1996 Gmc Yukon Slt 4x4 on 2040-cars

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Best and Worst GM Cars

Oh yes, because we just love receiving angry letters from devoted Pontiac Grand Am enthusiasts, we have decided to go there. Based on a heated group Slack conversation, the topic came up about the best and worst GM cars. First of all time, and then those currently on sale, and then just mostly a rambling discussion of Oldsmobiles our parents and grandparents owned (or engineered). Eventually, three of us made the video above. Like it? Maybe we can make more. Many awesome GM cars are definitely going unmentioned here, so please let us know your bests and worsts in the comments below. Mostly, it's important to note that this post largely exists as a vehicle for delivering the above video that dives far deeper into GM's greatest hits and biggest flops, specifically those from the 1980s and 1990s. What you'll find below is a collection of our editors identifying a best current and best-of-all-time choice, plus a worst current and worst-of-all-time choice. Comprehensive it is not, but again, comments. -Senior Editor James Riswick Best Current GM Vehicle Chevrolet Corvette We were flying by the seats of our pants a bit in this first outing and my notes were similarly extemporaneous. When it came time to tie it all together on camera, I failed spectacularly. Thank the maker for text, because this gives me the opportunity to perhaps slightly better explain my convoluted reasoning. I chose the C8 Corvette because it's simply overwhelmingly good, and it's merely the baseline from which this generation of Corvette will be expanded.  While the Cadillac CT5-V Blackwing (more on that in a minute) is an amazing snapshot of GM's current performance standing and its little sibling so enraptured me that I went out and bought one, their existence is fleeting. Corvette will live on; forced-induction Cadillac sport sedans, not so much. So while all three are amazing machines when viewed in a vacuum, the Corvette stands above them as both a reflection of GM's current performance credentials and a signpost of what is to come. So, given the choice between the C8 and the 5V-Blackwing right now, I'd choose the C8. In 10 years, when the Blackwing is no longer in production and Corvette is in its 9th generation? Well, that might be a different story. Now, just pretend I said something even remotely that coherent when we get to the part of the video where I try to make an argument for the 5-V Blackwing as best GM car I've ever driven. Or just laugh at me while I ramble incoherently.

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.

2024 GMC Sierra prices go up — and also down

The 2024 GMC Sierra 1500 is ready to work the yard, but how much you'll need to get the pickup back to your yard has changed compared to the 2023 Sierra — most often in a good way. The changes for the new model year aren't substantive, just enough to give Sierra lovers enough modification to prove they have the latest. The AT4X was only available with the 6.2-liter V8 in 2023; for 2024 the big bad off-road trim makes the 3.0-liter Duramax diesel inline-six the standard engine and takes $2,400 off the base price compared to last year's 6.2-liter. On top of that, the 6.2-liter AT4X costs $500 less than last year. Re: the gas V8, this is the opposite of the hefty increases we've seen Chevrolet generally do with 6.2-powered trims. The SLT, AT4, AT4X, Denali, and Denali Ultimate get the option of an active exhaust on four-wheel-drive trims with the 6.2-liter for $395. The 2.7-liter Turbo H.O. four-cylinder gas engine is rebranded TurboMax and comes with a five-year, 100,000-mile warranty. Two new wheel designs enter the catalog, availability depending on trim, and colors join the palette, their availability also trim-dependent: Downpour Metallic replacing Pacific Blue Metallic, and Thunderstorm Grey, both adding $495 to the price. Now to the haggling. Even though destination has risen $100, to $1,995, five of the eight trims — including the diesel AT4X — are less expensive than they were a year ago, some of them by $1,000. The new sums after destination and their differences from 2023 are:  Sierra Pro Regular Cab Standard Box 2WD TurboMax: $39,695 ($700) SLE Double Cab Std Box 2WD TurboMax $51,095 ($1,000 less) Elevation Double Cab 2WD TurboMax $52,795 ($1,000 less) SLT Crew Cab Short Box 2WD 5.3L V8 $56,795 ($1,000 less) AT4 Crew Cab Short Box 4WD Duramax 3.0L I6 $68,595 ($500 less) AT4X Crew Cab Short Box 4WD Duramax 3.0L I6 $81,195 (New trim) Denali Crew Cab Short Box 2WD 5.3L V8 L84 $68,595 ($1,000) Denali Ultimate Crew Cab Short Box 4WD Duramax 3.0L I6 $83,490 ($500) Since certain varieties of the 2023 Sierras are still on the configurator and in dealer inventory, any business wanting to take a tax loss for 2023 should buy the older Sierra. Regular buyers willing to forego the new bits on the 2024 Sierra will likely be able to find dealers ready to take a machete to the MSRPs of some 2023 Sierras sitting on the lot.