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2021 GMC Yukon will pull a 180 thanks to a Hurricane Turn feature

GMC isn't a hip, young startup, but its engineers are out to prove it's possible to teach an old dog new tricks. The next-generation Yukon will offer adventurers seeking a quick turn-around a "Hurricane Turn" feature that functions a lot like Rivian's Tank Turn technology. The two systems use different hardware to perform a similar action. We didn't hear anything about the Hurricane Turn feature during the Yukon's unveiling because GMC planned to keep it under wraps until later, but an eagle-eyed report at Motor Trend uncovered it and quizzed the firm. It's real, and it's engaged when the driver switches the stability control system off, energetically turns the steering wheel in either direction, and mashes the accelerator pedal to the floor. The Yukon needs to be on a loose surface, too. If you're turning right, the on-board computer applies braking power to the passenger-side wheels to prevent them from spinning, while the engine continues to turn the driver-side wheels to rotate the Yukon on its own axis. The exact opposite happens if you're turning left. It's clever and relatively simple; there's no extra hardware required to enable the feature, though it shows the next Yukon is far more advanced than its predecessor. It goes without saying that only four-wheel drive models will receive the Hurricane Turn feature. There's no word yet on whether it will be compatible with all three engine options, or if it will be limited to a certain trim level. GMC will publish additional details about the system, and hopefully a video of it in action, in the coming months. Rivian, on the other hand, leveraged its four-motor electric powertrain to teach the R1T (and presumably the R1S) how to pull a 180. The right wheels turn in the opposite directions as the left wheels – hence the name Tank Turn – to spin the truck around like a CD in a Walkman. Its system doesn't use the brakes. The 2021 Yukon is due in showrooms in the summer of 2020, and Amazon-funded Rivian won't start making the R1S until the end of 2020 at the earliest, so GMC will beat its younger rival to the punch. What remains to be seen is how often motorists use either function. We're betting not very once the initial novelty wears off. Related Video:    

GM will stop reporting monthly U.S. vehicle sales

DETROIT — General Motors said on Tuesday it will stop reporting monthly U.S. vehicle sales, saying the 30-day snapshot does not accurately reflect the market, and will instead issue quarterly sales. GM will also no longer report monthly sales in China, its largest market, and Brazil. GM will provide monthly data to the U.S. Federal Reserve, industry associations and government agencies across the globe, but that data is not made public. Analysts and investors rely on monthly U.S. vehicle sales not just to track the performance of individual automakers, but as a barometer of the health of the world's second-largest auto market and as an indicator of consumer confidence in the U.S. economy overall. GM and its Detroit rivals Ford and Fiat Chrysler have relied heavily on sales of high-margin pickup truck and SUV sales to boost profits. GM's total U.S. sales, its second-largest market, are down 3.2 percent for the first two months of 2018, reflecting a 6.8 percent drop in retail sales to individual customers, the company reported last month. GM executives have expressed frustration that comparisons of monthly U.S. sales results among rival automakers are distorted by short-term discount programs, and by differences in strategy for selling vehicles in bulk to rental car fleets. "Thirty days is not enough time to separate real sales trends from short-term fluctuations in a very dynamic, highly competitive market," Kurt McNeil, U.S. vice president for sales operations said in a statement. GM's actions could prompt other automakers to also switch to quarterly U.S. sales reports. Major automakers will report March U.S. new vehicle sales on Tuesday. Until the early 1990s, most U.S. automakers released sales results every 10 days. The former Chrysler Corp. stopped reporting sales on a 10-day basis in 1990, and rivals followed suit over the next three years. GM executives are betting that investors will quickly adapt to receiving U.S. sales data every three months, as investors in other retail sectors already have. Retailers such as Walmart report sales on a quarterly basis. Reporting by Joe WhiteRelated Video: Image Credit: Reuters Earnings/Financials Green Buick Cadillac Chevrolet GM GMC US

What the electric Hummer's size and weight means for its efficiency

The 2022 GMC Hummer EV Edition 1. Tim Levin/Insider If you think driving a pint-sized Nissan Leaf is as good for the planet as driving a huge electric Hummer, think again.  The GMC Hummer EV uses significantly more electricity than other EVs, meaning it produces more pollution upstream.  The electric Hummer weighs 9,000 pounds and its battery weighs as much as a Honda Civic. The new electric Hummer rolls through town without a deafening engine rumble or a cloud of toxic fumes, but it doesn't exactly tread lightly.  The colossal truck weighs an astonishing 9,000 pounds. (Think two Toyota Tacomas, three Honda Civics, or 24 Shaquille O'Neals.) Moreover, the GMC Hummer EV is in many ways a supersized gas guzzler for a new era. It repackages many of the same flaws of hulking SUVs and trucks of years past — and proves not all zero-emission cars are created equal. EVs can be energy guzzlers too On the whole, electric cars use less energy than gas-powered ones. But they aren't all equally efficient.  No surprise here: The Hummer needs more electricity than any other EV on the market to move its elephantine frame. The Environmental Protection Agency rates the pickup at 47 MPGe (miles per gallon of gasoline-equivalent). For comparison, the Tesla Model 3 sedan is nearly three times as efficient, earning a rating of 132 MPGe. The Ford F-150 Lightning, another electric truck, gets 70 MPGe.  This has real consequences: Since the US gets 61% of its energy from oil, coal, and natural gas, the more electricity a car needs, the more pollution it creates upstream.  As the Union of Concerned Scientists put it: "Both EV cars and trucks are much cleaner than their gasoline counterparts, but electric trucks are responsible for more global warming emissions than electric cars simply because trucks are larger and heavier."  The 2022 GMC Hummer EV Edition 1. Tim Levin/Insider The Hummer EV is also resource-intensive to manufacture, requiring a ginormous (and weighty) battery to give people the 300-plus miles of range they desire. You could produce three Chevrolet Bolts with the same battery cells consumed by one Hummer.