Update: the 2015 Suburban has been unveiled. Check out more information and photos here as we update this page.
2015 will mark the introduction of the twelfth-generation Chevrolet Suburban. General Motors will completely redesign and re-engineer the large SUV for the 2015 model year, maintaining the promise of a capable body-on-frame SUV for off-loading, towing, and carrying passengers. The 2015 Suburban will be the first redesign of the nameplate in eight years.
Meanwhile, the 2014 Suburban will mark the the last model year of the eleventh-generation GMT900-based Suburban.
Following are GM Authority’s expectations for the new Suburban.
What
An all-new, completely overhauled 2015 Chevy Suburban Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) riding on an all-new platform and featuring all-new exterior and interior, among other all-new elements. The Suburban’s smaller brother, the Tahoe, will also be completely overhauled for the 2015 model year.
Why
Although the market is, by far and large, switching away from pickup truck-based body-on-frame SUVs to crossovers such as the Chevrolet Traverse, there is still a market for capable full-sized SUVs. These vehicles excel in off-roading and towing, and that’s the reason behind the Suburban’s continued existence for the twelfth generation.
When
General Motors has delayed the launch of its all-new 2015 model year SUVs by roughly three months, GM Authority has learned, pushing the official market arrival of the 2015 Suburban to January 2014 from fall of 2013. The automaker made the conscious decision to push the launch of the vehicles back since it wanted to flawlessly execute on the launch of the 2014 Silverado and 2014 Sierra pickup trucks.
Other 2015 Suburban Notes
Unlike the current GMT900-based Tahoe/Suburban, Yukon, and Cadillac Escalade, GM’s next-gen SUVs will be heavily differentiated in styling inside and out. In addition, the vehicles will contain high-quality interiors, which has been a universal complaint of the GMT900-based models. In fact, some third-gen Suburbans (and other GMT900-based SUVs and trucks) have been prone to cracking dashboards, which were notorious for being made of a cheap, hard plastic.
Stay tuned to GM Authority for more information on the the 2015 Suburban, and for the latest GM News.
The 2015 Suburban will continue to compete in the largest full-size SUV class. Its rivals will consist of:
- Ford Expedition EL
- Toyota Land Cruiser
- GMC Yukon XL
We expect the 2015 Suburban to be powered by the new 5.3 liter V8 L83 engine that’s part of GM’s new EcoTec3 smallblock engine family that has been announced for the 2014 Chevrolet Silverado and 2014 GMC Sierra pickup trucks. The EcoTec3 engine family consists of:
All three engines share high-tech features including Direct Injection, Variable Valve Timing, and Active Fuel Management (cylinder deactivation) for improved power and fuel efficiency.
We expect the 5.3 liter V8 to be mated to a six-speed automatic transmission at launch, with an eight speed becoming available in roughly a year after the market launch of the 2015 Suburban.
The twelfth-generation of the large SUVs will not offer the automaker’s two-mode hybrid system. However, we expect the program to be eventually replaced with another hybrid effort of some kind.
The 2015 Suburban will ride on a version of GM’s all-new K2XX body-on-frame platform shared with the following vehicles:
- 2015 Chevy Tahoe
- 2015 GMC Yukon
- 2015 Cadillac Escalade
- 2014 Chevy Silverado
- 2014 GMC Sierra
We expect the new K2XX architecture to be more flexible than the outgoing GMT900 platform in accommodating the needs of a full-sized SUV. For example, the outgoing GMT900 platform prevented the Suburban from having certain features (such as fold-flat third row seats) due to hard points in its design. Thankfully, the 2015 Suburban is expected to feature power-folding third-row seats that fold flat into the floor.
