This past April, General Motors filed to trademark the “GMC Granite” name. Again. For the fourth time since November of 2009.
All signs point to GMC eventually bringing a production Granite to market, though it will likely be a far cry from the 2010 concept of the same name. What it will likely be is another crossover quite similar to the 2021 Chevrolet Trailblazer and 2021 Buick Encore GX.
Originally, we thought for a long time that Buick and Chevrolet would receive totally new versions of the Trax and standard Encore. Those plans starting to erode in recent years as we spied the reborn Trailblazer and Encore GX. Both models were revealed in China earlier this year, where they’ll go on sale alongside new versions of the standard Trax (called Tracker in China) and the standard Encore.
However, the new Tracker and Encore ride on GM’s GEM platform, which will underpin cars exclusively for emerging markets. In the U.S., we’ll never see a GEM-based car. Instead, GM will replicate the strategy by selling the current Trax and Encore alongside the upcoming Chevrolet Trailblazer and Buick Encore GX.
Effectively, both models bridge gaps between the sub-compact crossovers and the compact models for each brand, the Chevrolet Equinox,and Buick Envision. The Envision is very likely to go away soon, however, due to American tariffs on goods imported from China.
The “sub-compact-plus” crossovers fill a new niche. Without proper new replacements for the Trax and Encore, it’s very likely the GMC Granite trademark will be applied to a GMC version of both vehicles. The brand has also reportedly been working on a smaller crossover amid hot sales in the segment.
At GMC, a Granite would serve as a new entry-level model, and likely fit better than a Trax or standard Encore reskin due to GMC’s more premium nature.
Time will tell, but expect the Internet to chip away at GMC’s Granite in the near future.
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Comments
Maybe they’ll put some off-road chops in this version.
After seeing how much more separate the Trailblazer and Encore GX are compared to the Trax and Encore, I think there is room for a third offering.
Trailblazer is the sporty, athletic entry. Encore GX is the soft and elegant offering. Leaving room for a Granite to be a more sculpted/rugged offering.
GEM platform is simply Gamma-based so could easily be Federalized plus suspension upgrades. Encore did so well. A tweener like GX may not work out so well.
Granite should challange baby Bronco and Renegade.
That’s what I’m thinking, the Renegade is a Fiat 500 with Jeep styling but have a off-road option. A GMC version would fit right in, don’t know what’s with the downvotes..
“Without proper new replacements for the Trax and Encore, it’s very likely the GMC Granite trademark will be applied to a GMC version of both vehicles.”
I would say the reverse. If they don’t update the Trax and Encore for the US, why would they build a third on an old platform? It’s much more likely to be a butched-up Encore GX. But if they don’t sell GMC’s in Asia, it probably won’t happen at all.
At best, a new GMC fascia on a Trailblazer.
GMC should consider skipping making a clone of the Chevy Trax or Buick Encore because sales numbers suggest the vehicle to clone is the Chevrolet Equinox given that Chevy sells almost 3X as many Equinox (29,500 for MAR 2019) than the Trax (8,193 for MAR 2019); GMC has being more upmarket with their CUV which means it should follow the Buick Encore especially if there will be a Denali model.
Omegatalon
(see GMC Terrain)
Really?
This is what today’s car “enthusiasts” articles and topics are now about?
For as much as people skewered GM / Cadillac for the Cimarron, and its enduring legacy as the poster child for the low-point in badge engineering, it’s nothing short of amazing how numb folks are today to the ubiquitous variations of SUV’s / Crossovers and the marketing rationale for their existence.
Man when these things go out of fashion, just watch the finger-pointing.