Drew Dowdell

The other day we reported that Chevrolet will be releasing an HD version of the Suburban for 2016 model year. Sorry to get your hopes up as we are now getting word that the HD will be built, but only for fleet buyers. Now that doesn't mean you'll be able to pick up a Suburban HD from National Car Rental during your family trip to Disney World, but if you are a fleet buyer for the US Secret Service or one of the Oil Fracking companies, you just may have a new tool available for your arsenal. We received official word today from a GM representative that the Suburban HD will only be available to Commercial and Government fleets. However he also referred to the Suburban HD as "...the 3/4 ton Suburban..." which answers our question as to whether the Suburban HD is an uprated 1500 or a full 2500. This could mean more engine choices or it may not. More details will be shared as they become available. In spite of the HD branding, the Suburban 2500 is returning. View full article

Because they do it with the Impala

It just doesn't look as big as an A8L or S-Class.

Reasonable explanation.... but the Lacrosse has it.

Buick will probably have a busy year next year. Verano, Regal, Lacrosse, and likely Envision all coming in the next 18 months. That leaves only Enclave and Encore as the oldest models in the lineup.

Lord.... that's the Cobalt?

I defer to the Yoda of Vintage Cars on this one.

The Enclave doesn't? I wonder if they dropped it from the package options. I thought it had it in prior years.

Painted that color and with no emergency lights.... that's the ride for after the Ambulance ride....

Jeep is killing it everywhere they go. Jeep sedan coming in 5...4....3....2...

For reference, the Concept Scion iM

There is a new version of the forum software coming in the next few months. It is currently in beta testing. Any integration with Tapatalk or an app would come after that. I'm looking at a late May/Early June launch for the new site.

GM has two events on the day before the show... GMC and Cadillac are both presenting their vehicles on the 31st. There really isn't room for Buick also.

No, they're Limited Edition models! Reminds me a little of the Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme Classic of 1988, when the old RWD model was sold right alongside the new FWD edition.... Cort www.oldcarsstronghearts.com 1979 & 1989 Caprice Classics | pigValve, paceMaker, cowValve "It's a door that never closes" __ Keith Anderson __ 'I Still Miss You' The Cutlass Supreme was one of the best selling cars in America at the time... Oldsmobile was justified in keeping it in production so as not to alienate buyers. It wasn't specifically a fleet only car

No, they're Limited Edition models!

I'm actually surprised they aren't going with a 3-cylinder

Pretty much everyone these days can get 100 hp - 120 hp per liter from a turbo-4 with their eyes closed. As the 1.5 would probably be the base engine with a mind for fuel economy, I would think they'd stick more towards the lower end of the scale... 150hp sounds about right.

One thing that many Chevrolet Suburban customers have missed since 2013 is the availability of a 3/4 ton model. The last Suburban 2500 went out of production as the Suburban changed over to the 2014 model. We have uncovered a GM document showing that Chevrolet is planning on adding an HD trim to the Suburban for 2016. This new trim (available on 4x4, LS and LT models only) may not be a full 3/4 ton model however. From 2001 - 2006 Chevrolet offered an uprated Silverado 1500 HD that was powered by a 6.0 liter V8. That gave the Silverado 1500 HD a tow rating just 500lbs shy of a similarly engined Silverado 2500HD. Thus, our guess is that this new Suburban HD will be an uprated 1500 series. Our reasoning for that is that from the document, only the current 5.3 liter V8 appears be offered. The Suburban's new Ecotec3 5.3 V8 is rated for 355 hp and 383 lb-ft of torque; and while that is more than what the 2006 6.0 liter was able to produce (300 / 360), it is not quite as powerful as the 6.0 liter the Silverado 2500HD sports today. The Gross Vehicle Weight Rating is also now up to a Class-3 14,000 lbs, while the standard models remain with a Class-F 8,000 lb rating. Under the skin, the Suburban will likely get suspension hardware upgrades. Back in October, a 2014 Suburban was spied in Colorado wearing the 8-lug wheels from a Silverado 2500 HD rather than the standard 6-lug wheels the Suburban gets today, so buyers can likely count on those making it into the final package as well. The previous Suburban 2500 never sold in great numbers, however its average buyers were skewed heavily towards the wealthy and the Secret Service. The current Suburban LS 4x4 has a base price of $52,000. Adding an HD package will likely result in a large jump in price. With most of the parts already available in the Silverado, building a Suburban HD will likely gain a healthy profit for GM. One other thing we noticed; The GMC Yukon XL does not appear to get these upgrades. Nothing has been officially announced by General Motors yet, but more details will likely surface in the coming months. In the meantime, do you think GM is preparing an uprated Suburban 1500 HD or will it be a full 2500 like before? Sound off below. View full article

We're just over 2 weeks away from the 2015 New York Auto Show where Chevrolet will take the wraps off the next iterations of the Chevrolet Malibu and Chevrolet Spark. We also know from Chevy's teaser picture of 5 in 2015 shown below that the Chevrolet Cruze will not be far behind. What we've uncovered however is that Chevrolet appears to be planning to go on building the current design of Cruze and Malibu right along side their newer-bodied versions. According to the General Motors Vin Decoder website, the current Cruze and Malibu will soldier on for at least another model year. For 2016, both the current Cruze and Malibu will gain the Limited moniker, just like big brother Impala Limited. We assume that these will largely be aimed at fleet buyers, but some of the changes for Cruze lead us to believe that Chevy is expecting to do some retail sales of the Cruze Limited as well. What changes? We’ll start with the Malibu: The current design Malibu is dropping the Eco version completely; Gone also is the 2.0T. The Malibu line-up is cut to just LS, LT, and LTZ with the single engine choice of the 2.5 liter 4-cylinder. This, however, is not the same 2.5 liter found in the Malibu in 2015. The 2016 Malibu Limited will have the LCV 2.5 rather than the LKW 2.5. What does that mean to you? The only change is a 5 lb-ft increase in maximum torque at 4,400 rpm and possibly a slight decrease in fuel economy. The possibility of a slight loss of fuel economy is due to the fact that in this change, the engine will no longer have Intake Valve Lift control as part of the VVT. Only the Malibu and Impala use the LKW engine while the LCV is used in the Cadillac ATS, Chevrolet Colorado, and GMC Canyon; so it seems as if GM is consolidating its 4-cylinder engine platforms with this move. The 2016 Impala will also drop the LKW in favor of the LCV. With the next generation Cruze possibly a little further behind from the Malibu, it seems that Chevrolet is planning on keeping the current Cruze for sale to retail customers a bit longer. It wouldn’t be an unprecedented move for Chevy as the Impala Limited is sold at retail alongside the newer Impala for a short time. The Cruze also got a mild facelift for 2015. For 2016, the Cruze Limited remains largely unchanged. Both the automatic and manual transmissions remain as well as the Eco trim. The biggest change is likely to disappoint the oil burners in the crowd; the Cruze 2.0 Diesel appears to be done. None of these moves will seem very surprising to GM watchers. This would be the second time GM has kept the prior version Malibu in production to sell to rental fleets and the previous Impala is still on sale as the Impala Limited. However, unlike those past examples which were already well beyond their “Best By” date when they made the switch, the current Cruze and Malibu are just mildly stale, so bargain hunters searching for a deal on a 2016 could find the Limited models worth a look. Next up, Camaro SS Limited? A General Motors representative declined comment for this article. Sources: GM VIN Decoder Webpage, Oppositelock Hat Tip to Staff Writer: Blake Noble View full article