Zeta News 2.0: New VF Commodore and Chevrolet SS

[Joey D]

I'm just saying a pretty good chunk of people simply buy a truck to say they have one and will never use it to it's full potential...which is what makes a truck like the Ridgeline and to the same extent Explorer Sport Trac and a less extent Chevy Avalanche good. Most people do not have a need for an 8-10 foot bed or the capability to tow 5000lbs.

If GM did it I would say good on them as long as they kept a work truck to sell to the contractors.

 

[Jim Prower]

I think unibodies are the way forward, so long as they can keep those traditional truck values (Rugged chassis, inexpensive versions, ability to move lots of stuff, big engine option, reliability) and not turn everything into anti-trucks like the Ridgeline.

Though...I've been worried about that "Reliability" thing lately: most manufacturers have been having problems with those trick new Automatic Transmissions. It's the number one complaint I hear from pickup owners: "My tranny went out." If it's not that, it's the transfer case or front axle.

which makes me wonder: how much abuse can the Zeta drivetrain take?

 

[Joey D]

The Ridgeline is not an anti-truck, I do not understand why people hate it. Granted I unfairly judged it before I actually drove one around for a length of time.

And have you see how pick-up owners treat their trucks? It's not wonder they have reliability issues. If you are towing a trailer you can no just floor it coming from a dead stop, that's really hard on all the components and will eventually lead to failures. The only transmission I have seen that can cope with this is the Alison ones.

 

[Jim Prower]

XD I've seen some of those antics, yes, But I've also seen otherwise well-driven trucks fail, too. Dodges, of course, are the worst culprits...but, I'm sad to say, that's to be expected. Chrysler hasn't made a good auto tranny since the Torqueflite.

I'm just wondering, though, If the Zeta's boxes are strong enough to stand up to even moderate towing by someone with a responsible right foot, or if they'll stick a truck box under there. needless to say, I'll be watching this with much interest.

 

[YSSMAN]

I'm not certain of the overall rigidity, but I'm certain that our Aussie friends could highlight the capability of the Ute as something that could keep the majority of us happy in and around town... With or without cargo. It would pretty much be a lowered Avalanche, and in the case of my father, my guess is that a GMC Crewman would nearly be more appealing...

 

[JCE]

What couldn't Honda do? The Ridgeline is a very good truck for what a large majority of truck buyers use them for.

You HAVE to be joking?!

I don't really want to have to rant on the Ridgeline again--even though it is quite fun.

 

[Philly]

You HAVE to be joking?!

Does the Ridgeline fail at going on grocery runs and picking the kids up at soccer practice? It is terrible as a truck, but nobody uses their truck as a truck so in the end it doesn't matter. I would not be surprised if I use my hatchback like more of a truck that quite a few people.

 

[JCE]

Does the Ridgeline fail at going on grocery runs and picking the kids up at soccer practice?

Yes. You will get beaten up at school if you parent drives you up in one of those. Its not a real truck, it has the completely wrong engine because Honda refuse to make any V8's for consumer's use, and my god its hideous inside and out--AND it is the most uncomfortable vehicle I've ever driven. And that includes a CRV and first generation Escape. I've driven VW Beetles with more a comfortable driving position.

It is terrible as a truck, but nobody uses their truck as a truck so in the end it doesn't matter.

Maybe where you live, just come to Texas or Oklahoma and tell me that again. You don't see the rest of the country so you can't automatically assume that "no one" uses trucks for their designed application. Because here, they do.

And the reason why these new automatic transmissions are failing is they are using lighter grade metals and adding more gears. The one thing a regular pickup truck doesn't need is a 6spd autobox made the same way as a regular passenger car. But mainly, we hear from customers who are trading in other brands' pickup trucks with problems (and even some Fords) is mostly due to not choosing the right truck for their application. For example, you wouldn't buy a regular ½ ton truck to haul bails of lumber around 12 hours a day 363 days a year. You need a 1 ton or ¾ ton. Preferably a heavy duty or super duty. And in the case of Toyota we constantly hear from the customers shopping for new trucks that the Tundra really doesn't behave the way the commercials say they do. I'm being dead serious.

 

[Joey D]

You HAVE to be joking?!

I don't really want to have to rant on the Ridgeline again--even though it is quite fun.

