Off-Road Game GMC gives the off-road AT4 treatment to the 2021 Canyon mid-size pickup Story and photos by Stephen Elmer, additional photos courtesy of GM Canada
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M refreshed its midsize pickup trucks for 2021 with brand new styling, giving both the Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon a new face to keep them looking fresh on dealer lots. And while the off-road focused Colorado ZR2 lives on with its equipment unchanged, GMC has upped the Canyon’s off-road game with the new AT4 model. Checking the AT4 box on the Canyon means that the truck arrives with a set of 31-inch Goodyear Wrangler Duratrac tires, standard
four-wheel drive with a two-speed transfer case, an automatic locking rear differential (the famous Eaton G80), off-road tuned suspension, leather seats with Kalahari accents and embroidered AT4 logos, LED fog lamps and a standard V6 engine. That is a 3.6-litre unit making 308 horsepower and 275 lb-ft of torque, sent through an eight-speed automatic transmission. For those that want more torque, a 2.8-litre Duramax diesel is available, packing 369 lb-ft. This package does not go as far as the Colorado ZR2 with its Multimatic suspension system, front and rear lockers and body protection, but it does upgrade the truck in all the right areas to make it a step above stock. However, our test truck arrived with a single piece of equipment that suggests it’s not a real off-roader: a front plastic air dam. In all the promotional photos of the AT4, the air dam is removed, and yet our tester arrived with a big piece of plastic hanging off its chin, meant to improve fuel economy at highway speeds, but impeding any sort of off-road ability. Looking at photos online of AT4 models sitting on dealer lots, it looks like GMC doesn’t do the removal for you, so take our advice and take the front spoiler off before you go off-road. Otherwise, a rock is going to take it off for you. We put the AT4 to work with a trailer, payload and an off-road test, and as an overall package, this truck delivers. With a 5,000-lb trailer hooked behind it, the 3.6-litre V6 pulls strongly, though it does seem to have a power dip in the mid-range before the real horsepower is delivered high in the rev range. Luckily it revs willingly, and dynamically stays solid with weight behind it. Unlike the ZR2, the AT4 keeps its tow rating at up to 7,000 pounds with the gas engine and 7,600 with the diesel, so you don’t
16 OFF-ROAD Plus MAGAZINE OCT/NOV 2020
