There might (?) be an additional +/- button on the steering-wheel spoke......we won't know without a close-up.

 

Well done by GM. Should keep the GM fans and faithfull happy. I like the roof and I like the fact that they went with the push buttons shifter, it should give people something to talk about in place of General Motors poor reliability reputation.

I also have to commend GM for their press releases. They have the best in the business. They get out all the details ASAP. None of the this engines going to be released later B.S.

 

Good-looking critter. This is the first iteration of the floating roof that actually came out decently. But the likely blind-spot is not a worthwhile trade-off. I am surprised we've now gone twenty years of window-less SUV's that have big blind-spots. The first Explorers, Cherokees, Troopers, MDX/Pilots were all about visibility.
The gear shift set-up here is simply awful. There is no getting around it. To have to reach all the way down the bottom of the console, far away from where the hands are normally- and hope you jab at the right button- is a huge distraction and safety hazard.
Other piques: The trademark GMC grille shape looks more like a giant oval from most angles. This is not the look GMC meant to portray. The "SLT" emblem above and behind the rear fender sits in a strange location. GM's small SUV dash is dated compared to everything else. This will draw reviewer critique in about two to three years. The HVAC housing area looks unfinished and unattached.

 

Do the designers just sit in a conference room and debate what simple, basic parts of the car they can re-invent in a way that no one thought of? Or wants? Or makes any sense at all? People like to bash the BMW electronic gearshift, but I love mine--and at least I can easily determine the gear I'm selecting by touch. Look at the +/- selector for manual mode. What the hell is wrong with them?

 

Ha ha--you beat me to it. Maybe the designers all thought -- "Well, there's probably almost no one that will use this feature in this vehicle anyway, so let's stick them down there."

It's like "Stand Up & Win" from SNL with Jerry Seinfeld: "Who were the ad wizards who came up with that one?"

 

Well, I guess this vehicle just went on my review-list when it is released. It's going to be interesting to see just exactly how they have this manual-mode set up for the shifting. It's really got my interest up, too.

Right off-hand, even with its quirks, I'd say I'll probably find it preferable to the console-mounted E-shifters (which I find to be a PITA)...but, as usual, I'll wait for final judgement for a test-drive.

 

Floating roof = well executed. Grille = slapped on.

 

Perhaps (?) for the same reason that Cadllac's new CT6 flagship has a conventional-style fore/aft shifter, while its mid-size XT5 SUV uses the same E-shifter that the new Buick LaCrosse does.

 

Yes, please. Would like to hear a thorough review of this. If they do indeed offer one level with a regular gear shifter, I'd be very interested in leasing for my work.

 

See how much better full body-colored flanks look on the red version? No cheap, black plastic down at the bottom (except between the tailpipes). Such a positive, visual difference.

 

There is a branch of engineering known as Human Factors. They deal with the interface between the human user and the machine. It does look like they were forgotten in this design.

I do not find this "Electronic Precision Shift" intuitive at all. I can understand why GM decided to use pull triggers (for R and D) -- which Honda also uses -- to avoid pressing the wrong button and selecting the wrong gear, but that merely complicates the human-machine interface, IMO.

The most intuitive of push button gear selectors, IMO, is Ford's implementation in its Lincoln models, but even Ford has had problems with distinguishing one button from another.

 

The plastic in the cabin looks incredibly cheap. Use some textures for god sake GM.

 

i think it looks great in and out. gm has also done an amazing job lately with making vehicles feel solid and super quiet. expect this to be so too.

 

I will preface by saying that I have yet to drive a car with push buttons or a swivel **** as the transmission interface, but if the main goal is space saving, I would think that the **** is preferable for being "intuitive". If you are in park, you turn 3 clicks to the right and you are in drive; with buttons, even with the Lincoln format, you have to look down at the buttons to make sure you press the right one. Adding here that the buttons are just in an awkward position.

 

I drove a new Ford Fusion rental with the dial gear selector this summer. It was not bad on dry highways where I did not have to make quick gear changes but I would worry about driving it in the snow and having to rock the car out of a parking space. Would it be too difficult to constantly shift back-and-forth between D and R because it would be too easy to go into P or N? The push buttons may be easier but having to look down to make sure I stab the right button may not help.