2016 GMC Sierra Denali 1500 4WD First Test Review

Customer surveys show that 2016 GMC Sierra customers are among the flushest with funds of all light-duty pickup shoppers, so of course these spendy individuals are willing to splurge on big-ticket goods such as Denali-grade trucks. These cash cows hit the profitability trifecta: They’re full-size trucks, so they earn around $10,000 in profit per vehicle (more as the options pile on); they’re laced in luxury, which earns even more profit; and Sierra is the pricier half of the Chevrolet/GMC 1500-series brotherhood. The bulk of a vehicle’s cost comes from the chassis, powertrain, and emissions compliance, so the Sierra’s price premium means more money earned for the non-Bow Tie brand.

A 2016 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 High Country with a standard wheelbase and a 5.3-liter V-8, in crew cab guise, and packing four-wheel drive starts at $53,535. A mechanically similar Sierra 1500 Denali begins at $54,760. Our test truck, a 2016 GMC Sierra Denali featuring the refreshed front-end styling and new headlights and taillamps for 2016, would have set Mr. and Mrs. McMansion Mortgagers back $60,465. Options include Iridium Metallic paint ($395), an Enhanced Driver Alert package ($550), a sunroof ($995), a trailer-brake controller ($275), and new powered assist steps ($995) that can articulate backward and remind us of the extinct stepside body. There’s the $2,495 6.2-liter V-8 with 420 SAE-certified horsepower and 460 lb-ft of torque, as well. Unsurprisingly, the engine matched to the eight-speed automatic transmission makes for lively acceleration, which we’ll exhibit by using our old 2014 Sierra Denali as a baseline.

ACCELERATION TO MPH	2016 GMC Sierra Denali (6.2L, 8A, 4WD)	2014 GMC Sierra Denali (5.3L, 6A, 4WD)	6.2L advantage
0-30	1.9 sec	2.4 sec	-0.5 sec
0-40	3.0	3.8	-0.8
0-50	4.2	5.5	-1.3
0-60	5.8	7.4	-1.6
0-70	7.5	10	-2.5
0-80	9.5	13.1	-3.6
0-90	12.0	16.5	-4.5
PASSING, 45-65 MPH	3.0	3.8	-0.8
QUARTER MILE	14.2 sec @ 97.1 mph	15.7 sec @ 88.0 mph	-1.5 sec; +9.1 mph

That’s some serious speed. The new Sierra is one of the fastest pickups we’ve tested, carrying major momentum for a 5,733-pound vehicle that can also tow 9,100 pounds. The 6.2-liter L86 engine has some lungs on it, too. Per testing director Kim Reynolds: “At just beyond part throttle, there seems to be an intentional roar to the exhaust that seems a bit contrived. But I guess that’s part of the show you’re paying for.” Damn straight; the step-up, larger-displacement V-8 bellows with authority and has the guts to go with the growl.

In addition to standard acceleration runs, we put two different trailers on the ball hitch. One trailer weighed 7,000 pounds to represent average use for the 1500 class. The other tipped the scales at 9,100 pounds, the claimed maximum. We had just enough of a cushion to not break the 15,000-pound gross combined weight rating with a driver (who was told to hit the can beforehand) and test gear onboard. Pulling a max-weight trailer is a once-in-a-blue-moon sort of occasion, and obviously, this particular Sierra arrangement is not ideal for this activity, because you won’t be bringing family or pets along. Nevertheless, all the numbers are gravy for (solo) heavy towing. The test truck’s payload capacity is 1,467 pounds (excluding the driver), and the rear gross axle weight rating is 3,950 pounds. You’ll probably have to keep the tongue weight near the 10 percent side of the weight-distributing acceptability range for this situation.

Weighing and balancing truck and trailer is a fairly intimate task because drivers have unique needs and priorities, but truck guys and gals really care about more acceleration. The Sierra Denali barely even noticed the 7,000-pound average-weight trailer. It blew through 60 mph in 13.3 seconds and through the quarter mile in 19.5 seconds at 71.8 mph. The truck didn’t even flinch. I could feel the extra weight behind, but it moved along easily. With the 9,100-pound trailer strapped on, the GMC still flew, powering from 0 to 60 mph in 14.9 seconds and completing the quarter mile in 20.3 seconds with a trap speed of 70.2 mph. For context, the luxurious 2015 Ford F-150 Platinum FX4 with the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V-6 took 14.7 seconds to reach 60 mph and dusted off the quarter mile in 20.2 seconds at 69.5 mph while pulling 7,000 pounds. Lest we forget, the stout twin-turbo 3.5-liter always feels up for a drag race. Unladen, the F-150 and Sierra’s Real MPG are within spitting distance of each other, too, with the GMC’s 15.4/21.1/17.5 mpg city/highway/combined edging the Ford’s 14.8/19.9/16.8.

