Compare the2024 Hyundai KonaVS 2024 Chevrolet Trailblazer

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Hyundai Kona have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision. The Chevrolet Trailblazer doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Kona Limited has a standard Surround View Monitor to allow the driver to see objects all around the vehicle on a screen. The Trailblazer only offers a rear monitor and rear parking sensors that beep or flash a light. That doesn’t help with obstacles to the front or sides.

The Kona has a standard blind spot warning system that uses sensors to alert the driver to objects in the vehicle’s blind spots where the side view mirrors don’t reveal them. A system to reveal vehicles in the Trailblazer’s blind spot costs extra.

To help make backing out of a parking space safer, the Kona has standard Rear Cross-Traffic Collision Warning and Rear Cross-Traffic Collision-Avoidance Assist automatically engages the brakes to help avoid a collision. Chevrolet charges extra for Rear Cross Traffic Alert on the Trailblazer and the Trailblazer’s Rear Cross Traffic Alert does not include automatic braking.

The Kona’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Trailblazer doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the Kona and the Trailblazer have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, front wheel drive, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, lane departure warning systems, rearview cameras and available all wheel drive.

The Hyundai Kona has achieved the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s (IIHS) highest rating of “Top Safety Pick Plus” for the 2024 model year. This distinction is based on its exceptional performance in IIHS’ rigorous battery of safety tests. Specifically, it earned a “Good” rating in the latest, more stringent moderate overlap front crash test, a “Good” result in the updated side impact test, and a “Good” score in the revised pedestrian crash prevention test. The Trailblazer has not yet been fully evaluated by the IIHS for 2024.

The Kona comes with a full 5-year/60,000-mile basic warranty, which covers the entire truck and includes 24-hour roadside assistance. The Trailblazer’s 3-year/36,000-mile basic warranty expires 2 years or 24,000 miles sooner.

Hyundai’s powertrain warranty covers the Kona 5 years and 40,000 miles longer than Chevrolet covers the Trailblazer. Any repair needed on the engine, transmission, axles, joints or driveshafts is fully covered for 10 years or 100,000 miles. Coverage on the Trailblazer ends after only 5 years or 60,000 miles.

The Kona’s corrosion warranty is 1 year and unlimited miles longer than the Trailblazer’s (7/unlimited vs. 6/100,000).

Hyundai pays for scheduled maintenance on the Kona for 3 years and 36,000 miles. Hyundai will pay for oil changes, tire rotations, air filter replacements, cabin filter replacement, brake fluid replacement, inspections, and any other required maintenance. Chevrolet only pays for the first scheduled maintenance visit on the Trailblazer.

A hardened steel chain, with no maintenance needs, drives the camshafts in the Kona’s engine. A rubber cam drive belt that needs periodic replacement drives the Trailblazer’s camshafts. If the Trailblazer’s belt breaks, the engine could be severely damaged when the pistons hit the opened valves.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the statistics that show that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Chevrolet vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Hyundai third in reliability, above the industry average. With 23 more problems per 100 vehicles, Chevrolet is ranked 10th.

From surveys of all its subscribers, Consumer Reports’ January 2024 Auto Issue reports that Hyundai vehicles are more reliable than Chevrolet vehicles. Consumer Reports ranks Hyundai 9 places higher in reliability than Chevrolet.

The Kona SE/SEL’s standard 2.0 DOHC 4-cylinder produces 10 more horsepower (147 vs. 137) than the Trailblazer’s standard 1.2 turbo 3-cylinder. The Kona N Line/Limited’s standard 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder produces 35 more horsepower (190 vs. 155) and 21 lbs.-ft. more torque (195 vs. 174) than the Trailblazer’s optional 1.3 turbo 3-cylinder.

As tested in Motor Trend the Kona N Line/Limited 1.6 turbo 4-cylinder is faster than the Chevrolet Trailblazer 1.3 turbo 3-cylinder:

On the EPA test cycle the Kona gets better mileage than the Trailblazer:

For better stopping power the Kona AWD/SEL/1.6T’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Trailblazer:

The Kona stops shorter than the Trailblazer:

For superior ride and handling, the Kona AWD has fully independent front and rear suspensions. An independent suspension allows the wheels to follow the road at the best angle for gripping the pavement, without compromising ride comfort. The Chevrolet Trailblazer has a solid rear axle, with a non-independent rear suspension.

