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GMC considers adding more vehicles to broaden product line

GMC is considering expanding its product portfolio in the next 10 years to allow it to reach more potential buyers and grow sales, a top executive said Monday. The small and midsize sport-utility-vehicle segments are two possibilities, said Duncan Aldred, GMC sales and marketing vice president. He also said GMC won't make a car, preferring to reinforce its reputation as a maker of trucks and SUVs. "There's plenty of opportunities even if we define ourselves as a we do as a truck and crossover brand," he said. He wouldn't comment on the possibility of adding a Jeep Wrangler-fighter, though rumors have swirled for months that GMC is considering a product to compete with the iconic off-roader. "I can't confirm that ... everything's on the table," he said. He also said that it's possible GMC could get a unique set of underpinnings – all of its vehicles share platforms that are also used by Chevrolet – but it's not needed to differentiate his brand. "I'm very happy sharing underpinnings and everything else," he said. "All of the good-performing automakers do that." Speaking to journalists at a roundtable at General Motors headquarters in Detroit, Aldred said GMC received an investment from GM that is double what the brand has historically spent to fund its growth plans. Advertising spending alone will increase 50 percent this year compared with 2014. The brand rolled out a new ad campaign on Monday, called "Precision," that will underscore attention-to-detail and the premium features of GMC vehicles. Two of the commercials have a sporting theme, and the third focuses on modern menswear. GMC called it a "contemporary interpretation" of the brand's traditional positioning, and it will also continue to use its long-running "Professional Grade" tagline. The premium positioning of the ads come as buyers are increasingly outfitting their trucks as near-luxury vehicles. The percentage of buyers opting for the top-end Denali trim has increased from 17 percent in the middle of 2014 to 21 percent now. The goal is to get Denali to make up 25 percent of GMC sales by the end of 2017, Aldred said. Spurred by the higher Denali take-rate, the brand's transaction prices leapt by $3,000 last year. "It's [Denali] really kind of this jewel in the crown," Aldred said. GMC sales increased 11.3 percent in 2014 to 501,853 units, making it GM's-second-best-selling brand behind Chevrolet.

GMC Hummer EV range is 329 miles; deliveries in December

It'll be a very Hummer Christmas for some households, as General Motors says it will begin deliveries of the electric GMC Hummer pickup in December, according to GMC boss Duncan Aldred. And we now know the truck's EPA range number: 329 miles on a charge. GM had previously predicted the Hummer would achieve a range of 350 miles.  That 329-mile figure applies to the Hummer Edition 1, the top-of-the-line, $100,000-plus iteration that will be the first trucks off the line. The Edition 1 will also tow up to 7,500 pounds and carry up to 1,300 pounds. Aldred told reporters on a conference call that subsequent, less-pricey models will achieve longer ranges and will be along in 2023. GMC HUMMER EV View 7 Photos More than 80% of Hummer reservations are for the Edition 1, though. Aldred said almost half of the 125,000 people who have expressed interest in the Hummer have put down $100 to reserve one. GM has said the first year of Hummer production is sold out. The Hummer EV joins the Rivian R1T as the first electric pickups to market. Ford's F-150 Lightning rolls out in 2022, and other electrics from Detroit and startups are expected to roll out after that. Tesla is building a $1 billion facility in Austin, Texas, that will, among other things, build the Cybertruck, though timelines on that have come and gone. The Hummer, by contrast, was developed in just 18 months. It made a big splash last week when President Biden took the wheel during a tour of GM's Factory Zero assembly plant in Hamtramck, Mich. Biden gleefully demonstrated the acceleration of the four-ton, 1,000-horsepower truck, which is said to do 0-to-60 in 3.1 seconds. He then declared, "This sucker's something else." Next up for GM's EV push will be the Cadillac Lyriq SUV in 2022. The electric Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups will be revealed Jan. 5. And the SUV version of the Hummer will be introduced in 2023. Aldred expects the SUV to ultimately make up the majority of Hummer sales. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

GMC's Denali offerings are going great guns

The Denali trim that GMC uses to denote its top-of-the-line vehicles was introduced back in 1999, partly as a way to challenge the recently introduced Lincoln Navigator. Fifteen years later, and with GMC the tenth-largest US automotive brand by itself Denali has become a sub-brand that keeps the cash registers ringing at the Renaissance Center HQ. While GMC increased sales by 9 percent in 2013, TheDetroitBureau.com reports that that Denali sales rose by 20 percent.
There are currently five Denali models in the GMC line, with the Denali trim available on all but its commercial vans. In 2010, when the now-discontinued Yukon XL Hybrid was also on sale, GMC sold 32,886 units of its top trim. Last year, that number had increased to 75,558, with almost no help from traditional marketing spends. Go to YouTube and search for "GMC Denali commercials" - the few actual commercial results are from years ago. GMC marketing director Roger McCormack tells TheDetroitBureau.com, "It's largely all been organic."
As sales have grown, so has the tide of money GMC rakes in from the additional luxury features on Denali models. The 2015 Chevrolet Tahoe starts at $44,600, yet its 2014 Yukon Denali doppelganger starts at $58,320, pricing that includes additional features like the larger 6.2-liter V8, nicer interior, head-up display and magnetic ride control suspension. The Yukon XL Denali starts at $60,965, but the article says the "average customer" likely to spend "up and above $70,000" to take one home. How does that happen? On a top-trim Tahoe LTZ, the top-tier wheel option is a set of 20-inch chrome wheels for $400; on the 'base' Yukon Denali you can swap for a set of 22-inch chrome alloys for $2,995. Add it up, and an analyst at AutoTrends Consulting said that kind of margin "epitomizes the concept of obscene profitability." We say when it comes to Denali, GMC appears to stand for "Grabbing More Cash."