GMC has Hummer and Chevrolet has (a few) cars but otherwise, these brands share almost everything – including most future models
This is the first of two reports which look at certain GM vehicles expected between now and the 2030s.
Chevrolet
Once boasting an array of models approaching the level of Toyota, Chevrolet has over the years become ever smaller and now consists mainly of light trucks. The Corvette is one of a few exceptions to that rule, while another car, the Malibu, will soon be discontinued. Which means that next year, the ’vette will be the sole Chevy car available in the US and Canada.
Looking firstly then at the famous supercar, the E-Ray hybrid was the most recent addition to the line-up, build of this derivative starting in December 2023. The next arrival will be the ZR1 on 25 July, this being the main news for the 2025 model year Corvette range. All variants should be facelifted in calendar 2026 with the C9 (ninth generation) expected in 2029. The mid-engined Y2 architecture will be retained.
Collapse in China – what happens next?
What GM will do about its ongoing collapse in China, with Chevy plummeting even more than Wuling, Buick and Cadillac, is a question many are asking. Monthly sales for the bow tie logo brand are now down to an almost unbelievable circa-2,000 units. And most of those are for one model, the six-year old Monza.
If the company decides to slash the Chevrolet model line-up or even wind up local production, few will be surprised. All eyes are on Mary Barra with an announcement surely to be made sooner rather than later. General Motors insists that it has maintained profitability in China – according to its numbers for 2023 – but returns have fallen dramatically.
An ongoing price war plus consumers’ ever-expanding enthusiasm for Chinese brands and unrelenting launches of cheap new vehicles is, for many foreign OEMs, destroying the business case for even being present in this giant market. Volkswagen, Toyota, Honda and Nissan are also being hammered by BYD, Geely, Chery and others.
Light trucks in North America
Even though there are nowhere near the number of Chevy models on sale as was once the case, the range of light trucks remains big and the brand is as strong as ever when it comes to pick-ups. EVs are also slowly being added, with a new Bolt for example, coming in 2025. This will be manufactured at Fairfax Assembly.
The Kansas plant will be retooled once Malibu production ends there, the final car being due to roll off the line on 4 November. Production of the Cadillac XT4 will be paused for a time before the plant restarts what will become the 2026 XT4 and 2026 Bolt EV shared line during the second half of 2025.
Another electric vehicle – though in this case one which already exists – gains a second production location in 2025. This is the Silverado EV (and its GMC Sierra EV twin). These are presently built at Factory Zero in Michigan but Orion Assembly will also make these trucks from the fourth quarter of next year.
Two Trailblazers and a Trax
The Trailblazer for South America is not the same as the one for the North of that continent. Distinguished by a ladder frame chassis, the older of the pair is built at the São José dos Campos plant in Brazil and dates to 2012. It was facelifted for the second time in April (the first was in 2016) and the 2.8-litre diesel engine gained more power and torque (now 152 kW & 510 Nm). There is also a new eight-speed automatic transmission, whilst the styling changes are very similar to those for the S-10. That pick-up is also made in Brazil. Each should be replaced in 2027 or 2028.
More of a crossover than an SUV, the other Trailblazer is an entry-level model in North America built by GM Korea. SAIC GM also makes it but by contrast to the USA, Chinese market sales are far from brisk. Launched in 2020 and facelifted in 2023, the next news will be the debut of a replacement model in 2026/2027.
No longer a sub-compact, the second generation Trax grew to more than 4.5 metres long when launched in 2023. Sold as the Chevy Seeker in China, it is manufactured there by SAIC General Motors and in South Korea for all other markets, including the USA. Generation three is due in 2030 after a facelift for the current model in 2027.
Also, two Equinoxes…
New for the 2025 model year, the Equinox is built in both Mexico (San Luis Potosí) and China. The name in the PRC is Equinox Plus as the old shape model remains in production. Just shy of 4.7 metres in length, this SUV can be thought of as a re-engineered version of the previous model. All versions are powered by a 1.5-litre turbocharged engine, with CVT (for FWD examples) and eight-speed automatic (AWD) transmissions featuring. The life cycle should be seven years, which means a facelift between early and mid 2028 and a potential successor for the 2032 model year.
As for the Equinox EV, this is a separate vehicle but it too is manufactured in Mexico (Ramos Arizpe) and a recent arrival. The front- and all-wheel drive architecture is BEV3 and shared with, among others, the Cadillac Lyriq. Facelift and replacement timings should be near-identical to those of the Equinox. There is also a chance that in fact only the electric model will have a successor.
