2019 Sierra features carbon-fibre bed
New pickup offers industry firsts as options
GMC pulled the cover off of its 2019 model year Sierra 1500 pickup on March 1, revealing the truck’s new styling, drivetrain specs and industry- first features that include a carbon- fibre bed and a two-piece tailgate.
Perhaps more attentiongrabbing than any of the Sierra 1500’s new features is what GMC calls a MultiPro Tailgate.
MultiPro essentially splits the tailgate into two (à la Range Rover but with far more utility) with a small, upper section that can be folded out separately — and a further 90-degrees — from the rest of the tailgate. This lets what GMC is calling “the most innovative tailgate ever” to allow easier access to the bed, make certain objects in the bed easier to reach and even act as a load bed-lengthening backstop so longer items don’t slide out of the bed under acceleration.
It can also be used as a shelf on a job site. It can even — and this is perhaps its most useful innovation — be used as a step to make getting into the bed even easier. The MultiPro Tailgate will come standard on the SLT and Denali.
The CarbonPro box, optional on Denali, is another innovation that lets the GMC truck stand apart from the rest of the segment, even its own Chevrolet Silverado sibling. The box uses carbon fibre for its inner panels and floor instead of steel, shedding some 28 kilograms of weight and offering what GMC says is “best- in- class dent, scratch and corrosion resistance.”
Non- Denali trims won’t get that option, but GMC does note the new Sierra’s bed is made of 50 per cent stronger roll-formed steel for greater toughness, and that cargo boxes across the range offer best- in- class volume — some 63 cubic feet ( 1,786 litres) on the short box, in fact. There’s also a built- in 110-volt power outlet.
Industry- first f eatures can be found inside, too. The 2019 Sierra will become the only new pickup with a colour head- up display, which nicely complements tech such as the company’s new ProGrade Trailering system.
Accessible through the Sierra’s revised infotainment system — and also via your smartphone — ProGrade includes a novel Trailering App that features a pre-departure checklist including a trailer light test (automatically running through a sequence of light flashes so you don’t need anyone in the cab to press the brake pedal and activate the turn signals), trailer electrical diagnostics and even, on some models, a trailer tire- pressure monitoring system (as long as the trailer wheels have their own pressure sensors).
There’s even an optional Trailering Camera Package, which adds two rear- facing cameras integrated into the side mirrors so you can see down the entire length of your truck and trailer during lane changes or when backing up. In fact, pairing the camera package with an available accessory trailermounted camera will let the driver see down both sides and behind the trailer at the same time.
Finally, ProGrade also incorporates a special “hitch view” that allows the driver to zoom in on the hitch when backing up; it can also be briefly accessed while in motion to ensure the trailer is properly connected.
The hitch area is also illuminated by a lamp built into the tailgate, and something GMC calls an Integrated Trailer Brake Controller lets drivers program trailerbrake settings to specific trailer profiles.
T he 2019 Sierra 1500 drops a total 163 kg versus its predecessor, thanks largely to its aluminum doors, hood and tailgate. Engines are shared with the Silverado: 5.3- and 6.2-L V8s and a 3.0L turbodiesel in-line six. The V8s feature the company’s new Dynamic Fuel Management system, which lets it run on anywhere from one to all eight cylinders to optimize fuel efficiency.
The 2019 GMC Sierra goes on sale in Canada, in its top Denali and SLT trims, this fall. Pricing will be announced closer to the truck’s release.