Rational ride: Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier

While many of today’s crossovers come chock-full of in-your-face technological amenities, some nameplates are packed with necessities that ensure convenience without taking away the fun of driving.

The Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier, for example, can be considered a practical daily driver that can answer the needs of many Filipino car buyers. Here’s Zigwheels Philippines’ take after spending a short — but sweet — time with the golden bowtie brand’s rational ride.

Dimensions

The Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier measures 4,408 millimeters (mm) long, 1,808 mm wide, and 2,052 mm tall. It has a wheelbase of 2,640 mm and a ground clearance of 178 mm.

Due to its size, it offers a considerable amount of road presence but makes driving through narrow roads and parking at tight spots still manageable.

Exterior

Outside, the most striking feature of the Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier is its Camaro-inspired fascia.

It wears an imposing grille at the fore with a chrome strip that divides the upper and lower portion of the latticework.

Above is the golden Chevy badge alongside sleek-looking headlamps and daytime running lights. Below is a large portion of the grate flanked by the main headlamps. On its chin is a brushed aluminum trim with two fog lamps on its borders and a silver skid plate.

The side profile of the Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier is highlighted by sport utility vehicle-esque claddings. These are blacked-out trims found on its wheel arches, side sills, and doors. Complementing the said appointments are its dark-colored A- and B-pillars.

A set of 17-inch two-tone aluminum wheels wrapped in Continental-made 255/60 series tires and power-folding side mirrors with integrated turn signals round up the side features of the Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier.

Finally, it gets a power tailgate at the back with taillamps, a discreet spoiler with an integrated high-mount stop lamp, a good-sized glass with a wiper, a beefy bumper, and a silver skid plate.

Overall, the Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier has a sporty look without being too loud. It has the right amount of angles and curves that make it a handsome ride without catching too much attention.

Interior

The cabin of the Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier does its best to keep up with some of the modern crossovers in the segment, especially with the large infotainment systems offered by the latter.

Speaking of which, the nameplate has an eight-inch infotainment display screen that looks like it came straight out of a brochure from the early 2000s. It is set at the center of the dashboard and is bordered by thick black bezels with a glossy surface.

Nevertheless, it has wired Apple Carplay and Android Auto, which could help make the use of navigation and audio integration a more seamless experience.

Accompanying the aforementioned infotainment unit is an instrument cluster with a 3.5-inch monochrome screen. Analog gauges are set on each side of the digital monitor. These meters have legible numbers and easy-to-understand information.

The Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier comes with seats that have leather-style upholstery and decent bolstering. The steering wheel is swathed in soft leather, while the majority of the cabin is finished in hard plastics.

It also gets physical audio and air conditioning controls befitting the style of its interior. It has a sturdy-looking gear shifter and an electric parking brake.

Occupants sitting at the back will benefit from a flat floor, although they won’t have dedicated air conditioning vents to keep them cool or charging ports to juice up their devices.

In general, the Chevrolet Trailblazer Premiere has an odd mix of physical, digital, and electronic appointments in its cabin. However, unlike the tech-laden crossovers offered by some brands, these features feel more durable and appear to be sturdier.

Engine, performance

Under the hood of the Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier is a 1.3-liter turbocharged gasoline engine. It is mated to a continuously variable transmission.

On paper, it makes some 155 horsepower with 236 Newton-meters of torque.

Driving around the city, the nameplate offered more than enough peppiness, making it an exciting crossover to drive in stop-and-go traffic. The power delivery is also distributed evenly, so those sitting behind the wheel can be confident when overtaking or simply when gaining speed.

Despite the lack of a manual transmission, the Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier does have a manual mode that can be toggled using the buttons on its shifter. And because the shifter still resembles that of a stick (instead of the knobs and levers found on more modern vehicles), changing the gears still offers somewhat of a sporty feeling.

Stopping power comes from a set of disc brakes front and back. They handle deceleration with ease and bring the vehicle to a halt smoothly.

When it comes to its suspension system, the Chevrolet Trailblazer uses a MacPherson strut at the front and a torsion beam setup at the rear. The ride quality sometimes felt a little jerky and in some instances, body roll was somewhat noticeable.

Safety

Chevrolet packed the Trailblazer’s Premier variant with a handful of safety technologies. These include standard ones like seatbelts, airbags, rear parking sensors, a reverse camera, anti-lock braking, electronic stability control, electronic brake-force distribution, hill-start assist, fading brake assist, and a traction control system.

It is also equipped with advanced driver assist systems like forward collision alert, follow distance indicator, automatic emergency braking, front pedestrian braking, lane change alert with side blind zone alert, lane keeping assist with lane departure warning, and rear cross-traffic alert, among others.

Pricing, variants

The Chevrolet Trailblazer is offered in two trims. The base model is the LT grade and the range-topping variant is Premier.

Below are their respective prices:

• Trailblazer LT: P1.518 million
• Trailblazer Premier: P1.701 million

Final thoughts

The Chevrolet Trailblazer Premier is a good option for car buyers looking for a no-nonsense crossover. It packs just the right amount of technologies that make one’s driving experience convenient but does not take away the excitement of sitting behind the wheel.

It’s a good vehicle for those who want to find the perfect balance between driving and being driven.

Also read:

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