u/BlackDS

The Chevy Blazer EV PPV is currently the only trim of the Blazer with the 19.2kw AC charger. This charger is the bidirectional module that allows V2H/V2L in other Ultium products. GM themselves states that this car is compatible with the other version of the GM Power Bar (part# 84942991). However there was no documentation anywhere that the "plus" version was compatible. I took the risk and bought one used for $400 (ouch!) because if I'm able to run my fridge and a few other essentials with the TT30 port on the Power Bar Plus that would be a major win in case of a power outage.

The startup sequence for using the device is as follows. First you turn the car on and since this is the PPV trim with 'Proteced Idle', I did not need to leave my keys in the car. Second you plug the device into the car, wait a few seconds, the push the button on the handle of the Power Bar Plus twice. The car then says "Charge cord connected", a green LED flashes then stays lit, and a white LED on the power strip side illuminates. As you can see it works great for low load applications such as that portable UV lamp I had. Unfortunately, as soon as I plug anything into the TT30 port, the cable faults out. The white LED turns off and the green handle LED turns red. According to the manual, this means "Manually resettable error - calibration failed". I tried multiple different power cycles, and flipped the breaker on the Power Bar. I even turned my generator inlet port completely off at my main house panel before plugging the Power Bar Plus into it and it still immediately faulted out.

In conclusion: the Power Bar Plus, while not explicitly stated to be compatible with the Blazer EV PPV, will in fact work for basic household outlet use only. This feels like something that could be fixed with a software update as the car has all the hardware to make the TT30 port work as well (I think). If this were to work, I could run my house off the car battery without needing to buy the proprietary $10,000+ GM Home Backup system. Thank you for coming to my TED talk.

Chevy Blazer EV PPV - The EV for people who hate EVs 

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I've been toying with the idea of adding an EV to my fleet for a while now, but when gas hit $5/gal and I got a new job with a 200 mile daily commute I knew that the time was now to make the leap. Previously I was waiting for the Slate to come out because that appealed to my luddite tendencies. But I wanted to write this review to bring to light a car you can buy right now that scratches that same itch: the Chevy Blazer EV PPV. 

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The PPV is the "Police Pursuit Vehicle" trim of the Blazer EV. Fundamentally It's based off the SS trim but is MASSIVELY decontented inside and has a lot of ruggedization improvements throughout the car. It feels like a Chevy Silverado EV in WT spec in a lot of ways.

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Since it's based off the SS, you get the same dual motor AWD setup, but instead of 615hp and 650 lb/ft, you're software detuned to 498hp and 531 lb/ft respectively. I think most of this stems from the removal of Wide Open Watts mode which doesn't upset me in the slightest. Coming from owning exclusively 90s and 00s shitboxes the car feels like Maverick at Cedar Point in terms of effortless and instant acceleration from any speed. The thing is an absolute heat seaking missile when it comes to performance.

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You also get the largest battery pack at 102kwh, which is great because Chevy has some packaging quirks with this car. The mid trim level RS can be had in RWD with the 102kwh pack, but the AWD one is only 85kwh. Functionally an AWD RS and an SS/PPV trim get similar range ratings of roughly 280 miles, but the larger pack is better suited for DC fast charging as it can charge at 190kw while the smaller pack can charge at 150kw. I hadn't really considered EV efficiency in my purchase process because coming from gas cars that get 25mpg highway, anything was going to be a major upgrade. 

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With the Blazer going 286mi on 102kwh we can extrapolate it gets roughly 2.8 mi/kwh, while an AWD RS can go 279mi on 85kwh, for a rough efficiency estimate of 3.2mi/kwh. That makes a big difference on a long road trip where DC superchargers can cost 0.50/kwh! Some people say that this car's charging speeds are "atrocious" but I think a 20-80% time of roughly 40 minutes is perfectly fine. Compared to older EVs like the Leaf or GM's own Bolt I think it DC fast charges just fine. 

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So why get the PPV over the civilian spec RS or SS? Well, Chevy took out most of the annoying bullshit that repelled me from getting an EV years sooner. I'll run the best features of the car in no particular order:

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- Real door handles. Okay I lied there is a particular order because this is the most important feature of the car. I wouldn't be caught dead in any car with electric door handles. This car has nice beefy physical door handles on both the inside and outside that will just work without any fuss for the life of the car. IMO electric door handles are a major safety issue and should be banned but I digress. The regular Blazers have this too but most of the competition doesn't. I really wanted to get a Ford Mustang Mach E GT but couldn't for this reason, and it's lack of...

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- Buttons and knobs. The Blazer has the luxury of physical controls for the volume and HVAC system. Praise the Lord. Chevy was a few steps away from perfect because some of the HVAC controls are on the screen; it would have been nice for them to move the passenger temp knob 2 inches to the right, and added buttons for AC on/off and recirc. But I digress, it's a much more effortless system to learn than an all-touchscreen setup. The Blazer EV was notoriously rushed out the door with a shit infotainment system that ruined its reputation out the gate. After 3 years of software updates everything works and the software is brisk and easy to use. 

