MMA Champ: Midsized Market Authenticity
With sales figures for the GMC Terrain down over the last year, one has to wonder if the mid-sized SUV is losing some staying power or if there were other factors at play.
The Terrain is well into its second generation and throughout its production, it has been a strong seller GMC, keeping second place on the brand's list of best selling vehicles. The Terrain is a solid contender for a mid-sized SUV, giving you a decent level of luxury without eye-watering expense. With three models offered, the one in our garage this week is the middle child, the SLT.
The SLT, which stands for Special Luxury Touring, is full of options, though with the Pro Grade Package we might have expected the S to mean Sport, given some of the options included; a black grill and badges as well as the black rims. The Terrain comes with standard options including keyless start, heated front seats, available AWD, active noise cancellation, GMC Pro Safety, and much more. The SLT expands on that list further with an 8” HD touchscreen, hands-free power liftgate, HID headlights and more. The features list is certainly not a short one. There’s even an alert system in the seat that vibrates to make sure you are aware of obstacles nearby. The Terrain SLT starts at just under $39k CAD and with this one optioned at $45k, it’s not a great leap in price and at either end, it’s a great value.
Under the hood sits a 2.0L 4-cylinder engine paired with a turbocharger. Producing 252 hp and 260 lb-ft, it isn’t a great deal of power, but it is plenty enough for most situations. The 9-speed transmission is smooth and helps keep the RPMs lower on the highway. The terrain also lets you select between all wheel drive or two wheel drive, with a simple turn of a knob. This drive system meant we had no issues, even while driving off the beaten path and through some muddy sections.
The Terrain is a large vehicle, providing plenty of space for both passengers and luggage, but even with all that space, it manages to not feel as big as it is. With its size, the Terrain can easily handle the aspects of everyday life you throw at it, whether that’s carrying all the hockey equipment to practice, towing a trailer to the cottage, simple grocery trips, and everything in between.
The interior is luxurious, well put together, and the contrast stitching is a nice added detail -one we always appreciate. The dashboard is simple, still using mostly analog equipment, paired with a digital screen. We do think there could be more information provided in the dashboard though. There is plenty of storage space in the cabin, whether in the door or center console, including semi hidden pockets in the side of the center console. Access to the drive mode selector and seat heaters is right behind the center cup holders, which could be in a better spot, as you will need to take your eyes off the road to see if you’ve made the right selection. A standout feature is the massive, panoramic sunroof, which spans most of the roof, letting in a vast amount of natural light.
The infotainment system is nice, but feels a little bit dated as well. The screen isn’t the sharpest on the market, looking more like it has an anti-fingerprint layer, but the touchscreen is responsive. Apple CarPlay works well, keeping you connected but less distracted. The Bose system sounds great, as you’d expect from the commonly equipped premium system. For easy control for song selection and volume there are buttons on the back of the steering wheel, where you’d usually find paddle shifters. You also get an easy to access WiFi Hotspot, if anyone wants to get some work done, or just simply scroll through the socials.
GMC gave the Terrain plenty of safety equipment. One feature new to us is the seat vibrating for alerts. It takes some getting used to at first but it seems effective. There’s no heads up display here but there is a collision alert system in the same area you’d find the HUD, this one will flash a red light in any potentially hair-raising moments. There are plenty of collision avoidance systems, including automatic emergency braking, front pedestrian braking, lane departure warning and more.
The GMC Terrain is a strong contender in the SUV market with its size, capability, and value. We saw some automakers having record sales last year but the Terrain lost pace. There doesn’t seem to be any reason other than COVID-19 hitting the market, where the rich got richer, and bought more vehicles in a higher price bracket, but the average person felt the pain of the economic shutdown, and held off on purchasing a great vehicle.
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