Black ice can be sneaky. Its rarely a problem for the experienced snow driver who is aware they are on it. I know of 3 flipped vehicles (myself included) that combined those two statements in the wrong way ;)

What’s hilarious to me is how everyone loves to knock the 4.2L for not being “as good” as the 5.3L in power/fuel economy. Classic internal GM strife, I say. They’ve spent the better part of 40 years refining the 5.3L vs the new 4.2L. Given 40 years of refinement I’m sure the 4.2L would be as big or bigger of a knockout engine.

That said, going after a slightly smaller I-6 may have been the smarter route just so you could use it in a number of different platforms. Too bad no one plans or thinks that way at GM. Now all they can do is cancel one new engine so that they can dump $5B into developing another new engine. Stupids.

GM continues to prove its point to me by it’s own Customers. My father-in-law has a Caddy STS 2005, with 70K miles on it. He just had to put a third set of brakes on it brakes on it ($900), have the lower engine block seal(?) replaced by completely unbolting and rotating the motor ($2,100). They said that the front driveshafts are completely trashed and that the tranny is going ($4,200 total to fix). All this and the car doesn’t even have 80K on it – it isn’t worth a bag of doodie. My 2005 Elantra GT has the about the same miles on it – I had to pay for the map pocket netting to be replaced at $80.

It’s been a very dependable vehicle and has given us 45k trouble free miles. Most of its life is spent on long highway trips and family vacations down to South Carolina. The seats are comfortable for the 14 hour drive and the gas mileage is decent for a 4.2L L6. We usually get a tad over 20mpg on the interstate. GM really hit the nail on the head with this engine. The Vortec 4200 can almost make one forgive the silly-puddy dashboard.

I do know people who love these trucks. One guy had his older Trailblazer totaled and he recently bought an 07 LT Model. Most of the people who buy these trucks seem to be the rugged type rather than the soccer mom or white collar husband. I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but some people honestly don’t really care that much about hard plastics or fancy knobs and switches. They want something that can take life off road and the Trailblazer does have this rugged nature about it which makes its shortcomings seem forgivable.

I wish I could find the quote I’d read in Lemon-Aid a few years back to that effect. To paraphrase:

“Of every hundred (thousand?) vehicles we build, ten are as good as anything that Toyota makes, ten are fit only for the crusher, and the remaining eighty are a toss-up”

It was from someone senior at Chrysler. It may have been Iacocca himself. Again, I can’t find the quote. That, and the ownership experience of a 1976 Dodge Aspen, ended my family’s string of Chrysler ownership and drove them straight into Toyota’s waiting arms.

I’m sure most TrailBlazers are decent enough, but the quality of GM products from this era is incredibly spotty. At the ‘Blazer’s price-versus-content point this might be acceptable, but in a Ranier, Bravada or 9-7x it was gag-worthy.

>>>But as-is, it just isn’t worth it, and I’m a bit confused by all the positive comments. Odd for this group.<<<

I think it’s more nostalgia for inline-6s. They inherently have many advantages, and the 250 and 292 I6s epitomized GM.

All service done by a local independent. Biggest repairs – one set of Coopers, two sets of brakes.

Gets 20MPG on the highway, is comfortable on long trips. And is just a monster in the snow.

It’s my wife’s commuter – 100 miles a day – and has never left her stranded. Not falling apart, runs as good as the day we bought it. Paint and trim still looks great.

I regret not finding that thread to credit the person (who loves them some Chrysler HEMIs) who said that. Whoever that was, thank you very much. :)

Uhhh, if you think we got the lock on GM flaming/criticism/whatever, you are giving TTAC too much credit. Oh, and you might not wanna call dew542512 an “uninformed drone,” because maybe his Highlander was in the body shop after a major accident???

That and our “don’t insult other people” banning policy. Of course, I’m only thinking about fairness. (wink)

Whoever told you that is a person after my own heart, and a 4.2L Trailblazer is certainly a good example of that idea.

Isn’t that ironic? The “reliable” Toyota out for a week! And all you can do is complain about the TrailBlazer. Typical uninformed drone.
Oh yes, I’ve had a couple of TrailBlazers and an Envoy as well. No problems. Bullet proof reliability. I would acknowledge that the Envoy had a nicer interior however.
I would also venture to say that over half of the best and brightest denouncing the TrailBlazer have probably never owned or driven one. They are disciples and respond as they feel they should.

“I actually wrote GM about this very issue, believe it or not. The response was “thanks for your interest we have forwarded your letter to our product planners”. So, don’t hold your breath waiting to find out.”

Really? I can’t believe engineering didn’t stop production and implement your idea immediately. I also mailed them and asked that they put the LS6 into the Aveo.

“A drunk could assemble it (and I suspect many of the esteemed UAW workers are) ”

Ahh- the Best and Brightest!

“The Chevy TrailBlazer is the butt of many a joke, or outright Internet flame. ”

And you think that is universally true? Or perhaps you might want to clarify with a “here at TTAC” disclaimer. Of course, only thinking of fairness.

Hey, thanks for the unbiased statements that are based on facts and are in no way colored by personal opinion. Work for Faux News?

The Blazer ain’t no oil painting either. And the advantage of the Trailblazer being a truck and not a sedan? MPG

Are you suggesting that the TrailBlazer is comparable to an Acura TL? I don’t normally compare a dated SUV to the latest and greatest (ha-ha) mid-luxury sedan, much less cross shop them as a serious buyer!

Maybe its a 2 star vehicle, but the Chevy did enough things right for me (during the time I had it) to give it the extra star.