Sad but true – Chevrolet TrailBlazer SS just doesn't strike the same chord as a Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8. And maybe, on the road, it isn't supposed to – but special performance cars such as these really earn their keep in marketing dollars and the reflected glow of their sex appeal.

Here's hoping that the TrailBlazer SS, ahem, blazes away in the minds of shoppers. With more performance, exterior sex appeal and interior upgrades, it is certainly improved over its mainstream equivalent. In the end, the question that burns is this: Can I beat that annoying teenager off the line with my new Trailblazer SS with its Corvette-derived LS2 6.0-liter V8 engine?