Car and Driver 2/4/01

[Blueoval]

Anybody see car and driver today? They showed the chevy trailblazer, gmc envoy, and olds. bravada. They were talking about how great they are, and who their better than the explorer. (NOT!) They think they are going to take a big part of the explore's small suv market. Anybody no how long explorer has had best selling suv of the year for. I know its a couple years. Anywyas heres my teo cents.

[Edited by Stephen on 02-04-2001 at 02:06 PM]

 

[DarkFox1]

I for one am neutral on the ford chevy war... there are things I do not like about chevys, just as there are things I do not like about fords. When I look at a vehicle, I consider stats and appearance, not really name brand. One thing that turned me away like a snap on the chevrolet CSUVs was the lack of size.. the vehicle is 6" smaller than the 4DR explorer, has smaller tires, and only had the option of a 195HP v6.. I know now the trailblazer has around 250? something like that.. very decent for an I-6.. but I will not buy a v6 unless it has more torque than me.. and I haven't seen that happen yet (280ft lbs rated)

 

[Stephen]

The Explorer has been the bestseller for 9 years now. Its not outside the realm of possibility that the new GM SUVs could take that title, or at least give Ford a good run for their money with these new SUVs. Dont worry though, competition is good it gets us all better vehicles. I was impressed by the new GM ute's. The TrailBlazer and Bravada are pretty ugly, but the new Envoy is pretty sharp. Dare I say a lot more stylish then the new 2002 Explorer Limited. If I were Ford I'd be scared. I'm also interested in that new I6. An I6 is a lot smoother than a V6, Ford's 6s are pretty rough.

I saw that bit on C&D TV, I thought they were very neutral about the GM utes. They never said "its better than the Explorer" or "it will steal the best selling title from Ford" it simply said it is now a real competitor for the Explorer and Grand Cherokee, and I agree.

I always try and remain open minded about a vehicle until I drive it, you should do the same.

Also, in the interest of keeping angry flame wars at bay I've deleted the remark at the end of your post. Lets try and keep our opinions as uninsulting as possible.

Thanks!

[Edited by Stephen on 02-04-2001 at 02:09 PM]

 

['96explorereddiebauer]

No offense, but if GM start putting better interior materials into those new SUV's, I'd love to have one of them. The reason why is b/c I really like the engine, it's very powerful and I really like the "15,000 mile" oil change interval. I also like the 4 position 4WD switch. It has the 2WD, 4WD Auto, 4WDH, and 4WDL. It's better than the ones the Explorer offered. Again, don't take any offense, I'm not starting a fight here. So don't yell at me please.

 

[Raceit]

After seeing that show the only thing I could think about was the possibility of putting one of those new stright 6's in my Explorer. They sound totally sweet. Maybe it's possible, but I doubt it. I think the words 'major fabrication' come to mind. Not to mention funding that swap would require.

 

[Stephen]

Billy, never be afraid to voice your opinions on here, as long as you do it in a calm and respectful manner (which you did). I'll look forward to driving the new GM utes. GM seems to be beefing up their quality a good bit. I drove a 2001 Cadillac STS today, and I was impressed by how much better the interior was than the 98 I drove back before I got the Lexus. Its still not up to the Lexus in quality, but its getting there.

 

[DarkFox1]

does anyone know the exact figures on the trailblazer? HP torque that sorta thing? someone told me it had like 250HP 290 torque..

 

['96explorereddiebauer]

The 2002 GM SUVs' 4.2 straight-six is rated at 270 hp at 6000 rpm and 275 lb-ft of torque at 3600 rpm. That's 64 hp per liter. It's very powerful for a 6 cylinder.

 

[CougarX]

This months (March I think) Motor Trend has a review of the 2002 Explorer and they love it. They say that they expect the Explorer to continue it's run as the best seller. They also have a tidbit on the TrailBlazer/Envoy/Bravada and they say that they are not as good as expected and they are being overblown. I'll check when I get home and see exactly what was said but Motor Trend seems to have the exact opposite opinion. I always have liked Motor Trend over other car mags...

 

[DarkFox1]

very nice.. I'm sorry to hear that my v8 is still beating the I6 by around 5ft lbs of torque very close, killin me on HP.. but I wantr somethin that can PULL.. if it had 280 or more.. I'd definatley look into one in a couple of years (I'm a car freak, never buy any, just drool)

 

['96explorereddiebauer]

Originally posted by DarkFox1
(I'm a car freak, never buy any, just drool)

Ditto!! The car dealers around here are closed on Sundays so I always take that time to browse around. It's cool!! Sometimes you can find a car with unlocked doors so I can just get in and mess around, smelling the new car smell, etc... It's very cool.

 

[DarkFox1]

hehe, if I see a car with unlocked doors when I'm doing that.. if I'm bold enough to open the door.. I normally lock it and walk away..

I used to drive through the lots.. but it was too much. .I'd find myself always wanting a new car.. and thats just too rich a lifestyle for me

 

[Stephen]

Thats why I always lease my car. I get tired of them.

 

[DarkFox1]

yea, we leased the mountaineer for the 1st 2 years.. but we bought it afterwards.. not being able to mod a vehicle because of a lease is a real damper on the vehicle IMO

 

[Stephen]

I dont mod anything anyways lol.

 

[Tekeman]

DarkFox1,
If you want something that will PULL you ought to check out the 2001 Ford Super Duty F650 Super CrewZer it's rated at 860lb of torque! (Caterpillar V-8 diesel) But hurry they're only making 300 of them.

 

[DarkFox1]

heh, I dont NEED pulling power.. I just want it.. along with 4wd.. theres no place here that I would have any practical use for it.. but as my own little saying goes "its better to have and not need, than to need and not have"

 

[Tekeman]

I just thought that was a hell of a lot of torque in a 'stock' production engine.

 

[DarkFox1]

indeed it is.. isn't that around what a hummer has? 800? that could probablly move a house if you had a chain strong enough

 

[FlyAU]

Nope...but you're close (well, not really, but it's still an obscene number )

2001 AM General Hummer

6.5L V8 Diesel (Turbocharged)
HP: 195 @ 3400 RPM
TQ: 430 @ 1800 RPM

I don't have the figures for the Gasoline engine that was offered in the mid-1990's.