-ft of torque when equipped with the RST Package. That’s not quite as much power as the Hemi Wrangler’s mill, which offers 470 horsepower and 470 lb-ft of torque, but it’s damn close, and GM’s pushrod V8 engines tend to be quite friendly to performance modification.
Cole Attisha Using Adobe Photoshop, Midjourney 7.0, and Gemini 3 Pro
Final Thoughts: Is Chevrolet Ready to Build a Real Bronco Rival?
Body-on-frame SUVs are booming. People can’t get enough of them! It astounds me that, while GM makes a competent midsize off-road platform, and has earned itself a favorable reputation with buyers for its rugged pickup trucks and even its larger body-on-frame SUV offerings, such as the Chevy Tahoe and Suburban, the automanufacturing conglomerate hasn’t attempted to sell an SUV on a shared platform with the Colorado since the Hummer H3 set sail towards the sunset in 2010. Meanwhile, Toyota has cemented the 4Runner’s reputation as a capable family-hauling off-roader with unkillable durability, Jeep has continued the success of its Wrangler, and Ford has launched the ever-successful Bronco. It’s better late than never for GM, but if the automaker doesn’t take advantage of the opportunity soon, it might miss out on the lucrative segment forevermore…
About the author
Cole Attisha
Staff Writer, Autoblog