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Me and four of my associates desired to undertake a road trip to Ohio.
Why? Fair question.
Answer: Don and Dave turned 50 two years ago. March and Greg just turned 50. I will turn 50 this December. In our ongoing effort to not get too bummed out about this, a series of events have been planned, including this Ohio trip -- to Dayton to check out the Patterson-Wright Air Force Museum (which includes every plane the United States Air Force has ever flown), and to Cleveland, to check out the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
When I asked the good folks at GM Canada if the GMC Acadia they were planning to loan us could be commandeered for such an exercise, they didn't even blink. (And I didn't ask twice).
Before we all we saddled up, however, we went over some background about GMC's new beast.
The Acadia crossover is a bit of a family rebel, as it is the first vehicle marketed by GMC that is not based on a truck platform. Acadia is built on the new Lambda FWD/AWD platform, which also underpins the Saturn Outlook and Buick Enclave crossovers. Speculation is rampant that GM will build new minivans on this platform too, at some point, maybe around 2009 or 2010 -- but that's another story.
Acadia starts at $36,495 (SLE trim, FWD). Our test victim was the ber upscale $45,595 SLT model, with AWD. It was resplendent in off-white premium paint ($995) and very cool 19-inch machine-finished aluminum wheels (part of the $3,995 Preferred Equipment Group). This baby was further bolstered with the DVD navigation radio with rear entertainment system ($4,665), two-panel sunroof ($1,695), HID lighting ($650), towing package ($550), heads-up display ($475), and front license plate holder ($5). That's $59,625 worth of GM crossover.
But look at the size of the thing! Acadia, Outlook and Enclave are definitely staking out the full-size sector of the crossover market. Acadia is as long as its biggest truck-based SUV sibling, the Yukon XL, and weighs over two tons -- unibody vehicles don't get much bigger, or heavier.
But the extremely long wheelbase (3,020 mm, 118.9 in), promises to give the big rig great stability, and the subsequent "wheels-to-the-corner" stance, gives the vehicle good proportion (especially with the fore-mentioned 19-inch wheels).
To these eyes, Acadia does a great job of conveying GMC's 'trucky' heritage, in a modern, wind-shaped profile. The coefficient of drag is just 0.361 -- Corvette territory for Pete's sake -- and that has to be good for both fuel efficiency and interior noise reduction.
Under the hood you'll find GM's 3.6-litre V6, which features meaty numbers and up-to-date technology: 275 hp and 251 lb-ft of torque; aluminum cylinder heads; four-valves per cylinder; variable valve timing. It also runs on regular fuel, and note that maximum torque is available as low as 3,200 rpm.
The 3.6 is hooked up to a six-speed tranny we've seen before (the 6T75 co-developed by Ford and GM, and currently on products like Edge and CX-9). It's optimized to work with re-active AWD systems. As is increasingly the norm these days, Acadia's AWD system always sends a slight amount of torque to the rear wheels.
And, as per the crossover formula, the platform features rack and pinion steering, and four-wheel independent suspension. The rear suspension, however, is linked in a unique and compact "H" pattern, said to minimize floor pan intrusion and increase interior room. Suspension is also beefy enough to facilitate a towing capacity of 2,042 kg (4,500 lbs); crossovers of this nature typically have a towing rating of 3,000 to 3,500 lbs.
Acadia can be configured for seven (like our tester with two captain chairs in the second row), or for eight passengers (with a second row three-seat bench). Either second-row configuration features "Smart Slide," which can be activated "one handed." (The seat cushion folds up and the whole seat slides forward, to allow greater access to the third row, or the seats can be left folded if third-row people want huge legroom.) The slide rails also allow the second row seats to be adjusted fore and aft (they also recline).
Fold both the second and third row seats flat, and Acadia offers up 3,310 litres (117 cu-ft) of stuffing space. With both seats up, Acadia still offers extremely useful cargo space at the rear of the vehicle (558 litres, 19.7 cu-ft).
Major safety items include four-wheel disc brakes, with ABS and electronic brake force distribution (EBD), traction control (FWD models), StabiliTrak stability control system with rollover mitigation technology, and six standard air bags. To cover off that third row seat "air bag wise," the head curtain airbags are among the longest in any production vehicle.
We didn't try out those air bags on our trip, but most everything else, and here's our take on things...
The driver's seat affords a commanding view of the road, as the seat can go up quite high, and the instrument panel (IP) is fairly low.
The IP and the entire cabin reflect GM's new-found religion in providing interiors that are at least competitive with the pack, in terms of fit and finish. And how's this for attention to detail -- when the satellite radio was on, the heads-up display even showed artist and song title. How cool is that?
The GMC interior styling motif is one we liked too -- functional, clear, and not over the top.
Second row people had all the legroom they needed, though Dave, the tallest among us at six feet, didn't have much to spare.
The third row is actually suitable for adults. Greg sat there for the entire trip, and whenever he got in and out of the seat, he always did so through the space between the two second-row captain chairs, rather than wait for us to get out and flip the second row forward. His technique was much faster, especially as you have to fold some carpet over, to open up more seat track rails.
Greg complained that the rear seat carpets could be better secured; a third row means lots of traffic through the cabin, and it didn't take much to knock the carpets off their moorings.
We were able to easily store all our bags behind the rear seat, but bear in mind that we were guys, and not packing hair dryers, or much in the way of evening wear. I was hoping the power lift-gate would set a new bar for speed, but it was as slow as any we've waited on in the past.
It is quite quiet inside, with very little windnoise, and no ancillary engine noises creeping into the cabin. But the acoustics aren't terrific; we had to raise our voices above normal conversational levels, to have a group discussion.
At highway speeds the Acadia is very relaxed, the engine barely spinning over 2,000 rpm. The transmission seems predisposed to keep the revs down (and the fuel mileage up), to the point that the Acadia's demeanor becomes more refined than sporty. Over 1,600 km of mostly highway miles, we averaged 11.46 L/100 km.
With 275 horses and all that torque down low, the 3.6-litre V6 is capable of motivating Acadia to anyone's wishes, especially if you put your foot into it. But this is a relatively heavy vehicle, which can quickly get a lot heavier, by virtue of its copious people and cargo capacity. So while the 3.6 gets the job done, you get the sense it's certainly not overkill.
We found the Acadia to be a wonderful driver. Steering feel is nicely weighted, and the long wheelbase, wide track, and low centre of gravity conspire to make the vehicle seem much smaller than it is, when you're at the helm.
While it handled brilliantly, the ride was firmer that one would have thought for a vehicle that has some body roll and pitch. Our tester was riding on the 19-inch tires, which have precious little sidewall. Maybe the standard 18-inchers soak up the road rumples a bit more.
Will these crossovers effectively replace minivans, as the prime people mover? Judging by our trip, I say yes. We could have done this trip by minivan, but sometimes you just have to take off your cardigan, and take a stand against sheer practicality. We did, for four days at least, and it felt better than good. |