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2021 Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon facelift spied

The Chevy Colorado and its GMC Canyon twin have been on sale for a good long time now, and while things move a little more slowly on the truck side when it comes to facelifts and model changeovers, it seems like it’s about time. So itÂ’s no surprise to see some lightly camouflaged trucks running around ahead of what appears to be a minor refresh for the 2021 model year. Starting with the Colorado, it appears to have a bowtie hiding behind some camo in the center of the grille, which otherwise looks like the no-bowtie option you can get on 2019-and-up trucks. It could be that Chevy is keeping the no-bowtie grille design but allowing a bowtie to grace it, or it could be misdirection. Either way, the grille pattern adds a bit of flair to the otherwise staid front end design. There also appears to be a bit more shape to the lower air inlet, with echoes of some of the lower fascias of its bigger Silverado stablemate. The Canyon, on the other hand, shows more extensive front-end changes. At first glance, it looks to emulate some variants of the GMC Sierra, which would make sense given those modelsÂ’ changes for the 2020 model year. In particular, this Canyon has hints of Sierra HD, being more square and monolithic than the regular Sierra 1500s, although itÂ’s a little hard to tell with the camo covering the edges of the grille. It could certainly also adopt more rounded corners like the 1500s. Either way, itÂ’s more vertical and thereÂ’s less differentiation between the upper grille and lower opening. ThereÂ’s nothing in the way of changes around the sides or back, and while there may be some minor changes inside, we arenÂ’t expecting any. The word around town is that this isnÂ’t a full facelift, but rather a minor front end tweak thatÂ’ll just be a regular part of the model-year changeover. 

Weekly Recap: Autonomous driving goes commercial in Nevada

Nevada granted Daimler Trucks North America the first license to run an autonomous commercial vehicle on public roads in the United States Tuesday, marking another milestone in the technology's rapid advancement. Gov. Brian Sandoval and Daimler truck chief Wolfgang Bernhard promptly used the license to lap Highway 15 near Las Vegas in a newly revealed Freightliner Inspiration Truck. It was a clear signal that autonomous driving is big-rig reality, though it's still a long way from widespread use. Nevada certified two of Daimler's Freightliner Inspiration Trucks, which use the company's Highway Pilot system with a stereo camera, radar, and lane-keeping collision-prevention features to regulate the brakes and steering. The radar component has a long-range sensor that can cover 820 feet at an 18-degree angle and a shorter-range unit that stretches 230 feet at a 130-degree angle. The Inspiration trucks are based on the existing Freightliner Cascadia Evolution model used on US roads. In addition to the autonomous technologies, it also has futuristic design cues, including blue lighting in the front and a new hood and grille. While there are only two Freightliner Inspiration trucks in existence, Daimler expects to bring the Highway Pilot system into mass-produced big rigs by 2025, in time to capitalize on the market's predicted growth. The German truckmaker predicts the global hauling market will triple by 2050, and the United States will be a key part of that growth. Trucks carry 69.1 percent the nation's domestic freight tonnage and hauled 9.7 billion tons of freight in 2013, according to the American Trucking Association. Daimler expects autonomous driving to augment this growth, and perhaps evolve the role of the truck driver. Still, the company points out autonomous tech is not meant to replace drivers, but to assist them and relieve fatigue and monotony on long hauls. The driver has to stay in control for passing, in city traffic, and when hooking up the trailer. The company said autonomous driving also offers the potential for improved fuel economy – tests showed a five-percent gain – and lower maintenance costs. Daimler also said the technology could reduce congestion on the road. Much of this is attributable to the constant flow of traffic, which is aided by autonomous driving. While the benefits are becoming increasingly apparent, autonomous technology is still met with skepticism.

GM posts $4 billion third-quarter profit thanks to trucks and SUVs

DETROIT — General Motors is posting huge third quarter numbers, pulling in $4 billion in profit over three months after losing money due to the virus outbreak. GM's adjusted earnings were $2.83 per share, easily outpacing Wall Street's per-share projections of $1.43, according to a survey by FactSet. Revenue of $35.5 billion also edged out most expectations. Shares jumped almost 6% before the opening bell Thursday. The company swung back from a $806 million loss in the second quarter, when it was restarting factories shuttered for safety during the early stages of the pandemic. The Detroit automaker joined most global automakers in reporting better-than-expected earnings from July through September as sales across the globe started to rebound from coronavirus lockdowns, especially in China. GM sales in China jumped 12% in the third quarter, with sales of its Buick and Cadillac brands both rising more than 25%. In the U.S., GMÂ’s most profitable market, sales fell 9.9% in the third quarter compared with a year ago, but were a dramatic improvement over the 34% drop in the second quarter. Sales improved sequentially each month, the automaker said, an encouraging trend. GMÂ’s profit was boosted by higher-priced pickup trucks and large SUVs, which have seen strong sales in the U.S. through the pandemic. It was the best quarter on record for GM's Chevrolet Blazer. Sales of the Cadillac XT6 spiked 45% in the U.S. over last year. Large pickups also sold well. GM also said it was pumping $2 billion into its Spring Hill, Tennessee manufacturing plant to push its transition to produce electric vehicles. Last week, crosstown rivals Fiat Chrysler and Ford reported strong third-quarter net income. FCA said it made $1.4 billion for the period, while Ford earned $2.39 billion. Related Video: Earnings/Financials Buick Cadillac Chevrolet GM GMC