Could Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain become hits for GM?

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USA Today DRIVEON

General Motors may have a rare -- and badly needed -- hit on hits hands with the Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain.

The starkest evidence yet was GM's announcement Friday that it's increasing production of the two models at a Canadian assembly plant. Almost certainly, March sales figures are going to show healthy increases in sales of the two models. But GM passes on a little more positive word about the pair that underscore why the extra production was needed:

U.S. retail sales for Equinox in February rose 121% compared to February 2009, the eighth consecutive month of year-over-year retail sales increase.

Terrain was a new model introduced last year. So far in 2010, U.S. retail sales for Terrain are up 191 percent, compared to the same period last year for the Pontiac Torrent, the vehicle it replaced.
In February, Equinox averaged 16 days-to-turn,(industry parlance for how many days that vehicles linger on dealers' lots.) Terrain averaged 13 days-to-turn, as compared to 31 days for the overall compact SUV segment and 54 days industry average.

About half of all Equinox and Terrain sales come from non-GM trade-ins.
That last one, that so many sales are coming from buyers trading in other brands, is probably what makes GM CEO Ed Whitacre the happiest.

Check out the Equinox and the Terrain at Bradshaw Chevrolet Buick GMC Cadillac.

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• GM to Add Workers, Boost Output at Canadian Plants (abcnews.go.com)

Chevrolet and GMC to add crossovers in new way

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2 Ontario sites involved

BY TIM HIGGINS
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER

GM dealers have said they can't get enough of the Equinox and Terrain crossovers, which are made at GM's CAMI Automotive plant in Ingersoll, Ontario. The plant has been running at full capacity and does not have room to paint or to do final assembly of more Equinox vehicles.

But since taking charge as GM North America president in December, Mark Reuss has been working on ways to boost production of some of the automaker's hottest new vehicles to meet customer demand.

On Friday, GM said it will expand CAMI's body shop to produce extra Equinox bodies that will then be shipped about two hours to GM's Oshawa plant for paint and final assembly along with the Chevrolet Impala sedan.

"This plan for CAMI and Oshawa allows us to meet customer demand for hot products while avoiding a potential production overcapacity situation by creatively using our assets and facilities," Reuss said in a statement.

GM executives have been wary of reopening a plant that locks the company into making extra vehicles way into the future even if demand falls off.

The solution announced Friday would seem to allow GM to use workers and space it already had at minimal added cost.

"This is really a good way to take care of it," Joe Langley, an industry analyst from CSM Worldwide, said. "This agreement is pretty cost-effective and they could easily get 50,000 to 60,000 units of ... production online pretty quickly," he said.

The plan calls for a third shift to be added at the Oshawa plant in October, bringing about 600 laid-off workers back to work. At CAMI, about 70 jobs will be created to handle the extra body-shop work, GM said.

"I cannot think of one plant right now in North America that is shipping bodies to another plant for assembly," said industry analyst Michelle Hill of Oliver Wyman.

Equinox and Terrain sales have been on fire. Sales of the Equinox, for example, were up 132% in February compared with a year ago. Its sales are already up 98% so far this year compared with last year, according to Autodata.

According to GM, the Equinox averaged 16 days to sell once at a dealer and the Terrain 13 days, compared with 54 days for the industry average.

In February, the Free Press reported that GM was considering unique solutions to boost production of hot new vehicles. Internal discussion this year at GM included the possibility of bringing some work to GM's Spring Hill, Tenn., plant, or, perhaps, a facility in Janesville, Wis.

Said Kim Carpenter, a GM spokeswoman, "Spring Hill and Janesville remain on standby status and are available if market demand and business conditions dictate a need."

2010 GMC Terrain Review

As a compact crossover, the GMC Terrain excels, while defying convention with a bold new look

By Colum Wood, Mar. 12, 2010 Autoguide.com

The GMC Terrain may be a compact crossover, but it has all the bold and brawny styling of a Mack truck, with boxy flared fenders and a massive front grille. A sister vehicle to the Chevrolet Equinox, it certainly doesn’t look it.

General Motors has a new plan for the GMC brand and it’s so crazy it might just work. The concept, it seems, is to rebrand and restyle Chevys as GMCs. Now, we know what you’re thinking… didn’t they do that with Saturn and Pontiac and isn’t that what got them into a financial mess?

The short answer is yes.

The difference with GMC, however, is that the idea of bringing muscular styling from middle-America to new models designed more for the big cities on the coasts, might just work. And this bold styling is sure to be a big draw with younger buyers who might not have considered a GM product of any sort, until now.

What also makes this plan different from rebadging Chevys as Pontiacs is the fact that GM is actually producing pretty decent vehicles these days.

The Terrain’s engine. In front drive layout and with GM’s direct-injection 2.4-liter 4-cylinder, GMC claims a best-in-class highway fuel economy rating of 32-mpg, with a city rating of 22-mpg. During our test we managed 25-mpg, which is pretty incredible for a vehicle with room for five and good cargo room.

