1995 Chevy Blazer and GMC Jimmy | Retro Review

MotorWeek is made possible by Lucas Oil Auto Value and bumper to bumper and tirerack.com it's no secret that Chevrolet and GMC truck are selling all of the full-size light trucks they can make but Ford's Explorer and Chrysler's Jeep Cherokees dominate the booming compact sport utility segment well GM may change that with a pair of new small sport Utes this Chevrolet Blazer and the GMC truck Jimmy based on last year's very successful S-Series pickups these Sleek go anywhere machines just make catapult GM to the head of the pack foreign and they'll do that on the strength of a thoroughly reworked Platform One well equipped to handle everything from off-road to Urban Jungle both the two and four-door Chevy Blazer and its almost identical cousin the GMC truck Jimmy have a stronger box section frame and offer four different carefully tailored suspension and tire packages we're delighted how GM smoothed out this compact 4x4 styling without losing the robust look of the original s Blazer the sloping hood and rounded Grille comes straight from the S-Series pickups but it is the rear pairing of sweeping backlight and sharply rake seat pillar that really catches the eye the interior benefits from a similar transformation and now compares favorably in space and convenience to its top competitors the new Dash is straightforward yet stylish with the right amount of large well-marked controls but only one airbag currently par for the course in the sport utility class and a comprehensive analog instrument package that includes oil pressure and volt meters women are increasingly becoming primary sport utility drivers and they'll appreciate the relatively low step up to the front bench or bucket seats and while we like the optional six-way power bucket seat adjustments more lateral support is called for the Blazer Jimmy departs from GM truck convention by placing three car-like rotary switches of the ventilation system parallel to the stereo which in the case of the optional CD player offers a user-friendly selection of large knobs and small buttons convenience features include cup holders front and rear plenty of storage space and the Swiss army knife of sun visors the rear passenger area is very spacious now and features a low back split bench seat which folds completely flat and along with a relocation of the spare tire to the outside of the vehicle gives the four-door Blazer a total cargo volume of 74.1 cubic feet we also like the split rear tailgate which offers more flexibility with less weight than a hatch pop open the other end and you'll find the latest version of GM's 4.3 liter Vortec V6 balance shaft engine last year's optional motor is now standard and it turns out 195 horsepower and a hefty 260 pound-feet of torque which feeds through a crisp move column mounted 4-speed automatic transmission that's also standard a 5-speed manual comes in a few months but only on two-door models tucked under the dash on 4x4 models is another shifter but the two-speed instatrac four-wheel drive system this rugged part-time unit allows shifts into four-wheel high at any speed a fully automatic transfer case is also due by spraying on the subject of speed the latest Blazer reached 60 in 8.9 seconds and will finish the quarter mile in 16.8 seconds at 83 miles per hour it did so smoothly by exploiting the vortec v6's wide spread of power slick shape and new chassis increase rigidity upper and lower control arms with torsion bars up front and a solid axle on leaf springs in the rear are complemented by the decarbon gas shocks of the optional zw7 luxury suspension package that we drove most traction through corners is impressive but heavy body and tire roll through sharp Maneuvers reminded us that this sport Ute is still more truck than car as did the anti-lock equipped front disc and rear drum brakes which had a vague pedal feel but still turned in a very respectable 125 foot average stopping distance Alton open roads our test Blazer delivered a very plush ride but for all around use we'd probably opt for the standard zq1 package which also offers better Towing ability the Blazer Jimmy is quiet too with a sound level of 68 decibels at 60. EPA ratings are 16 City and 21 Highway we average 20 miles per gallon the all-season Michelin tires of our Blazers luxury suspension package naturally lacked byte off-road despite this our Blazer put power down on loose surfaces very well more aggressive tires its performance is outstanding for which the price of Blazer admission is 18 145 dollars for the base two-door two-wheel drive model four doors and four-wheel drive raise the price to 21 953 and for a fully loaded LT grade machine the total will touch 27 thousand dollars the 95 Chevrolet Blazer and GMC truck Jimmy are clearly not the vehicles they once were this new generation of the original small sport youth wagon is clearly a regeneration now Standing Tall with the best of the class for GM the Blazer Jimmy duet is a home run [Music] foreign [Music]

Channel: MotorWeek

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Keywords: MotorWeek, MW, car, truck, suv, cuv, crossover, auto, automobile, vehicle, motor trend, review, drive, first drive, video

Id: 0vBDgadV4Ys

Length: 6min 2sec (362 seconds)

Published: Thu Jun 15 2023