The GMC Sierra Denali Ultimate breaks new ground for luxury pickup trucks

Full-size pickup trucks are so mercilessly compared to each other that it’s hard to find one that differs in any significant way. For example, it was 2022 GMC Sierra Denali Ultimate participated in ours the latest comparison test, its 5.4-second 60-mph time would put it just behind the Ford F-150 PowerBoost (5.3 seconds), but half a second ahead of the Toyota Tundra TRD Pro (5.9 seconds). Its 6.2-liter V-8 makes 420 horsepower, which is slightly less than the Tundra Hybrid’s 437 horsepower and slightly more than the Hemi Ram 1500 Limited’s 395 horsepower. And beyond, from towing to braking to features and pricing. To stand out, the truck needs some kind of proprietary weapon — Ford’s on-board alternator or Ram’s impeccably crafted interior. Fortunately, the Sierra Denali has its own killer app: Super Cruise. GM is the only company that has it, and no other hands-free driver assistance system works as well (sorry Ford BlueCruise). If you do a lot of highway driving, Super Cruise might be the feature that sways your decision toward the GMC over a comparably fancy truck from the competition. Just make sure it’s available, as GMC has periodically suspended Super Cruise availability due to supply issues. It is currently available to order on 2023 models.

Not that Super Cruise is all there is to the Sierra Denali Ultimate — and with a starting price of $84,995 with the 6.2-liter engine, it’s best not to. The Sierra benefits from GM’s 2022 interior overhaul, which brings a refreshed design with a 13.4-inch touchscreen, then piles on the perks: a 15.0-inch color projection display, heated and ventilated front seats with massage, and the nicest materials this side Escalade. The door panels are leather-wrapped, the Bose speaker grills are stainless steel, and the open-pore Paldao wood is laser-etched with topographic maps and GPS coordinates of its famous mountain namesake. Now that we mention it, this Denali might be nicer inside than the Escalade.

Amidst all this interior decoration, it’s easy to overlook the small infrared camera located on the steering wheel. This is the driver monitoring hardware for Super Cruise, and it allows for hands-free driving—the truck needs to know you’re awake and alert before handing over control. Once it does, Super Cruise proves impressively competent. On our trip, it would usually go 60 miles or more before breaking away, usually due to a construction zone or because it had run out of road clearance. You can now engage Super Cruise while towing a trailer, and it can also automatically pull the truck out of its lane to pass slower traffic and then back into it, both talents that GM has touted heavily.

What GM didn’t advertise was Super Cruise’s ability to handle highway interchanges. As our route took us from one highway to another, we expected the Super Cruise to turn off as we approached the 90-degree interchange. Instead, the Sierra slowed from 70 mph to about 55 mph, and the steering wheel veered hard to the left as the truck rounded the corner. When the road straightened out, the Sierra resumed the set speed and continued down the (now different) highway. In other words, he did what we would have done if he had handed over control. The fact that it didn’t have to be squeezed out was surprising and, we admit, admirable: cool. Hey, we love to drive, but three hours on the highway is three hours on the highway, so hallelujah for a truck that can help alleviate that monotony.

If you’re finding your way back into some corners, the Sierra Denali Ultimate won’t be a bad dance partner thanks to the standard magnetic ride control shocks. ​​​​​​​Although the Sierra uses a relatively crude solid rear axle with leaf springs, the magnetic ride control tames the squeals and bounces associated with an unloaded bed by reading the road 1,000 times per second. The Denali Ultimate achieved 0.78g of pad grip, which would have tied the Ram in this comparison test. And its ride is as smooth as a Ram’s, even without air springs. The Denali is light for a full-size luxury pickup truck at 5,586 pounds, and that relative litheness shines through in its handling.

While the standard Sierra Denali is offered with GMC’s 5.3-liter V-8, in addition to the 6.2-liter V-8 and 3.0-liter I-6 diesel, the Ultimate gets only the latter two engines. GMC is positioning the diesel six as an entry-level powerplant that costs $2,500 less than the gas-powered V-8 model. ​Although the diesel six makes just 277 horsepower, it matches the V-8’s 460 lb-ft of torque and is a useful engine in its own right, if you can live without the 13.9-second quarter mile at 100 mph. . (When we tested a Chevy Silverado with the 3.0-liter diesel, it ran the quarter in 15.5 seconds at 88 mph.) The diesel also got 24 mpg in EPA-estimated combined fuel economy, easily beating the gas truck’s 17 mpg. In our time with this Denali, we averaged just 15 mpg.

When you’re Super Cruising down the highway and getting a massage from your heated seat, you might forget there’s a pickup bed behind the cabin. But there really is, and it’s a novel, that’s it from carbon fiber. Granted, GMC’s CarbonPro bed probably won’t change your life dramatically, but we always recommend getting more carbon fiber, and it’s definitely something to talk about with your local mulch supplier. Plus, think about the money you’ll save on bedding. The MultiPro Sierra tailgate also folds into a variety of different loading positions. At this point you might be saying, “For $84,995, this tailgate better have its own stereo!” Rest assured, yes.

In fact, the price of the Sierra Denali Ultimate is the biggest drawback. A regular old non-Ultimate Sierra Denali 4×4 with the same powertrain—a 420-horsepower 6.2-liter V-8 and 10-speed automatic—costs $12,500 less and is also available with Super Cruise (it’s the only two configurations of Sierra that you can get it for now). Again, the Ultimate’s sticker price looks a bargain compared to the upcoming Sierra flagship, 2024 Sierra EV Denali Edition 1which will cost $108,695 when production begins in early 2024.

But for now, it’s the top of the Sierra. If you can stomach the price, there’s nothing else like it.