Diesel Engine Discontinued in Terrain and Equinox

After only two years on the market, GM has made the decision to discontinue the 1.6 liter 4-cylinder diesel engine from the GMC Terrain and Chevrolet Equinox for the 2020 model year. This engine, also offered in the Cruze, made 137 horsepower and 240 horsepower and was rated by the EPA at 28 MPG in the city and 39 MPG on the highway with a combined estimate of 32 MPG. Multiple reviewers managed to exceed these efficiency estimates in their own tests.

GM’s reasoning behind this engine’s discontinuation is that the diesel had a low take rate. There may also be a connection between this news and GM’s electrification plans as the company appears to be going all-in on electrified powertrains to increase efficiency, making diesel engines look decidedly low-tech by comparison.

Taking this news and GM’s plans for electrification into consideration, will we see hybrid versions of the Equinox and Terrain soon? This seems likely, especially given the Toyota RAV-4 Hybrid’s recent surge popularity. One thing is certain: competition is heating up, so if GM wants to jump on the hybrid SUV bandwagon, they need do it sooner rather than later.

Ryan had an obsession with cars from a young age, reading NADA books and MotorTrend magazine as well as sketching cars in grade school. He has since moved on to creating renderings in Photoshop and writing about auto news. Ryan lives in Oklahoma.