2020 GMC Sierra 1500 first drive review: Diesel power and upgraded tech

It’s time to be a diesel pickup fan. There are extra diesel-powered full-size truck choices than ever earlier than, the most recent of which is the 2020 GMC Sierra 1500. This highly effective, environment friendly engine is only one of a bunch of updates GMC is giving its bread-and-butter pickup truck this 12 months.Let’s begin with the diesel engine. It’s the identical 3.0-liter inline-six you will discover within the 2020 Chevrolet Silverado, placing out 277 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque. With this engine underneath the hood, the GMC Sierra can tow a most of 9,100 kilos or haul 1,830 kilos of payload. Curiously, these specs are decrease than a Chevy Silverado with the identical engine. What’s extra, the diesel-powered variations of the Ford F-150 and Ram 1500 can each out-tow the GM twins, capable of pull 11,400 and 12,560 kilos, respectively.Have diesel, will tow.
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Keep it lightWhen requested why the tow score is so low, GMC says its analysis exhibits that when prospects wish to tow greater than 10,000 kilos, they typically transfer as much as a heavy-duty truck, so the corporate centered on gasoline financial system as a substitute. GMC says the Sierra diesel will get 30 miles per gallon on the freeway, matching the Ford F-150 Power Stroke’s EPA numbers. Ram hasn’t launched gasoline financial system numbers for the 1500 EcoDiesel but, however we’re anticipating figures across the 30 mpg mark for this truck, as properly.Towing an 8,000 pound, 24-foot trailer up and down a 6% grade at an elevation of 6,000 ft — not a simple job — the diesel performs like a champ. Acceleration is greater than ample, each when pulling out into site visitors from a standstill and whereas climbing the comparatively steep hill. The Sierra’s 10-speed automated transmission does its factor within the background and steps down rapidly when a downshift is required. The built-in exhaust brake makes stopping simple, too, saving brake pressure on the steep downhill part of my drive.Like its heavy-duty counterpart, the Sierra 1500 will get six cameras — eight in case you go for the accent cameras — giving drivers no fewer than 15 views across the truck and trailer. The blind-spot monitoring system would not cowl the size of the trailer, however while you’ve acquired all these views, who actually wants it? The finest little bit of tech is GM’s super-cool clear trailer function, which stitches collectively the view from the rear accent digicam with the tailgate-mounted digicam. It’s nice to have the ability to see what’s behind me and makes towing a lot much less of a chore.As on the Sierra HD, the light-duty 1500 options trailering apps each within the automobile and in your telephone. Test the lights, verify trailer tire pressures and temperatures, and get a predeparture guidelines, multi functional place.All different trailer tech can go house. GMC wins with the clear trailer view.
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GMC provides the diesel engine in a couple of Sierra 1500 trims, one in every of which is the off-road-focused AT4. This mannequin will get a 2-inch suspension raise over the usual Sierra, in addition to a couple of goodies like skid plates and specifically tuned Rancho shocks. Low-end torque, an digital rear differential locker and meaty Goodyear Wrangler tires assist it scamper up a tower of rocks pretty simply, and the truck exhibits it has a modicum of flex within the chassis. However, the tires aren’t fairly aggressive sufficient when the grime will get moist. If mud is your factor, you must positively improve.Then there’s the wonderful carbon-fiber mattress. Dubbed CarbonPro, it is a part of the mattress itself, not a mattress liner. Not solely does this save 60 kilos, however GMC let me whack it with a baseball bat as a lot as I needed to check its power; I finally bent the bat. The CarbonPro mattress has two additional tie-downs within the entrance in addition to wheel chocks carved in in your bike or motorbike. Three tie-downs in every nook spherical out the performance of this super-functional mattress.Tech upgradesMy greatest drawback with the 2019 Sierra
was the shortage of adaptive cruise management, so fortunately, it has been added for 2020. There are a couple of tech bonuses that you will discover nowhere however the Sierra, nonetheless. I like the rear digicam mirror that exhibits a large angle of what is behind me from the tailgate. And a brand new multicolor head-up show exhibits navigation instructions and the like whereas the 8-inch infotainment display focuses on trailer views.Of course, let’s not neglect the superior, six-way MultiPro tailgate. It works like a conventional tailgate, a step, a workspace, a load cease and it even has a drop-down part so I can load up the mattress simpler. Heck, it is even acquired a Kicker audio system. No different tailgate within the pickup truck class is that this purposeful.Another 2020 mannequin 12 months replace is the enlargement of the Elevation trim to the Crew Cab physique fashion. Previously solely accessible as a Double Cab, that is the trim to get if you wish to go away all of the horrible GMC chrome behind. Featuring a black grille, mirrors and 20-inch wheels, it simply seems extra aggressive than different trims, and is unquestionably the model of the Sierra I’d most eagerly drive house.
The solely bummer concerning the Sierra is its inside. It’s completely serviceable, however that is about it. The Ram 1500 is rather more luxurious, with an even bigger serving to of obtainable infotainment know-how. Heck, even the Ford F-150, the bastion of primary, has a nicer inside. Even the Sierra Denali — which isn’t a cheap truck — feels ho-hum and outdated inside.The closing sayThe base 2020 GMC Sierra begins at $29,600, plus $1,595 for vacation spot. Most people will improve to at the very least a midlevel SLE, which begins at $37,800. The off-road AT4 is available in at $51,000 and the fancy-pants Denali is available in at $54,700.The 2019 GMC Sierra was a superbly good truck that lacked some tech and inside refinement. The 2020 mannequin provides environment friendly diesel energy and ups the tech recreation, however the cabin nonetheless leaves loads to be desired. Still, with its distinctive tailgate choice and myriad fashions to select from, the 2020 Sierra is healthier poised to compete for full-size pickup buyers’ cash.Editors’ word: Travel prices associated to this function have been lined by the producer. This is frequent within the auto trade, as it’s miles extra economical to ship journalists to automobiles than to ship automobiles to journalists. While Roadshow accepts multiday automobile loans from producers with the intention to present scored editorial critiques, all scored automobile critiques are accomplished on our turf and on our phrases.The judgments and opinions of Roadshow’s editorial crew are our personal and we don’t settle for paid editorial content material.