Auto blog

Full-size trucks are the best and worst vehicles in America

You don’t need me to tell you that Americans love pickup trucks. And the bigger the truck, the more likely it seems to be seen as an object of desire. Monthly and yearly sales charts are something of a broken record; track one is the Ford F-Series, followed by the Chevy Silverado, RamÂ’s line of haulers, and somewhere not far down the line, the GMC Sierra. The big Japanese players fall in place a bit further below — not that thereÂ’s anything wrong with a hundred thousand Toyota Tundra sales — and one-size-smaller trucks like the Toyota Tacoma, Ford Ranger and Chevy Colorado have proven awfully popular, too. Along with their sales numbers, the average cost of new trucks has similarly been on the rise. Now, I donÂ’t pretend to have the right to tell people what they should or shouldnÂ’t buy with their own money. But I just canÂ’t wrap my head around why a growing number of Americans are choosing to spend huge sums of money on super luxurious pickup trucks. Let me first say I do understand the appeal. People like nice things, after all. I know I do. I myself am willing to spend way more than the average American on all sorts of discretionary things, from wine and liquor to cameras and lenses. IÂ’ve even spent my own money on vehicles that I donÂ’t need but want anyway. A certain vintage VW camper van certainly qualifies. I also currently own a big, inefficient SUV with a 454-cubic-inch big block V8. So if your answer to the question IÂ’m posing here is that youÂ’re willing to pay the better part of a hundred grand on a chromed-out and leather-lined pickup simply because you want to, then by all means — not that you need my permission — go buy one. The part I donÂ’t understand is this: Why wouldn't you, as a rational person, rather split your garage in half? On one side would sit a nice car that is quiet, rides and handles equally well and gets above average fuel mileage. Maybe it has a few hundred gasoline-fueled horsepower, or heck, maybe itÂ’s electric. On the other side (or even outside) is parked a decent pickup truck. One that can tow 10,000 pounds, haul something near a ton in the bed, and has all the goodies most Americans want in their cars, like cruise control, power windows and locks, keyless entry, and a decent infotainment screen.

2024 GMC Hummer EV SUV Second Drive Review: Moab made easy

MOAB, Utah — The title of our First Drive of the 2024 GMC Hummer EV SUV included the phrase, "It's big, but this elephant can dance." The truck earned that compliment after a day of squeezing through San Francisco lanes and the slightly-more-commodious back roads in Napa Valley. But an SUV can't be called a supertruck without equivalent mastery on dirt, so GMC led a posse of media to Moab, Utah to run the Hummer's favorite stomping grounds. What happens when you subtract 20 inches of overall length and nine inches of wheelbase from a megafauna pickup? You find the dancing doesn't stop where the pavement ends. Allowed to roam Moab's challenging terrain — and ample room — the SUV is more than ready to do the Hokey Pokey and turn itself around. Admittedly, we knew this from our First Drive of the Hummer SUT two years ago, also performed among Moab's red rocks and red dust. The two variants share the same tricks, and GMC engineers chose Moab for prototype development, so there was no question of successfully navigating the trails. The SUV's simply nimbler about than the SUT. Clearance angles are better all over. Compared to the SUT, the SUV's 49.6-degree approach angle is just 0.1 better, but the 49-degree departure angle is 10.6 degrees better, and the breakover angle is 2.2 degrees better. Having four-wheel steer to rotate the SUV's shorter wheelbase shrinks the already tiny turning circle by 1.7 feet, to 35.4 feet. That's only four feet wider than a BMW i3, but 14 feet more compact than a GMC Sierra Crew Cab with the Short Box. And there are 'only' 15 standard cameras on the SUV, one shy of the 16 cameras in the SUT; the pickup adds an angle on the cargo bed the SUV doesn't have. Our 3X trim packed three motors producing a combined 830 horsepower and 1,200 pound-feet of torque. The $9,995 Extreme Off-Road Package threw on rock sliders with integrated steps that can support 1.5 times the Hummer's weight, full underbody skid plating, two additional underbody cameras front and rear, an electronically locking mechanical front differential for the single motor on the front, a virtual rear differential (programming that makes the two rear motors behave like a locked diff), heavy-duty ball spline half shafts, tow hooks and 18-inch black wheels on 35-inch Goodyear Wrangler Mud-Terrain tires.

2019 GMC Sierra shows off new headlights in Los Angeles

Despite being just three weeks in to 2018, it's not too early to dub this the year of the truck. At last week's Detroit Auto Show, we saw the debuts of the 2019 Chevy Silverado, 2019 Ram 1500 and the return of the 2019 Ford Ranger. As with every new Silverado, a sister vehicle follows from GMC. Just take a look at these new spy shots of the 2019 GMC Sierra 1500. These photos were taken out in Los Angeles, presumably for some warm weather testing outside of Michigan. At the Silverado's debut, GM VP Mark Reuss said there would be a significant difference between the Silverado and Sierra with this new generation. The grille on the Sierra appears to be far more upright and rectangular, contrasting the rounded look of the new Silverado. The headlights are larger and more upright. The same goes for the foglights. The profile and rear look fairly similar, though the fenders on the Sierra are more squared off. While we don't know what will rest under the Sierra's hood, expect it to share powertrains with the Silverado. That would mean updated versions of the 5.3-liter V8 and 6.2-liter V8 would be joined by 3.0-liter inline-six diesel. Look for the new Sierra as soon as the Chicago Auto Show next month. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Featured Gallery 2019 GMC Sierra spy shots Image Credit: Brian Williams Design/Style Spy Photos GM GMC Truck gmc sierra 1500