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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:    

2017 GMC Acadia First Drive

We're in the midst of the Second Great CUV War, and the crossovers are winning by a lot. Compact sedans are being hauled around the side of idled factories and unceremoniously shot. FCA, whose be-sweatered CEO is either omnipotent or a troll of the highest order, is organizing a last stand around profit-dense SUVs and trucks on the off chance that gas prices don't rise ever again. It's the tall wagon's finest hour, and GMC is hoping the new Acadia will capture a share of the glory. The old Lambda-platform Acadia was introduced in 2007, leading the full-size, three-row crossover charge that spawned a quartet of semi-indistinct variants, including a Saturn. (Remember Saturn?) These four were truck-like in heft and capabilities, but lighter and better-mannered than their body-on-frame counterparts – and with an unusually stout 5,000-pound towing capacity. The Lambda siblings bombarded established beachheads on the sales territories occupied by minivans and truck-based SUVs. Last year, GMC moved nearly 100,000 Acadias in the US, the best year ever for the model. Now GMC shows up with a deflated Acadia for 2017, 7.2 inches shorter overall, 3.5 inches narrower, and with a 6.4-inch-shorter wheelbase. The company has even carved something like 700 pounds out of its previously portly unibody, mostly due to the size reduction but also through an increase in the percentage of high-strength steel and the use of lighter soundproofing materials. GM's C1XX platform was launched with the Cadillac XT5 earlier this year, and this GMC version is the second to appear. There's even an available four-banger, but more on that in a bit. What remains to be seen is whether the downsized Acadia represents a leaner, meaner fighter or if GMC is sending it into battle hamstrung. Outside, the new Acadia is stealthily innocuous. Gone is some of the lozenge-ness of the outgoing Acadia, but don't fret about it standing out from the crowd. The overall styling falls into lockstep with the Sierra and Canyon. The cut of the rear window, with an upsweep at the trailing edge, emulates the brand's mid-sized truck offering. A chrome mustache cuts across the front fascia below the grille, and there's more brightwork around the front side windows and at the crease below the scallop in the doors. The taillights are more contemporary than before, with an attractive elongated C element comprised of LEDs.

GMC teases rugged 2021 Canyon AT4 pickup

GMC promised every model in its lineup would get the AT4 treatment by 2021. Having introduced AT4 versions of the Sierra, Acadia and Sierra HD already, that leaves the Canyon, Terrain and Yukon waiting their turn for the procedure. During a press even for the Sierra HD in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, GMC teased Canyon AT4 as next in line to receive upgraded off-road chops. The automaker had a camo'ed prototype Canyon AT4 in a trailer hooked up to a Sierra HD. When Sierra occupants pulled up the feed from the trailer-mounted camera on the infotainment screen, said occupants got a view of the masked midsize pickup between two walls reading, "The first ever Canyon AT4" and "Coming early 2020." The main mysteries are how extensive the pickup's AT4 transformation will be, and when it will go on sale. The AT4 kit changes depending on model. The Sierra AT4 upgraded performance and looks, with features like a two-speed transfer case, locking rear differential, a two-inch lift and Rancho monotube shock absorbers, skid plating, black-chrome grille and body-colored grill surround. The 2020 Acadia AT4 is mostly about looks, pairing standard all-wheel drive with black trim and wheels, and all-terrain tires. The Canyon's expected to weigh in on the Sierra end of the overhaul, and slide into the lineup between the SLT and top-tier Denali trims. The mods will put it beyond the current All Terrain trim being phased out across the lineup, but leave space between the Canyon AT4 and its Chevrolet sibling, the Colorado ZR2. GMC VP Duncan Aldred said, "They’re going to have different capability levels. The ZR2 is extreme capability. AT4 isnÂ’t positioned as extremeÂ… not intended to rival the ZR2." And the Colorado gets the even chunkier Bison version on top of that. The Canyon AT4 is predicted to join the lineup for the 2021 model year, so although it's "coming early 2020," it might not go on sale until much later in the year. GM's midsized pickup twins will be endowed with changes so mild that neither brand will classify the work with the term "midcycle enhancement." Figure a refining around the grille and lights and a few minor fillips otherwise. Next-generation models of the Canyon and Colorado aren't due until 2023, and there's apparently debate inside GM about an interior refresh for both trucks before then. The Terrain should mirror changes to the Acadia, and it would be a pleasant surprise to see the all-new Yukon also due in early 2020 get serious off-road teeth.