The Benefits of a 2024 Blazer Over a 2024 Passport

There are so many different varieties of SUVs out there in the midsize segment. Many of them are considered crossovers in the midsize category due to their variety of features and how some are closer to full-size SUVs while others are closer to compact SUVs. The Chevy Blazer is one of those SUVs that is actually truly midsize. What’s interesting is that the Blazer actually shares the same segment as the Honda Passport, which shares a lot of similarities with full-size SUVs.

When looking at the latest 2024 model year offerings between the two, you might be struggling to find something large enough to accommodate your cargo or passenger needs but also economical enough to save you money at the pump and technologically advanced enough to give you all the bells and whistles you could ask for. In comparing the 2024 Chevy Blazer vs 2024 Honda Passport, you’ll find the Blazer on top.

It all boils down to how these vehicles package their features and what sort of benefits they provide shoppers looking for something feature-rich and fuel-efficient. Chevy has been working hard to build a tight-knit ecosystem of features for their vehicle lineup, whereas Honda has mostly focused on safety and convenience. But when you look at these 2024 models’ features, the Blazer hits each target on the nose, while the Passport doesn’t. To support our case, let’s explore them in detail…

A Larger Infotainment Interface

If infotainment features are important to you, then being able to make use of a streamlined and functional infotainment suite is going to be a priority—but not every vehicle comes with the same level of access and infotainment features. That’s actually one of the defining differences between the 2024 Honda Passport and the 2024 Chevy Blazer. If you were hoping for a large and easily accessible system on the Passport, you may be left wanting in the 2024 model year.

The infotainment system available in the Honda Passport is standardized across the board with an 8.0-inch touchscreen. It features all of the basic functionality you would expect out of the system, including Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support, as well as wireless Bluetooth streaming and the availability of wireless charging. This is all facilitated through the HondaLink system, so that you can project your smartphone through the Passport’s infotainment system. This system also enables Wi-Fi hotspot support from your vehicle, so you can stay connected while you’re out.

The 2024 Chevy Blazer also sports everything that you have access to in the Honda Passport but is powered by the Chevrolet Infotainment System, which includes wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto functionality. You also have Wi-Fi hotspot functionality, as well as wireless smartphone charging. Wireless Bluetooth streaming and multi-device streaming across the infotainment suite come standard on all of the trim levels of the 2024 Blazer.

Where the Blazer manages to level up over the Passport is that it has a larger HD touchscreen across the trim line. Instead of an 8.0-inch screen embedded in the center dashboard, the Blazer’s touchscreen is 10.2 inches wide and sits up above the dashboard, so it’s easier to access for both the front driver and passenger, and it means you have to spend less time looking down to access the screen; it gives a more level screen placement that’s also larger than the Passport’s infotainment setup.

Google Built-In Changes Your Drive

Physical accessibility is one aspect of an infotainment suite. Having a large, non-static screen to touch and make it easy to access apps, media, navigation, and vehicle health are all very important, but the underlying system that powers that accessibility is just as important. It’s not always something you think about when scouring and comparing infotainment systems, but it is important because it determines the ease of access to apps, how fast those apps can be accessed, and how responsive the system is to touch, voice commands, and navigation.

When you look at the 2024 Honda Passport, its infotainment is powered by the HondaLink system. It’s what’s responsible for connecting your smart devices to the vehicle, accessing remote connectivity to the vehicle, as well as receiving notifications, accessing roadside assistance, and even recalling data. All of that is powered by HondaLink, which also ties into the Honda Satellite-Link Navigation System. It offers voice recognition with Alexa, traffic analysis via Honda HD Digital Traffic technology, and an operating system designed for easy access and guidance with select cities having fully detailed points of interest mapped out.

While the 2024 Passport’s underlying navigation and infotainment support tech is impressive, the 2024 Blazer comes with a fully robust system powered by the Google Built-In suite. This includes an automated system that is designed around streamlined connectivity for frequent updates, accessibility, and user interaction. The voice-recognition system is also Alexa-enabled, with quick access to features like Amazon, Spotify, Google Play, and hands-free voice and text messaging.

