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2016 GMC Sierra All Terrain X is cool but no Raptor threat

If you want a brutish off-roader from Ford or Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, you're spoiled for choice. There's the F-150 SVT Raptor, the Jeep Wrangler, and the Ram Rebel and Power Wagon. But since General Motors killed the Hummer brand, it's been without any real competitor to those trucks. The new, special edition GMC Sierra All Terrain X is not going to be that vehicle, but it's close enough to be worth a look. The oft-overlooked Sierra All Terrain's off-road suspension and Eaton locking rear differential give it some real trail credentials. The All Terrain X builds on both with cosmetic and performance upgrades. For most owners, the big draw will be the brawnier 5.3-liter V8. Fitted with a performance exhaust, it should deliver a meatier tone, and according to GMC it bumps output up from 355 to 365 horsepower. The other big performance upgrade comes from the tires, knobby Goodyear Wrangler DuraTrac MT mud-terrain-rated things. The tires and their accompanying 18-inch black aluminum wheels are nice touches. Cool as the All Terrain X might be, it strikes us as an odd strategy for the GMC brand. For one, the trail-ready tires and performance exhaust of the All Terrain X don't seem to fit into the more premium market position that GMC occupies. Moreover, Chevy already has an off-road-oriented pickup in the new Colorado Z71 Trail Boss. Visual upgrades like the black bed-mounted sport bar, LED off-road lights, blacked-out accents, and the 18-inch wheels, the look of the All Terrain X is more in line with the Colorado Trail Boss theme. It's just our two cents, but it seems like attaching the All Terrain X's aesthetic to the Silverado would have been a stronger strategy, and would give Colorado buyers a larger off-road-focused truck to aspire to. You can look for the special edition All Terrain X in GMC dealers this spring, with prices to be announced closer to the on-sale date. Read on for the official press release from GMC. Related Video: GMC Announces Sierra All Terrain X The News GMC today announced the 2016 Sierra All Terrain X – a special edition of the All Terrain model, featuring exclusive premium content that enhances off-road capability and an aggressive, monochromatic appearance. The All Terrain X's powerful attitude reflects a popular personalization trend among off-road enthusiasts, executed with the top-range refinement GMC has cultivated for years with models such as the Sierra Denali.

GM investing $2 billion in Tennessee plant to build Cadillac Lyriq, other EVs

DETROIT — General Motors said on Tuesday it will invest $2 billion to convert its Spring Hill, Tennessee, factory to produce electric vehicles, starting with the new Cadillac Lyriq, alongside existing combustion-engine Cadillacs. Spring Hill will be GM's third U.S. electric vehicle factory, along with existing plants in Detroit and Orion Township, Michigan. The Tennessee plant was built in 1990 as the exclusive source for GM's now-defunct Saturn brand. The Cadillac Lyriq crossover is slated to go into production in Spring Hill in late 2022, according to AutoForecast Solutions (AFS), which tracks industry production plans. AFS said it expects some electric vehicle production will be announced at a later date for a factory in Mexico. Among additional investments, GM on Tuesday said it will spend $32 million at its truck plant in Flint, Michigan, to increase production of the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra heavy-duty pickups. GM will spend $100 million to shift production of the redesigned GMC Acadia crossover from Spring Hill to a plant near Lansing, Michigan. Spring Hill will continue to build the gas-engine Cadillac XT5 and XT6 crossovers. The plant also will build other future electric vehicles in addition to the Lyriq. The automaker's plans for investing in U.S. factories comes with two weeks left in the U.S. presidential election campaign. President Donald Trump and Democratic rival Joe Biden are competing for support from auto workers in Midwestern swing states. GM Chief Executive Mary Barra has outlined plans to invest $20 billion by 2025 in new electric vehicles and battery technology. The automaker is spending $2.2 billion to overhaul and retool its Detroit-Hamtramck factory to build a GMC Hummer EV electric pickup truck in late 2021, followed by an automated robotaxi and other electric vehicles. GM builds its electric Chevrolet Bolt at a large assembly plant north of Detroit.

Diesel Power finds the ultimate modified oil-burner

For nine years, Diesel Power magazine has run the Diesel Power Challenge, this year's grindfest being "a week-long torture test that features seven events, nine trucks, 8,000 horsepower, and nearly 15,000 pound-feet of torque." The road to being crowned "the most powerful truck" starts with a dyno run, and then continues through the completion of a CDL-style obstacle course, an eighth-of-a-mile drag race while towing a 10,000-pound trailer, a quarter-mile drag race without a trailer, a fuel economy test in the mountains and finally a sled-pulling test through a 300-foot-long packed-mud pit.
What kind of trucks get into such a fight? Last year's winner, for instance - who upgraded his truck this year to prove he didn't "luck into the win" - drives a 2008 Ford F-250 Super Duty with a 6.4-liter Power Stroke V8 upgraded with a custom intake, Elite Diesel triple turbos and a two-stage nitrous system. Another competitor has a 2005 Dodge Ram 2500 powered by a 5.9-liter Cummins inline-six, upgraded with Garrett turbos, dual-stage nitrous, a seven-inch exhaust stack and twin fans built into the bed to cool the Sun Coast Omega transmission. The numbers on that truck: 1,255 horsepower, and 2,063 pound-feet of torque at the wheels. Naturally, as the image above might suggest, things don't always end well.
You'll find all five videos covering this years challenge below. A scene in the dyno video sums it all up perfectly: a competitor leaves his nitrous on too long and the crew is treated to some ominous poppings, he leans out the window, throws both hands up and shouts, "Amer'ca!"