Chevy Tornado, Import it!

Yesterday I picked on Ford for not bring over cars from other counties, so today I’m going to pick on the General. Now I do have to admit, GM does seem to have everything in place better then Ford. Have you seen the Saturn line-up (which some are great looking Opels)? What about the new Pontiacs (which some are great looking Holdens)? The new Malibu seems like a striking car! So what’s to complain about? Well I’m going outside my realm a little and talk trucks. Small trucks to be exact. The cute little Chevy Tornado, to be precise. I’ll be the first to admit, I don’t keep up with the truck or SUV market that much. But hang with me a moment, I think you might enjoy this.

With gas prices as high as they are, it just bugs the hell out of me all the people I see driving by themselves in a gas hog pick-up truck. I know there are some tradesmen that need a truck to haul house paint, ladders, etc. But even some of these guys could use this little truck for what they do every day. So what is the Chevy Tornado? It’s a small truck built for Mexico and other Latin American counties (called Montana), plus it’s also being sold as an Opel Corsa Utility in South Africa. And that’s because it is based off the Opel/Chevy Corsa sub-compact car. I know this isn’t going to be a hotrod, most of the engines that it currently comes with are rated at typical sub-compact 100 hp and 110 torque. However, I think with a stronger Diesel engine, still producing close to 100 hp, but maybe 160 ft-lbs of torque, America could use it. Plus I’m betting it could get 30 mpg or most likely better with the Diesel! The current 100 hp petrol engine will get 30 mpg.

I know it’s not a big-red-neck-pick-up-the-cow-girls type of truck, and it’s actually practical. I’m not trying to get the cowboys and people that need a truck out of there truck, I’m just trying to find an alternative to the people that “think” they need a pick-up truck to drive back and forth to work. But as the gas prices rise, it’s time that America gets smart and start buying cars and trucks that are more practical then stroking there ego.