Chevrolet remains the strong number three make in the USA, some 64,000 units behind Toyota in the first half of 2019 (GM has stopped reporting monthly sales). China, the brand’s other major market, is a different story, with Chevy ending H1 in eighteenth place. Which explains why GM’s number one global division is adding so many SUVs in North America and China, while also making plans to fight back against FCA’s Ram 1500, which has taken second place from the Silverado pick-up in the US market.
Crossovers & SUVs
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The second generation Tracker, a global small SUV which will be sold as the new Trax in many countries, was revealed at the Shanghai motor show in April. It was in local market dealerships two months later. GM Korea is due to begin building a replacement for the Trax/Tracker at its Bupyeong 2 plant later this year. This facility has had its annual capacity lifted to 180,000 units from what had been as low as 65,000. A new body shop was installed during August 2018 in preparation for the arrival of the Trax.
The little crossover will also be manufactured in Mexico. It shouldn’t be mistaken for SAIC GM’s Chevrolet Trax and GM do Brasil’s Chevrolet Tracker: those 4,270mm long SUVs (JBUC) use the low cost GEM architecture and date to 2018.
Following the end of production in February, the Volt name is on hiatus. Three weeks after that happened, GM told the media that it would be building a Chevrolet electric vehicle at its Orion Township plant in Michigan. Neither the model name nor the date of introduction was disclosed. The architecture will be the same as that which underpins the Bolt, the company did confirm.
After two generations of Volt hatchbacks and not a great deal of success with either, GM thinks it might have more luck with a crossover. It also seems highly likely that the model will switch from being an extended range EV backed up by a gasoline engine to a fully electric vehicle. This would sit well in the Chevrolet line-up one size up from the Bolt. Expect the Volt 3 to appear for North America’s 2023 model year.
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By GlobalDataThe Menlo, also an EV, will be a special model for China closely linked to the local market’s Buick Velite 6 MAV. Production should start by year-end after a debut at the Chengdu motor show in a few days’ time.
SAIC GM has quite a few other unique models, including the new Orlando. Unlike the MPV of the same name manufactured by GM Korea between early 2010 and mid-2018, this new one is a crossover. Sales commenced at the end of September 2018 with the life cycle expected to last until the second half of 2025 after a facelift in 2022.
The Equinox, which was previously sold mainly in North America, also became a model for China in its latest generation. New in 2017, this Delta platform SUV is 4,652mm long and available with 1.5-litre and 2.0-litre petrol engines. A 1.6-litre diesel was dropped at the end of the 2019 model year. A facelift is due in late 2021 with the replacement expected in 2025. The next model will most likely switch to VSS-S.
GM Colombia revealed the latest generation of the Captiva at the Bogota motor show in November 2018. It might seem puzzling why this 4,655mm long SUV is nearly identical in size to the Equinox but it isn’t available in North America.
The new Captiva is in fact the Baojun 530 with Chevrolet badges and a fresh grille. Built in China by the SAIC GM Wuling joint venture, this seven-seater has a standard 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbocharged petrol engine. GM won’t sell this model in Brazil or Argentina, at least not initially, the launch markets being Peru (May), followed by Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia, Chile and Uruguay. Thailand is another market.
The C1UC Blazer, announced to the media in June 2018 and new for North America’s 2019 model year, is closely related to the GMC Acadia as well as being effectively a short-wheelbase Chevy Traverse. Positioned between the compact two-row Equinox and the three-row Traverse in Chevrolet USA’s SUV range, it is a rival for the Ford Edge, Jeep Grand Cherokee and Nissan Murano. The Blazer name dates to 1969.
Production takes place at one of the two Ramos Arizpe plants in Mexico and this vehicle was in US dealerships from early 2019. The Blazer is also sold in South America. There should be a facelift for 2023 model year and a successor for MY2026.
C1UC-S is the code for another future model which will soon go into series production. This three-row crossover for China, North America, South Korea and elsewhere is an extended Blazer, the styling of which was heralded by the Chevrolet FNR-CarryAll concept. The Trailblazer was revealed at the Shanghai motor show in April. It will be built by both SAIC GM and by GM Korea, one of the latter’s plants supplying North American markets.
North America’s Trailblazer will be new in that region for the 2021 model year it was announced in May. Positioned between the Trax and Equinox, sales commence in the US, Canada and Mexico from early 2020.
The C1YC series Traverse, a large crossover, is sold mainly in North America, although the model will be added to GM Korea’s line-up later in 2019 (as an import). The present generation had its world debut at the Detroit auto show in January 2017, new for North America’s 2018 model year. Sales commenced in October 2017. The life cycle should be nine years with two facelifts: one in the second quarter of 2021 and the second in late 2023.
