General Motors just introduced the all-new, next-generation 2021 Chevrolet Suburban and 2021 Chevrolet Tahoe, two full-size SUVs that are both larger and heavier than their predecessors, but offer very little in terms of fuel economy gains. As such, the new Chevrolet SUV rollout has prompted a critique from climate groups.
GM justifies the new model rollout by pointing to market demands. “People wanted a greater ability to haul families and their cargo, so that was the baseline that set our decision-making process,” said lead development engineer Dwight Schoenefeld.
Indeed, as we covered previously, demand for utility models in the U.S. appears to be insatiable.
However, the director of the Washington environment group Safe Climate Campaign, Dan Becker, critiqued GM and other automakers, arguing that they spend billions of dollars on advertising campaigns to coax buyers into purchasing inefficient, but highly profitable, trucks and SUVs.
“GM claims that they are merely meeting consumer demand for gigantic vehicles, but most consumers don’t use their pickups and SUVs for lumber and machinery but to haul lattes home from Starbucks,” Becker told the Associated Press.
Both of the new Chevrolet SUV models unveiled this week are heavier and larger than the previous generation, with the 2021 Chevrolet Suburban growing an inch in overall length, and the 2021 Chevrolet Tahoe gaining almost seven inches in overall length.
The exterior size increase adds considerable cargo room and passenger room – for example, the Tahoe’s cargo volume grows by 66 percent with this next generation, while both Chevrolet SUV models gain 10 inches in third-row legroom.
However, as we covered previously, the size increase also adds weight, as does the new models’ new multi-link independent rear suspension.
Weight hurts mileage, and as a result, the new Chevrolet SUVs post “incrementally” improved fuel economy, according to Schoenefeld. Engine options for the SUVs include the naturally aspirated 5.3L L84 V8 as standard on lower trims and the naturally aspirated 6.2L L87 V8 higher in the range. The turbodiesel 3.0L LM2 I6 also makes the options list. Each engine is paired to the GM 10-speed automatic transmission.
According to a recent report from the Associated Press, the Chevrolet SUVs are among the least fuel-efficient new passenger vehicles currently on the road.
Meanwhile, the vast majority of climate scientists and peer-reviewed research indicates that greenhouse gas emissions, including those from burning gasoline, are resulting in climate change, with more extreme weather, rising sea levels, and ocean acidification. According to the Nobel prize-winning Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the U.S. National Climate Assessment, as cited by the Associated Press, nearly all of the global warming seen since the late 1800s is a result of greenhouse gases.
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Source: Associated Press
Comments
Has this guy has it all wrong. Gm spent millions to get buyers to buy their sedans, and guess where that went. People buy what they want to buy, so SUV’s it is, and gm SUV’s burn so much gas because…… 23 mpg in a suburban is more than 21 in an expedition or 17 in a armada or Toyota Sequoia. Gm leads SUV mpg. They have no reason to push the limits right now.
Climate this climate that. Its all money grabbing scam. These things get decent mileage for their size and use. If you put a small engine it won’t make a difference as we have seen with the 2.7T in the Silverado. The only reason for the 2.7T is for reduced emissions in the volume model. I bet these big SUV’s with Cylinder Deactivation produce less emissions than some 4 cylinder cars.
I do think GM has done a good job on the SUVs , only my suggestion was to take advantage of Voltec/CT6 hybrid program and add a Plugin Hybrid/Hybrid versions so that people have more choices.
I know GM has offered the 2 mode before and i still think discontinuing that was a bad idea. Again, I don’t think for trucks the Hybrid/Plug-in hybrids will sell a lot but its mostly image.
But i am sure, not offering Hybrid/Plug-in hybrid and E-AWD on Equinox/Traverse/Colorado is stupid.
This guy just shot himself in the foot with his “latte” comments. If he knew anything about how real people live he would realize, people buy Tahoes and Suburbans to haul people and cargo and they use the capability all the time. Sure some people don’t, its true. You really only need a Tahoe or Suburban in places where having the weight and capability is necessary, for example, if you live in snowy areas with rough roads, etc. In the city, in the flat areas of the country, yes, a minivan would cover all the same cargo and people hauling needs. BUT, do “mini” vans really get the greatest mileage? Average Odyssey gets 19-20mpg.
Of all the egregious uses of gasoline in the world–useless international flights when video conference would do, huge amounts of international shipping between US and China of completely shitty consumer goods that break in 2 months, all shipped on gigantic gas guzzling container ships. Fleets of semi-trucks driving all over the world delivering Doritos in little 2oz air filled bags, or maybe bottles of pointless water that nobody needs.
