Moab weekenders or summertime trail-hunters who aren’t into wrenching Amazon-sourced parts onto their rigs can now go the slightly easier route and get much of what they need, right off the showroom floor.

In the GMC family, the range of upgrades start simply – such as the capable AT4 version of the new Terrain compact SUV – and then get quite complex, such as the pile of gear found on the full-blown AT4X AEV rendition of the mid-sized Canyon pickup, which packs a new snorkel and super-gigantic all-terrain tires.

The 2026 Terrain, in a simpler form, is GMC’s least-expensive vehicle, starting at just over $30,000, with the obligatory, lite-off-road-oriented AT4 trim and all-wheel-drive pushing this test model to $43,650, including options such as a panoramic sunroof.

The new Terrain’s 2025-era facelift was designed to make it look a little more like the brand’s trucks and even further differentiate it from the similar but less-luxurious Chevrolet Equinox. A strong, squared-off grille and a blocky shape have further modernized the looks, and in the AT4 rendition, you get more capable all-terrain tires and 17-inch wheels, light underbody protection and a small boost in ride height, giving it 8.1 inches of clearance.  

Beyond its chunkier looks and glossier interior, Terrain gains advantages including an eight-speed automatic transmission, versus the six-speed in the Chevy. Neither are intensely purpose-built off-roading machines, but Terrain certainly makes the most out of its somewhat basic bones — a 1.5-liter turbo that produces just 175 horsepower and can handle only 1,500 pounds of towing duty. That allows an acceptable 25 mpg, as well.

Meanwhile, the tricked-out Canyon, with a full complement of aftermarket-styled parts from American Expedition Vehicles, returns for 2026 as a marvelously overachieving machine that’s only problematic in two areas: You’d swear you’d get a full-sized pickup for its bigger-than-ever $72,655 price, and you still can’t see a gosh-darned thing behind you as you drive, thanks to a gigantic 35-inch spare mounted in the bed. (Somewhere, maybe, a super-base Sierra 1500 pickup is out there for $38,300.)

The AT4X AEV’s visibility issue was again so pronounced I contemplated unbolting the spare and leaving it in my living room for the week while I did some light-to-medium-intensity cavorting. But I did not, and just sorta guessed when people were behind me on the road. It’s either an absolutely terrible all-the-time effect, or maybe the perfect solution for modern tailgaters, who almost always seem to be driving 4Runners.

Even more than I discovered during my last drive of the AT4X AEV, it’s a sharp-looking and remarkably well-rounded truck, capable of both near-impossible climbing and rock crawling, but strangely comfortable and even curve-capable on hard pavement.

Those 35s and the glossy, 17-inch Salta wheels plus 3 inches of extra lift do help the Canyon border on being impossible to climb aboard – no grab-handle on the driver’s side, so get ready for the weirdest yoga moves possible to get up and over the pronounced and probably-always-muddy/dirty rock rails.

Once inside, it’s a curiously plush experience with NASCAR-colored seating, a glossy interior and twin 11-inch instrument and touchscreen displays, but extremely limited rear seat space. 

The second time around, I had a better handle on accessing the Canyon’s various off-road performance modes and display settings and dialing up the under-body cameras. Throw it in low and turn on the front and rear lockers, and it was probably one of the most capable crawling, articulating and rock-hopping trucks I’ve driven.

The $10,000 AEV edition parts list includes four high-strength skid plates and real metal bumpers, with the forward-facing snorkel a $1,325 option. Most importantly, there’s a full Multimatic damper system with jounce control for — less jounce, mostly. The petite truck’s 131-inch wheelbase still means less stability if you’re going Baja mode on washboard gravel, but the damper-equipped tradeoff is on-pavement handling that’s very smooth, and off-road rut and bump-bashing that’s quite remarkable.

Again, the powertrain has not been touched, meaning a 16-mpg 2.7-liter Turbomax rated at 310-hp and 430 lb-ft of torque. All the aforementioned gear pushes this Canyon to nearly 5,000 pounds and it would be delightful to have some extra juice; like my experience in one of the new turbocharged Tacomas, the Canyon’s turbo gave up the ghost at the top of Idaho Springs’ long and steep Two Brothers Road, but recovered on flatter terrain.