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2016 Green Truck of the Year, Commercial Green Car of the Year finalists

Not only are commercial-grade haulers getting more green love lately, they're getting more different kinds of green love. The 2016 Green Truck of the Year, the second time the award has been handed out, is being decided by judges from Green Car Journal and the San Antonio Auto & Truck Show. This year the award is joined by the new 2016 Commercial Green Car of the Year, which crowns one of the little vans increasingly used by small business as cargo and delivery vehicles. The Green Truck of the Year finalists are the Chevrolet Colorado Duramax (pictured), Ford F-150, GMC Canyon Duramax, Nissan Titan XD, and Toyota Tacoma. The first three of those were on last year's list, but since they are completely new or upgraded for 2016 - Ford with its all-aluminum body, the General Motors twins with the new diesel Duramax engine - they qualify for entry again. The Ram 1500 EcoDiesel won last year. The Commercial Green Car finalists are the Chevrolet City Express, Ford Transit Connect, Mercedes-Benz Metris, Nissan NV200, and Ram ProMaster City. You can read more details in the presser below, and the awards will be announced in San Antonio sometime during the show from November 19-22. San Antonio Auto & Truck Show Announces 2016 Green Truck of the Year and Commercial Green Car of the Year Finalists SAN ANTONIO, Oct. 22, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Green Car Journal and the San Antonio Auto & Truck Show have announced finalists for the 2016 Green Truck of the Year™ and 2016 Commercial Green Car of the Year™ awards. The Green Truck of the Year™ nominees are the Chevrolet Colorado Duramax, Ford F-150, GMC Canyon Duramax, Nissan Titan XD, and Toyota Tacoma. Vying for the all-new 2016 Commercial Green Car of the Year™ award are the Chevrolet City Express, Ford Transit Connect, Mercedes-Benz Metris, Nissan NV200, and Ram ProMaster City. "Over the past few decades, new car models have benefitted from design and technology improvements that have brought higher fuel efficiency and greater levels of environmental compatibility," said Green Car Journal and CarsOfChange.com Editor and Publisher Ron Cogan. "With models like these ten deserving finalists, we're witnessing the pickup and light commercial vehicle field enjoying the same attention." The new Commercial Green Car of the Year™ award is part of an expanded awards program presented at this year's 2015 San Antonio Auto & Truck Show.

2019 GMC Sierra Denali and its nifty tailgate roll into dealers

We've got more details about the 2019 GMC Sierra Denali now that it's rolling into dealerships, starting with its floor price of $56,195, including destination fee, for the rear-wheel-drive models. That's a jump of $1,900 over the previous generation of its premium full-size pickup. Four-wheel-drive models start at $60,295. The crew-cab truck has grown in every dimension as well, adding about 4 inches to the wheelbase, nearly 2 inches in length and 1.2 inches in width. There's also nearly 3 inches more rear legroom. Bed options are 5-foot-8 or 6-foot-6. There are three engine options. Two are carryovers from 2018: a 5.3-liter V8 that sends 355 horsepower and 383 pound-feet of torque through an eight-speed automatic transmission, and an available 6.2-liter V8 that makes 420 hp and 460 lb-ft of torque and mated to a 10-speed automatic. Both come with GM's dynamic fuel management cylinder-deactivation technology to optimize power and fuel efficiency. A new 3.0-liter turbodiesel paired with a 10-speed automatic is expected in early 2019. The EPA hasn't yet released official fuel economy ratings, but GM estimates them at 17 miles per gallon in the city and 23 mpg on the highway for the two-wheel-drive versions, and 15/21 in four-wheel drive. The truck gets adaptive ride control which can adjust the dampers every 2 milliseconds based on real-time monitoring of the road and driver inputs for improved ride and handling. A new traction select system adjusts the transmission shift points, throttle mapping and StabiliTrak to tailor performance to different terrain or weather conditions. Inside the crew cab, there's new Forge leather-appointed seats, open-pore wood trim and dark finished aluminum decor, plus an 8-inch-diagonal HD color touchscreen with embedded navigation and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto compatibility. Most of the other new stuff we've covered before, including new C-shaped LED headlights and LED tail and fog lamps, optional 22-inch wheels, full-color head-up display, trailer-hitch assist apps and cameras, and rear-camera mirror. The truck also loses up to 360 pounds from the outgoing model via a scratch- and dent-resistant carbon-fiber bed box that replaces steel, and use of aluminum in the doors, hood and tailgate.

5 reasons why GM is cutting jobs, closing plants in a healthy economy

DETROIT — Even though unemployment is low, the economy is growing and U.S. auto sales are near historic highs, General Motors is cutting thousands of jobs in a major restructuring aimed at generating cash to spend on innovation. It's the new reality for automakers that are faced with the present cost of designing gas-powered cars and trucks that appeal to buyers now while at the same time preparing for a future world of electric and autonomous vehicles. GM announced Monday that it will cut as many as 14,000 workers in North America and put five plants up for possible closure as it abandons many of its car models and restructures to focus more on autonomous and electric vehicles. The reductions could amount to as much as 8 percent of GM's global workforce of 180,000 employees. The cuts mark GM's first major downsizing since shedding thousands of jobs in the Great Recession. The company also said it will stop operating two additional factories outside North America by the end of next year. The move to make GM get leaner before the next downturn likely will be followed by Ford Motor Co., which also has struggled to keep one foot in the present and another in an ambiguous future of new mobility. Ford has been slower to react, but says it will lay off an unspecified number of white-collar workers as it exits much of the car market in favor of trucks and SUVs, some of them powered by batteries. Here's a rundown of the reasons behind the cuts: Coding, not combustion CEO Mary Barra said as cars and trucks become more complex, GM will need more computer coders but fewer engineers who work on internal combustion engines. "The vehicle has become much more software-oriented" with millions of lines of code, she said. "We still need many technical resources in the company." Shedding sedans The restructuring also reflects changing North American auto markets as manufacturers continue to shift away from cars toward SUVs and trucks. In October, almost 65 percent of new vehicles sold in the U.S. were trucks or SUVs. That figure was about 50 percent cars just five years ago. GM is shedding cars largely because it doesn't make money on them, Citi analyst Itay Michaeli wrote in a note to investors. "We estimate sedans operate at a significant loss, hence the need for classic restructuring," he wrote. The reduction includes about 8,000 white-collar employees, or 15 percent of GM's North American white-collar workforce. Some will take buyouts while others will be laid off.