Chevrolet Bringing Back The Blazer As A Crossover

It appears the another iconic SUV will be returning to dealer lots in the near future. Chevrolet seems poised to bring the Blazer back in 2018.

There are several reports floating around that after years of concepts, Chevrolet is about to revive the Blazer. Just a few months ago, Ford announced the return of the Bronco. Other than being revived names, they are going in two completely different directions.

While the SUV Bronco is being built on the new Ford small truck platform, the Blazer will be a crossover on a minivan chassis. Some of the rumors have it even coming as a FWD hybrid. With the direction Chevrolet has gone for fuel mileage, this makes sense.

With the crossover market becoming very crowded, Chevrolet is looking to stand out. Building a fuel efficient hybrid that was affordable would do just that. By building the Blazer on the smaller, lighter chassis, the battery requirements would be held to a minimum. The real question is there going to be a market for it.

While Ford seems to be going after a nostalgia market with an offroad midsized SUV, I am not sure why Chevrolet is using the popular Balzer name on a crossover. The Bronco will be available in 4WD and ready for the trails. It is not like Chevrolet is lacking a platform to build the new Blazer on. The Colorado is very capable and would have been a great starting point.

While Ford is having a hard time keeping the Raptor on the lot, and the Rebel RTX is gaining popularity, Chevy has been sitting on the sidelines when it comes to factory-built off-road vehicles. It would seem that Chevy is missing an opportunity with the Blazer. The difficulty Chevy is having developing a competitor to Ford’s small displacement, hi output ecoboost family may be the reason.

Chevrolet has been trotting out Blazer concepts to auto shows for years on truck chassis. It is surprising that Chevy would go the crossover route for the nameplate. It could be as simple as the names Trax and Equinox are not resonating with customers. Whatever the reason, it would seem like Chevrolet is wasting a brand with rich history.

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You would think that after the overwhelming success of the reborn Camero, the minds in Detroit would understand the value of a popular brand. Off-roading is regaining popularity, and the K5 Blazer is still an icon. Bringing it back as an FWD hybrid SUV could actually turn off buyers. With all the great jobs car makers have been doing bringing back older models, it seems Chevrolet might be laying an egg.