Gmc Sierra 2500 Diesel (30,000 Mile) on 2040-cars

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2020 Chevy Trax spied sporting design cues from the new Blazer

We saw spy shots in August for what we thought was either a redesigned Chevrolet Trax or new GMC subcompact crossover. At the time we were leaning Chevy. But after this latest batch of spy shots taken near GM's proving grounds, we're now thinking this one is the Trax replacement and the other one was a GMC. For one, the thin row of LEDs looks remarkably similar to the 2019 Chevy Blazer's LED strip. The additional light slightly below that is similar to the Blazer as well, leading us to believe that the next Trax will have a Blazer-esque front end. At first glance, this vehicle looks slightly larger than today's Trax with a much brawnier shape than the current blob-like design. The rear roof cladding could be hiding the same sloped rear window with spoiler hangover we see on the Blazer. Circling back to the other small GM crossover we caught testing, this one doesn't have those Blazer elements. The curved windshield and sloping roof are like those of the GMC Terrain, as are the horizontal grille bars. By contrast, the above car has a straighter windshield and a roof shaped more like the Blazer. One element that does seem to diverge from the new Blazer are the taillights, but they don't exactly look production-ready anyway. If we're right about this being the next Trax (and we're pretty sure we are) then this looks to be a more distinctive vehicle than what it will replace. The mirrors have left their awkward spot on the doors, and it's shaping up to be a much sportier looking crossover as a whole. This vehicle will most likely end up being a 2020 model year car, and if so, we would expect to see undisguised photos of both it and the assumed GMC version next year. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2020 Chevrolet Trax spy shots Spy Photos Chevrolet GMC Crossover SUV Future Vehicles chevy trax

2022 GMC Sierra 1500 Denali interior spied with dramatic redesign

The 2022 GMC Sierra’s interior overhaul is coming into better view with these new spy shots revealing a totally new dash.  GMC teased out a few changes when it announced Super Cruise was coming to the 2022 Sierra, but only so much was visible in the tightly cropped photo. These spy shots tell a fuller story about whatÂ’s going on inside the new GMC pickup. WeÂ’re instantly drawn to the new center stack that doesnÂ’t even remotely look like the truckÂ’s current design. ThereÂ’s a new widescreen infotainment system integrated nicely into the dash just below new thin air vents. It appears to be running a version of Android Automotive. The Google Assistant bubble is visible in the top left corner, and a Google sign-in screen is showing on the far right. GMC is obviously still prioritizing hard buttons and knobs for all vital controls. A big, knurled-looking volume knob is positioned to the left of the screen. And the climate control layout is all buttons and knobs with glossy black and chrome accents. This, along with the angled surfaces, classes it up a bit versus the current sea of flat black center stack buttons. Even the push button start appears dressed up in chrome. One other large change to the center console area is the introduction of a gear lever replacing the column-mounted shifter. The new shifter looks slathered in leather, glossy plastic and chrome accents. ThereÂ’s a part of us that will miss the chunky truck-like operation of the column-mounted shifter, but this new design is certainly more befitting of a luxury pickup. And from what we can tell, this Sierra is the luxury-oriented Denali trim. Its exterior features give it away with the ostentatious grille treatment and chrome trim scattered about. We still donÂ’t know which, if any, of these features we see here will be exclusive to the Denali, but the digital instrument cluster seems like a given but will likely be available further down the trim tree. This replaces the truckÂ’s current, tired-looking gauges with a vibrant and neatly-integrated screen. Super Cruise, as it is throughout the lineup of GM cars that offer it, also looks optional — this Denali does not have the fancy light-up steering wheel or controls for it. ItÂ’s worth noting that this DenaliÂ’s interior could be different than the rest of the Sierra lineup. GM already did that with the redesigned Yukon, giving its top trim model a different look than the rest of the trims.

2023 J.D. Power APEAL Study shows new-car customer satisfaction scores slip

J.D. Power survey results have been slightly up but mostly down for automakers this year, literally. In February, the 2023 Vehicle Dependability Study showed an overall decline compared the 2022 a month before the Customer Service Index Study did the same. The trend reversed in June with a better overall score on the 2023 U.S. Electric Vehicle Consideration Study than in 2022, then declined again the same month on with a lower overall score on the 2023 Initial Quality Study. The declines continue with the 2023 J.D. Power U.S. Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study, overall satisfaction among the 84,555 respondents down two points overall compared to 2022, to 845 out of 1,000 points. Because last year's score dropped compared to 2021, this year marks the first consecutive decline in the study's 28-year history. The study tries to "[measure] owners' emotional attachment and level of excitement with new vehicle" after 90 days of ownership by asking new owners to rate 37 attributes in 10 areas around the vehicle, such as the feeling they get when they hit the accelerator. Satisfaction with nine of the attributes is down this year versus last, fuel economy the only segment to show better results with 15 points more satisfaction. Styling and infotainment are big drags on satisfaction. Responses to new car exterior looks tallied 888 points, down from 894 last year, the largest drop in this year's study. On the digital side, less than half of those surveyed this year said they prefer using a manufacturer's built-in infotainment. From 70% of respondents in 2020 preferring to use a manufacturer's in-house software to play audio instead of Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, that's 56% in 2023. Going all-in on Google appears to have the best effect. J.D. Power said that vehicles with both Google's Android Automotive Operating System (AAOS) and Google Automotive Services (GAS) "score higher in the infotainment category than those with no AAOS whatsoever. AAOS without GAS receives the lowest scores for infotainment of the three categories."  Frank Hanley, senior director of auto benchmarking at J.D. Power, said, "Despite the technology and design innovations that manufacturers put into new vehicles, owners are lukewarm about them. While innovations like charging pads, vehicle apps and advanced audio features should enhance an owner’s experience, this is not the case when problems are experienced.