2015 Gmc Sierra 2500 Sle on 2040-cars

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GM CEO Mary Barra predicts mass electrification will take decades

General Motors is allocating a substantial amount of money to the development of electric technology, but Mary Barra, the firm's CEO, conceded that battery-powered cars won't fully replace their gasoline-burning counterparts for several decades. She stressed the shift is ongoing, but she hinted it will be slower than many assume. "We believe the transition will happen over time," affirmed Barra on "Leadership Live with David Rubenstein," a talk show aired by Bloomberg Television. She added that not every car will be electric in 2040. "It will happen in a little bit longer period, but it will happen," she told the host. She was presumably talking about the United States market; the situation is markedly different in Europe and in China, where strict government regulations (and even stricter ones on the horizon) are accelerating the shift towards electric cars. On the surface, it doesn't look like General Motors has much invested in electrification; the only battery-powered model it sells in America in 2020 is the Chevrolet Bolt (pictured), which undeniably remains a niche vehicle. Sales totaled 16,418 units in 2019, meaning the Corvette beat it by about 1,500 sales. In comparison, Cadillac sold 35,424 examples of the aging last-generation Escalade during the same time period. And yet, the company isn't giving up. It has numerous electric models in the pipeline including a slightly larger version of the aforementioned Bolt, the much-hyped GMC Hummer pickup, and an electric crossover assigned to the Cadillac brand. These models (and others) will use the Ultium battery technology that General Motors is currently developing. Its engineers are also working on a modular platform capable of underpinning a wide variety of cars. Bringing these innovations to the market is a Herculean task. EVs may not take over for decades, but Barra and her team must believe their 2% market share will increase significantly in the coming years if they're approving these programs. Autonomous technology is even costlier, more complicated, and more time-consuming to develop. Barra nonetheless expects to see the first General Motors-built driverless vehicles on the road by 2025. "I definitely think it will happen within the next five years. Our Cruise team is continuing to develop technology so it's safer than a human driver. I think you'll see it clearly within five years," she said on the same talk show. Her statement is vague but realistic.

2022 GMC Sierra spotted with minimal camouflage

By all accounts, GM's current full-size truck twins, the Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra, are good trucks that are in many ways competitive with the sales-leading Ford F-150 and a fresh Ram 1500 that's regularly nipping at the Bowtied truck's tailgate. Considering the cashflow generated by the segment, though, it's no surprise to see a refreshed version of the GMC Sierra testing with some light camouflage hiding some of the upgraded bits and pieces. We'll get to what we can see in just a moment, but first we'll point out what we can't see in these spy shots. What the GM pair really needs is a competitive interior. The current Silverado and Sierra are bridled by dashboards, door panels and instrument clusters that simply aren't good enough when compared to their Ram and Ford competitors. We've spoken with a few designers from GM, and they are well aware of the criticisms that have been levied at their full-size truck duo, so we'd be shocked if there wasn't a heavily revised interior lurking for the trucks' next refresh. Hopefully a future set of spy photos will give us a better look at what's inside, because from this far-away, through-the-windshield look doesn't give us much information. Will the Sierra share an interior with the redesigned Yukon? We'll just have to wait and see, but suffice it to say that any improvement will be welcome. Moving to the exterior, we can clearly see that the blocky, angular look of the current Sierra will continue through this refresh. A tiny look through the heavy tarp covering the truck's face reveals a black plastic mesh grille, but we're sure there's plenty of chrome hiding under there, too. We're left to wonder if that opening allows for a camera or radar to peek through, but rumors suggest GM's well-regarded Super Cruise could be on the menu within the next few years. We have no idea what's under this test truck's hood, but we wouldn't imagine there will be much change to the current truck's solid list of powertrain options. Here's hoping the 3.0-liter Duramax inline-six diesel engine gets the cooling it needs to raise its tow rating to match its class-leading efficiency, because it's arguably otherwise the best light-duty diesel offering in America. We know the automaker is working on electric powertrains, too, but we expect to see those debut first in the Hummer-branded truck that will be sold in GMC dealerships.

GMC Yukon spy shots show refresh with Acadia-style interior

GMC seems to be moving quickly to get its line-up's interiors all on the same page. These spy photos reveal that the GMC Yukon full-size SUV line will be getting an update that will refresh the exterior somewhat, and the interior much more significantly. The design of the interior is clearly derived that of the new Acadia. The center stack is dominated by one large vertical touchscreen, and sitting in the lower quarter of the screen is a floating multifunction knob. At the base of the screen are some chunky piano-key style buttons. They appear to be connected to some of the climate functions based on the screen's readout. On either side of the screen are vertical air vents, and we can just make out a bit of wood trim. Much of the rest of the dash is still hidden, but it's pretty clear this interior will look very close to that of the Acadia, as the screen and vent layout looks nearly identical. That means there should be an instrument cowl that extends just far enough to meet the center screen, and the rest of the dash should be fairly simple and unadorned. One other note, the steering wheel in this test vehicle has the lights and sensors for Super Cruise, so that will likely be offered, too. As for the exterior of the new Yukon, it won't be radically changed. While the Acadia and Terrain will be nearly all-new, the Yukon will just be a refresh with changes focused on the front and rear fascias. They're still very well covered in these spy shots, but expect some changes to grille shape and headlights to change somewhat. The example pictured appears to be an AT4 trim based on the shortened front bumper for improved approach angle. It also seems likely that the next AT4 will adopt the signature amber fender marker lights from the HD trucks, Canyon and now Acadia. Since this is a refresh, we wouldn't be surprised if we see the new Yukon shown sometime this year or early next. It will probably continue to offer the same range of engines and transmissions, including both gas V8s and the diesel inline-6. Related Video