1995 Gmc Sierra 3500 6.5l Turbo Diesel Dually 4x2 on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2015 GMC Yukon Denali

Automotive enthusiasts often wonder aloud - ourselves included - why General Motors would choose to keep GMC while sending Pontiac (and Saturn, and even Oldsmobile before it) into the great automotive graveyard in the sky. The answer, as is so often the case, is profit. It's much easier for GM to rake in money hand over fist by rejiggering the trucks, crossovers and SUVs that it would already be developing for Chevrolet and making them a bit more luxurious and *ahem* "Professional Grade" with new grilles, badges and unique packaging for GMC.
While it may sound like we're being cynical, we totally approve of GM's fullsize SUV strategy. The least-expensive way to get into the fold is with the Chevrolet Tahoe, which starts at $45,595 with a 5.3-liter V8 engine and a cloth interior. Bumping that same Chevy to LTZ trim and its $59,995 sticker price lands a much nicer leather-clad interior and more techno-bells and whistles than you can shake a stick at. But it still looks like a Tahoe, and it still comes with the smaller 5.3-liter engine. Or, you could do what we'd do: Walk into your GMC dealer and take a look at the Yukon Denali. Here's why.
Driving Notes

2023 GMC Sierra HD MSRP up at least $1,000

Once Chevrolet bumped up the 2023 Silverado and Silverado HD MSRPs by $1,000, there was no reason to think luxury cousin GMC wouldn't do the same. The proof is here, pricing for the 2023 GMC Sierra HD up on its configurator with premiums of at least $1,000 over 2022 models. As we mentioned of the Silverado, the Sierras have also tracked with the price increases we mentioned in reference to the Chevrolets; the 2022 Sierra 1500 has run up $4,700 over its cost last October, the 2022 Sierra HD is $4,100 more than it was when it hit lots last summer. That puts a 2023 Sierra HD 2500 Regular Cab long bed with two-wheel drive and the 6.6-liter V8 gas engine at a starting price of $42,995 after the $1,795 destination charge, $1,000 beyond the 2022 pickup. At the top, a Crew Cab long bed Denali with four-wheel drive and the 6.6-liter Duramax V8 starts at $83,845, which is $1,250 more than the same rig from the 2022 model year. Moving up a weight class to the Sierra 3500, the price of entry starts $1,000 more than before at $44,195. The big bad boy 3500 Denali 4WD dually starts $1,200 more than before, at $86,245. The situation's a bit cloudier when we step down two classes to the 1500. GM Authority got the price sheet for the 2023 Sierra 1500 and reports that prices are up $1,000 on most trims, but $900 up on the Denali Ultimate and $1,900 up on the AT4. GMC hasn't uploaded the configurator for the 2023 trucks yet, and GMA's price sheet is hard to parse against prices on the 2022 configurator because the end of the model year and supply chain issues have translated into mandatory discounts that can't be accounted for. For instance, the 2022 Sierra 1500 Regular Cab standard box in entry-level Pro trim has an MSRP of $40,000, yet the configurator shows the total vehicle and options price as $39,950. After the $1,795 destination charge, that comes to $41,745. Then there's a mandatory package discount of $1,500, taking the final price before any other fees to $40,245. Meanwhile, GMA's paperwork shows the 2023 price starting at $40,020 after destination, which isn't $1,000 more than any figure on the configurator. At the top end, the 2022 Denali with the Crew Cab, standard box, 4WD, and 6.2-liter V8 comes out to $71,695, only because the front and rear park assist and steering column lock aren't fitted, resulting in a $100 discount.

GM recalling another 2.7 million vehicles in five separate campaigns

The recalls keep rolling in from General Motors, evidently keen to avoid repeating the mistakes of the ignition-switch debacle and clean house. This time they're all coming at once, with five separate recalls announced together covering approximately 2.7 million vehicles.
The largest of the five actions involves over 2.4 million units of the previous-generation Chevrolet Malibu and Malibu Maxx, Pontiac G6 and Saturn Aura in order to fix brake light wiring harness, which have been found to be susceptible to corrosion. The recall is separate from the 56k Aura sedans which GM recently recalled over faulty shift cables, not to mention the previous massive recall of 1.3 million vehicles - some of them the same models - but appears to have resulted from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigation that started with the G6 almost a year ago.
The second-largest campaign involves the 2014 Chevy Malibu, specifically those fitted with GM's 2.5-liter engine and stop/start system, approximately 140,000 examples of which has been found to have problematic brakes. The issue does not appear to be connected to the recall of 8k Malibu and Buick LaCrosse sedans (also involving brake woes) which we reported upon last week. Four crashes have been reported in such models, but GM admits it's not yet clear if the problem was a contributing factor in the accidents.