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May 2016: FCA wins, Ford and GM stumble on weak car volumes

The May 2016 sales numbers are in, and it looks as though FCA is getting some vindication for boldly cancelling two slow-selling car models. Meanwhile, Ford saw overall sales dip and GM's May volume took a big dive versus the same month in 2015. While Marchionne's decision to axe the Chrysler 200 and Dodge Dart has drawn criticism as being short-sighted, it's working for FCA so far. Although the Dart and 200 aren't out of production yet and no capacity has been shifted to crossover or trucks, May's numbers show that the emphasis on Jeep and Ram models makes sense right now. FCA's US sales rose 1 percent last month compared to May 2015, putting the year-to-date total at 955,186 vehicles, an increase of 6 percent compared to the same period last year. Standouts included the Jeep Renegade, Compass, and Patriot, and the Fiat 500X. Ram pickup sales were down 3 percent. And your fun fact is that Alfa Romeo sales were up precisely 10 percent, for a total of 44 4Cs sold versus 40 in the same month last year. At FoMoCo, the Ford brand took a hit to the tune of 6.4 percent from May 2015 to 2016, registering 226,190 sales last month. Lincoln showed improvement on its modest numbers, going from 9,174 to 9,807, a 6.9 percent increase. Overall, Ford was down 5.9 percent for the month to 235,997; despite the slump, year-to-date total Ford sales are up 4.2 percent to 1,112,939. Strong sellers included Escape, Expedition, F-Series, and Transit - big stuff. Most small and/or efficient models (Fiesta, Focus, Fusion, C-Max) saw sales slides. Fusion sales were also down, likely due to effects of model changeover to the freshened 2017 model. Ford has promised four new crossovers and SUVs by 2020 and if things keep trending this way the company will be able to sell them, but things could change in the next four years. GM saw the worst of it for domestic brands. Retail and fleet sales were down for each of the four divisions, with the May 2016 total dropping 18 percent to 240,450 vehicles. GM's year-to-date sales are down 5.0 percent in 2016 to 1,183,705. Both the Sierra and Silverado were down significantly, and the majority of Chevy, Buick, GMC, and Cadillac nameplates saw sales decreases, with both small cars and larger utilities included. Not even big stuff could help GM this month, it seems. We'll have more on the rest of the industry's May sales as those figures trickle in.

2021 GMC Yukon configurator now open for play-money builds

The 2021 GMC Yukon configurator is open for real and imaginary business. It's missing a number of important options, though, like the AT4 trim and the Premium Capability Package that installs the Air Ride Adaptive Suspension, so the configurator is best suited for practice runs at the moment. Playing our usual game, we started with a livery build in base SLT 2WD trim for an airport shuttle to compare to the livery 2021 Tahoe we built a few days ago. Same as with the Chevy, the GMC offers nine exterior colors. Opposite to the Chevy, the GMC makes you pay for every color except Summit White. Our Onyx Black selection added $195, five colors cost $495, Cayenne Red Tintcoat costs $695, and the super gonzo White Frost Tricoat runs $1,095. We plumped for the SLT Luxury package's driver assistance and convenience features like memory settings for the front passengers, powered seating for the second row, a split third row, the Rear Seat Media Package, and a console lockbox. What began as $59,095 after destination — $4,000 more than the 2021 Tahoe — ended at $64,445, just $2,165 more than our livery Tahoe because the Yukon packages more kit.   The amounts add up a lot quicker at the top end. Our regional rep with a fat bonus check started with a $72,295 Yukon Denali 4WD in the $495 Pearl Beige Metallic with a Teak and Light Shade interior. The $6,500 Denali Premium Package normally costs $500 more, and who can resist a sale? At about 9% of MSRP, it's not a negligible option, but it includes the $1,780 Advanced Technology Package, the $1,500 panoramic sunroof, and a set of 22-inch wheels that are normally $2,995. Since the bonus was big enough to replace the two-year-old jet skis in the garage, our rep added the $465 Max Trailering Package and that automatically appends the ProGrade Trailering features. Put in the Rear Seat Media Package to occupy the kids, locking armrest storage to protect stuff from the kids, and hook up a set of illuminated GMC badges for $535 to wow oncoming vehicles, and the total comes to $83,320. That's more than $10,000 in options without the least effort. However, there aren't any big-money options left to add except a $1,499 rooftop tent.     GM Authority wrote about the package combinations necessary to unlock the Air Ride Adaptive Suspension on the AT4 or Denali trims. Summed up, the check boxes add $3,410 to the price of an AT4, $3,755 to the price of a 2WD Denali, and $6,015 to the price of a 4WD Denali.

GM Ultium tech can scavenge heat from everywhere, even you

GM likes to give us tidbits about its Ultium platform from time to time, and today it’s telling us about the platformÂ’s ability to capture waste heat from the propulsion system. In addition to capturing from the propulsion system, it can also capture humidity from both inside and outside the vehicle and even from passengersÂ’ body heat. Yes, you, your family and/or your friends are a usable heat source as far as GM EVs are concerned. It then deploys the heat in an advantageous way. If at this point, youÂ’re screaming, "Heat pump!" youÂ’d be right. WeÂ’re talking about an elaborate heat pump system that GM is using for its Ultium-based vehicles. Every Ultium-based GM vehicle gets this system that is covered by 11 patents and four publications. The waste heat it collects is used in a number of ways, but its primary use is to heat the cabin quickly and efficiently. GM claims it can heat the cabin of its Ultium-based vehicles quicker than vehicles with traditional internal combustion engines. Plus, when put to use, GM claims that using the heat pump provides its EVs with up to 10% more range than theyÂ’d have without. Beyond heating the cabin, the heat pump is capable of putting waste heat to use by preheating the battery prior to charging so that you can charge quicker. The system can even cool the propulsion system in preparation for Watts to Freedom (WTF) launch control starts. GM says this was vital in helping the Hummer EV achieve its bonkers 0-60 mph time of about 3 seconds. “Having a ground-up EV architecture gives us the freedom to build in standard features like UltiumÂ’s energy recovery capabilities,” said Doug Parks, GM executive VP of global product development, purchasing and supply chain. “This helps us squeeze more efficiency, performance and overall customer benefit out of our EVs.” GM says itÂ’s been developing heat pump technology since the EV1 and its heat pump. This is the modern evolution of that technology, and GM says itÂ’s going to be implemented in every Ultium-based vehicle as a standard feature. Related video: Green Cadillac Chevrolet GM GMC Technology Electric Future Vehicles