Chicago 2008: GMC Denali XT Concept is ute-iful
Posted Feb 6th 2008 4:06PM by Sam Abuelsamid
click above image for more live shots of the GMC Denali XT Concept
GM designer Brian Nesbitt publicly unveiled the GMC Denali XT concept today at the 2008 Chicago Auto Show. The Denali is the first U.S. example of the "Ute" car-based pickup that's built on the rear-wheel-drive Zeta platform. In this case, the Denali is a four-door pickup using the same rear-wheel-drive architecture as the Holden Commodore/Pontiac G8. It was even designed down under at GM's Australian design studios. Unlike the RWD sedans with which it shares a platform, the Denali has the first example of a flex-fuel engine combined with GM's two-mode hybrid system. The flex-fuel V8 is 4.9L in displacement and has direct fuel injection to maximize both power and fuel economy. According to GM, it expects the powertrain to produce 325 hp and have a 50% boost in fuel efficiency compared to a conventional V8. So far there is no indication of whether on not GMC will offer a production version of the Denali XT, but the powertrain will almost certainly appear in future GM products.
