Test Drive Chevrolet Blazer 5 Doors 1997 - 2005 SUV
Blazel
In the motor NO 6 (14), the readers was proposed to the readers from the Elabuga plant about the start of production in Russia Chevrolet Blazer. The first cars did not have time to go on sale as GM organized a press drive in Moscow at the Khodynsky field. Here we see a good example of American efficiency in creating an extensive dealer network and simultaneous active propaganda of their products. 
The version offered for Russia is a BRAZER brazilian modification, as simplified and calculated on the unassuming and inhaled consumer. Meanwhile, this is a normal, good-quality machine, with a spacious salon, well-calculated ergonomics and modern design. The model is not new, it is found quite often on our roads, so we will not talk in detail about the exterior, but we will not dwell on the rear door, which, unlike the North American version, is made in the Latin American version. The Brazilian origin of the Elabuga Blazer can be determined by a signboard located on the front doors in which two recent letters have a more rounded form, unlike the angular font of the original inscription.
Landing in the car is comfortable - with a common enough high height of the machine, the thresholds are quite low, and the doors are large and open wide. The cabin is designed in gray colors, the seats of the upholstery is practical, slightly porous matter, torpedoes and door panels are made of elastic plastic. The rear sofa consists of two parts, folding apart, to create a different freight configuration. The front armchairs are adjustable in height, the tilt of the back and, naturally, move forward-back. The range of adjustments is quite wide, but even as much as possible, the seat for passengers in the second row remains a lot of space. Review opening from the driver's seat is very good. The car is high and large, but the dimensions are feeling fine. 
The steering column is adjustable in height with a small range, but to select the optimal position of this is quite enough. The left subwoofer controls the rotation pointers and the wiper with stepless speed adjustment. The steering wheel is quite large with a soft coating rotates absolutely effortless to be typical of American vetibility. Switches Overall lights - Middle Light are made in the form of two huge keys to the left of the steering column. They are included strictly sequentially. The dashboard is read easily and contains a standard combination of necessary sensors, pointers and indicators, including a tachometer. On the center console there are radio tape recorders with a digital display and climate control panel in the cabin. Under them an ashtray, in size, comparable with a cigarette pack. Two more ashtrays, reminiscent of match boxes, are in the rear doors. The gear shift lever is installed with a strong slope toward the cabin and is a long metallic pole with a round embassy, \u200b\u200bslightly draped with a leather case. This is probably a tribute to off-road traditions, because on modern machines, designers prefer to install small levers, if necessary, using various transfer mechanisms. Pedals are quite comfortable, short-terrestrial and elastic. 
With the engine turned on at idle turns in the cabin almost complete silence, only the highest turns of the motor makes a bass, nice sound. For a sharp start of the power of a 2.2-liter engine, of course, it is not enough, but acceleration in the entire revolution range occurs evenly.
With a rectilinear movement along the dirt road, the car is unsolonged, the suspension perfectly copes with the treatment of solubular ugbs. On the bold the situation is somewhat worse. The car is easily breaking into the skid, and it is possible to align it, only two or three times shifting the steering wheel. 
Perhaps some motion lovers in extreme modes will find a special charm in Blazer management and reanimate the almost lost art of turning in the controlled drift. Since the behavior of the machine is absolutely predictable, and stability is high enough, which is ensured by excellent suspension adjustment. Checking the brakes when leaving the asphalt showed that they fully correspond to the design and mass of the machine. The pedal has high informativeness, and its successful location allows you to act equally efficiently to act as right and left foot. When the speed of the high-speed section, the car, alas, did not show any way. At a distance of about a hundred meters to the fourth transmission, it was not possible to get. In compensation for lack of power on a dry solid coating, the machine again demonstrated excellent handling. A small diameter of the reversal can still be reduced due to the breakdown of the rear axle, and the snake with some skill in handling American hydraulics to go fast enough. 
The car made a favorable impression. It was created, naturally, not for racing, and as a reliable working car and was very well proven. Price - $ 25,000, which almost twice the cost of the brought and cleared car of a similar class. And wishing to purchase a more expensive version with a full drive and 4.3 liters, the V6 engine, with a capacity of 193 liters. with. And the big set of options will have to wait two to three months when GM promises to establish their release in Elabuga, and pay about $ 5,000 more. Thanks to the emergence of the Russian firstborn, the imaging of the SUVs and market conditions will probably change, because now one of the most prestigious and steep, according to Russian concepts, models occupies, as around the world, the position of the workhorse or a car for walking, publicly available and common. Evgeny Romantsky
A source: Motor magazine
