General Motors has a long heritage in providing heavy-duty trucks in the United States and has been building trucks since 1902. Heavy Duty trucks are purchased because they have to have them, not just because they want one. It becomes “the most expensive item in their toolbox”, to quote one of the GM engineers.
The 2011 model GMC Sierra is a major step in redesign, although most folks can’t easily see it. Almost all the changes from last year’s model to the new 2011 are underneath. The chassis is 99% all new. There is a new independent front suspension. There are new rear leaf springs that are 3 inches wide and 20% larger. There is a fully boxed steel frame.
GMC has added a lot of premium interior to their full-size, half-ton Sierra the past few years and designated it as a Sierra Denali. For the first time, the Heavy Duty Sierra trucks now can be outfitted in the interior with the Denali designation as well. This adds a lot of those comfort features that make the ride much more enjoyable. One of the GM folks referred to it as “marrying the most capable truck with the most premium interior.”
The Duramax 6.6 liter diesel engine was upgraded slightly, at least enough to boost the horsepower to 397 hp. That’s just enough to give GM bragging rights over Ford’s 2011 6.7 liter and Dodge Ram’s 2010 Cummins 6.7 liter. The durability of the Duramax engine is paramount and although it has a 100,000 warranty, the Duramax engineers developed it to go at least 200,000 miles. The glow plug cycle time has been reduced. Most of us remember when you slipped behind the wheel of a large diesel truck, the engine key was switched on, and then you had to wait. The GMC Sierra Heavy Duty diesel has a glow plug wait time of less than 3 seconds. This year’s engine has also been tweaked enough to gain 11% better fuel economy.
The Ride & Drive allowed me and the other journalists to take the new heavy-duty trucks over some challenging roads that included Maryland, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. These were the Allegheny Mountains. We drove 2500’s, 3500’s, dump trucks, trucks with heavy payloads, and trucks pulling large trailers. The new 2011 model GMC trucks never blinked.
A few upgraded features were nice to try out. There is a new Smart Exhaust braking system. This is not necessarily a new feature, but it has been integrated into the cruise control. That means if you are going down a very steep hill with a heavy loaded trailer pushing you from behind, you don’t have to ride the brake to keep the truck from accelerating. The cruise control integration with the Smart Exhaust will hold the truck to the desired speed. The other feature we tried out was the Trailer Sway Control. If you are towing an over-sized trailer or an over-loaded trailer, this trailer sway control helps the driver maintain stability.
Finally, the entire cab of these new GMC heavy-duty trucks are enabled with Wi-Fi up to a 150-foot radius around the truck. GMC Wi-Fi is provided by Autonet Mobile and it turns the truck into a mobile hotspot. That allows multiple users with secure internet access inside and out. This not only provides full access for contractors to function at a jobsite, but also allows family members on a trip to utilize their laptops for accessing Facebook, Twitter, email, and other social networking sites while traveling down the highway.
The new Heavy Duty GMC Sierra trucks are great. You may not be able to see much difference on a sales lot, but that new chassis underneath does its job and does it well. The ride is smooth. The cabin is quiet. The truck handles well in whatever configuration or model level. It provides the driver with all the capability and confidence needed and a maximum of control while driving. Visit a GMC dealership and check out the new 2011 GMC Sierra and Sierra Denali heavy-duty pickups yourself.
By Alan Gell - MyCarData
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