Aaron Brzozowski
Like the Blue Oval with its plans to relaunch the Ford Bronco in North America after more than two decades, GM’s Chevrolet brand, too, is poised to bring back a beloved legacy SUV nameplate: Blazer. At face value, it seems as though the reborn Chevrolet Blazer might give Ford something to fear; like the Bronco, the Blazer was a rugged, truck-based utility vehicle with available four-wheel drive, perfectly capable of getting along off-road.
But upon further inspection, for enthusiasts, there’s at least one big reason the Ford Bronco will most likely prove the superior choice: the platform.
As our sister site GM Authority reports, the all-new Chevrolet Blazer is shaping up to be essentially a restyled, rebadged GMC Acadia, meaning it’ll likely be based on GM’s transverse FWD/AWD C1 platform, and utilize unibody construction. The Ford Bronco, meanwhile, will ride on the 2019 Ford Ranger‘s longitudinal truck platform, making it a true body-on-frame SUV like the Broncos of yesteryear.
Such full frames are preferred for serious towing/hauling and off-roading as they’re more resistant to twisting, and they’re easier to work with when lifting the vehicle and/or fitting bigger tires. The Bronco will thus also have the superior drivetrain, likely sporting the same rugged, solid rear axle from Dana as the Ranger has, and on 4WD/AWD models, an honest-to-goodness transfer case rather than a center differential or a clutch coupling.
Ultimately, where the 2020 Ford Bronco is shaping up to be a truly capable, rugged, truck-based SUV that can live up to its name, and maybe even encroach upon Jeep’s ever-popular Wrangler, the Chevrolet Blazer is shaping up to be something less: an ordinary, FWD, car-based crossover of the sort that’s fast becoming ubiquitous on America’s roads. Not that there’s anything wrong with that; crossovers tend to be lighter, more streetable, and more efficient than their traditional, trucky counterparts. Partly because of this, they represent an ever-growing segment in the American and European auto sectors.
But we know which we’d rather have.
