|
2010 GMC TERRAIN/ HYBRIDS
For more information, Contact Us at (866) 456-8328 or Email Us
2010 GMC TERRAIN Today GMC announces the arrival of its new small crossover, the 2010 Terrain, which is debuting this week at the New York Auto Show. Using a platform shared with the 2010 Chevrolet Equinox, the Terrain is set to slot into GMC’s lineup as the little brother to the successful Acadia full-size crossover when it goes on sale late this summer. That means a tidy exterior package (with dramatic front-end styling that splits the difference between Audi and Escalade) with good room inside and thoughtful features that maximize either cargo or passenger capacity. Front-wheel drive will be standard, four-wheel drive optional. 2010 GMC Terrain The big news here is that A) GMC gets a small crossover, B) it has two direct-injected, variable valve timed engines, and C) it doesn't share a platform with the hoary old Chevrolet Equinox/ Pontiac Torrent. The base 2.4-liter four-cylinder is expected to bring 182 hp and 30 mpg highway economy to the game. But frankly we're surprised that the optional 3.0-liter V-6, a downsized version of the Acadia's 3.6-liter unit, is slated for only 1 mpg improvements in both city and highway mileage. Another surprising technical note is GM’s first application of ANC, or Active Noise Cancellation. It’s employed on 2.4-liter four-cylinder models and uses soundwaves emitted through the vehicle’s stereo system to quell a four’s inherent boom. This is a technology we’re used to seeing on pricey Japanese luxury brands, not Detroit Iron. Yeah yeah, it's got power liftgates, rearview cameras, a touch-screen nav system, massive gloveboxes/laptop bins/door storage compartments, and a MultiFlex sliding rear seat. But even the ignominious Malibu Maxx had a sliding rear seat. What the 2010 GMC Terrain must do is drive as well as the Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4. Which is to say like a solid, serene sedan in heels. If it debuts with any whifs of the mediocrity of the 2009 Chevrolet Equinox, GMC could be in (more) trouble. GM to unveil smaller, more efficient GMC Terrain Robert Snell / The Detroit News General Motors Corp. will unveil the 2010 GMC Terrain crossover, a smaller and more fuel-efficient model, at the 2009 New York International Auto Show on Wednesday along with the Yukon Denali hybrid. The new crossover is being introduced amid a slump in truck and crossover sales for GM, which is subsisting on $13.4 billion in federal aid and has asked for up to $16.6 billion more. The automaker's truck sales, which includes crossovers, were down 47 percent last month compared to a year earlier, worse than the 36.7 percent industry decline in SUV/crossover sales, according to Autodata Corp. The five-passenger, four-cylinder Terrain, which hits showrooms in late summer, will get a segment-leading 30 mpg on the highway and also be available with a 3.0-liter direct injection six-cylinder engine. The Terrain replaces the Pontiac Torrent and shares the Theta chassis with Chevrolet Equinox. Production is scheduled to start in the third or fourth quarter of 2009 at the Ingersoll, Ontario, plant. It enters a crowded crossover field and will compete for buyers with the Ford Edge, Mazda CX-7, Nissan Murano and Hyundai Santa Fe. It will feature an "ECO" mode activated by a console-mounted button that lowers torque converter lockup speed, which helps save fuel economy. "The new Terrain brings GMC's history of innovation and engineering excellence into a smaller, fuel-efficient package for today's buyer," Buick-Pontiac-GMC vice president Susan Docherty said in a statement. "The capability attributes that make a vehicle a GMC are ingrained in Terrain, making it an appealing choice for existing traditional SUV customers who are looking for distinctive styling and increased efficiency." The GMC Yukon Denali being unveiled Wednesday is a two-mode hybrid that gets 21 mpg in city driving, a 50 percent improvement in fuel economy. It goes on sale in May and will make GMC the first manufacturer with three full-size hybrids when including the Yukon and Sierra. 
New York Preview: GMC adds Yukon Denaili hybrid and Terrain SUVsby Jeremy korzeniewski on Apr 5th 2009 at 7:19 PMGeneral Motors is planning to add another SUV to its hybrid vehicle fleet, in this case wearing the Yukon's top-level Denali trim. There's not much new to report here, as the Yukon Denali Hybrid will feature the same exact drivetrain that's fitted to its siblings from The General, including the non-Denali Yukon. That means we'll see a 6.0-liter Vortec V8 engine with 332 hp and 367 lb-ft of torque mated up with GM's sophisticated 2-Mode hybrid transmission. Expect EPA fuel economy ratings of 21 city, 22 highway for two-wheel drive models and 20/20 when equipped with four-wheel drive.