The Kona AWD has front and rear stabilizer bars, which help keep the Kona AWD flat and controlled during cornering. The Trailblazer’s suspension doesn’t offer a rear stabilizer bar.

The Kona has variable-assist power steering, for low-effort parking, better control at highway speeds and during hard cornering, and a better feel of the road. The Trailblazer doesn’t offer variable-assist power steering.

For better handling and stability, the average track (width between the wheels) on the Kona is 1.6 inches wider in the front and 1.7 inches wider in the rear than the track on the Trailblazer.

The Kona Limited AWD handles at .83 G’s, while the Trailblazer RS AWD pulls only .80 G’s of cornering force in a Motor Trend skidpad test.

The Kona Limited AWD executes Motor Trend’s “Figure Eight” maneuver 1.1 seconds quicker than the Trailblazer RS AWD (27.2 seconds @ .62 average G’s vs. 28.3 seconds @ .57 average G’s).

For better maneuverability, the Kona’s turning circle is 2.5 feet tighter than the Trailblazer’s (34.8 feet vs. 37.3 feet). The Kona’s turning circle is 3.5 feet tighter than the Trailblazer RS’ (34.8 feet vs. 38.3 feet).

For greater off-road capability the Kona has a greater minimum ground clearance than the Trailblazer (8.1 vs. 8 inches), allowing the Kona to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Kona N Line’s minimum ground clearance is .3 inch higher than on the Trailblazer (8.3 vs. 8 inches).

The Kona has 3 cubic feet more passenger volume than the Trailblazer (101.2 vs. 98.2).

The Kona has .8 inches more front legroom, 2 inches more front hip room, 1.4 inches more front shoulder room, 2 inches more rear hip room and 1.4 inches more rear shoulder room than the Trailblazer.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Kona’s rear seats recline. The Trailblazer’s rear seats don’t recline.

The Kona has a larger cargo volume with its rear seat folded than the Trailblazer with its rear seat folded (63.7 vs. 54.4 cubic feet).

The Kona uses gas struts to support the hood for easier service access. The Trailblazer uses a prop rod to support its heavy hood. It takes two hands to open the hood and set the prop rod, the prop rod gets in the way during maintenance and service, and the prop rod could be knocked out, causing the heavy hood to fall on the person maintaining or servicing the car.

The Kona’s optional front power windows both open or close with one touch of the switches. The Trailblazer’s front passenger window doesn’t close automatically.

The Kona has a standard Proximity Key that allows you to unlock the doors from either front door handle, open the cargo door, and start the engine, all without removing the key from the pocket or purse. Only the Trailblazer LT/ACTIV/RS offers Keyless Access.

Standard air-conditioned seats in the Kona Limited keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Trailblazer doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

The Kona has a standard center folding armrest for the rear passengers. A center armrest helps make rear passengers more comfortable and it can provide a boundary between children. The Trailblazer LS doesn’t offer a rear seat center armrest.

The Kona SEL/N Line/Limited’s standard dual zone air conditioning allows the driver and front passenger to choose two completely different temperatures so people with different temperature preferences won’t have to compromise. This makes both the driver and front passenger as comfortable as possible. The Trailblazer doesn’t offer dual zone air conditioning.

Both the Kona and the Trailblazer offer rear vents. For greater rear passenger comfort, the Kona SEL/N Line/Limited has standard rear air conditioning vents to keep rear occupants cool in summer or warm in winter. The Trailblazer doesn’t offer rear air conditioning vents, only heat vents.

The Kona (except SE)’s available GPS navigation system has a real-time traffic update feature that plots alternative routes to automatically bypass traffic problems. (Service not available in all areas.) The Trailblazer’s available navigation system doesn’t offer real-time traffic updates.

The Kona Limited’s Smart Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, starting, stopping and changing direction automatically. Remote Smart Parking Assist will park and retrieve your car remotely: press a button and watch it park itself. This is ideal for tight locations. The Trailblazer doesn’t offer an automated parking system.