…and a pair of Blazers
New for the 2019 model year in North America, the current Blazer is manufactured in Mexico as well as in Shanghai. As with the Trailblazer, this model should be thought of as not as as SUV but instead a crossover. Its mid-cycle refresh happened in 2022 and the next generation should be launched in 2025/2026.
The other Blazer is an EV which shares nothing with the gas-powered model. Launched in August 2023, this one uses the BEV3 architecture, is almost five metres in length and weighs in excess of 2.4 tonnes. A facelift should debut for the 2027 model year with a second generation pencilled in for calendar 2029.
Largest SUVs
Of the biggest models, the Traverse is the most recently launched, production commencing at Lansing Delta Township (Michigan) in April. This SUV should be refreshed for the 2028 or 2029 model year and replaced for MY32 or 33.
Then there is the even bigger Tahoe, which is facelifted for the 2025 model year. And whilst the 5.3 & 6.2 litre engines are carried over, the 3.0-litre diesel is a a new design (code:LZO versus LM2 for the outgoing one) which gains power and torque: now 305 hp & 495 lb-ft.
There is a specific powertrain for the Chinese market Tahoe, that being L3B, a 2.7-litre four-cylinder engine which carries TurboMax branding. Deliveries of the restyled model will commence in all markets from year-end. The same timescale applies to the related Chevrolet Suburban, which is also facelifted for MY25 and offers the same gasoline V8 and diesel I6 choices. Next generation Tahoe and Suburban models are set to be launched in 2027/2028.
The minivan is not dead
The Spin, a minivan, the present generation of which dates to 2012, has just had a second and this time major facelift. Even though Brazil is its main market nowadays, it is built at San Luis Potosí in Mexico. The sole engine is a 1.5-litre four-cylinder turbo and for front-wheel drive variants, a CVT comes standard. Buyers opting for all-wheel drive instead get an eight-speed automatic transmission. GM should continue offering this model in relevant markets until 2028 or 2029.
Pick-ups
Ford has struck gold with its new generation Ranger, and that applies all over the world. Chevrolet, meanwhile, has its Colorado rival but, like the segment-leading Toyota Tacoma, this is present mainly in North America. The latest generation Colorado was new for the 2023 model year and is powered exclusively by four-cylinder engines. GM will likely keep it in production until 2030, so we should expect a facelift for the 2027 model year.
Chevy’s best selling pick-up series naturally remains the Silverado. A new generation, which should also bring with it a fresh frame architecture, should debut for the 2026 model year in the second half of calendar 2025. The lifecycle will likely be six, possibly seven years. A plug-in hybrid is also said to be coming, due to be added in MY27.
We already have a very good idea of how the next Silverado 1500 will look, thanks to the existing Silverado EV. This is an entirely different vehicle, built on a bespoke-electric platform. Launched in 2023, it might not be facelifted until 2028 or 2029 so as to sync with a mid-life restyle of the gasoline-fuelled model.
The larger heavy duty Silverado 2500 and 3500 trucks are not due to be replaced until the 2027 model year.
GMC
The current line-up of models consists entirely of pick-ups and SUVs, each one the twin of a Chevrolet. Pricing tends to be higher than the Chevy equivalent in each case, justifying how and why GM keeps investing in GMC.
In 2023, the division had its best year for sales since 2017 and plans were announced to expand out of North America and the Middle East into South Korea. Along with two further markets in 2025 – New Zealand and Australia, with RHD models – next comes China, later this year. GMC vehicles for the People’s Republic will be imports.
Launch cadences for facelifts and replacements tend to closely mirror those for Chevrolet, so relevant launches for the present range should be as follows:
- Terrain, new model later in CY24, facelift in 2027/2028 and replacement in 2032
- Canyon, facelift in 2026 and successor in 2030
- Acadia, facelift in 2028 and replacement in 2031/2032
- Sierra 1500, replacement in 2025
- Sierra EV, facelift in 2027 and replacement in 2030
- Sierra PHEV, expected in 2026
- Sierra 2500 HD & 3500 HD, replacements in 2026
- Yukon & Yukon XL, replacement in 2027/2028
GMC Hummer
One of the curious things about General Motors’ revival of Hummer has been near-silence from GMC since it launched the EV Pickup and EV SUV. Yes there have been additional trim levels but no new models, nor has it been announced what GM plans to do next with the brand.
Each of the two Hummer vehicles should be due for a facelift in 2027 (for the 2028 model year) with potential replacements expected in 2030/2031. These will likely retain the existing platform but major weight losses are likely as battery technology improves.
The second of two General Motors future models reports will follow later in July. This will cover Buick and Cadillac.
Source from Just Auto
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