GMC Canyon: a street truck not afraid of a little work

• By STEVE WHEELER
• Advocate WHEELS editor
• Published: May 15, 2009

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There’s no rule that a truck has to be big and tough and mean. If you can look cool while getting the job done, what’s wrong with that?

Enter the 2009 GMC Canyon, a street truck that can work hard on the job and clean up nicely. I have two sons-in-law, and both of them stopped dead in their tracks when they first saw the navy blue test Canyon in the driveway.

“That thing has a V-8?” Jonathon asked? “Yeah, it does. Look at the letters on the side,” Josh answered, as the two 22-year-olds popped the hood on the long, low-riding truck.

Equipped with the optional 5.3-liter V-8 that cranks out 300 horsepower, the Canyon has plenty of muscle. The test Canyon also had the ZQ8 sport suspension that stiffens the suspension, lowers the truck to a ground clearance of 6.6 inches and shods it with 18-inch aluminum wheels and all-season tires.

The crew cab model has a payload of 1,250 lbs. and a towing capacity of 6,000 lbs. with the V-8 engine, which means the little truck can be counted on to get a lot of jobs done. Chevy has also improved the brakes and added a standard stability control system.

The bed of the test truck was easily wide enough to accommodate my small Honda 4-Trax ATV. Because the test truck was a crew cab model, however, the bed wasn’t quite long enough to allow the tailgate to close behind the 4-wheeler. But the tailgate has adjustable supports that can hold it up high to keep the bike in place even though it’s not latched. Tie-downs are still required, but the raised tailgate keeps other objects from sliding out the back.

I was impressed with how much cargo could be carried in the little truck. The cargo floor length is 61.1 inches on the crew cab, and 72.8 inches in the regular and extended cab models. The cargo bed depth is 18.6 inches, which makes it easier to reach over the walls to adjust things.

Styling is unmistakably GMC, with angled headlights, a dark grille and the prominent GMC logo. 

The Canyon’s ride is like a small truck, which is to say that the rear end is a bit light when the truck is unloaded.

On the inside, the Canyon is up several notches from your regular truck. The optional heated leather seats are outstanding, and XM Satellite Radio is standard on all models. And for a small truck, there’s lots of legroom inside the cabin, even in the back seat.

Safety tests give the Canyon five stars in frontal crash tests for driver and passenger. Side impact tests have not yet been done.

The big V-8 with a 4-speed automatic transmission limits the Canyon’s mileage to 15 miles per gallon in the city and 21 mpg on the highway.

The standard vehicle price of the 2009 Canyon crew cab is $23,420. The SLE-3 trim package adds the V-8, the 18-inch wheels and bucket seats.