GM is all about alternative fuel vehicles at this year's L.A. auto show. First it was Rick Wagoner announcing the development of a Saturn Vue plug in hybrid followed by the reveal of the 2008 GMC Yukon hybrid. At the same press conference, GM rolled out the standard 2008 Saturn Vue and the 2008 Buick Enclave. Despite all the alt fuel hype, when all was said and done, no one seemed very interested in the Yukon hybrid. It sat in the corner almost unnoticed. Kind of makes you wonder whether the real interest is in the coolest new technology instead of which vehicles save the most gas.
kjnorman says:
10:08 PM, 11/29/06
Well its looks kinda ugly as well. Do the people who would buy a Yukon really care about gas consumption? If they did, but still needed the space, they will probably buy an Acadia instead, Its actually a shame that GMC did not introduce a Hybrid Acadia from day 1 of its launch.
ateixeira says:
08:33 AM, 11/30/06
They streamlined them quite a bit for aerodynamics. Look at the new lip, the hood is cleaner, and the roof rack is gone.
gmguy111 says:
10:26 PM, 11/30/06
congraultations now we have a truck with the styling of a tractor trailer that looks even more like a tractor trailer with better fuel consumption looks kinda ugly for my tastes but hopefully they'll apply the hybrid system to other gm UTES
jerrywimer says:
10:42 AM, 12/ 1/06
The Yukon (that's a Tahoe pictured above, btw) will still tow more than the Acadia (6000 pounds vs. 4500 pounds), while theoretically returning similar fuel economy to the non hybridized Acadia. I believe the Acadia is rumored to be around 27 mpg highway, which should be almost exactly the number for the hybrid Yukon (~20 city / 27 highway, based on 25% improvement over 16 / 22 EPA non-hybrid Yukons). So there's still room to favor the Yukon, depending on your needs.
catam says:
05:17 PM, 12/ 5/06
The big questions for me are:
What will the purchase price difference be? Hybrids as a rule have not yet justified themselves for cost savings based on gas saved over their standard ICE clones/ competitors.
What are the fuel economy numbers in real world driving? If they are really ~ 20/27, then the cost difference issue would be easy to meet. If it is ~17/23, then it gets a lot harder. Most car based hybrids gain their biggest benefits in city driving not hwy.
Why on earth did GM chose to not put the new 6spd auto in the hybrid???? Seems to me this would make much better use of the hybrid technology to deliver even better MPG numbers.
estreka says:
09:19 PM, 12/ 5/06
That's not the only problem with hybrids. They also don't last as long (as the batteries deteriorate and there's also a lot more moving parts that can break.
The big attractions for "green" vehicles is the tax credit/deduction and the fact that you appear to be green. I think green vehicles will be found out much the same way as recycling was.