Power from the 4-cylinder is rated at 182-hp and 174 ft-lbs of torque. Many journalists have complained that this isn’t enough, perhaps forgetting that it is in fact a compact crossover and not a real truck. We, however, think the acceleration is adequate and would only opt for the V6 for towing purposes – the V6 rated to tow 3,500 lbs vs. the 4-Cyl at 1,500 lbs. Costing just $1,500 extra for the V6, it’s certainly attractive, although you’ll spend far more in the long run in fuel, with a rating of 17/25 mpg. Plus, once you’ve opted for the six, you’ll be tempted to go for the then-optional 19-inch wheels.

In regards to driving dynamics, the Terrain does seem to be tuned more for a truck-like driving feel, with a bit more lean in the corners than some competitors. For the most part though, the suspension is identical to that in the Equinox, although the Terrain has a slightly wider track as well as slightly better ground clearance with a minimum height of 7.8-inches (although the same overall height). The turning radius also remains constant with its Chevy twin.

As big as the Terrain looks, it’s no behemoth and we found it quite easy to scoot around in – even in urban traffic. In fact, it will fit nicely into a single garage space, even though you wouldn’t expect it to.

Overall, the driving feel is reasonably sporty for a crossover, but the Terrain continues to feel more like a mid-size crossover than a compact one – which is at least in keeping with its look.

There’s also a truck-like build quality to the Terrain, with doors that slam shut with a resounding thud.

Another strong point for the Terrain is its interior. While fully optioned-out models have plenty of style with two-tone leather and the like, all come nicely designed and put together. The monotone black leather on our tester isn’t the best combo for looks, but was still nice. And like the Equinox, you just don’t expect red stitching on the seat and dash on a vehicle at this price-point – something that really helps it stand out.

Even more impressive is when the dash lights up at night, with a bright red glow. There’s even red ambient lighting for the center console and cupholder surrounds. We still find the center stack a bit excessive in the button department, but we have to commend GM for the digital trip display between the gauges that not only gives plenty of info, but can also display the car’s speed digitally.

In the rear seat area there’s a notable absence of style, with big swaths of hard plastic on the doors. But considering the use the rear seats area will get, it’s at least purposeful. Like the Equinox, the Terrain gets GM’s MultiFlex rear bench seating that can slide forwards and back by 8-inches. Even when forward legroom is good and when pushed all the way back, there’s a tremendous amount of space to stretch out. This is aided by the Terrain’s huge rear doors that make accessing those seats easy.

The sliding rear seats also allow for different amounts of rear cargo room. With the seats all the way forward, the Terrain offers 31.6 cubic feet of space and when folded flat, there’s a total of 63.9 cu.-ft. That’s good, but not exactly great, falling far short of the class-leading Honda CR-V, despite the Terrain’s huge appearance. One much-appreciated luxury feature that comes on the SLT-2 trim level is a power liftgate for easy access to your cargo.

The SLT-2 trim level includes most every feature you could ask for with the usual power options plus leather, heated front seats and an 8-way power driver’s seat with lumbar support and a memory setting. There’s also automatic climate control, an impressive 8-seaker audio system with a subwoofer and 7-inch display screen, rear parking assist, heated mirrors, remote vehicle entry and vehicle start, Bluetooth connection, a sunroof and a leather steering wheel with audio controls and cruise controls. Like we said, pretty much everything.

We’re not really sure if the seat memory is really necessary, but some customers will most likely see the appeal and it’s obvious GM wants to market the Terrain as a bit of a step-up from the Equinox. That’s why models like the SLT-2 also come with gobs of chrome on the exterior and some big and bright 18-inch wheels.

With the Terrain starting at $24,250 it’s definitely priced higher than a lot of compact crossovers, allowing GMC to target it against larger models like the Nissan Murano, Ford Edge and Mazda CX-7, even thought it’s really more of a CR-V, RAV4 rival. Our SLT-2 tester in front-drive 4-cylinder form starts at $29,550 and thanks to a $2,145 Navigation system, a few small options and a very reasonably priced $1,295 rear seat entertainment system with two display screens its sticker price is $33,035 (deliver included).

THE VERDICT

The Terrain is likely just the first of many new vehicles for the GMC brand, using a smart new strategy. Priced at several thousand over its Chevy Equinox twin, it’s putting much needed cash in GM’s pockets. The down side to this smart business model is that the customer has to pay extra.

Most customers aren’t likely to mind, however, as there’s a real feeling that you’re getting more with the Terrain, with its bold style and big looks that make even the pricey $24,250 base price seem like a bargain compared to larger vehicles.

The reality, however, is that it’s still a compact crossover and, when judged on those qualities alone, it excels. There’s good cargo room and great passenger room, top-notch fuel economy, a nicely executed interior and overall sturdy GMC construction.

With the Terrain, GMC has built a highly competitive compact crossover that snubs it big chrome grille at conventionally cute ‘utes.