The Bottom Line
What does "GMC" mean to you? They've spent years hammering us with the words "Professional Grade," but what does that mean? Now GMC wants to stretch your mind a bit more with its smallest crossover yet, the 2010 GMC Terrain. With base prices from $24,995 to $31,745, the 2010 GMC Terrain arrives with a 3 year/36,000 mile basic warranty, a 5 year/100,000 mile powertrain warranty and EPA estimates from 17 mpg city/24 mpg highway (V6 AWD) to 22 city/32 highway (I4 FWD). Let’s drive.
2010 GMC Terrain Sport Utility Crossover
Summary
Provided by NADAguides.comA brand new crossover, the GMC Terrain offers seating for five passengers and a best in class 32 mpg highway fuel economy rating. Available with FWD or AWD, the base engine on the Terrain is a 2.4L direct-injection inline four-cylinder producing 182 hp. A 264 hp 3.0L V6 is available and both engines are paired with a six-speed automatic transmission. Standard features include a rear-vision camera, OnStar, and XM Satellite radio.
Benefits of Driving a 2010 GMC Terrain Sport Utility Crossover
Starting at just under $24,000, the 2010 GMC Terrain is one of the most affordable vehicles in its class, which includes competitors Honda CR-V and Toyota RAV4. The interior features a dual-cockpit design, ice-blue ambient lighting and cool black and silver accents that give the Terrain a sense of class. Storage areas are everywhere in the cabin, such as an oversized glove box, a closed storage bin in the instrument panel above the center stack and a closed storage bin under the center armrest large enough for a laptop computer. The rear seats again in 2010 feature MultiFlex, which allows the seats to move back and forth a total of eight inches for the best rear legroom in the segment.What's new for 2010?
The 2010 GMC Terrain features a unibody construction with clean sculpted lines and prominent wheel arches. It features a selection of two engines, two drivetrains, climate control, heated seats, an entertainment system ? all intended to make hauling people stylishly, efficiently and comfortably.Model Strengths
- Powerful compact crossover that seats five
- sharp-looking exterior with strong lines
- stylish interior with ambient lighting
Model Review
The 2010 Terrain has the same platform as the Chevrolet Equinox. The base trim is the SLE, with the up-level SLT available. GM's new 2.4L 182-horsepower engine and front-wheel drive is the standard configuration, and all but the base trim can be fitted with an optional 172-horsepower 3.0L V6 engine. All trims feature 6-speed automatic transmission and variable valve timing. All-wheel drive is available on all trims.Guide Review - 2010 GMC Terrain
The compact crossover field is where all the action is right now, with new models or makeovers from Chevrolet, Hyundai, Kia, Mazda and Subaru competing for sales with the venerable offerings from Honda, Toyota, Nissan and Ford. Enter GMC, with its first compact SUV, the 2010 Terrain.
Terrain shares its architecture with the all-new Chevrolet Equinox -- same engine and transmission choices, same basic dimensions, same interior layout. GMC is sensitive to charges of badge engineering, and prefers the term "platform-sharing."
On the exterior, Terrain and Equinox are quite different. Terrain draws on the current lineup of GMC trucks for inspiration, with pronounced wheel wells and a truckish front end look. I actually prefer Terrain's macho design to Equinox's softer gentler lines, but it really will come down to a matter of taste for most buyers. Inside, Terrain and Equinox are pretty much identical except for the badges. That's okay, because the interior is really nicely executed, and quite livable.
Terrain is the second SUV, after Equinox, to get GM's new direct-injection technology. The new fuel handling system results in improved efficiency and better power over conventional fuel injection or carburetion systems of the past. Matched with a six-speed automatic transmission, both the four-cylinder and V6 Terrains offer decent bang for the buck.
There's plenty of competition in the compact crossover world, and after spending a week in the Terrain, I think GMC has a dog in the hunt. It's going to take a lot to dethrone the Honda CR-V, and Terrain isn't quite at that level of refinement -- yet. It will be interesting to see how the new GM offerings influence the next generation of SUV.
Terrain shares its architecture with the all-new Chevrolet Equinox -- same engine and transmission choices, same basic dimensions, same interior layout. GMC is sensitive to charges of badge engineering, and prefers the term "platform-sharing."
On the exterior, Terrain and Equinox are quite different. Terrain draws on the current lineup of GMC trucks for inspiration, with pronounced wheel wells and a truckish front end look. I actually prefer Terrain's macho design to Equinox's softer gentler lines, but it really will come down to a matter of taste for most buyers. Inside, Terrain and Equinox are pretty much identical except for the badges. That's okay, because the interior is really nicely executed, and quite livable.
Terrain is the second SUV, after Equinox, to get GM's new direct-injection technology. The new fuel handling system results in improved efficiency and better power over conventional fuel injection or carburetion systems of the past. Matched with a six-speed automatic transmission, both the four-cylinder and V6 Terrains offer decent bang for the buck.
There's plenty of competition in the compact crossover world, and after spending a week in the Terrain, I think GMC has a dog in the hunt. It's going to take a lot to dethrone the Honda CR-V, and Terrain isn't quite at that level of refinement -- yet. It will be interesting to see how the new GM offerings influence the next generation of SUV.
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