Energy
Wednesday, June 15th, 2022 8:45 am EDT
It’s a social media world, and, so, we learned from Twitter that the all-new 2024 Chevy Blazer EV will be revealed on July 18th.
Mary Barra, General Motors (GM) CEO, surprised her followers with the unexpected heads-up and first official image of the upcoming Chevrolet Blazer EV.
Allow me to share a sneak peek at the all-new @Chevrolet Blazer #EV. ?
I can’t wait until July 18, when we share the details with the world. pic.twitter.com/FIPE2SRVyg
— Mary Barra (@mtbarra) June 13, 2022
Pictured in the tweet in a rich, deep red, the all-electric midsize SUV will be available in a performance boosting SS trim and offers “eye-catching design, technology, and style to give you the confidence to cruise through the roads ahead regardless of where your journey takes you,” according to a company press release titled, “The Electric Future of Chevrolet.”
The glimpse Chevrolet provided was of the all-electric Chevrolet Blazer EV SS, which will be the first Chevy EV to feature a performance SS model.
The Chevy Blazer EV is part of GM’s pathway to an all-electric future. The company insists it is “aggressively going after every aspect of what it takes to put everyone in an EV.” With forecasts of millions more EVs on the road within the next decade, the company has sworn to have “a meaningful impact toward building a zero-emissions future.”
The Legacy Gets a New Look with the Chevy Blazer EV
After World War II, GM became one of the largest employers in the world. In the 1980s, however, GM began to experience a decline in market share to international automakers, and the unwieldy GM bureaucracy was often slow to respond to changes in consumer demands.
Barra is committed not to let that downward spiral happen a second time.
Enter the Chevy Blazer. The Blazer nameplate is well-known, going back to Chevy’s answer to the Ford Bronco, the 1969 Chevy K5 Blazer. Some of us have memories of our youth, riding in that old rough-and-ready Chevy Blazer. It was a trusty box-shaped 4×4, your getaway, your knock-around sidekick. The wide grille between the headlights looked like it was smiling, sharing a secret as you explored remote places, gaining personal confidence and independence by exploring the backroads.
“Speaks for Itself” — the slogan from the Blazer gas-powered reboot called out to those good times of vitality and merriment.
And now there’s another version, a zero emission Chevy Blazer EV, ready for a new generation of memory-makers.
GM says it is positioned to design, engineer, and produce EVs for every style and price point. The company is working feverishly to gain what it calls “a competitive advantage in batteries, software, vehicle integration, manufacturing, and customer experience.”
It’s All About The Battery
The company asserts that part of its EV catalogue advantage will lie in its Ultium batteries and platform. This unified platform will scale development and production of GM’s electric vehicles. The battery pack costs nearly 40% less than those in the Chevrolet Bolt EV. GM projects that second generation Ultium packs will cost nearly 60% less than the batteries used today. With a single, common cell in most markets and set of interchangeable propulsion components, the Ultium platform will be incorporated in vehicles that range from mass market to high performance.
The Ultium battery cells will be manufactured in Lordstown, Ohio, as part of GM’s joint venture with LG Energy Solution. The new battery cell plant is expected to create 1,700 new jobs when the facility is fully operational. Site preparation on the approximately 2.8 million-square-foot facility will begin this summer, and the plant is scheduled to open in late 2024. The facility will supply battery cells to Orion Assembly in Michigan and other GM EV assembly plants. Ultium Cells expects the facility will have 50 gigawatt-hours of battery cell capacity when running full production.
The Blazer EV is the third car from Chevrolet expected to use GM’s Ultium battery tech, following the Silverado EV and the Equinox EV, first shown at CES in January, 2022.
The 2024 Chevy Blazer EV & What We Know So Far
The automaker teased a video of the Chevy Blazer EV in March.
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Developed from the ground up, the Blazer EV will offer a mix of style, performance, and technology. Available for sale in spring of 2023, it is an updated, more contemporary version of the current gas-powered Blazer. It has reimagined items from headlights to taillights. The mid-size crossover will offer large two-tone wheels, long wheelbase, and short front and rear overhangs. The vehicle’s charging port appears to be on the driver’s side front fender, hidden underneath what looks like a power-operated cover.
The contrasting roofline tricks your perspective and minimizes the Blazer’s visual dominance, featuring a strong shape and numerous design swoops. A blacked-out lower grille portion and blank body-colored panel distinguish it from the singular front daytime running light strip.
The Chevy Blazer EV presents the same grill-spanning lighting scheme found on the Chevy Silverado EV, indicating that unified design elements will be commonplace across GM’s Chevy EV catalogue.
Because EVs possess abundant and quick-to-respond low-end torque, they are able to can deliver startling performance — to which Tesla owners can attest. The Chevy Blazer EV SS, which Chevy bills as a high-performance electric SUV, should offer a higher level of response compared with the lesser trim levels. Chevy’s decision to attach its iconic SS performance trim to a zero-emission vehicle enhances the vehicle’s performance allure. Large Continental ultra-thin tires, 12-spoke wheels, and single- and dual-motor powertrains are part of the configurations evident so far.
The July 18 reveal will likely unveil range estimates, horsepower and torque ratings, and pricing.
Inside EVs reports that production for the Chevy Blazer EV will take place probably at the Ramos Arizpe Manufacturing Complex in Mexico, currently engaged in producing the conventional Chevrolet Blazer and Equinox. GM announced in 2021 a $1+ billion investment plan for the site. More recently, LG Magna e-Powertrain joint venture broke ground for a new plant to produce inverters, motors, and onboard chargers in Ramos Arizpe.
The Blazer, Equinox, and Silverado will join the Bolt and Bolt EUV under the all-electric Chevy branding. The 2023 Chevrolet Bolt EV and Bolt EUV recently got a price tag of respectively $26,595 and $28,195.
While GM has said it intends for the Equinox EV to start at $30,000, it has yet to set similar pricing expectations for the Blazer. The 2022 Blazer starts at $33,400 and rises to $36,100 with all-wheel drive.
GM’s luxury Cadillac brand is launching the Lyriq this year. The company has started to deliver the GMC Hummer EV pickup truck and is also introducing the Hummer EV SUV in 2023. An electric GMC Sierra is coming to market, likely in 2023 as well.
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