HOLDEN TRAILBLAZER
New name for hugely improved Holden 4x4
AUSSIES have always appreciated ruggedness. Whether it’s a bloke who knows how to stump a fence or a car that never quits, there’s something about having the ability to tackle any challenge that rallies our troops. How else do you explain the rise of the separate-chassis, seven-seat SUV?
Holden joined the fray four years ago with the agricultural Colorado 7 which, as its name implied, was a commercial chassis with a wagon body on top. But it’s amazing what three years of re-engineering can achieve.
Colorado 7 is out and Trailblazer is in, sporting handsome new front-end styling, new 18-inch alloys on up-spec LTZ and a heap of refinement-focused upgrades introducing some decorum.
Co-developed with GM Brazil and Thailand, but driven by our market’s more sophisticated demands, Trailblazer is a substantially different vehicle.
A new damper tune, revised body mounts, retuned electric steering with a faster rack (down from 3.4 to 3.29 turns lock-to-lock) and new Bridgestone Dueler tyres (for improved comfort and wetsurface grip) doesn’t sound like much, but the reality is a far more comfortable, capable SUV.
Despite the limitations of its body-on-frame design, live rear axle (admittedly with five links and coil springs) and three-tonne towing demands, the Trailblazer does its best to overcome those obstacles. You can still sense a fair amount of unsprung mass, but the Trailblazer’s damping finesse means it remains nicely controlled on lumpy surfaces, without the jiggly pitter-patter that so often undermines this type of vehicle.
Hell, it’s even a bit of fun when you’re in the zone. While Trailblazer’s steering remains far from sharp, it’s consistently weighted and firms up naturally in corners. And there’s an innate balance to Trailblazer’s er’s chassis that transfers load onto its rear end for confidence-inspiring,piring effortless country-road motoring.
It’s quiet, too, thanks to a host of NVH measures (see sidebar). Gone is the engine’s grumble, replaced by a drivetrain that delivers determined, lag-free punch off the line and unexpected slickness of response. And the six-speed auto delivers smooth manual downshifts as early as possible, for proper engine braking.
But the cherry garnishing Trailblazer’s refinement is its new interior, despite a lack of steering reach adjustment and the compromise this demands of your driving position (even with sixway electric adjustment in LTZ).
For a family in love with the great outdoors, Trailblazer mounts a hugely persuasive value argument. Yet this time, lots of kit for the cash isn’t its only attraction.