And this guy is going after families driving around their kids and cargo? That shows me he has no insight whatsoever.
And don’t get me wrong, I think its absolutely stupid to drive around a big suburban if you don’t need to. By all means, have an around-town car or bicycle. Live close to where you work. Save the Suburban for roadtrips and hauling, or situations where you really need all the space. By all means.
But this guy is way off base. Go after the biggest offenders. Going after average Joe is just idiotic.
It’s not GM’s, or my fault, that some people do not use all the capability of their chosen vehicle.
Also it discredits the entire climate change movement to have people like him spouting off in public like this. I’m all for transitioning to renewable energy and would happily drive a battery electric Tahoe charged on solar or nuclear. But that transition has not happened yet. Sadly this story is just another example of fear-mongering climate alarmists who want us all to believe that if we don’t stop driving right now, we’re all going to die. People love it when other people listen to them. It’s like a drug.
Problem with eletric vehicles is they are currently not financially viable, and the day the grid and batteries catch up, motor tech will have it’s response. Current motors are 40% efficient, next gen slotted to come in 5-10 years will be 50-60% efficient. By the time solid state batteries will be max produced, ICE engines will be 70-80 efficient, and it will be “greener for wind turbines and nuke sites to change over to carbon recapture to gas than deal with power line, battery losses and motor losses.
that’s right, climate change is a damn hoax and they know it.
News flash, most people don’t fully utilize the capability. Just like most people don’t use 4wd or take their offroad packages offroad, it is a status symbol purchase in well over half the cases…
Ahhhh, but you forget. In Washington, the government buys tons of SUV’s to drive around in and buy lattes but tell everyone else to buy Priuses. My biggest quelm with the new Tahoe’s is no “custom” trim like the truck. I want a rugged SUV on the cheap. I might have to settle for a traverse instead. I have yet to see the price for the new Tahoe’s though, maybe the entry level ls model will be affordable.
LOL yeah because the only time the climate has changed is the past 120 years right? The moment the passenger car came on the road the climate changed overnight and there has been zero climate change the past oh 100 million years right? Do these people actually think about what they are saying? Oh and GM’s full size BOF SUV’s are far from the worst in class in the MPG department. The Toyota and Nissan take that title by a considerable margin but they would never admit to the media darling Asian marques that way.
Until we have more Nuclear plants their will never be enough renewable energy. Solar and Wind can’t do it. Nuclear can and is now very safe. Unfortunately because of government waste and slowness every new Nuclear plan in the US has gone stupidly over budget by Millions of dollars. Some aren’t even going to open now, and just became a money pit.
Dear Mr. Becker,
It’s the Bill of Rights, not the Bill of Needs.
And kindly Google “Grand Solar Minimum.” THAT’S the climate change we’re experiencing now, and neither carbon dioxide nor any other human activity has anything to do with it. It simply happens every few hundred years and when it’s over we’ll go back to normal.
As to electrification, bring it on. I’d own an electric Tahoe/Suburban as long as it’s just as driveable as the gas-powered one.
Meanwhile, a Tahoe RST looks good to me.
The earth wobbles and the weather varies over time. This is clear and documented.
The earth is very adaptable and self healing. How many times have you heard about placed that are destroyed for centuries yet it recovers in a few years.
Mt St Helens was said to be a wasteland for a century but yet today life has regenerated and thriving.
People buy based on needs and small littl3 boxes like a Spark suit few needs for the many.
Even the Amish hire out these larger vehicles when they travel due to needs.
I am sick and damn tired of hearing about climate change. The climate has been changing since the beginning of time, and will continue to do so until the end of time.
Greenland is so named because it was once green. Iceland is so named because it was once covered in ice. Florida was once wholly submerged. I’ve found sharks’ teeth in Macon, GA because that’s where the coastline once was.
It’s been colder than this, it’s been hotter than this. Before greenhouse gases, and after greenhouse gases.
The hockey stick graph is contrived BS – it cherry picks a time period favorable to the argument and ignores the remainder of the earth’s history.
When icebergs melt it doesn’t raise the sea level because ice is less dense than liquid water and – even though 10% sticks out of the water – there’s no more water in an iceberg than that which it displaces in the water. When ice melts in a glass, the liquid level doesn’t raise one bit – try it.
When it was called “global cooling,” government had a solution: higher taxes.
When it was called “global warming,” government had a solution: higher taxes.
When it was called “climate change,” government had a solution: higher taxes.
Now that it’s called “man-made climate change” government still has the same solution: higher taxes.
REAL science does not support “man-made climate change.” Real science recognizes that the earth’s climate has been changing since the very beginning.