The hybrid Denali will make its debut at the New York Auto Show, joining the new-for-2010 GMC Terrain, which is based on the equally new Chevy Equinox. GM will debut a new 2.4-liter four cylinder engine in the Terrain and Equinox that will manage 30 mpg on the highway. Optional will be a 3.0-liter direct injected V6 that will get an estimated 18 city and 25 highway.
Sierra, Silverado take hybrids to next level
Dual-mode system gives GM an edge
BY MARK PHELAN
FREE PRESS COLUMNIST What kind of idiot builds a 20-m.p.g. hybrid pickup truck? Everybody knows that hybrids are 40-m.p.g.-plus small cars like the Toyota Prius. As often happens when you look beyond the obvious, what "everybody knows" is wrong. Switching from a conventional pickup to the new 2009 Chevrolet Silverado or GMC Sierra hybrid pickup actually saves more gasoline than trading a fuel-efficient compact car for a Prius. Add the fact that automakers sell millions of pickups annually and hybrid pickups start to look smart, despite their high cost. Using the EPA's calculations, here's how the numbers add up: A pickup owner will save about 181 gallons of gasoline annually by switching from the most fuel-efficient conventional pickups -- the Chevrolet Silverado, Ford F-150 and GMC Sierra -- to a hybrid Silverado or Sierra. That compares with saving 168 gallons by driving a Toyota Prius rather than the most fuel-efficient conventional compact cars, the Chevrolet Cobalt XFE, Kia Rio or Toyota Corolla. Thirteen gallons a year won't save the polar ice caps or end America's oil dependency, of course. Various pieces of hybrid technology will find their way into every type of vehicle over the next few years as automakers increase fuel economy and reduce emissions. Unless you think pickups will join the polar bear on the endangered species list -- and if you feel that way, don't share it with a farmer, carpenter, gardener or the host of small-businesspeople who need pickups -- the question becomes not whether to use hybrid tech in pickups, but how to do it well. The 2009 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra crew cab pickups do it well, despite a few shortcomings. They combine GM's proven 6.0-liter V8 engine with the slick dual-mode hybrid system GM developed with BMW, Chrysler and Daimler. The system dramatically improves fuel economy without reducing towing or payload capabilities. Prices for the hybrid pickups start at $38,020 for a rear-drive Silverado and $38,390 for a rear-drive Sierra. Four-wheel drive models start at $41,170 for the Silverado and $41,540 for Sierra. Both hybrids come only in four-door crew cab models and cost about $4,000 more than comparable non-hybrid models. I tested a nicely equipped four-wheel drive $41,445 Silverado and a loaded four-wheel drive $47,675 Sierra. All prices exclude destination charges. The EPA rates the four-wheel drive hybrid pickups I tested at 20 m.p.g. in the city and 20 m.p.g. on the highway. Rear-drive models scored 21 m.p.g. city and 22 m.p.g. on the highway. Those figures beat other full-size pickups by a whopping 6 to 8 m.p.g. in the city and 3 to 5 m.p.g. on the highway. Over more than a week of driving that included highway trips and plenty of city driving, the Silverado and Sierra I tested matched or slightly exceeded the EPA's projections. The hybrid system functioned smoothly, routinely shutting the engine off and powering the trucks in all-electric mode at speeds up to about 30 m.p.h. on surface streets. The system's ability to provide power at highway speeds -- unique to GM's pickups and SUVs, and the reason the automaker calls it a two-mode hybrid -- allowed the V8 to shut down four cylinders in steady highway cruising at up to 70 m.p.h. That's the key to the improved highway fuel economy. Most hybrid systems only work in city driving, making the system dead weight in the highway runs the EPA says account for around 45% of most Americans driving. The hybrid pickups can tow up to 6,100 pounds and offer plenty of passenger space in their roomy crew cabs. The battery pack under the rear seat eliminates the ability to fold the seat up to increase interior cargo space, but the trucks' functionality and comfort are otherwise unchanged from GM's conventional pickups. The lid for the door to the upper of the trucks' two gloveboxes was slightly misaligned, but fit and finish were otherwise fine. The engine shut-off and four-cylinder modes function imperceptibly, with no vibration to tell the driver the hybrid system is at work. Brake feel, however, is poor. The pedals feel stiff and provide very little feedback, making it difficult to modulate them for smooth stops. The electric power steering felt heavy at low speeds and could also use further refinement. The fuel economy is unbeatable, however, and the ability to drive a 5,000-pound-plus all-wheel drive crew cab pickup as an electric vehicle for blocks at a time elevates the 2009 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups to a level where they simply have no peer.
|
