Second-generation GMC Terrain

With today's GMC Acadia now became a midsize SUV, many are wondering what's going to happen to their current midsize SUV known as the Terrain. Don't worry folks, because while General Motors became aware of this situation, they want to make sure that their current Acadia, despite its size, will remain bigger than the Terrain and in the Terrain's case, the other midsize SUV is now reached its second generation and while it promises to be smaller than today's Acadia, there's so much to know about this new model.

2018 GMC Terrain

2018 GMC Terrain

First, there are so much questions to talk about the new Terrain, apart from being just a Chevrolet Equinox made for baseballers and college footballers alike, and one such is the questionable design because when you look around the angles, the headlamps and the taillights are reminiscent of the rear taillights of today's Honda Civic while the side view puts you into think that it reminds you of that F_rt_n_r (sorry, vowels blocked for search query reasons) of today. In other words, that questionable design looks exciting and confused at the same time and makes differentiate it from its big brother very easy.

2018 GMC Terrain interior

Unlike the previous Terrain shares the previous Equinox's interior, the new Terrain's interior is different because what GMC wants is even though they're Chevrolets underneath, they want the way GMCs look inside and out are different and for the Terrain, they have done it so when they start realize that this is just a rebadged Chevy Equinox, they need to rethink about the Terrain over again. Speaking of interior, the Terrain is still a five-seater and it's surprisingly roomier than the previous model so even though it's a family mover, it still works perfect for your day out with your mates after work or on the weekends. At the back, the new Terrain's boot space can accommodate up to eight feet in length with the seats down and even with all the seats present, it still accommodates your luggages very neatly and organized, especially when it has the special hands-free power liftgate, although not the one Ford mastered it with their crossovers. Connectivity wise, this crossover has a lot of USB ports to charge your phones with while on the go as well as its sat-nav that comes with Apple Carplay and Android Auto compatibility so the new Terrain is a connectivity plus for all.

2018 GMC Terrain

Because the new Terrain is based on today's Chevrolet Equinox, the engine choices are almost identical to today's Equinox as well. There's the more powerful 2.0L turbo petrol engine with 252HP of power, 28 MPG highway, and mated to a 9-speed automatic, a 1.6L turbodiesel with 240lb-ft of torque, mated to a 6-speed gearbox, and an impressive 39MPG highway, and a well-balanced 1.6L turbo petrol engine with 170HP of power, 203lb-ft of torque, 30MPG highway, and mated to a 9-speed gearbox. The 2.0L turbo is the only engine available at launch but the other two engines will come out later this year and my recommendation would be the smaller 1.6L petrol engine because it's a well-balanced engine that you can't go wrong with it and adds some life to it.

Engines aside, the way the new Terrain behaves differs from drivetrain and with the AWD, the Terrain feels like it's ready to rumble through all kinds of roads and all kinds of conditions. That's adaptability to you but don't get too excited to it because while this is surprisingly a fun family car full-stop, it's still not as fun as you would expect on an SUV that likes to play rough, instead it wants to play nice.

Speaking of play nice, the new Terrain offers a wide array of safety features such as the Rear Park Assist, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, Side Blind Zone Alert with Lane Change Alert, Safety Alert Seat, Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning, and Low Speed Forward Automatic Braking. With all these safety features present, the Terrain feels like it's ready to take on whatever today's traffic reports mentioned during the long trip.

The all-new Terrain starts at 24,995 US Dollars and while it's a thousand dollars more than its Chevy Equinox relative, it's still affordable to own than its big brother, the now-midsize GMC Acadia. It comes in three different variants from the SLE, the SLT, and the more stylish and more premium Denali. So, should you buy it? Well, if you think today's Chevrolet Equinox has gone red, consider this because despite the Equinox connection, the new Terrain is a crossover that shows GMC's professional grade despite its size and it's all about getting the job done from day one until the time comes they won't need this crossover anymore.

Photo: General Motors