General Motors Thailand’s factory in Rayong has begun production of the Chevrolet Trailblazer SUV, a derivative of the Colorado pickup truck line it began building in 2011.
Rayong is the first plant to build the Trailblazer, which revives a model name previously confined largely to North America and will be sold in Thailand and exported to around 50 markets.
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The seven-seat SUV is based on General Motors’ new global body-on-frame midsize truck architecture.
According to just-auto‘s Production Life Database, the model line made its global debut at the Dubai motor show in pre-production form in November 2011 and the production model followed at the Bangkok show in March 2012.
Markets will include the Middle East and there will be right-hand drive versions for South Africa (late 2012) as well as Australia (Holden Colorado 7).
North American sales may follow in 2013 or 2014 but that would depend on the vehicle being assembled in that region.
The Trailblazer was launched with a 2.8-litre Duramax four-cylinder turbodiesel engine.
“Production is now getting into full-swing. Since May this year, we have added a third shift to our assembly and powertrain plants,” Martin Apfel, president of GM Thailand/Southeast Asia, said. “The increase in production isn’t just to meet customer orders for the Trailblazer, but also to address increasing demand for the Colorado truck, which we have started exporting earlier this year. At the same time, demand for other models is also growing. This will be a very busy year for Chevrolet.”
