2004 Chevrolet Silverado Extracab Longbed 2wd Super Clean Truck One Owner on 2040-cars

Auto blog

GM starting to talk seriously about 200-mile EV

We've been hearing word of a 200-mile EV from Chevrolet for a while now. First, there was General Motors then-CEO Dan Akerson hinting at a $30,000, 200-mile EV that would take the competition by surprise. Then Akerson confirmed that GM is working on a 200-mile EV in a speech in March. LG Chem, which supplies batteries to GM and other automakers, recently said it was working on batteries for EVs with a range of 200 miles. GM's head of global product development Mark Reuss just re-confirmed that there are plans for an EV with a 200-mile range, and sources have told Automotive News what that car will be. While Reuss didn't mention anything about a specific model or platform, two undisclosed sources with knowledge of GM's plans have said that an EV with a range of about 200 miles is indeed in the works, and that it will be based on the Chevrolet Sonic. The sources also gave a timeline for the car, saying it is slated for sometime in 2017. According to Reuss, the plan is for Chevy to offer a lineup of electric cars, with the 200-mile EV joining ranks of the Chevrolet Volt and the Spark EV. He didn't hint at a timeline, but if the sources are correct, we could see a Sonic EV being built within a few years. Reuss sees demand for it, too. When speaking of the Spark EV, currently only available in California and Oregon, he says that "people wish we would sell it all around the country." If he's right about that, it's not difficult to imagine people taking interest in Chevrolet's 200-mile electric car, whether or not it's a Sonic.

Chevrolet To Oversee Restoring Sinkhole Corvettes

What Mother Earth devoured, Chevrolet plans to resurrect. The carmaker said Thursday it will oversee restoration of the classic cars swallowed by a huge sinkhole beneath the National Corvette Museum in Kentucky. General Motors Design in Warren, Mich., will manage the painstaking work to repair the eight prize vehicles, the automaker said Thursday. The cars were consumed when the earth opened up early Wednesday beneath a display area when the museum in Bowling Green, Ky., was closed. No injuries were reported. The museum was open Thursday except for the area where the sinkhole occurred. Mark Reuss, GM's head of global product development, said the damaged vehicles rank as "some of the most significant in automotive history." "There can only be one 1-millionth Corvette ever built," he said, referring to one of the damaged cars. "We want to ensure as many of the damaged cars are restored as possible so fans from around the world can enjoy them." Just how the cars will be pulled out of the ground remains to be seen, said museum executive director Wendell Strode. The local fire department estimated the hole is about 40 feet across and 25 to 30 feet deep. The hole opened beneath part of the museum's domed section. "We feel pretty confident that most of the cars can be extracted," Strode said Thursday. "And we hope and believe that with just a little bit of luck, that all eight cars can be extracted and be part of the restoration." Chevrolet spokesman Monte Doran said some of the cars look to be in good shape, while others are buried in rubble. "It will likely be several weeks until we can get the cars out and assessed," he said. The GM Design team has helped restore other historic cars, but the Corvette project looks to be its biggest, he said. "These Corvettes are part of our history, and they want them restored properly," Strode said. "We're thrilled they're doing this." The cars looked like toys as they plunged into the hole, piled in a heap amid dirt and concrete fragments. The museum owns six of the cars while two - a 1993 ZR-1 Spyder and a 2009 ZR1 Blue Devil - are on loan from General Motors. The other cars damaged were a 1962 black Corvette, a 1984 PPG Pace Car, a 1992 White 1 Millionth Corvette, a 1993 Ruby Red 40th Anniversary Corvette, a 2001 Mallett Hammer Z06 Corvette and a 2009 white 1.5 Millionth Corvette. Pictures of the sinkhole showed a collapsed section of floor with multiple cars visible inside the hole.

Want a V8 on the cheap? Buy a work truck

In case you didn't notice, V8 cars have gotten pretty expensive. If you want a modern muscle car like the Dodge Challenger R/T, Ford Mustang GT, or Chevy Camaro SS, you'll need between $34,000 and $38,000 for a stripped out example of one. The cheapest of those is the Challenger, and the priciest is the Camaro. These are also the cheapest V8 cars the companies offer. But if you absolutely have to have a V8 for less, there is an option, work trucks. As it turns out, all of the Big Three offer their most basic work trucks with V8s. And because they're so basic, they're pretty affordable, especially when sticking with the standard two-wheel drive. A Ram 1500 Tradesman with a V8 can be had for as little as $29,840, which is a little more than $4,000 less than a Challenger R/T. For a bit more at $30,275, you can have a Chevy Silverado W/T, almost $8,000 less than a Camaro SS. The most expensive is the V8 Ford F-150 starts at a starting price of $30,670, which is a bit over $5,000 less than the Mustang. Of course you'll be in an ultra bare bones vehicle with few comforts, and the price will go up if you add stuff, but we're bargain hunting here, and sacrifices are sometimes necessary. Besides, what you lose in comfort, you gain in loads of cargo space and towing (try to look at the bright side). Also, as a side note, all three trucks are available with optional electronic locking rear differentials. At the discounted price of these trucks, you still get a heaping helping of power. The most potent of the trio is the Ram 1500 Tradesman with 395 horsepower and 410 pound-feet of torque generated by a 5.7-liter V8. Compared with the Challenger R/T, the Ram is up by 20 horsepower and they're tied for torque. The value proposition is even more stark between the two vehicles when looking at the price per horsepower. Each pony in the Ram costs $75.54, while the Challenger charges you $90.91. The Challenger is also more expensive per horsepower than its close competitors. The F-150's 5.0-liter V8 is just barely behind the Ram with 395 horsepower and 400 pound-feet of torque. That's still more power than the Challenger, and it matches the torque of the 2017 Mustang GT. On the down side, it still would be down 20 horsepower on that same 2017 Mustang, and it's behind by 60 horsepower and 20 pound-feet on the new 2018 Mustang GT. The F-150 also just edges out the Mustang in the dollar per horsepower measure.