Two (apparent) semi-casualties of the Coronavirus pandemic have been the planned Spring 2020 introductions of the all-new Ford Bronco Sport and Chevy Trailblazer.....the larger Ford Bronco's introduction was earlier delayed till the end of this year or early next year. I've checked the inventories of most of the local Ford and Chevy dealerships in my area, and no Bronco Sports or Trailblazers have arrived yet, or even seem to be on the "In-Transit" list. Ford did not
have the Bronco Sport at the D.C. Auto Show, as I had hoped it would, and, after endless speculation here in Car Chat, we at least know, thanks to Hoovey2411 finally posting some accurate specs and pre-introduction shots without camoflauge , what the Bronco Sport is going to look like, and what's going to be under the skin. Now, we just have to wait, I guess, till the world gets back to normal.....or at least some semblance of normal.

Although it had been previously displayed at the Los Angeles Auto Show last November, we did get to see the Chevy Trailblazer at the D.C. Auto Show, out on the floor, unlocked, where we could get in and sample the interior and look under the hood (unfortunately, the two available turbo 1.2L and 1.3L three-cylinder powerplants under the hood are, IMO, both a joke). The somewhat-upmarket Buick cousin to the Trailblazer (the Encore GX) was also at the D.C. show, up off the floor on a turntable, so no sampling was allowed. The flip side, though, was that the Encore GX, unlike the Trailblazer, started driving at dealerships just a couple of weeks after the show, and I was able to test-drive one....we're still waiting for the Trailblazer, though.

Having been able to look at the Trailblazer inside and out at the show, though, I was quite impressed with it, other than what was under the hood....and, even then, 1.3L versions come with the same advanced GM 9-speed automatic as my Lacrosse. This vehicle, especially the base version starting at only $19,995 (if you can do with FWD instead of AWD), is a heck of a bargain. Those of you who follow my posts know that I had, and still have, a very low opinion of the larger, mid-sized Chevy Blazer....but Chevy, except for the powerplants, can be forgiven for doing a MUCH nicer job on the sub-compact Trailblazer...particularly in the interior, two-tone paint choices, and general level of fit/finish. And, unlike past GM practice, a lot of safety-features come standard even on low-line models. The only real marketing goof I've seen, besides the engines, is that, on the Encore GX, to get the small Beep-Sensors on the rear bumper for backing up, you have to buy the Technology package...that doesn't seem (?) to be the case with the Trailblazer, but it's unclear from the Chevy specs.

Frankly, once the Bronco Sport and Trailblazer hit local dealerships, I think they are going to sell like beer at Happy Hour.....assuming, of course, that people get jobs, income, and bank-accounts back again, and, in some cases, recovery from the Coronavirus itself. Who knows?.....Uncle Sam may even be paying for some of those sales with a Cash-for-Clunkers program.

 

Ford and GM are both gonna be in a world of hurt very soon. People are not gonna be driving Broncos and TB in droves....they will switch to cars....smaller cars...higher quality cars with value,... One of these two companies will go bankrupt...

 

No offense, but please make up your mind. Two months ago, you (and several others) said that both Ford and GM did the right thing by dropping cars......that everybody would be buying crossovers, especially small crossovers. That's what the sales-numbers seemed to be showing....at least until the virus hit and shut down almost everything.

I'll admit that my view has partially-changed somewhat, at least on one thing. I still think that GM and Ford should have kept the passenger-car options open for those who want them (it might have even saved that long and crippling strike), but there is no denying the tremendous appeal these small crossovers have.

And the Bronco Sport and Trailblazer aren't the only ones. You are likely to see some big sales numbers for the Buick Encore GX and Kia Seltos as well.

 

Haven't seen it yet...still plenty of trucks around. Bronco is nostalgic and there's been plenty of buzz among buyers and enthusiasts (Since you don't seem to pay attention to car news outside of Toyota/Lexus). Only one thing that could screw it up is Ford themselves. Our government isn't going to let them die. Ford didn't even take gubermint money either.

 

Also keep in mind the collapse of oil prices.

 

No problem at all! The Trailblazer is already available for those who want one...

 

Yes, that's a good visual comparison, Fizzboy, but the Venue doesn't offer AWD....like the Toyota C-HR, you are stuck with FWD for the American market,

 

Ford hasn't even officially debuted the Bronco Sport yet, but the Trailblazer is at many dealers nationwide and sales have officially started for a few weeks now. So there is inventory out there for someone really pining for a new tiny utility vehicle from Chevrolet. Trailblazer's current claim to fame, one of the most affordable vehicles with wireless CarPlay and wireless Android auto available.

 

a great loss... 2 small fugly crossovers.

 

Not in my area (NoVA / D.C. suburbs).....at least of yesterday, when I wrote this.

Sometimes, however, new vehicles are introduced on the West Coast before reaching this area.

With a base price under 20K, minus taxes/tags/freight, and nice fit/finish, I have a difficult time imagining this vehicle not selling. The powerplants might turn off some people, though, and the potential durability of a GM CVT, right now (on the base 1.2L engine), would be anybody's guess.

 

Just because it's not currently in big inventory within your direct few dealers doesn't mean the vehicle isn't available. If you broaden your search, even a little bit, you'll see that many areas have a number of Trailblazers in stock. Your claim about vehicles being introduced in the West Coast prior to DC isn't really based on a lot of facts or data. That might hold a little bit of water for a RWD sports car that launches in the Winter, or for EV's headed for ZEV states, but definitely not for a mainstream crossover utility vehicle.

 

The large Chevy dealer near me is showing 31 Trailblazers in inventory.

 

The Ford Bronco Sport looks like a Chinese knock off of a Land Rover Defender.

 

The Bronco Sport was intended to look like the classic, off-road, two-box SUV styling. Unlike the larger upcoming Bronco, however, the Bronco Sport is not BOF but a crossover.

 

Good I hope you are right. But I tried Everycarlisted.com, which is usually an excellent search-machine, and it didn't show any with a 1000-mile radius of my house...the furthest it can search.

It is, to an extent. It has happened a number of times in the past, but less so recently.