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2008 GMC Canyon Quality Review

November 5, 2008

COMFORT AND QUALITY | 6 out of 10

Expert Quotes:

Gives the impression of being cheap
Edmunds

Highway wind rush is prominent around the doors
Consumer Guide

Rental-car interior décor
Car and Driver

Unlike many of GM's latest trucks, which feature vastly improved interior quality, the 2008 GMC Canyon is still mired in the GM tradition of old, which is to say it could use some touching up.

The 2008 GMC Canyon can theoretically carry up to six occupants, but reviews read by TheCarConnection.com show that comfort will be a serious problem if six are crammed inside the Canyon GMC. Seating capacity and style vary by model of GMC Canyon, and Cars.com reports that regular cabs offer "a standard 60/40-split bench seat" up front, though "reclining bucket seats are available," while "four-door extended cab trucks have two forward-facing rear seats" and "Crew Cab models contain front bucket seats." The front seats fare well, and ConsumerGuide finds that they deliver "lots of headroom and legroom" and are "adequately comfortable for long drives." The backseat, however, is a different story, as Edmunds claims that "rear legroom is tight in both extended cab and crew cab models," and Consumer Guide contends that rear "legroom is still no better than a subcompact sedan's," even on the GMC Canyon Crew Cab.

Interior build and materials quality doesn't do the Canyon GMC many favors either, as reviews read by TheCarConnection.com clearly show. Cars.com notes that the new 2008 "Canyon's interior trim was revised to include chrome accents." Unfortunately, reviews read by TheCarConnection.com are unanimous in deeming this simple addition inadequate. Quality gets a low grade from Car and Driver, which points out that the compact truck has "flimsy seats" and "no protective coating or tie-down rails in the bed." Edmunds concurs, going so far as to say that "the Dodge Dakota, Nissan Frontier and Toyota Tacoma are simply better trucks in almost every regard." Edmunds also points out the 2008 GMC Canyon "remains saddled with subpar materials" and "an abundance of hard plastic."

Gaps in build quality on the 2008 GMC Canyon are evident on the highway, where several reviewers mention intrusive wind noise. Edmunds reports that "wind noise around the doors picks up at highway speeds," and ConsumerGuide finds that "highway wind rush is prominent around the doors."

One area where the 2008 GMC Canyon surprises is ride quality. ConsumerGuide applauds the 2008 GMC Canyon, stating that the drive is "better than most compact pickups, provided you stick with the base suspension." Kelley Blue Book feels the "new body-on-frame chassis is much more rigid," making it the "greatest improvement over previous GMC compact trucks."

Conclusion

GMC seems to have sacrificed too much quality on the 2008 GMC Canyon in exchange for simplicity and supposed value.

