General Motors Co., introducing redesigned full-sized pickups this year, said new Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra base engines will exceed the fuel economy of Ford Motor Co.’s F-Series.
The 2014 non-turbo, two-wheel-drive 4.3-liter EcoTec3 V-6 versions of Silverado and Sierra will get an estimated 18 miles (29 kilometers) per gallon in city driving and 24 mpg on the highway, GM said in e-mailed statements today. Combined driving gets an estimated 20 mpg.
Ford’s 2013 F-150 two-wheel-drive, flex-fuel, 3.7-liter V-6 gets 17 mpg in the city and 23 on the highway with a combined 19, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s website. The website didn’t have 2014 model ratings for the F-150.
GM’s revamped pickups are part of the Detroit-based automaker’s 18 new products being introduced this year in the U.S. to boost sales, market share and profit. The company has generated 13 quarters of net income while shares reached a two- year high earlier this month. The automaker also returned to the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index after its 2009 U.S.-backed bankruptcy.
“Reflecting Silverado’s straightforward approach to performance and fuel economy, these EPA estimates are achieved without expensive add-ons and apply to all three cab configurations, regular cab, double cab, and crew cab,” GM said in a statement.
GM said its V-6 pickups will be able to tow more with a maximum available payload rating of 2,108 lb. and towing rating of 7,200 lb.
The automaker has already announced that its 5.3-liter V-8 engine pickups with two-wheel drive with 23 mpg in highway driving get better fuel efficiency than Ford’s turbocharged V-6’s 22 and the same as the entry V-6’s 23 mpg.