So…when I hear BS like this, it makes me want to run out and buy two. And leave them running all day long. At idle. Just to offset Prius (a.k.a. gynecologists’ dream) drivers’ emissions. And then burn some beef on my smoker, so that I can get some more cows butchered. So they I can raise some more cows and create some more emissions still.
Note the higher taxes are to pay the funding for those to study cl8mste change and those starting a Green companies.
Gee you really think they would kill their own funding by being honest?
A large portion of Suburban and Tahoe sales are for government services and first responders. GM doesn’t spend millions of dollars to market to these agencies. They don’t need to because reputation and capability sells to those who serve and protect. I have worked on a number of government and municipal services GM utilities and every one of them uses all the weight capacity and volume they have. Maybe some climatologists will realize this during the next response to some Tesla that crashed in hands off mode again.
PhD PE
“Sharks teeth in Macon GA because that’s where the coastline once was”
Just killed your whole melting Iceberg argument.
Macon GA also used to be part of Africa before it broke off in the Triassic era.
Just killed your Shark argument.
The Earth is ever changing, adapting and adjusting. If not we would be like Mars.
To be honest the earth is kind of amazing as with all there is out there in the universe we are so far the only one like us that we can prove.
C8.R/PhD PE
Please answer A or B.
A) Ocean levels rise & Fall
B) Ocean levels don’t rise and Fall
A. Twice daily, each, where I live. Long term, still “yes.”
I’m glad to see the Tahoe grow a bit. To me it was always an awkward size. I think it can now replace the existing Suburbans in many households.
And to the point of awkward size, I wish they had additionally offered one shorter than the original as well. Maybe a 2 door with suicide doors and only 2 rows of seats. It could have been called a Blazer! Oh wait, already stole that name for a lifted unibody station wagon.
Shouldn’t pickup trucks also be blamed for climate change since they’re the most popular vehicles in the US? Or any internal-combustion engined vehicle in general?
The smaller V8 gets up to 23 on the highway, and diesel gets up to 31. That’s not at all bad for an SUV. Also, the Denali and Escalade will have all electric variants, so only a matter of time before the suburban will get it too.
Greenhouse gas emissions have been on the decline even as the economy has grown (https://www.c2es.org/content/u-s-emissions/). Electric vehicle technology isn’t commercially viable. If it were, we wouldn’t have tax credits supporting it. The profits from these SUVs will help innovation, but even when the technology is mature, I doubt people will buy an electric Corvette.
I want to draw an analogy about how far we’ve come with respect to fuel economy and emissions over the last 30ish years, using two immensely popular yet distinct vehicles from the two eras: The 1987 Buick Grand National and the current Cadillac Escalade.
The ’87 Grand National, depending on the driver and conditions, would lay down 0-60 times in the mid-six-second range. It would run the 1/4 mile in the low- to mid- 14 second range, at about 93 to 96 mph, again, driver and conditions dependent. Stock, no alterations. With a “chip” and a catalytic converter delete, I would see mid- to high- 13 second 1/4 mile ET’s, maybe bumping 100 mph. The EPA’s NOx emissions standards from the era were 1.0 gpm (grams per mile). The EPA’s fuel economy ratings (using a conversion for today’s format) were 15 mpg city and 23 mpg highway. For a 245 hp turbocharged V6 in a ~3,500 lb mid-size coupe.
A 2020 Escalade will hit 60 mph in the low- to mid-five-second range – a full second quicker than the Grand National, and pass through the 1/4 mile traps in the high-13-second realm, at about 100 mph – about a half-second quicker and about 5 mph faster than the GN – or pretty comparable to a mildly modded GN. . The EPA’s NOx emissions standards for the Escalade are <0.07 gpm (grams per mile), a 93% reduction in NOx compared to that required for the GN. The EPA's fuel economy ratings for the Escalade 14 mpg city and 23 mpg highway, a 1 mpg hit in the city, and identical highway numbers. For a 420 hp V8 in a ~5,800 lb, 8 passenger, body-on-frame, large SUV.
Today, you have a tank of a vehicle, that will accommodate a basketball team, their coaches and a trainer – as well as their "stuff" – that will outrun the most bada$$ American performance car of the 80's, and do so with virtually no compromises in fuel efficiency compared to the modest 5-seater, all the while producing only 7% of the emissions of the same bada$$ 5-seater.
That represents a tremendous advancement in real-world applications, and explains why emissions are trending downward in the US, despite trending upward in many other parts of the world. The greenie-weenies, if they're actually interested in cleaner air and water, should focus on real polluters (read: developing countries in Asia, et al), and accept the fact that there's not a lot of blood left in the American turnips.