COMFORT AND QUALITY | 6 out of 10Expert Quotes:Gives the impression of being cheapEdmundsHighway wind rush is prominent around the doorsConsumer GuideRental-car interior décorCar and Driver Unlike many of GM's latest trucks, which feature vastly improved interior quality, the 2008 GMC Canyon is still mired in the GM tradition of old, which is to say it could use some touching up. The 2008 GMC Canyon can theoretically carry up to six occupants, but reviews read by TheCarConnection.com show that comfort will be a serious problem if six are crammed inside the Canyon GMC. Seating capacity and style vary by model of GMC Canyon, and Cars.com reports that regular cabs offer "a standard 60/40-split bench seat" up front, though "reclining bucket seats are available," while "four-door extended cab trucks have two forward-facing rear seats" and "Crew Cab models contain front bucket seats." The front seats fare well, and ConsumerGuide finds that they deliver "lots of headroom and legroom" and are "adequately comfortable for long drives." The backseat, however, is a different story, as Edmunds claims that "rear legroom is tight in both extended cab and crew cab models," and Consumer Guide contends that rear "legroom is still no better than a subcompact sedan's," even on the GMC Canyon Crew Cab. Interior build and materials quality doesn't do the Canyon GMC many favors either, as reviews read by TheCarConnection.com clearly show. Cars.com notes that the new 2008 "Canyon's interior trim was revised to include chrome accents." Unfortunately, reviews read by TheCarConnection.com are unanimous in deeming this simple addition inadequate. Quality gets a low grade from Car and Driver, which points out that the compact truck has "flimsy seats" and "no protective coating or tie-down rails in the bed." Edmunds concurs, going so far as to say that "the Dodge Dakota, Nissan Frontier and Toyota Tacoma are simply better trucks in almost every regard." Edmunds also points out the 2008 GMC Canyon "remains saddled with subpar materials" and "an abundance of hard plastic." Gaps in build quality on the 2008 GMC Canyon are evident on the highway, where several reviewers mention intrusive wind noise. Edmunds reports that "wind noise around the doors picks up at highway speeds," and ConsumerGuide finds that "highway wind rush is prominent around the doors." One area where the 2008 GMC Canyon surprises is ride quality. ConsumerGuide applauds the 2008 GMC Canyon, stating that the drive is "better than most compact pickups, provided you stick with the base suspension." Kelley Blue Book feels the "new body-on-frame chassis is much more rigid," making it the "greatest improvement over previous GMC compact trucks." ConclusionGMC seems to have sacrificed too much quality on the 2008 GMC Canyon in exchange for simplicity and supposed value. 2008 GMC CANYON STYLING | [6 out of 10] Edmunds: "Distinctively rugged styling" Kelley Blue Book: "Interior layout is highly functional" Car and Driver: "A broad variety of body styles, wheelbase and cargo-bed lengths" A large part of any pickup truck's appeal is its macho exterior ...

Read More of this Review:

  1. styling
  2. performance
  3. quality
  4. safety
  5. features

Other Choices:

The Canyon shares its running gear with the Chevrolet Colorado, which you may find more attractive -- otherwise, the two are near-twins. The true competitor for the Canyon/Colorado is the Ford Ranger, an aging truck that still scores well in crash tests, gets decent fuel economy and comes in all sorts of flavors. Larger trucks like the Dodge Dakota, Nissan Frontier and Toyota Tacoma are a distinct size larger, and have four-cylinder engines that aren’t quite as frugal as that in the 2008 GMC Canyon.

Next Steps:

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See the GMC Canyon in Other Years:

2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 | 2004

Comments (1 total)

  1. By Mark #1, Posted: 3/4/2009

    Review scum by Edmunds and CarAndDriver

    Just a little history on allegedly underpowered 3.7l Canyon.Only road tests -comparisons between Canyon and competed compact pick-up trucks took place in 2005.Two major road tests were done by Edmunds and CarAndDriver.Performance data was published, impressions made and opinions formed.Since then they simply carryover their reviews from one year to another up to date. In 2007 GMC came up with bigger , stronger and updated engine. Since Canyon quite frankly is not up to competition with neither Nissan nor Toyota amd it is still essentially the same vehicle just with bigger engine, Edmunds and CarAndDriver simply decided ignore that fact.
    Yoy make take you calculator and go to 2005 test small pickup trucks performance data posted at Edmunds, and estimate Canyon performance with a new engine.Very conservatively speaking Canyon should be able to compete with Frontier and Tacoma. Only reliable information regarding measurable performance 3.7l Canyon, I found, is coming from TruckTestDigest at GulfCoastNews.com Comparable Tacoma and Canyon tested by the same team on drivers on the same track showed identical results for 1/4 mile and Tacoma being minimally faster at 0-60 test. It is worthy of mentioning that at 0-60 test Canyon lost slightly only because of significant wheel-hop and there was potential to go much faster (according to drivers testimony). So , actually was not Tacoma stronger engine but Tacoma technical superiority over Canyon.Many smaller car reviewers from all over the web copy and paste Edmunds opinions without even being aware that this information is somehow outdated.No major comparison tests were ever done between 3.7l Canyon and competition so there is no substantial proof that Canyon engine is any weaker that these of competition. Also is worthy of mentioning that driving impression and measurable performance are two different things in this regard Canyon is far behind Frontier and Tacoma.

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