At the 2022 CES Show, General Motors’ keynote was essentially a mic drop. In addition to debuting the new Chevrolet Silverado EV, it gave us a glimpse of its plans with the arrival of a new Equinox EV set to start at $30,000. GM also announced confirmed the existence of the Blazer EV, which will slot above the smaller Equinox. Now, we have yet another piece of the puzzle because the 2024 Chevrolet Blazer SS has just been confirmed.
This will be the first performance SUV wearing a Chevrolet badge and the first battery-electric vehicle donning the SS moniker. The 20-second teaser shows a person unplugging the 2024 Chevrolet Blazer SS and the power charging door closing before cutting into shots of the crossover’s wheel. It then zooms away from the SS badge on the wheel before it starts rolling and cutting to first-person shots showing the road that the vehicle is traveling on quite quickly. The video ends with the new Blazer logo alongside the red SS logo.
General Motors says that the Blazer SS will make its global debut later this year and will go on sale in Spring 2023. The release timeline means the Blazer will arrive around the same time as the Equinox, effectively giving Chevrolet a BEV in two important segments. Like the current model, the Blazer EV will be larger and sportier than the Equinox. It’ll be about the same size as vehicles like the Hyundai Santa Fe, Kia Sorento, Honda Passport, Toyota Venza, and Subaru Outback.
While there are hybrids and plug-in hybrids in that segment, there aren’t any BEVs. That means the closest competitors to the Blazer EV will be the Ford Mustang Mach-E and Kia EV6, both of which veer on the larger end of the compact crossover segment. Those two and the Tesla Model Y are also the only entries with high-performance versions. The Hyundai Ioniq 5 has an N variant in the works, which could be another direct competitor to the Blazer SS.
The Blazer EV will be the fifth BEV in Chevrolet’s lineup following the two Bolt models, the Silverado EV, and the upcoming Equinox EV. It will be based on the Ultium suite, which consists of a platform dedicated specifically for BEVs, unique electric motors, and the latest batteries, which will be built and developed in cooperation with partners like LG Energy Solutions. Ultium-based vehicles will also be among the quickest charging models because they’re able to take advantage of 350 kW DC chargers.
Although it’s a performance model, don’t expect the Blazer SS to get a massive battery pack like the GMC Hummer family and Chevrolet Silverado EV. This crossover could get a smaller unit mounted under the floor that may be around 70 to 100 kWh, which is similar to what you’d find in vehicles like the Kia EV6, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Nissan Ariya, and Volkswagen ID.4. The Blazer SS should also feature a dual-motor layout, giving it plenty of power and AWD as standard. In addition, expect stickier tires, suspension tweaks, improved cooling, and other go-fast goodies.
The 2024 Chevrolet Blazer SS is just the first confirmed on-road-focused performance BEV from General Motors. This is simply the beginning, so expect more to follow as the company rolls out more all-electric models.
