Meticulous 2006 Gmc Yukon Xl 1500 Sle Sport Utility 4-door 5.3l on 2040-cars

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GM will no longer remove parts from trucks to calculate curb weights

Following last week's mild uproar after it was discovered that Ford and General Motors were removing some optional parts from their pickups to lower the curb weight and consequently increase the maximum payload, GM has come out and committed to a base curb weight for its upcoming Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon compact trucks (although it has yet to publish them) and its current Silverado and Sierra. The company will do the same for its heavy duty offerings, although those numbers have not been finalized yet.
"This will make our curb weight and payload specs more consistent with those of most other truck makers, making it easier for customers to compare vehicles," GM spokesman Tom Wilkinson told Autoblog in an emailed statement.
As GM notes - and as every manufacturer has noted since this story broke - customers still shouldn't take max payload ratings as gospel. Instead, they should refer to their truck's Tire and Load Label, like the one shown at the inset, which will offer detailed information on max payload, specific to their truck.

2020 GMC Sierra gets small price bumps, package discounts and tweaks

A couple of months ago we covered a brace of changes GMC made to the 2020 Sierra 1500. Those included availability of the 2.7-liter turbocharged four-cylinder with 310 horsepower and 348 pound-feet of torque, the 5.3-liter V8 getting the 10-speed automatic transmission, the CarbonPro Editions debuting for AT4 and Denali trims, and a new bed view camera. But GMC has made a few more smaller changes throughout, as GM Authority found, part of a detailed overhaul among GM's pickup lines that's already changed trim names, trim volume, and prices on the Chevrolet Canyon and GMC Colorado. We'll start with MSRP adjustments on the 2020 Sierra: 4WD drivetrains in SLT, and the AT4, and Denali trims that only come in 4WD, see a price increase of $200. There are also more MSRPs to consider this year, with a handful of new Elevation models filling price gaps.  The only changes inside are AT4-logoed all-weather floor liners that come standard for that trim, and adaptive cruise control joining the Driver Alert Package II available on the SLT, AT4, and Denali trims. Speaking of packages, the Value Packages represent truth in advertising. The new base-model Sierra Sierra Value Package costs $860 to combine the Convenience Package and Trailering Package. Those two cost $1,640 when ordered separately. Sticking with the base trim, the Chrome Exterior Package disappears because the chrome bumpers it added are now the standard finish. Black bumpers front and rear can be ordered at no charge, and the 17-inch Bright Silver painted aluminum wheels can be ordered alone. One trim up, the SLE Value Package lumps Convenience and Trailering, too, but it only costs $380, which is $15 less than the Trailering Package by itself. The Elevation Value Package gets cut by $1,330 to $585. On the AT4 trim, GMC dropped the price of the CarbonPro Package from $1,060 to $560, and the Premium Package comes down by $500 as well. The same $500 discount applies to the SLT Premium Package. The new 2.7-liter turbocharged four-cylinder is the optional engine on the base, SLE, and Elevation trims, saving $235 on the first trim and $395 on the other two compared to ordering the standard 4.3-liter EcoTec V6. Smokey Quartz Metallic exterior paint is expected to disappear come Q2. Two new wheels enter the range in the upper reaches, one being a 20-inch Carbon Grey painted rim available on the AT4 CarbonPro Edition.

Two More Recalls Push GM Total To 4.8 Million In A Month

General Motors announced two more recalls late Friday, bringing to 4.8 million the number of cars, trucks and SUVs the automaker has called back for repairs in the past month. The string of recalls, topped by an ignition switch problem in compact cars now linked to 13 crash deaths, has embarrassed the company and sidetracked its new CEO, who started work just over two months ago. GM has admitted knowing about the switch problem a decade ago, yet it didn't recall any cars until February. The recall delay has brought two congressional investigations and probes by the Justice Department and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Late Friday night, GM announced it would recall 490,000 late-model pickup trucks and SUVs because transmission oil cooling lines weren't secured properly in their fittings. Transmission oil can leak from a fitting and hit hot surfaces, causing fires, the company said in a statement. GM said it knows of three fires and no injuries. The recall affects Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 1500 pickup trucks from the 2014 model year, as well as 2015 Chevrolet Suburban and Tahoe SUVs and the GMC Yukon and Yukon XL SUVs. All have six-speed automatic transmissions. The Silverado is GM's top-selling vehicle and an important profit center for the company. The GMC Sierra also is among GM's top sellers. Dealers will inspect the transmission oil cooling line fittings and make sure they're securely seated, at no cost to owners. Also Friday night, GM announced the recall of 172,000 Chevrolet Cruze compact cars because the right front axle shaft can fracture and separate while being driven. The recall affects cars from the 2013 and 2014 model years equipped with 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline engines. If a shaft fractures, the wheels would lose power without warning and the cars would coast to a stop. GM says it has warranty reports of several dozen shaft fractures. It is not aware of any crashes or injuries. Dealers will replace the shafts free of charge. The recall allows dealers to resume selling affected Cruzes. GM issued a stop sale order on the cars Thursday night. The recall also covers about 2,500 replacement shafts used to fix manual transmission Cruzes that were recalled last September. In all, GM has recalled 4.8 million vehicles since last month, two million more than the company sold last year in the U.S.