That’s an impressive all-around showing. Much has been written about the roles most new half-ton trucks never serve (only about 30 percent of customers tow once a month or more frequently), and Reynolds contributed another observation. “Around the figure eight, it’s lots of fun,” he said. “Huge size and huge power to crank the tail around when you want. That’s in 2WD. In Auto, it’s tamer, and with stability control off, it’s absurdly slowed down. Exiting the corners, it sort of floats along with greatly diminished power and doesn’t wake up until about a third of the way along the straight.” Whoa, Kim! Most of the well-to-do Sierra-driving population isn’t setting 27.8-second lap times around the figure eight, but the truck does leave a fantastic impression.

The Denali’s standard magnetorheological shock absorbers split our editorial panel, with some thinking the ride is pretty decent (“Impressive bump mitigation with the MRC shocks,” editor-in-chief Ed Loh said. “Need to see what the ride is like head to head between MRC-equipped GMT and a Ram 1500 with air suspension.”) and some thinking it was under-controlled when not hitting moguls and whoops. (“The ride is a lot looser, but I guess it has its place on the sort of unfinished back roads trucks live on,” Reynolds said.)

As remarkable as the performance remains, the same questions still haunt the Sierra. The interior is professionally and adeptly finished yet missing an extra “it” factor. “How does a Denali not have A/C vents in back? Or rear heated seats? Or any real luxury feature?” associate editor Christian Seabaugh said. “I can get heated back seats in a Kia Soul! C’mon, GM.”

Loh praised the high-quality cabin but witnessed nothing he’d put his dollars on. “It has an excellent second row,” Loh said, “and a nearly a flat load floor, but I’m surprised to find no A/C vents, just a 12-volt socket. Value is a problem for GMC and always has been. It’s hard for me to rationalize the extra dough for the badge.”

Competitive benchmarking aside, that rationalization is an important point. “Why do you need this?” associate road test editor Nate Martinez said. “Towers will love it. So will the handful of hooners that like speed or owners that want to have the top grade of everything they buy.”

While we—nay, the world—continue waiting for the Professional Grade brand to bring its very own, standalone, not-shared-with-Chevrolet-in-any-shape-or-form product to fruition, GMC will keep making large piles of cash by vending Sierra 1500s to affluent pickup customers that indeed desire the top grade of everything they buy.

2016 GMC Sierra Denali 1500 4WD
BASE PRICE	$54,760
PRICE AS TESTED	$60,465
VEHICLE LAYOUT	Front-engine, 4WD, 5-pass, 4-door truck
ENGINE	6.2L/420-hp/460-lb-ft OHV 16-valve V-8*
TRANSMISSION	8-speed automatic
CURB WEIGHT (F/R DIST)	5,733 lb (58/42%)
WHEELBASE	143.5 in
LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT	229.3 x 80.0 x 74.0 in
ACCELERATION, 0-60 MPH**	5.8; 13.3; 14.9 sec
QUARTER MILE**	14.2 sec @ 97.1 mph; 19.5 sec @ 71.8 mph; 20.3 sec @ 70.2 mph
BRAKING, 60-0 MPH	129 ft
LATERAL ACCELERATION	0.76 g (avg)
MT FIGURE EIGHT	27.8 sec @ 0.63 g (avg)
EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON	15/21/17 mpg
ENERGY CONS, CITY/HWY	225/160 kW-hrs/100 miles
CO2 EMISSIONS, COMB	1.13 lb/mile
*SAE Certified **Unladen; towing 7,000-lb trailer; towing 9,100-lb trailer

The post 2016 GMC Sierra Denali 1500 4WD First Test Review appeared first on Motor Trend.

from Motor Trend http://ift.tt/1mBBqVP