2005 Chevrolet Blazer Review

Specifications

Closure of Plant Ends 67 Years of GM Production

Less than a month after announcing that its rear-drive Astro and Safari mid-vans would be discontinued and the Baltimore plant that builds them shuttered, General Motors announced that it would be ending production of another “classic” duo, the Chevy Blazer and GMC Jimmy, and closing the Linden assembly plant that produces them.

Sales of the now outdated sport utility vehicles have been on the decline lately, and with no replacement planned, no alternative vehicle to substitute it at the 67 year old New Jersey facility, and a current need for GM to downsize operations in order to meet financial targets, the end was inevitable.

All salaried workers at the plant were recommended to seek jobs at one of GMs other locations, but that only made up 110 out of 1,760 workers. The remaining 1,650 hourly employees would have been looking for work outside of GM, or still are. Prior to the announcement of the plants closure, GM was paring down staff as Blazer and Jimmy sales were dropping off. Reports at the time, from the Detroit News among others, speculated that GM would most likely shut down the operation ahead of the original summer of 2005 final date.

But GM spokesman Stefan Weinmann denied any early shutdown, stating that while there had been temporary shutdowns due to lack of demand, his employer would not change the original scheduled date to shutter the facility.

However, with sales of the Blazer and Jimmy so slow that shutdowns were numerous, with an average of two weeks of production for every month in 2004, and then GM experiencing one of the worst first quarters on record this year complicating the issue, the Chevy Blazer and GMC Jimmy came to a production end earlier than initially forecast by GM, as expected by market analysts, on Wednesday, April 20th, 2005.

Just how slow were sales? Well, as of October 2004, no Jimmys had been sold in the United States at all for the year, down from just 52 sold through October in 2003. Instead, the outgoing GMC had been sold in Canada, and still is, along with the Blazer. The Blazer has done much better in the U.S., which wouldnt be difficult, yet demand was down 27.5 percent toward the end of 2004, to 31,271 units sold through October.

Initially when the new Chevy TrailBlazer and GMC Envoy were introduced, their two smaller, less refined predecessors were to be cancelled, but GM saw a market for the less expensive SUVs and therefore production continued and the plant stayed open for about 3 years, as of this date.

The Linden facility, opened in 1937, housed a total of 2.6 million square feet of floor space. It dropped its second shift in 2002, when sales of the aging sport utilities began to wane. Reports cite the plants location, outside of the majority of supplier hubs, its age, GMs current eroding market share and a general economic slump as reasons behind the plant closure, emphasizing that the move was not a result of the quality or skill of the Linden workforce.

So when was the last time GM shut down an assembly plant? The year was 1999, the place Flint, Michigan and the facility the Buick City complex. The closure brought international scrutiny, much in part to a film made by controversial documentary maker Michael Moore, called “Roger and Me”, named for previous GM CEO Roger Smith. Obviously GM will make sure not to be at the brunt end of such public criticism again, and word has it the automaker is working with displaced employees to assist in finding replacement jobs, either within the GM family or outside.

While market share is eroding, and health care costs, plus retirement benefits are eating away at the companys bottom line, GMs financial arm has been raking in profits, keeping the automaker in the black. Actually, GM saw a $440 million Q3 2004 profit due to its financial division, General Motors Acceptance Corp, despite losing $130 million during the same period in global automotive operations. The Generals North American automotive operations lost $22 million.

No doubt GM will continue to look at opportunities to streamline operations in order to reduce running costs, most likely through simple attrition and allowing some contracts with outside suppliers to phase out. It is entirely possible, however, that further cuts could include further plant closures, more slow-selling models being discontinued, and a more aggressive campaign to reduce the price it pays suppliers for components.

The end of Blazer and Jimmy production will mean the end of a 35 year model run. Both models changed significantly since their 1975 introductions, initially based on shortened full-size pickup truck frames with removable fiberglass integrated rear roof sections. The original Blazer and Jimmy, often referred to by their K5 code name have become popular with off-road enthusiasts due to their tough, go anywhere 4×4 capability and large accommodating dimensions. The K5 models, which are now sold as the Chevy Tahoe and GMC Yukon, were joined by smaller, S10 compact pickup-based versions in 1983. An updated S15-based Blazer and Jimmy debuted in 1995, which continues virtually unchanged as todays 2005 model.

GM announced no plans to replace the off-road capable models once production ended, but instead will count on the new car-based Chevy Equinox and upcoming Pontiac Torrent to deliver the sales numbers Blazer and Jimmy once enjoyed.

There is still time, however, to get a fabulous deal on one of these very capable 4×4s. Go to www.chevrolet.com, click on SUVs, and then when the new page arrives scroll down to the bottom where an enticing last ditch effort to sell off the few remaining Blazers is underway. Two-door models, with a rugged chassis supporting four-wheel drive that integrates a bull-low gearing ratio with a locking differential for true off-road capability, is powered by a 190-horsepower Vortec 4300 V6 and standard 4-speed automatic with overdrive. The truck comes with air conditioning, a standard AM/FM/CD audio system, standard four-wheel ABS and alloy wheels, and despite its age it still looks pretty stylish too. Oh, I almost forgot the best part. All this can be had for only $21,990. While this seems great, I happened to stumble across the same vehicle being sold north of the 49th parallel for $19,998 Canadian (check out www.gmcanada.com), the greenback equivalent of $16,200 and change. Even at the Employee Discount for Everyone price of $19,026.88, theres almost $3K missing from the discount.

My guess is, theres plenty of discount still available for those wanting to strike a deal on a new Blazer. After all, theres $3,000 available for discounts to Canadians, so what about U.S. citizens, those that support the “Heartbeat of America”?

Like I said, those Chevy dealers which still have a few Blazers on their lots should be willing to negotiate, being that the somewhat antiquated Blazer is now deceased. Compared to the Equinox, Blazers drive like trucks, because they are based on truck platforms, and their interior refinement levels are, well, not refined.

But if youre looking for an extremely serviceable on- and off-roader, that will haul the family, the dog, plus lots of gear away from the city for the yearly camping trek this summer, and keep all comfortably climate controlled in the process while still looking good doing it, a new/old Blazer might just be the ticket, providing you can get that $3K discount offered north of the border.