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GMC unveils Sierra Denali, SLT pickups: 'Very sophisticated, very elegant'

"It's very sophisticated, very elegant and very businesslike ... so you can see the difference in the clusters between ... lots of different trucks."
Credit: Ryan Garza, Detroit Free Press
The 2019 GMC Sierra Denali pickup is seen during the reveal in Detroit on Thursday, March 1, 2018.

General Motors showed off its latest entries into the high-end truck market Thursday when it unveiled the 2019 GMC Sierra Denali and SLT pickups in Detroit.

The features, including an optional carbon-fiber pickup box available later this year for Denali and a host of luxury-level amenities, prompted a local TV reporter to ask GM executive Mark Reuss, perhaps only half-jokingly, if it would be like riding around in a cigar bar with a truck attached.

Reuss, GM's executive vice president of global product development, purchasing and supply chain, laughed, but he agreed the truck is designed to stand out.

"It's very sophisticated, very elegant and very businesslike ... so you can see the difference in the clusters between ... lots of different trucks," Reuss said during the unveiling at the Russell Industrial Center.

Reuss said GMC customers want the best and they are willing to pay for it. That willingness shows the high stakes of the premium segment, highlighted last year when Ford announced a Super Duty truck approaching the $100,000 mark. Denali in particular represents the top of the GMC truck ladder.

"Denali itself has average transaction prices higher than Mercedes, Jaguar, BMW, all the luxury brands, so if it was a standalone luxury brand, Denali would command higher prices and bring in a lot more money so that’s the brand we have in sight at GMC," Reuss said, highlighting the average transaction price of almost $57,000.

Pricing is not yet available, but the truck, which in the Denali touts premium leather seating, open-pore wood trim and dark-finish aluminum, will clearly push the cost envelope higher when it hits showrooms in the fall.

Other features of note include the MultiPro Tailgate, which is standard on SLT and Denali, and features a variety of positions and functions, including second-tier loading and even a workstation mode with space for a laptop. The truck also touts a new more user-friendly trailering system, more room, storage and plenty of technology and related features, including knobs on the center stack that clearly differentiate between heating and entertainment functions.

The truck will offer 6.2- and 5.3-liter V-8 engine options as well as a 3-liter inline six turbo-diesel.

Duncan Aldred, vice president of Global GMC, credited the brand with launching the premium truck segment 17 years ago with the original Sierra Denali.

Rebecca Lindland, an executive analyst at Kelley Blue Book, said the truck hits the mark for GM.

"I think it's beautiful. Styling is a classic, progressive. The tailgate is a work of art," Lindland said, noting a wide fold-down step function.

She called the optional carbon-fiber pickup box clever, noting that the material is more likely seen in high-end sports cars.

Lindland said the biggest challenge for the new Sierras will come in the timing, noting that competitors, such as Fiat Chrysler with its 2019 Ram 1500, will be on the market sooner. The months between now and when the new trucks are available could also depress sales of the current version of Sierra, she said.

The new Sierra should help boost GMC, which had a sales drop of 8% in February compared with the same month a year ago and help it stand out from another popular GM truck, the Chevrolet Silverado. Reuss said the company made a conscious decision to differentiate.

Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter: @_ericdlawrence.

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