The sudden swan dive of big SUVs was easy to anticipate yet seemed to catch everybody by surprise.
Soaring fuel prices coupled with dismal fuel mileage doomed this contingent of 5,000-pound-plus trucks, formerly beloved for their roominess, hauling power and safety. Once gas hit $4 per gallon, the party was all but over.
Everybody’s hustling hybrids these days, and General Motors has applied its corporate might to developing a seemingly incongruous melding of huge SUVs with gas-saving hybrid power.
Both Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon got hybridized for 2008, and for 2009, Cadillac Escalade joins the hybrid club. Along with two-mode engine power, which switches off four cylinders of the V-8s at cruising speeds, the gas/electric SUVs raise their city gas mileage to 21 and their highway mileage to 22.
Helping the city mileage is gas-engine shutdown when stopped, with the electric motors plural providing power for initial takeoff and, with a light throttle, providing all the power up to 25 miles per hour.
There are two muscular 60-kilowatt motors under the floor of the Tahoe, Yukon and Escalade, hooked up to the transmission and electronically monitored to provide exclusive power and power assist to the 6-liter V-8.
Although the fuel mileage might not sound all that exciting, consider that a regular gasoline-powered two-wheel-drive Tahoe gets just 14 city and 20 highway, according to the EPA, from a smaller V-8 that provides nowhere near the performance of the hybrid. It’s all relative, you see.
But it makes me wonder: Why the heck do you need such a big, powerful engine when it’s backed up with essentially 160-horsepower and the massive torque of the electric motors? Why not a smaller V-8, or even a V-6, for greater savings?
Chevrolet Tahoe Hybrid
Vehicle type: Eight-passenger four-door SUV, rear-wheel drive.
Engine: 6-liter V-8, 332 horsepower at 5,100 rpm, 367 pound-feet of torque at 4,100 rpm, with two 60 kilowatt electric motors.
Transmission: Four-speed automatic.
Wheelbase: 116 inches.
Overall length: 202 inches.
Curb weight: 5,270 pounds.
EPA rating: 21 city, 22 highway.
HIGHS: Improved fuel mileage, lush interior, big-truck versatility.
LOWS: Tight third seat, mileage could be better, steep base price.
PERFORMANCE: When I drove the hybrid Tahoe judiciously, I easily averaged 21 miles per gallon. But when I drove less carefully, or sampled the powerful acceleration of this torque-laden beast, my average mileage dropped to 19. Driving style matters a lot with a hybrid.
The complex give-and-take between gas engine and electric motors is unnoticeable, as is the switch between four and eight cylinders on the highway.
The transmission has just four gears, which goes against the gas-mileage grain. Why not a six-speed or a continuously variable transmission for better mpg?
DRIVABILITY: The latest generation of big GM trucks has much-improved handling and overall drivability compared with past models. The hybrid is no exception. The steering feels a bit lighter and more vague than in the regular Tahoe.
STYLING: The hybrid gets some extra aerodynamic features, including a deep air dam up front.
Nobody will miss that you’re driving a Tahoe Hybrid; the word is festooned all over the truck in big bold letters.
INTERIOR: Tahoe Hybrid comes loaded with features and upgrades, which add considerably to its base price. It’s a super-nice interior, but how about fewer options at a lower base price?
The back seats are pretty tight and hard to access, and they don’t fold into the floor.
BOTTOM LINE: An exercise in turning a gas-guzzler into a near gas sipper. For those who need this sort of vehicle, and can afford it, this could be the answer.
Base price: $49,590.
Price as tested: $52,780.
OPTIONS
Rear-seat entertainment, $1,295.
Sunroof, $995.
Shipping, $900.