The next Suburban, which will be introduced for the 2021 model year, will use GM’s VSS-T (formerly known as T1xx) architecture. The project code is T1YC. While its size is not expected to shrink, the new model should be significantly lighter thanks to weight saving incorporated in the (aluminium) body panels, powertrains and architecture.
Among key engineering changes will be independent rear suspension instead of the live axle which has been part of every previous generation. The Suburban should stay in production at Arlington until late 2027.
The 2021 Tahoe is also almost certain to use VSS-T. It should again be powered by V8 gasoline engines, while the 10L80 ten-speed automatic gearbox could well be standard for this next generation model series. Production of this full-size aluminium-bodied SUV is due to commence in November 2020 at Arlington Truck in Texas.
Pick-ups
Unlike the larger Silverado, Chevrolet’s mid-size pick-up is a global model. Production of this body-on-frame pick-up began at GM’s Rayong plant in Thailand in October 2011 and at a plant in Brazil in February 2012. The Colorado has been exported from Thailand to Australia as a Holden since early 2012. The Isuzu D-Max which was announced just days after the Colorado is closely related to the Chevrolet, as is the GMC Canyon.
According to GM, this model, which is sold in some 60 markets – including South Korea where the sales launch takes place only this month – was developed in Brazil. In that market, and in Mexico, the model is sold as the Chevrolet S10. US production takes place at the Wentzville plant which already built GM’s full sized vans, the Chevrolet Express and GMC Savana.
Colorado production will likely continue in some countries into 2023 but a new generation model is due to appear in 2022.
The motor show debut for T1XC, General Motors’ latest generation Chevy Silverado, took place at the NAIAS in January 2018. This would have meant a short lifecycle (five years) for the outgoing Silverado 1500 and its GMC Sierra 1500 twin but these trucks remain in production as cheaper models. The Silverado and Sierra are due to have a facelift for the 2022 model year and to be replaced in late 2025 or early 2026.
GM also now offers the Silverado with a new 3.0-litre six-cylinder diesel, a unit it developed with FEV. The engine’s General Motors RPO (Regular Production Option) code is LM2. The Duramax-branded in-line six produces 277PS and 624Nm and is manufactured at GM’s Flint Engine Operations. Originally to be new for the 2019 model year, the engine was held over until the 2020 model year due to delays with EPA certification.
The bigger selling powertrains are revised versions of General Motors’ 5.3- and 6.2-litre pushrod petrol V8s. These are manufactured at Tonawanda Powertrain. One of the amazing things about these OHV designs is that up to seven of the eight cylinders can be shut down in certain conditions. The fewest number of cylinders which the previous 5.3- and 6.2-litre V8s could only run on was four. GM calls this cylinder deactivation technology Dynamic Fuel Management. This replaced Active Fuel Management.
All three engines (3.0-litre diesel, 5.3-litre gasoline and 6.2-litre gasoline) are linked to a ten-speed Hydra-Matic automatic transmission. One major change, aside from the arrival of the diesel, was the addition of the ‘Tripower’ 2.7-litre four-cylinder gasoline unit. Outputs are 310hp and 348 lb-ft of torque. It is linked to an eight-speed automatic transmission and fitted as standard for RST and LT model grades.
The four-cylinder turbo has an RPO code of L3B. Built at GM’s powertrain plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee, L3B replaced the 285hp and 306 lb-ft 4.3-litre V6 in some trim levels, although that older engine continues to be available for the least expensive Silverados. The pushrod V6 is also made at Tonawanda Powertrain in New York state.
As with the previous generation truck, the current one is sold in Mexico as the Chevrolet Cheyenne, ‘Silverado’ being the base trim level there.
Click on the link to PLDB below for details of the Silverado Hybrid/Cheyenne Hybrid and Silverado EV/Cheyenne EV.
Reports for many other manufacturers’ future models are grouped in the OEM product strategy summaries section of just-auto.com.
Future product program intelligence
More detail on past, current and forthcoming models can be found in PLDB, the future vehicles database which is part of QUBE. Details of other Chevrolet light trucks not named in this report can be found there.
This was the fourth feature in a series which examines future models for the passenger vehicle divisions of General Motors. The first one looked at Baojun and the second one had Wuling as its focus, both brands which are co-owned by General Motors, SAIC and Liuzhou Wuling Motors. These were followed by Chevrolet cars, while the next one will be about GMC. The final three will examine Buick, Cadillac and Holden.
