SA Road Tests

Welcome

This is the home of automobile road tests in South Africa. We drive South African cars, SUVs and LCVs under South African conditions. It also just happens that most of the vehicles we drive are world cars as well, so what you read here possibly applies to the models you can get at home.

*To read one of our archived road tests, just select from the alphabetical menu of manufacturers' names on the left. Hover your cursor over the manufacturer's name, then choose from the drop-down menu that appears.

*Please remember too, that prices quoted were those ruling on the days I wrote the reports.


We blaze new trails in the 2014 Chevrolet TrailBlazer 2.8 LTZ diesel

Smoother but still rugged

Posted: 9 June 2014

When we drove the original 2.8 diesel TrailBlazer back in February 2012, we reckoned it was: “Nice, but a little unrefined and somewhat noisier than we expected a car with this one’s aspirations to be.” Not exactly a ringing endorsement and we decided that, bang for buck, we preferred the LT-trimmed 2.5-litre version.

We also had the idea, back then, that the engine came from Isuzu because of the Duramax name (D-Max, get it?) but GMSA was cagey about its pedigree and simply denied it. They’re still playing it close but we’re pretty sure now that this 2.8 is the A 428 DOHC motor from previous engine partners VM Motori. All the specs match up and it makes sense, because GM owned half the company until recently, while Fiat held the balance. The company is now once again 100-percent Italian, with Fiat-Chrysler the sole shareholder.

But none of that really matters. What is interesting is that the engine was given a gentle power boost for 2014; from 132 kilowatt to 144. Torque stays the same at 440 Nm unless it’s an automatic. They are given 500 Nm but keep the same power. The result is that the big TrailBlazer drives more smoothly, turns fewer revs at cruising speed (1800 rpm rather than 2300) and is more economical. It’s still more Laid-back Larry than Speedy Gonzales though, with zero to 100 km/h time and top speed remaining the same.

New kit includes a sixth ratio for the manual gearbox; rear park assist and camera; a sophisticated multi-information centre with LCD display featuring an extended on-board computer plus things like battery voltage, an adjustable speed warning, transmission fluid temperature for off-road use, engine hours and an oil life indicator. Finally the new MyLink infotainment centre pairs with your smartphone and a new, full-sized USB to play all kinds of media and connect with your social world. For a fuller description, read about it in our report on the Sonic RS.

A rotary selector on the centre console lets you choose between 2 high, 4 high and 4 low but there isn’t a differential lock for serious boondock exploration, although its off-road specs are still pretty decent. It’s just a pity that 4x4 versions lose some ground clearance compared with the 4x2s – because of the bulkier gearbox and diff assembly. It was respectably comfortable over the dips, humps and rocks of our tenderfoot trail and much nicer than some others we have driven along a particular tooth-rattling provincial dirt road we know.

Once the tailgate is up, loading takes place at about waist height, with the stash tray for the cargo cover under the floor board. You will need to use this if you decide to lift the sixth and seventh seats out of the floor, but there is at least somewhere to put the cover. We don’t recall what it was like last time, but getting the cover back out of its bay was difficult; eventually needing a long screwdriver to compress the latching slide to release it.

The fully sized spare hangs, pickup style, under the chassis. While we were clambering about back there, we tried the third-row seats again and decided to revise our 2012 comment; they are for small folk only. On the positive side, they have dedicated belts and adjustable head restraints and there are separate cup holders for the kids’ juice containers.

Passengers in the second row have enough head-, knee- and foot space to get comfortable in, although we found the doorways a little narrow for genteel entry and exit. Being a body-on-frame vehicle, it’s quite a leap from seats to terra firma but running boards, and grab handles above each door, make things easier.

So how does it compare with the old one? The uprated engine is certainly smoother, it’s stingier with fuel and it offers a lot more in-car entertainment. There’s still a feeling that it’s more Davy Crockett than David Beckham, but that’s probably what its buyers prefer. Further, its price has increased by only ten percent over the past two years, so with collapsing exchange rates and the extra kit and refinement, it’s actually good value.

Test car from GMSA press fleet

The numbers
Price: R504 500
Engine: 2776 cc, four-cylinder, DOHC, 16-valve, turbodiesel
Power: 144 kW at 3600 rpm
Torque: 440 Nm at 2000 rpm
Zero to 100 km/h: 11,8 seconds
Maximum speed: 180 km/h
Real life fuel consumption: About 9,1 l/100 km
Tank: 76 litres
Luggage: 205/1229/1830 litres
Ground clearance: 218 mm
Approach and departure angles: 30/22 degrees
Warranty: 5 years/120 000 km; with roadside assistance
Service plan: 5 years/90 000 km; at annual or 15 000 km intervals

To see our report on the 2012 TrailBlazer 2.8 LTZ click here

To see more about MyLink click here


 Automatic version shown

What We Do

This is a one-man show, which means that every car reviewed is given my personal evaluation and receives my own seat of the pants judgement - no second hand input here.
Every test car goes through real world driving; on city streets littered with potholes, speed bumps and rumble strips, on freeways and if its profile demands, dirt roads as well.

I do my best to include relevant information like real life fuel economy or a close mathematical calculation, boot size or luggage space, whether the space is both usable and accessible, whether life-sized people can use the back seat (where that applies), basic specs of the vehicle and performance figures if they are published. In the case of clearly identified launch reports, fuel figures are of necessity the laboratory numbers provided with the release material. If I ever place an article that doesn't cover most things, it's probably because I have dealt with that vehicle at least once already, so you will be able to find what you want in another report under the same manufacturer's heading in the menu on the left.

Hope you like what you see, because there are no commercial interests at work here. As quite a few readers have found, I answer every serious enquiry from my home email address, with my phone numbers attached, so they can see I do actually exist.

Comments?
Want to ask a question, comment or just tell me you thoroughly disagree with what I say? That's your privilege, because if everybody agreed on everything, the world would be a boring place. All I ask is that you remain calm, so please blow off a little steam before venting too vigorously.