96 Sierra Crew Cab 3500 Dually on 2040-cars

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2020 GMC Sierra 1500 Interior Driveway Test | Still lagging behind

GM has caught nothing but grief for the interiors of its full-size pickups since they were redesigned. Some of it is about perspective. Ram blew everybody away with the new 1500’s interior, but it's not like the Ford F-150 is embarrassed by it. Chevy and GMC are. Even a top-shelf Sierra Denali doesnÂ’t live up to the luxurious environment its price tag would promise.  The trim of Sierra we're testing is an AT4, though. ThatÂ’s the light off-roading version of the Sierra thatÂ’s mechanically the same as the Silverado Trail Boss we recently reviewed. Looking at the interior from a pure functionality standpoint, the Sierra is perfectly fine at performing its truck duties. The seats are wide, flat and comfortable. It has huge armrests on both sides so you can stretch out as much as your truck stretches the boundaries of the road (seriously, this thing is huge). All the buttons in the center stack are well-labeled, easily found and big enough to stab away at without hitting the wrong one. It even has a volume and tuning knob. Yeehaw!  But look at the design. And the styling, or lack thereof. ItÂ’s plain and lacking in imagination. The whole center stack is just one big slab of black plastic, and the only splashes of color or style to distinguish it visually are bits of silver surrounding knobs and bits of gray surrounding air vents. That's certainly not enough to make it attractive. There are token pieces of "wood" inserted on Denali models, but they're almost hidden away along the center console and doors.  The screen looks as if itÂ’s scrunched into the top of the stack due to the vents curving in on both sides, making it look smaller than its perfectly acceptable 8-inch size. That just makes it more obvious that GM doesn't offer something to challenge the gigantic 12-inch optional screen on the Ram 1500. Not good, because size does matter when it comes to trucks, even if it's measured in a touchscreen's inches rather than engine displacement. LetÂ’s not discount how good all of the tech is in the Sierra 1500, though. GMÂ’s infotainment software that runs on the screen is glitch-free and runs like lightning through screens and menus. The performance is impressive, and of course both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are on board.

2020 GMC Sierra HD pricing announced

Just as with its Chevy twin, pricing for the 2020 GMC Sierra HD has been revealed. Unlike the Chevy, though, prices haven't dropped across the board. The ultimate base prices for the 2500 HD and 3500 HD are technically less than the 2019 models at $37,195 and $38,395 respectively, but that's because those are the reintroduced regular cab models. Matching up the body styles of the last year's cheapest Sierras with their new equivalents, and the prices have crept up a few hundred dollars. But the next highest trim level, SLE, drops in price by nearly $2,000 between equivalent trucks. Equivalent SLT trucks are up nearly $2,000 each, though, and the base Denalis have gone up by about $7,000. This is due in part to the 2020 Sierra Denali no longer being offered with two-wheel drive. Comparing the old and new four-wheel drive models, the price is still up by about $4,000. While the new Sierra HD is only more affordable than the last one in certain circumstances, they all feature more capability. The standard 6.0-liter gas-powered V8 makes an extra 41 horsepower and 84 pound-feet of torque than the old one for a total of 401 horsepower and 464 pound-feet of torque. The 6.6-liter diesel V8 still makes 445 horsepower and 910 pound-feet of torque, but it now gets a 10-speed automatic transmission. Maximum fifth-wheel towing has increased, too. For the 2500, that number jumps from 15,400 pounds to 18,500 in the new model. For the 3500, fifth-wheel towing goes from 23,100 pounds to 35,500 pounds for the new truck. And of course, you can get GMC's fancy MultiPro tailgate on the new Sierra HD. One final note on the Sierra HD's pricing: it has the highest base price of the full-size heavy duty trucks. The Ford F-250 Super Duty is the cheapest at $34,745 and is closely followed by the Ram 2500 at $35,090. The full range of GMC Sierra HD pricing is listed below: Sierra 2500 HD Regular Cab Sierra: $37,195 SLE: $41,595 Double Cab Sierra: $39,795 SLE: $43,595 SLT: $52,195 Crew Cab Sierra: $41,595 SLE: $45,395 SLT: $53,995 AT4: $59,295 Denali: $65,295 Sierra 3500 HD Regular Cab Sierra: $38,395 SLE: $42,795 Double Cab Sierra: $41,195 SLE: $44,995 Crew Cab Sierra: $42,795 SLE: $46,595 SLT: $55,195 AT4: $60,495 Denali: $66,495 Update: The estimation of price difference between 2019 and 2020 Sierra Denalis has been corrected. Additional clarification of Denali price changes has also been added.

The UAW's 'record contract' hinges on pensions, battery plants

DETROIT - After nearly four weeks of disruptive strikes and hard bargaining, the United Auto Workers and the Detroit Three automakers have edged closer to a deal that could offer record-setting wage gains for nearly 150,000 U.S. workers. General Motors, Ford Motor and Chrysler parent Stellantis have all agreed to raise base wages by between 20% and 23% over a four-year deal, according to union and company statements. Ford and Stellantis have agreed to reinstate cost-of-living adjustments, or COLA. The companies have offered to boost pay for temporary workers and give them a faster path to full-time, full-wage status. All three have proposed slashing the time it takes a new hire to get to the top UAW pay rate. The progress in contract talks follows the first-ever simultaneous strike by the UAW against Detroit's Big Three automakers. The union began the strike on Sept. 15 in hopes of forcing a better deal from each major automaker. But coming close to a deal is not the same thing as reaching a deal. Big obstacles remain on at least two major UAW demands: restoring the retirement security provided by pre-2007 defined benefit pension plans, and covering present and future joint- venture electric vehicle battery plants under the union's master contracts with the automakers. On retirement, none of the automakers has agreed to restore pre-2007 defined-benefit pension plans for workers hired after 2007. Doing so could force the automakers to again burden their balance sheets with multibillion-dollar liabilities. GM and the former Chrysler unloaded most of those liabilities in their 2009 bankruptcies. The union and automakers have explored an approach to providing more income security by offering annuities as an investment option in their company-sponsored 401(k) savings plans, people familiar with the discussions said. Stellantis referred to an annuity option as part of a more generous 401(k) proposal on Sept. 22. Annuities or similar instruments could give UAW retirees assurance of fixed, predictable payouts less dependent on stock market ups and downs, experts said. Recent changes in federal law have removed obstacles to including annuities as a feature of corporate 401(k) plans, said Olivia Mitchell, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania Wharton School and an expert on pensions and retirement. "Retirees want a way to be assured they won't run out of money," Mitchell said.