'95 Gmc 1/2 Ton Z71 Short Box on 2040-cars

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Weekly Recap: Volvo buys Polestar, makes performance a priority

Volvo is taking its performance business in-house, and the Swedish carmaker announced Tuesday that it bought tuning company Polestar, which has long been known for producing sporty Volvos. The move allows Volvo to ramp up its performance business, and it plans to increase Polestar-branded vehicle sales to 1,000 to 1,500 annually, up from the 750 total projected for this year. The companies have been working together on motorsports projects since 1996. Financial terms of the sale were not released, and Polestar workers will move over to Volvo. Former Polestar owner Christian Dahl will keep control of the Polestar racing team and operate it under a new name. In addition to sales volume, Volvo has ambitious plans for other parts of Polestar, including its aftermarket business. Volvo also said it will use its twin-engine hybrid technology for Polestar models in the future, though specifics and timing were not revealed. Meanwhile, Volvo announced it will offer a run of 265 total Polestars in the United States for the 2016 model year, with S60 and V60s available. "Driving a Volvo Polestar is a special experience. We have decided to bring this experience to more Volvo drivers, placing the full resources of Volvo behind the development of Polestar as the model name for our high performance cars," Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson said in a statement. OTHER NEWS & NOTES 2016 Chevy Silverado, GMC Sierra, get nose jobs Automakers tend to refer to light updates as 'facelifts,' and that's exactly what Chevy gave the 2016 Silverado and GMC Sierra. Chevy slightly changed the front end of the truck. Using the one photo released of the new Z71 model as a guide, we can see that the headlights went from a stacked vertical design to single bulbs, and they are set on top of LED running lights. The grille has more body-colored elements instead of shiny metal, and the hood has a new line running down the middle (look really closely). The design theme will be similar across the portfolio, though materials and details will vary, a spokesman said. Some models, like the High Country and LTZ will have more chrome, and the LEDs are only for the upper trims. Chevy also said it will use the eight-speed automatic transmission on more versions of the Silverado, and it updated the MyLink feature to support Android Auto and Apple CarPlay.

2019 GMC Sierra 1500 prototype shows off differences from Silverado

Now that the new Silverado has made its debut, we're awaiting the reveal of its mildly restyled twin, the GMC Sierra 1500. While it likely won't be that different as far as capability and major equipment are concerned, we are looking forward to seeing what design changes it will have. Based on these recent spy shots, the changes will be mild, but still enough to make it visually distinctive. One of the more obvious differences will be in the front fascia treatment. Unlike the Silverado's grille that's level with the top of the headlights, the GMC's will rise above the lights, which will also yield a slight drop on each side of the hood to meet the lights. The grille is quite tall, extending far below the headlights, too. We can make out, behind some mesh, two dips on the outer edges of the grille that give the Sierra a more menacing frown. Large foglights are also found right near where the scoops for the wheel air curtains, and the headlights are unified on the edges, rather than split on the Silverado. Along the sides, the sheet metal looks relatively unchanged. At some angles, we can make out the distinctive shoulder line from the Silverado that runs up to about the rear mirrors where it stops to make room for another crease that rises up from somewhere in the middle of the front doors to lead to the front. The wheel arches are decidedly different from the Silverado's though. While the Silverado has fairly rounded arches, the Sierra's have a rear-slanted bevel to the fronts of the arches and a rounded 90-degree corner at the rears. There isn't much we can tell about the rear except for the taillights. They're quite large, and unlike the Silverado's, there aren't any areas where the sheet metal intrudes. It also appears that the tops of the taillights extend farther forward into the bed sides than the Chevy's. Because the Sierra has almost always been a mechanical twin of the Silverado, we expect it to offer the same 5.3-liter and 6.2-liter V8s, as well as the new 3.0-liter diesel inline-6. Also, being a GMC, it will likely have a flashy, chrome-laden Denali trim level. We also will see the fully revealed model soon, as Automotive News reports the debut will be on March 1. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2019 GMC Sierra 1500 spy shots View 39 Photos News Source: Automotive News Spy Photos GMC Truck chevrolet silverado

U.S. new-vehicle sales in 2018 rise slightly to 17.27 million [UPDATE]

DETROIT — Sales of new vehicles in the U.S. rose slightly in 2018, defying predictions and highlighting a strong economy. Automakers reported an increase of 0.3 percent over a year ago to 17.27 million vehicles. The increase came despite rising interest rates, a volatile stock market, and rising car and truck prices that pushed some buyers out of the new-vehicle market. Industry analysts and automakers said strong economic fundamentals pushed up sales and should keep them near historic highs in 2019. "Economic conditions in the U.S. are favorable and should continue to be supportive of vehicle sales at or around their current run rate," Ford Chief Economist Emily Kolinski Morris said after the company and other automakers announced their sales numbers Thursday. That auto sales remain near the 2016 record of 17.55 million is a testimonial to the strength of the economy, said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's Analytics. The job market, he said, has created new employment, and wage growth has accelerated. "That's fundamental to selling anything," he said. "If there are lots of jobs and people are getting bigger paychecks, they will buy more." The unemployment rate is 3.7 percent, a 49-year low. The economy is thought to have grown close to 3 percent last year, its best performance in more than a decade. Consumers, the main driver of the economy, are spending freely. The Federal Reserve raised its key interest rate four times in 2018 but is only expected to raise it twice this year. Auto sales also were helped by low gasoline prices and rising home values, Zandi said. It all means that people are likely to keep buying new vehicles this year even as they grow more expensive. The Edmunds.com auto-pricing site estimates that the average new vehicle price hit a record $35,957 in December, about 2 percent higher than the previous year. It will be harder for automakers to keep the sales pace above 17 million because they have been enticing buyers for several years now with low-interest financing and other incentives, Zandi said. He predicts more deals in the coming year as job growth slows and credit tightens for higher-risk buyers. Edmunds, which provides content, including automotive tips and reviews, for distribution by The Associated Press, predicts that sales will drop this year to 16.9 million.