mmarshall

This more or less mirrors what I've been saying repeatedly for the last two years. (and, as often happens, was panned for saying it). I recently did a full-review of the Bronco Sport (see the review in Car Chat), but feel that this article deserves a new thread rather than simply attaching it to the review, since it ultimately deals with another (hypothetical) vehicle, a potential Bronco Sport competitor.

Although the exterior size would be a little larger than my needs (which the Encore GX fits perfectly), I might consider one as a future purchase, particularly if they do it with the GMC nameplate (maybe a future Jimmy?), as I tend to prefer GM products over Ford (the Lincoln MKC and Corsair, which I liked, were rare exceptions). I doubt if Buick, my favorite nameplate of all, would actually do a Bronco or Bronco-Sport competitor.......very few Buick buyers would ever go off-road. Buick's future in the U.S. may (?) also be on borrowed time.

https://gmauthority.com/blog/2021/11...erday-opinion/

GM Needs A Ford Bronco Sport Rival, Like Yesterday: Opinion

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The success of the Ford Bronco Sport after nearly a year on the market shows that GM needs to answer with a rival. For the time being, The General seems content on letting Ford and Jeep duke it out in the increasingly popular rugged compact crossover segment, but it shouldn’t be. We’re here to address exactly that in today’s GM Authority Opinion Desk.

In July 2020, Ford introduced the 2021 Bronco in two-door and four-door form. Off-road enthusiasts clamored for the body-on-frame vehicles, something that GM isn’t all too concerned about. The model that was noticed less, despite being introduced at the same time, was the Bronco Sport. Despite not featuring a ladder frame, the Bronco Sport has proven to be quite capable and, perhaps more importantly, also quite popular.



For instance, the Bronco Sport outsold Ford’s own “regular” C-segment crossover entry, the Escape, in September. Then, the Bronco trailed the Escape by only 4.2K deliveries in October, taking only nine days to turn. The results are in folks, and Ford clearly has a winning formula on its hands with the Bronco Sport.

The 2021 Ford Bronco Sport is for those who desire a smaller vehicle that’s also bit less hardcore than the “regular”, midsize Bronco. Even so, Bronco Sport features standard all-wheel-drive, while also offering a segment-exclusive twin-clutch rear-drive unit with a differential lock feature. Four underbody skid plates, available 28.5-inch all-terrain tires, and available tow hooks give the Bronco Sport additional capability.



The Bronco Sport’s interior is similar to that of the body-on-frame Bronco: it features a rugged aesthetic and offers available washable rubber flooring in the cabin and cargo area, easy-to-clean cloth seating surfaces, silicone-sealed control switches, plus a whole bunch of interior storage and item carrying solutions and accessories.

In creating the Bronco Sport, Ford essentially took a regular front-drive platform, gave it a boxy, rugged, and functional design, shortened it, and added some robust suspension bits. While the Bronco Sport is a unibody vehicle, it is extremely capable.

Moreover, by introducing the Bronco Sport, Ford is now fielding two entries in the C-crossover segment: the Bronco Sport for those interested in a capable and rugged product, and the Escape for those who value on-road behavior (or simply don’t care much about off-roading, as a whole).
2021 Chevy Trailblazer Activ

2021 Chevy Trailblazer Activ

For GM’s part, its unibody Chevy Trailblazer crossover offers an outdoorsy Trailblazer ACTIV trim that amplifies its sporty style with a two-tone roof, unique front and rear fascias, sport terrain tires, off-road suspension tuning enhancements, dual exhaust, and a simulated (non-functional) front skid plate. It’s a nice package, but it’s nothing close to the Bronco Sport in terms of off-road capability. So, GM has no viable B-segment competitor to the Bronco Sport.

Making matters worse is that GM also has no rugged C-segment crossover to rival the Bronco Sport. For instance, Chevy does not offer an Equinox ACTIV, which would have been more comparable with the Bronco Sport than the Trailblazer Activ.
GM Authority rendering of a hypothetical Chevy Equinox Activ

GM Authority rendering of a hypothetical Chevy Equinox Activ

But wait, GM’s GMC will soon launch the Terrain AT4. That comes closer to the Ford offering than the Equinox and Trailblazer, at present. Notable upgrades on the GMC Terrain AT4 include a unique front fascia, gloss black-painted wheels wrapped in off-road tires, and a steel protective front skid plate. The 2022 GMC Terrain AT4 will come exclusively with AWD, which makes sense for an off-road trim level. However, the Terrain AT4 still has rather long front and rear overhangs as a result of its more plebeian roots, as opposed to being purpose-built to be rugged.

For those who aren’t following, here’s the scoop: a vehicle with long overhangs typically won’t be as capable off-road compared to a vehicle with shorter overhangs. And generally speaking, vehicles that tend to have shorter overhangs were decidedly designed that way from the start, ala Bronco Sport, rather than being modified versions of existing models (like Terrain AT4).
2022 GMC Terrain AT4

2022 GMC Terrain AT4

With its onslaught of ACTIV and AT4 models, it is clear that GM understands that the market is continuing to shift in the direction off-road-capable vehicles, or at least ones appearing so. The Terrain AT4 satisfies the latter part, but not so much the former. That makes it clear that GM needs to bring to market a true rival to the Bronco-Sport or else Ford (with the Bronco-Sport) and Jeep (with Compass and Renegade) will have the market all to themselves.

Fizzboy7

I also said the same thing several times when the Trailblazer and other retro names surfaced a few years back. Now if they do bring back a Blazer, they already stepped on their own toes with the Trailblazer name being in use. Goes to show once again how big of a mistake it was using that name on something that had nothing to do with the past- or even off-road for that matter.
Regardless, it is plain to see GM does not learn from their mistakes, after all these years. I'm happy Ford at least did their own turn-around.

mmarshall

Yes, I vaguely remember you mentioning it. The Trailblazer is actually an excellent small crossover (as you know, I drive the Buick equivalent), but it was simply given the wrong name....even more so for the Blazer itself. The real Trailblazer was a mid-sized, truck-based, body-on-frame SUV.....you can't even begin to compare a subcompact crossover with it.


When Mary Barra sees just how many Broncos and Bronco-Sports will actually sell after the supply and pandemic-issues are done, she just might change her mind. There's already a lot of demand for both Broncos and Bronco Sports that Ford simply can't meet because of supply issues. In fact, for the review, I consider myself lucky to been able to just walk in and test-drive one.



Now...having said that, the argument made by some posters here in Car Chat that many buyers simply don't care about the name also is a valid point. Both the crossover Blazer and Trailblazer have sold well, despite the fact that they are an insult to their predecessor's names. Not everyone thinks the way that car people like us do....and even my own actions have contributed to that crossover market.

Och

iTrader: (3)

Doug is talking about it in this video.

mmarshall

I watched the video. I agree with the majority of those suggestions, but I'm not sure there's much of a market for a retro Viper, NSX, or Testarossa. There would be a far larger one for the Honda S2000, which would give higher-line versions of the Mazda Miata some competition.

He's right on the money, though, when he said that GM missed the mark with the Blazer.

Och

iTrader: (3)

If Honda did a proper S2000, without any stupid screens and other electronic nonsense, there would be huge demand.

TangoRed

I very seriously doubt that. There's a reason no one has tried to wade into the Miata's waters in quite some time. The small roadster market has dwindled dramatically over the last 15 years and the small car enthusiast market in general isn't as big as it once was. The BRZ/GT-86 pretty much serves anyone who didn't want a Miata which is why no one else bothers.

mmarshall

The BRZ/GT86 can give some serious handling fun, but, for many sports-car afficionados, there is no real substitute for an open-top roadster.