Drive Time: GMC makes run to rivals' fun

Comfortably seated in a 2018 GMC Canyon Denali Crew Cab pickup, I drove out of Greeley onto U.S. 85 on Thursday morning, heading to a Dodge luncheon event I'd been invited to at Simms Steakhouse in Lakewood.

Finished in beautiful red quartz tintcoat, the four-wheel-drive Canyon will look just fine parked among all the Mopar machines, I thought.

As I neared Fort Lupton about 11 a.m., the outside temp was already at 94 and climbing. I had the air conditioning blowing inside the GMC cabin, but with the hot sun beaming through the windshield and side glass of the four doors, it was hot, and sweaty. Glancing down to check the fan speed, I noticed the little blue dot of the cooled-seat feature, pushed it and within a couple of miles began to feel the cold air through the seats. No wonder this pickup has a sticker price of $46,000 (just kidding).

Purpose of the event at the steakhouse was the unveiling of several special race vehicles for Dodge, which for the first time is title sponsor for the three-day Dodge Mile-High NHRA Nationals, which continue through Sunday at Bandimere Speedway near Morrison.

Revealed during the noon luncheon were the Dodge Challenger R/T ScatPack 1320, named for the quarter-mile distance in feet, and the Mopar Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Funny Car body, which will attract lots of looks at Bandimere.

NHRA qualifying was set for Friday and Saturday, with elimination rounds Sunday. Dodge Charger NHRA Funny Car driver Matt Hagan and Mopar Dodge Top Fuel pilot Leah Pritchett will square off between qualifying rounds Friday and Saturday.

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The speedway, nationally recognized today, was opened in 1958 by John Bandimere Sr. His grandson, John III, was one of those in attendance at today's big promotion.

The drive home in the GMC was a pleasant one, not only for its coolness on a 98-degree day, but, as I've said before the GMC and Chevy compact pickup suspensions are excellent, soaking up most bumps and lending good grip in bad-weather situations. The Canyon uses a coil-over-shock front suspension and a solid rear axle with multileaf springs and twin-tube shocks.

The Canyon review model was equipped with the optional 308-horsepower, 3.6-liter V-6 engine, enhanced with a smooth-shifting 8-speed automatic transmission. An oversized shifter handle, larger than necessary, sits in the middle of the center console. Base engine is a 200-hp, 2.5-liter, 4-cylinder.

The similar GMC Canyon and Chevy Colorado pickups compete with the Toyota Tacoma, Nissan Frontier and Honda Ridgeline. Sales through the end of June were 116,266 for the Tacoma, 69,875 for the Colorado, 41,701 for Frontier, 16,848 for Canyon and 14,988 for Ridgeline.

Side steps make easy access into the Canyon cabin; a step carved into each end of the rear bumper adds to use of the pickup bed.

The easy drive to Denver and back averaged 22.5 miles per gallon of fuel use; EPA estimate is17/24.

Built in Wentzville, Mo., the Canyon was delivered with a sticker price of $46,480.

Among its long list of amenities are navigation and Bose premium audio, leather seats and leather-wrapped steering wheel, sliding rear window, easy-lift tailgate, bedliner, cruise control, power heated mirrors, remote vehicle start, rearview camera, forward-collision alert and lane-departure warning.

— Bud Wells, a native of Wray, is a former Page 1 editor of the Denver Post and has reviewed automobiles for the past 40 years. He can be contacted at budwellscars@comcast.net.

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