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- Rhis isn't a decontenting thing but I'm going to put it here anyway. The rear view mirror being a camera that's on all the time is a game changer. Ideally cars would have large windows to eliminate blind spots but clearly that's a relic from a bygone era. The rearview camera fixes that problem. Love it.

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- Cloth powered front seats, and no interior carpet. Again this interior is made to take abuse and I appreciate that. I've always found carpet in an automobile to be kinda stupid? I get that it's partially for sound deadening but there's sound deadening under the vinyl floor in this car. It's just a dirt magnet that every passenger car has for no good reason. 

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- Manual charge port door. This one is important because the goofy power door loves to break on these things. I never wanted to be stuck in a situation where the door failed to open on a road trip or something so I was really excited to have a regular door. But honestly, even the manual door is kind of flimsy and cheap feeling. It doesn't open or close with a confidence inspiring click, it's hard to describe. It also has a manual tailgate; one less thing to break. Pull on the handle, regular struts open it up. Simple.

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- It has the lower trim front fascia from the RS on a car with performance more in line with the SS. Subjectively, the RS fascia is the most handsome with the blacked out faux grill. The Base model looks goofy with it being all body color, and the SS is an over styled mess. Getting the RS face on a car with 500hp instead of 300hp was a major factor in me actually *liking* the car and not just tolerating it. 

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- Poverty spec steel wheels. The SS came with 22"s from the factory, with 275/40 tires. The cop model manages to retain the gigantic brakes of the SS but squishes 20" steel wheels around them. The 265/50/20 tires on it have an entire extra inch of sidewall compared to the SS. And I don't know about you but I've dented a few rims in my day from potholes and having smaller wheels is always a plus in my book. 

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- Supposedly this model has a heavier duty suspension, and skid plates. Always good things to have. Although I don't intend to rock crawl the thing there are certainly a lot of rural dirt roads I go on where the added stoutness of the suspension is much appreciated. Again, this car is taking the role in my automotive stable I had previously saved for a Slate truck. 

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- No annoying ass sensors and beeps! It seems like all the proximity sensors were removed from this car and thank God. I don't need the car to panic and stop for me when it detects a ghost. I don't need lane keep assist. These are major quality of life IMPROVEMENTS as far as I'm concerned. The only major downside is that this means I don't get Supercruise, or even adaptive cruise control. Regular cruise control will have to be enough. 

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- The police version has "Protected Idle" which is a feature that allows a police officer to jump out of the car real quick while leaving the car on without having to worry about it being stolen. This feature is basically a camp mode or a pet/baby mode and I don't understand why every EV doesn't have this? There's nothing to really idle in an electric car so I don't know why you can't leave any electric car in this semi-powered state where the power train is off but the HVAC is on.

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So what about the bad? Other than the things I already ranted about about there's a few other things that I need to address. For one, the friction brakes need serviced. I wonder if there's a warped rotor or something because the friction brakes feel very unrefined and 'wobbly'. I wouldn't be surprised if the Michigan police were too hard on the brakes, or perhaps were literally never on the brakes at all and something got messed up with them.

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Also, the dealer I bought the car from put the center console in the day before I bought it, and only 1 of the 5 USB ports work in it. The massively simplified screen setup seemingly lacks a trip computer completely. I'd like to have information about my energy consumption and, you know, a TRIP ODOMETER but whatever.

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The head rests in this car feel like midevial torture. Are all new cars like this? The headrest pitches your neck forward about 30 degrees, basically forcing you to have cellphone neck at all times. I know it's for whiplash protection but I think I'd rather die of a broken neck than deal with these headrests.

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And one final gripe, one that upsets me the most, is that the headlight controls and the power off button are on the touch screen. GM you were so close! You had to do was delete the rear wiper, put the headlight controls there, and make room for one extra button. Oh well.

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I got my blazer used after some police department in Michigan's lease ended. They only put 19,000 miles on it and it looked brand new when I got it. It MSRP'd in 2024 for $57k and I got it with a sticker price of $24k. After taxes, financing, and an extra warranty I purchased, my cumulative acquisition cost will be about $36k over 4 years. Not bad for a 500hp AWD EV that can go 286 miles! Again my daily commute is 200 miles currently so every day I use this thing instead of one of my gas cars I'm saving $40ish bucks in gas alone. I fear that relative savings will only grow over time. If you're hesitant to switch to electric and there's one of these unicorns in your area, I think it's worth taking a look at.

I took out my battery and noticed this rather large leak around my thermostat area. I also noticed that there seems to be a cover plate completely missing from the circled area. 2009 Suzuki SX4. Any idea what part that is?