That is your opinion on it, I respect you do not like it but at least respect my like for it since I have actually spent time driving one around. From my experiences it is quite good. A majority of normal people that are not using a truck for work purposes never need anything close to a Silverado or a Ram.

 

[YSSMAN]

Joey is right: If you're a pansy who wants a truck that drives like an Accord most of the time, there isn't any reason not to get a Ridgeline. The difference between it and this GMC Crewman is that the GMC will actually have the ability to haul/tow enough stuff to make the truck bed worthwhile, and will certainly be able to put forth that "tough-guy" attitude that all trucks are supposed to have.

The Ridgeline isn't a horrible truck, it just isn't a particularly good one. For its size and price, the Toyota Tacoma is a much better alternative... Or the Nissan Frontier. Whichever you prefer...

 

[Tornado]

For the record, I will say that on this issue I agree with Joey 100% and stress that the only thing the Ridgeline could have done to be better is a stronger engine. Its essentially a crossover pickup truck, and is likely to be the first in a segment that will likely take off soon.

 

[Joey D]

For the record, I will say that on this issue I agree with Joey 100% and stress that the only thing the Ridgeline could have done to be better is a stronger engine. Its essentially a crossover pickup truck, and is likely to be the first in a segment that will likely take off soon.

Ya it really could have used 50 extra ponies and torque.

 

[Onikaze]

I always see women driving trucks here in memphis.

Well, women and guys with genital size issues (illustrated by huge mud tires, absurdly loud exhaust, jacked up high enough to clear a civic, and not a speck of mud anywhere), not so much work trucks, except the mexicans you see hauling lawnmowers around.

 

[Tornado]

Ya it really could have used 50 extra ponies and torque.

Or at the very least have been more efficient despite the deficit.

 

[YSSMAN]

Heres a shot of a more "complete" Camaro interior:

Check the full gallery here

 

[Tornado]

You here that sound? That is the sound of my eyes exploding because of how made of win that interior is. Curse you YSSMAN!

 

[Perfect Balance]

Does the Ridgeline fail at going on grocery runs and picking the kids up at soccer practice? It is terrible as a truck, but nobody uses their truck as a truck so in the end it doesn't matter. I would not be surprised if I use my hatchback like more of a truck that quite a few people.

I'd just like to add a thing to this.

Lately I've been noticing an insane amount of trucks. I live about 25 min away from the West Virginia border in a small city, where people "need" trucks. Driving down the last 3 blocks to my house, I counted somewhere over 100 trucks, lots of them dirty and beat up, but only because the owner didn't take care of it, not because it was actually being used as a truck. People generally don't use trucks for what they were "meant" to do.

 

[YSSMAN]

You here that sound? That is the sound of my eyes exploding because of how made of win that interior is. Curse you YSSMAN!

I just noticed the leather stitching on the steering wheel... Holy crap. I can't wait to see this motha' in person!

 

[Joey D]

This is what the Crewman could look like? What in God's name?

Bob Lutz may have been confused when he told GoAuto that GM would be unveiling a GMC unibody pickup concept based on the rear-wheel-drive Zeta platform at this year's New York Auto Show in late April. Sources close to Jalopnik claim that the vehicle will actually debut nearly a month and a half earlier at the 2008 Chicago Auto Show, press days for which begin on February 5th. The source also claims that the GMC unibody pickup will be entirely unibody, and not have a chassis grafted onto the back like the Holden Crewman, the vehicle to which this concept pickup has been most closely compared.

All that's fine and good, but ever since Lutz mentioned the car-based pickup, we've had a tough time imagining what it will look like. Lutz said it would have four doors, be low to the ground and feature very masculine GMC styling cues. The only other totally car-based pickup with which we're familiar is the Honda Ridgeline. Now we can't get the image of a lowered Ridgeline wearing GMC badges out of our head.

Fortunately, GM Inside News forum member MonaroSS has come to our rescue with these photochops of what the GMC's unibody pickup could look like. The images are based off of the Holden Sportwagon, but the roof has been raised, the rear end swapped out for a bed, bulging fenders added and the front profile has a definite GMC shape. We much prefer conjuring an image of this vehicle in our heads than the aforementioned mutant Ridgeline, at least until we meet the pickup in person at the Chicago Auto Show.

The source also claims that the GMC unibody pickup will be entirely unibody

*Slowly claps hands*

 

[TopHat]

I was gonna say that it was a Photoshop, but you've edited your post.

