I'm convinced.
It's my job to be skeptical about the claims car companies make when they introduce new vehicles: to believe what I experience behind the wheel, not what the PowerPoint presentations and computer-enhanced commercials promise.
Skepticism is healthy, but I approached the 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe hybrid SUV with outright cynicism. My expectations were so low that you'd need a pooper scooper to lift them.
GM's previous hybrids — vehicles that run on a combination of gasoline and electricity — fostered that response. The vehicles felt like they were built out of a sense of obligation, not a drive to be best. Sure, as GM points out, they cost less than the hybrid systems pioneered by Ford, Honda and Toyota, but they broke no new ground.
I expected more of the same from the Tahoe.
People are also reading…
Man, was I wrong.
I was 26.3-miles-per-gallon-in-3-ton-SUV wrong — and that's way wrong.
GM has redefined what's possible for hybrid drivetrains, and the evidence is on sale in the form of the 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon, with plenty more models to come.
Prices for the hybrid Tahoe start at $49,590 for a rear-wheel-drive model and include an exceptionally long list of standard equipment — everything from a touch-screen navigation system to rear-video parking assist. Four-wheel-drive Tahoe hybrid prices start at $52,395.
Nobody but GM makes a hybrid full-size SUV, so the Tahoe has no direct competitors. The only question is how well the unique system works. My answer: brilliantly.
GM calls the system a two-mode hybrid, because it improves fuel economy both in city and highway driving. Other hybrid systems reduce fuel consumption in city driving but have no effect at highway speeds.
The rear-drive hybrid Tahoe was rated at 21 mpg in the city and 22 mpg on the highway in fuel economy tests conducted by the Environmental Protection Agency. That compares with 14 mpg city and 20 mpg highway for a similar gasoline-only Tahoe.
Models comparable to the gasoline Tahoe scored as follows with the EPA: Ford Expedition, Infiniti QX56, Nissan Armada, 12 mpg city and 18 highway; Toyota Sequoia, 14 mpg city and 19 highway.
The Tahoe hybrid would save its owner $853 to $1,310 in annual fuel costs and burn 273 to 344 fewer gallons of gasoline each year compared with the competitors, the EPA reported.
The hybrid Tahoe comes with a 322-horsepower 6.0-liter V8, nickel metal hydride batteries, two electric motors and an automatic transmission that meshes the output from those pieces in a dizzyingly complicated process. The hybrid matches the capabilities of gasoline-powered Tahoes with a 6,200-pound towing capacity, up to eight seats and a 1,426-pound payload.
Impressive numbers, but let's get back to my being 26.3-mpg wrong.
That's the fuel economy the Tahoe achieved in a daylong test that included city and highway driving, with most of the time and miles coming on major surface roads.
The mix of city to highway driving was similar to what the EPA uses, but the Tahoe's results were a stunning 25 percent — 5.3 mpg — better.
The hybrid system operated nearly seamlessly. The automatic engine shutoff was unnoticeable — even smoother than in a $115,000 Lexus LS 600h L hybrid luxury sedan that I drove recently. The automatic restart was also very smooth.
After experiencing how well the system operates in a big, blocky, full-size SUV, I can't wait to see the fuel economy it provides in smaller and lighter vehicles.