The simplified voice commands are also automatically part of the OnStar & Connected Services suite, so no matter where you are, you can give a simple command for directions to a location, and the suite will map it out for you quickly. Audio, music, and video are all accessible without even requiring pressing any buttons. What’s more is that the OnStar navigation support also provides 24/7 roadside assistance, navigation guidance, and various types of plans with extended functionality.

Some of that functionality includes remote vehicle access, unlimited vehicle data, security services, HD streaming, notifications, and on-demand diagnostics. Plus, with the free and constant updates, you’re always on the cutting edge of Google’s new advancements for compatible vehicles, such as the 2024 Chevy Blazer.

Chevy’s Teen Driver Mode

Safety technology is a huge part of the technological push for making vehicles more user-friendly, more family-friendly, and more tech-savvy, and this is an area where both the Passport and Blazer shine. In the case of the Passport, it comes with the Honda Sensing suite, which is one of the most revered and celebrated compilations of safety technologies on the market. Thanks to its design and technologies, the 2024 Honda Passport has passed its safety tests with flying colors. But there is something that the Passport is missing that you get with the 2024 Chevy Blazer…

In addition to the standard assortment of driver assistance provided as part of Chevy Safety Assist, the 2024 Blazer also comes with two other well-regarded features: Buckle-to-Drive and Teen Driver mode. Both of these features include safety measures to ensure that teens are practicing safe driving habits on the road, including reminders to buckle up before accessing any infotainment features and report cards for how often certain driver aids were used en route to automatically correct your teen’s driving.

The Teen Driver feature is not available for the Honda Passport, and parents considering a good midsize SUV themed around being a great family vehicle might appreciate this particular feature if they have young kids who will eventually become teen drivers or if they already have teens who are starting to drive.

Enriched Fuel-Economy

Midsize SUVs that aren’t hybrids or electric vehicles usually have a difficult time achieving a good fuel economy rating because they sit on larger chassis than compact vehicles and thus can carry more weight, have more equipment, bear larger engines, and thus guzzle more gas. Finding an internal combustion engine midsize SUV that isn’t a hybrid but gets great gas mileage can be difficult due to the cross-section where midsize SUVs sit in the segment. It goes back to having to be a jack-of-all-trades and sometimes a master of none. In this particular category of fuel economy, the 2024 Honda Passport is certainly not a master.

Due to the size of the Passport, it has a 3.5-liter V6—and, being available only in all-wheel drive, you only get a maximum fuel economy of 19 MPG in the city and up to 24 MPG on the highway. Those are the kind of fuel economy ratings you typically see from a full-size SUV. When you compare that to the Chevy Blazer, which is available with either a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline four-cylinder or a 3.6-liter V6, you can see that, no matter which powertrain you go with, the Blazer has better overall fuel economy.

The four-cylinder in front-wheel drive provides you with the best overall fuel economy at 22 MPG in the city and up to 29 MPG on the highway. If you opt for the all-wheel drive model of the Blazer, you still net 22 MPG in the city and up to 27 MPG on the highway. Now, if you really want that extra power from the 3.6-liter V6, the Blazer still manages some impressive numbers for what it can do, offering 19 MPG in the city and up to 26 MPG on the highway in front-wheel drive and up to 18 MPG in the city and 26 MPG on the highway. So either way, you’re getting better overall gas mileage out of the Blazer compared to the Passport, regardless of the powertrain or drivetrain configuration.

Should I Buy a 2024 Chevy Blazer or 2024 Honda Passport?

If tech, safety, and fuel economy are all essential aspects to getting the most out of the vehicle you want to drive, then the 2024 Chevy Blazer offers a better value than what you get from the 2024 Honda Passport. The Blazer gives you a lot more in the midsize segment compared to the Passport if those attributes are important to you. So, if you’re thinking about choosing between a 2024 Chevy Blazer and a 2024 Honda Passport, and you have a family or do a lot of commuting, the Blazer might be your better bet.