So yeah, the Camaro interior shots are looking pretty good, and I still like it. I can't wait for the show itself, it'll be my first big autoshow.

 

[YSSMAN]

Thats a photochop from GMI, somehow that got used as the picture that people think its gonna be... My guess is that they put an Acadia-like face on the front of the Crewman/Ute and call it a day...

 

[The Vanishing Boy]

-> ...

^ Sorry for breaking your Camaro love guys, but even for a production-spec prototype the interior looks cheap compared should I say another GM-car, the Pontiac GTO/Holden Monaro/Vauxhall VXR500. And that steering wheel looks like it has been molded by Pep Boys and Fisher Price. Sorry, I'm still not liking that new Camaro.

^ What happened to THAT!? Wheres the sleekness of the 2-door VE Ute? That looks like it was made by Jessie James at Monster Garage. Even if it was a 'chop, that thing look like an Escalade EXT without that "A" arch.

 

[YSSMAN]

Well, this image isn't infinitely better, but I'd expect our Crewman to look something like this:

Just add two doors to the Pontiac G8 ST and add the GMC mesh grille and re-shaped headlights similar to the Acadia's and you'll get the idea...

===========

EDIT: I just realized that if you type "GMC Crewman" into Google, this comes up as answer number four or five!

 

[Philly]

That think looks waaaaaaaay too long.

Fix the proportions, or maybe just give us a good angle and this will have some potential.

 

[The Vanishing Boy]

-> ...

^ Now thats a pickup that I would buy, a crew-cab WITH a long bed. I'm sick and tired of seeing crew-cab bodies with a short bed namely:

- Ram Mega-Cab
- Chevy Avalanche
- Tacoma Double-Cab (the long bed doesn't come with M/T)
- Ridgeline
- Tundra Crew Max
- ...and many others

-> That's what I call "proffesional grade". 👍

 

[Joey D]

I think that think is hideous, it doesn't flow well at all.

 

[Philly]

^ Now thats a pickup that I would buy, a crew-cab WITH a long bed. I'm sick and tired of seeing crew-cab bodies with a short bed namely:

looks-wise, I think the long beds are the most hideous things on the planet. They just make the mega-cabs stupidly long and throw the proportions of the short cabs all off. Now, it you are going to buy your truck with a crew cab and long bed and you actually need it, then of course the above statement is pointless.

It's just the guys that need theirs to be longer than everybody else's that are I can't stand.

I think that think is hideous, it doesn't flow well at all.

The shape looks a little Tundra-esque. Or maybe you are thinking of the attempt to blend the bed with the cab.

 

[YSSMAN]

Guys, its nothing official, so you don't have too much to worry about. Its pretty just a four door version of what we already know exists:

Cram a GMC grille in it with wheels off the Acadia and you get the picture...

 

[The Vanishing Boy]

looks-wise, I think the long beds are the most hideous things on the planet. They just make the mega-cabs stupidly long and throw the proportions of the short cabs all off. Now, if you are going to buy your truck with a crew cab and long bed and you actually need it, then of course the above statement is pointless.

It's just the guys that need theirs to be longer than everybody else's that are I can't stand.

The shape looks a little Tundra-esque. Or maybe you are thinking of the attempt to blend the bed with the cab.

^ Yes, on the bolded statement. When I buy a full-size pickup, I don't buy it just for looks. I will use its utmost capability as I can (Crew/Extended cab; Long-Bed; 4WD).

-> And by the way, I rented a '07 Tundra SR5 double-cab, long-bed. It was very handy hauling 6 2.5 x 2.5 x 2.5 boxes and 5 large suitcases (w/o strapping it down) with 5 passengers with ease. That would be almost impossible with any short-bed truck.

 

[Joey D]

Autoblog posted a gallery of a Camaro at LAX being offloaded:

http://www.autoblog.com/photos/spy-shots-2009-camaro-unloading-at-lax/611334/

One sharp-eyed worker drudging through the graveyard shift at LAX was able to catch two Camaro mules waiting to be transported after making the trek back to the States. The pair of prototypes appear to be the same coupes we've seen in numerous staged and unstaged shots, including the white-body version that was declared to be camo-free by Maximum Bob himself. While the pics aren't the highest quality, it's comforting to know that the twins are safely back home after their European vacation.