Vans was fairly simple. To procure a GMC as a result of it was nicer than the others. Powertrain alternative was about what your plans have been with the truck. Now it’s … Nicely, nonetheless simple. It simply appears to be like sophisticated.
At a look
- 4 propulsion choices for 4 units of wants
- For precise truck use, the diesel might be nonetheless tops
- Turbo-four in a full-sized truck? What?
- For commuting, the EV is the very best proposition
In the present day, GMC has determined that the Sierra must be all issues to all individuals. I drove the fuel, diesel, and electrical fashions to see what’s happening right here. What this implies is you should buy the gasoline one since you need it easy, otherwise you like V8 noises and make the occasional weekend lumber retailer runs. Otherwise you get the diesel since you tow issues massive and small. Then there’s the electrical one, which you purchase in the event you’re going to commute.
The bizarre half is that GMC hasn’t constructed 4 completely completely different personalities right here. As an alternative, it’s constructed 4 variations of the identical concept: a premium truck for individuals who need functionality wrapped in leather-based, big screens, and sufficient chrome to make Harley riders envious.
With the entire GMC Sierra fashions, steering is predictable, journey high quality has improved considerably over earlier generations, and GMC continues to separate itself from Chevrolet by leaning tougher into upscale refinement. The Denali trims, particularly, have crossed firmly into “luxurious car that unintentionally owns a toolbox” territory.
The inside high quality is genuinely spectacular now. Mushy-touch supplies are in all places, the tech is generally intuitive, and the accessible Tremendous Cruise hands-free driving system stays one of many few driver help methods that doesn’t make you wish to drive instantly right into a lake out of frustration.
GMC
The V8 gasoline Sierra stays essentially the most acquainted of the bunch.
Beneath the hood, GMC continues providing the tried-and-true 5.3-liter V8 and the wonderful 6.2-liter V8, relying on trim. The 6.2, particularly, stays top-of-the-line truck engines available on the market. Not as a result of it’s environment friendly or technologically groundbreaking, however as a result of it behaves precisely how a full-size truck engine ought to. It rumbles and it shoves. That engine nonetheless provides the Sierra a simple persona. The truck strikes with confidence, towing is straightforward, and freeway passing feels approach too simple. The ten-speed automated transmission for both V8 engine goes a good distance in making this sense come to fruition.
Gasoline financial system? Nicely, no person buys a 6.2-liter V8 as a result of they’re making an attempt to avoid wasting polar bears. Actual-world numbers hover within the “acceptable for a giant truck” class. Center teenagers at finest.
Then there’s the diesel. Ah sure, the three.0-liter Duramax inline-six. The engine for individuals who use the phrase “torque curve” recreationally. That is arguably the candy spot within the Sierra lineup. The child Duramax continues to be absurdly good at truck issues. It delivers glorious towing manners, calm freeway cruising, and gas financial system numbers that really feel borderline unlawful for one thing this massive. I routinely noticed mileage within the excessive 20s and even round 30 mpg (7.8 l/100 km) on freeway drives. That’s bananas for a full-size pickup. Once more, thank that 10-speed automated for all its work right here. It’s additionally why the diesel-powered Sierra 1500 drives like an everyday car as an alternative of a slow-on-the-uptake hauler.
Aaron Turpen / New Atlas
The diesel Sierra feels relaxed on a regular basis. The low-end torque supply makes the truck really feel smoother and fewer frantic than the fuel V8s. You don’t have to hammer the throttle to get shifting. The truck simply leans into the work and will get on with life like a ranch foreman who drinks espresso black and silently judges your hitch setup.
For long-distance drivers, the diesel stays king. Highway journeys are simple, towing vary is improbable, and there’s nonetheless one thing deeply satisfying about overlaying 700-plus miles on a single tank. Basic rock tracks not required.
The draw back, in fact, is diesel possession itself. Gasoline costs fluctuate wildly, emissions gear can change into annoying over time, and upkeep prices are likely to creep upward as mileage piles on. Trendy diesels are good after they’re completely happy and dramatically costly after they’re not. Nonetheless, if I have been shopping for a Sierra tomorrow with my very own cash and meant to truly use it like a truck, the diesel would most likely be the one parked in my driveway.
Aaron Turpen / New Atlas
In some way, proper subsequent to that diesel on the gross sales lot is a Sierra powered by a turbocharged inline four-cylinder gasoline engine. Sure. A full-sized truck with a 4 banger beneath the hood. For many who don’t want spectacular exhaust notes, five-digit towing figures, or bragging rights, the TurboMax affords a reasonably respectable day by day drive by way of its eight-speed automated. However in the event you assume this one will prevent fuel cash over its V8 brethren … Nicely, don’t get too excited. Day by day MPG returns will nonetheless be beneath 20 (11.8 l/100 km).
That’s the place the GMC Sierra EV is available in. It’s electrical so it is hilariously fast for one thing roughly the dimensions and weight of a small bus. Relying on trim, energy climbs from 765 lb-ft of torque as much as 785 (1,037 to 1,064 Nm). With a 0-60 mph (97 km/h) dash time that rivals a Corvette.
Aaron Turpen / New Atlas
The Sierra EV launches with the type of violence that makes passengers say phrases normally censored on community tv. But one way or the other it stays composed. The battery placement provides the truck a low middle of gravity, and GMC has carried out an admirable job hiding the sheer mass concerned. Roughly. Physics nonetheless exists. However in day by day driving, it feels easy, planted, and un-truck-like in refinement.
The silence is what actually adjustments the expertise. Conventional vans all the time really feel like machines. The Sierra EV feels extra like a spaceship, however the form from sci-fi that’s purposeful and never only for appears to be like. Much less Star Trek and extra Firefly.
GMC has aggressively expanded the Sierra EV trim lineup for 2026, including Elevation and AT4 choices whereas pushing most vary estimates as excessive as 478 miles (769 km), relying on battery configuration. Even the extra inexpensive trims can exceed 280 miles (451 km), whereas mid-level variations crack the 400-mile barrier. That’s assuming no towing or hauling is occurring. Add these in and people vary estimates drop fairly considerably. That is why the Sierra EV is extra commuter than hauler.
That’s the place the diesel nonetheless wins.
Aaron Turpen / New Atlas
However the EV counters with tips gasoline and diesel vans simply can’t match. Issues like four-wheel steering, CrabWalk, huge entrance trunk storage, exportable energy for instruments or campsites, and instantaneous torque supply with ridiculous acceleration. To not point out quiet operation. It feels futuristic in a approach most EVs don’t as a result of the capabilities can really improve among the truck’s usefulness quite than merely changing gasoline with batteries. That fold-down rear wall so as to add cargo house, for instance, is genius.
The largest situation with the Sierra EV isn’t the truck itself. It’s the worth. Properly outfitted variations wander dangerously shut to 6 figures. That’s sufficient cash to make even luxurious truck patrons pause and stare thoughtfully into the center distance.
However, this provides everybody contemplating a full-sized truck one thing to have a look at. Gasoline, diesel, or electrical, there’s a GMC on the lot to contemplate. That’s changing into the norm on pickup truck gross sales tons, irrespective of the make. And that’s an excellent factor. I’m all for having decisions.
Product web page: 2026 GMC Sierra 1500
