2013 Chevrolet Traverse

Chevrolet’s three row Lambda crossover has aged so well that it’s hard to believe it’s five years old already, the Traverse is still very competitive, it even fared very well in a motor trend comparison that pitted it against several much newer SUVs, including the Ford Explorer, and the Honda Pilot, both of which scored worse than the Traverse. That being said, the Traverse does have its down sides too, the exterior styling is rather bland, and the interior materials are sub par, Motor Trend went as far as to say that if these two areas had been better, the Traverse could have easily taken first place. At the Chicago Auto Show GMC began the revamp of the Lambdas with the 2013 Outlook Acadia, and last week GM announced that Chevrolet Traverse would be the second to receive the updates. CLICK READ MORE

Mystery Voltec Mule

Earlier today spy photographers just Outside GM’s Proving Grounds captured photos of an absolutely ridiculous looking Volt sporting 20” rims wrapped in custom rubber. The natural response to the car is “What were they thinking!?” but then after you see that all important blue “M” on the plate you realize there is more to this car than meets the eye.

So if this is a Mule what is it for, well we don’t really know, but the most likely guess is the Cadillac ELR, the ELR is the upcoming production version of the infamous ConverJ concept. Because it is a Cadillac Larger wheels are a given, and this “Volt” seems to have the same slightly elevated ride Height rear end as the production intent ELR, but that could just be a visual trick. If this is the ELR don’t expect to see these wheels on the production version, the ELR will most likely get specifically made wheels the same size as these, but with a unique design.

So, What Else Could it be? Well there is a Voltec Buick on the way, but it’s expected to be a crossover, although you never know, this could end up wearing a tri-Shield Badge. Another Possibility is that this is just a mule for Voltec 1.5, which is set to debut soon, but I Can’t see Chevrolet adding 20” wheels to the updated Volt. 

So with all things considered, it’s most likely the Cadillac, but it could be a host of other things as well, let me know in the Comments what you think it is, and Head over to Autoblog to see the rest of the Photos: http://www.autoblog.com/2012/03/22/is-this-dub-rockin-chevrolet-volt-actually-a-cadillac-converj-i/#aol-comments

2013 GMC Acadia

GMC has unveiled the refreshed version of their first crossover, the Acadia, at this year’s Chicago auto show, revealing a more aggressive granite inspired design.

This Update, rather than being powertrain focused like it was previously rumored, is mostly styling related.

Back in 2007 when GMC initially released the Acadia, it’s stablemate Saturn also launched a Lambda derived Vehicle called the outlook, which was phased out along with the Saturn brand in 2010, this left GMC with a crossover in need of an update, and the unused tooling for a very similar, yet cleaner looking SUV, who’s fender flairs always looked like they belonged on a GMC.

And It appears that GM made an extremely brilliant decision to turn the Outlook into the new Acadia, GMC Designers updated the Outlook’s taillights, front fenders, hood, and front fascia to create the new Acadia.

The Outlook’s styling blends very well with the new face, especially the wraparound rear window, and the fender flairs. The taillamps draw heavy inspiration from the Granite Concept, and look like they could be interchangeable with the Outlooks, so Saturn Owners could upgrade theirs if they wished.

The front end is an attractive mix of the Denali XT Concept, the Terrain, and the Granite. The Styling is extremely polarizing, you either love it, or hate it, there really isn’t much in between. It’s got a very muscular and futuristic look, with an oversized three bar grille, a chrome bar running the length of the lower front that curves up around the lower inductions, which house projector style foglamps. the headlamps feature false(Running mascara style) vents, LEDs, and HID projectors. The car’s level hood features muscular angular sculpting.

The interior also appears to be sourced from the outlook, the classic woodgrain inserts, have been replaced by brushed aluminum accents, and red LED accent lights, the Outlook’s dash has been recovered in soft touch materials, and the center console handsomely restyled to an extent. The new upholstery now features French seams. The capacitive  infotainment system offers intelilink, and it’s display is sourced from the Terrain. A standard rear view camera is also included as are several new safety features, such as blind spot alert, and an industry first center Airbag. GMC is also updating the driving experience by mating a new Automatic to the 3.6L Mill

I Love that the Outlook is sort of in production again, But I’m sure GMC will take some heat for this and I don’t see why they made do with what they had, the outlook was a fine car, underappreciated, but still a good car, and so they made it better, It’s almost unrecognizable as an Outlook, and the original Acadia looked allot like an Outlook anyway. They already had the tooling so why not use it? It will save GMC from having to retool too much, and they still get the look they wanted. In a way what GMC has done is very American, they used what they had, and did not waste it. So think about it that way before attacking them.