2024 GMC Sierra 1500 Denali Ultimate Review: Reaching for the Crown

The verdict: The 2024 GMC Sierra 1500 Denali Ultimate is an outstanding luxury pickup truck with a 6.2-liter V-8 engine that is sonorous and responsive, but it’s let down by some parts-bin interior trim and a finicky Google-based infotainment system.

Versus the competition: The Sierra 1500 shines when towing and hauling, but the 6.2-liter V-8 is slower than its rivals, and the Denali Ultimate trim level isn’t quite as luxurious as the Ram 1500 Tungsten.

GMC refreshed the Sierra 1500 full-size pickup truck for the 2022 model year, updating its looks and interior and introducing a Denali Ultimate trim, which is an even more luxurious Sierra than the previous flagship Denali model. For 2023, an AT4X AEV Edition joined the lineup, adding extreme off-road capabilities.

We’ve driven the updated Sierra 1500, but what we hadn’t done was pit the GMC against its chief competitors from Ford and Ram — until now. We got our hands on a 2024 GMC Sierra 1500 Denali Ultimate (it stickered at $87,305, destination included) and compared it with a 2024 Ford F-150 Platinum and a 2025 Ram 1500 Tungsten.

Related: What’s the Best Full-Size Pickup Truck of 2024?

There’s nothing like a head-to-head competition to help illuminate a vehicle’s strengths and weaknesses, and there’s no rivalry quite like the one among pickup trucks. You can check out our full comparison above to see the full results, but here we’ll take a deeper dive into the Sierra 1500’s qualities.

Drives Like a Tank

Let’s start with the Sierra 1500’s standout feature: The 6.2-liter V-8 under its hood. With 420 horsepower and 460 pounds-feet of torque, it’s by no means an antique, but it is one of the few remaining eight-cylinder options in the light-duty class. Ford offers its stalwart 5.0-liter V-8 in some F-150 trims, but apart from the supercharged V-8 in the F-150 Raptor R, the F-150’s performance engine is the twin-turbocharged EcoBoost V-6. Ford is also increasing output of its PowerBoost hybrid-equipped trucks like the F-150 in our comparison. Ram has no Hemis at all in its 1500 lineup anymore; the 1500 Tungsten in our comparison boasted Ram’s H.O. SST (that’s high-output, straight-six turbo) Hurricane powerplant.

Both the Ford and Ram made more horsepower and torque than the Sierra, but neither sounded nearly as good, and both lacked the instant response and buttery smooth power delivery of the Sierra’s V-8. The Sierra was once the hot rod of the segment with this 6.2, along with its Chevrolet Silverado 1500 cousin, but in our measured acceleration testing, it was the slowest, gloriously rumbling from 0-60 mph in 6.2 seconds. That was actually quicker than the last time we tested one, but still 0.6 second slower than the Ford and 1.4 seconds slower than the Ram.

Here’s the thing, though: Those times only tell a small portion of the story. The GMC sounded better than either of those trucks; my co-workers were constantly telling me, with a chuckle, that they always knew when it was the GMC doing an acceleration run. It was also far and away the most rewarding of the three when flooring the accelerator pedal. We were trying to get the absolute best times for each truck, and while the Ram tolerated a lot of brake torquing and the Ford tolerated some, the GMC performed best with just a stomp on the go pedal. When we didn’t finesse the brakes in the Ford and Ram, the times were closer, at 5.9 and 5.3 seconds, respectively. The GMC isn’t quite as slow as it seems.

The GMC’s 6.2-liter V-8 also shines while towing. One of our tests involved towing a 20-foot travel trailer, and the GMC’s powertrain got a perfect score for its performance in this category. The 6.2 performed just as smoothly with a trailer hitched to the Sierra; it was as if nothing were behind it, and it retained excellent throttle response. The driving experience while towing was just as impressive; even in high winds, the Sierra — the lightest truck in our test — felt planted and stable on the road. When the trailer’s brakes abruptly stopped functioning properly, the Sierra had the stopping power and brake-pedal feel to make our drivers feel comfortable and confident.

GM’s Super Cruise hands-free, semi-autonomous driving system also adds to the Sierra’s confident driving experience — mostly. As long as they weren’t towing, our editors loved using it. This version of Super Cruise includes automatic lane changes that are intelligent and confident but not overly aggressive. Super Cruise does work when towing, and while it was convenient in stop-and-go traffic, on the highway, the system’s constant steering corrections made the experience nervier than usual. While those corrections are a useful illustration of how high-effort towing is, we’re not quite ready to turn over that much control of a truck and trailer on a windy day.

Additional towing-related tech is available, but our test vehicle did not have the necessary equipment to try out GMC’s transparent trailer system. Along with towing-enabled Super Cruise, that’s pretty much it for the GMC in this department; the Sierra 1500 is otherwise mostly old school in this area. Ford, meanwhile, offers a host of useful towing and hitching technologies, and the Ram has some, too, though we found the Ram’s to be glitchy in our testing.

Can a Tank Have a Luxurious Interior?

Yes, yes it can. Part of the Denali Ultimate’s appeal is that it’s even more luxurious than a regular Denali. Rich leather upholstery, chunky stitching and real open-pore wood trim impress, as do the topographical design elements throughout the cabin. Real buttons and knobs to control climate, audio and other functions are welcome, and they feel solid to the touch. The only blemish in the Denali Ultimate’s interior are some plasticky bits that are clearly carried over from lower trim levels. Small details like that are what separate the Ram 1500 Tungsten from its competition, but the Denali Ultimate is the biggest challenger yet to Ram’s luxury crown.

There are other misses in the interior, too, including outward visibility, which is a major issue. The Sierra’s low, raked windshield and tall, wide hood combine with smaller side windows to create a, well, tanklike feel in the cabin that makes this truck feel bigger than it is. A minor issue is a relative lack of convenient in-cabin storage spaces, particularly up front. The cabin is so large, there’s still a decent amount of storage space, but competitors offer more — and more thoughtfully designed — storage solutions.

The GMC’s infotainment technology is also a mixed bag. While its 13.4-inch touchscreen is easy to use, with crisp graphics and wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto connectivity, it also uses Google Built-In technology. Years after its debut, this system still leaves a lot to be desired. We had consistent issues with voice commands in particular; some commands took forever to process and others (like switching to a new satellite radio station) succeeded or failed with no rhyme or reason.

Bed and Beyond

By our measurements, the Sierra 1500’s cargo bed was the widest and longest in our test, and its advantages don’t stop there. The MultiPro Tailgate can fold down into a convenient step to access the bed, though it’s a bit of a clunky process to deploy and fold up. Ford’s integrated tailgate step utilizes a better design, but the convenience is still welcome in the Sierra. GMC adds to that convenience by also giving the Sierra 1500 standard cutout steps at each corner of the rear bumper — no need to fold the tailgate down at all. On top of that, the MultiPro power steps include a trick button at their ends that slides the running boards rearward to provide access to the front of the bed from the side of the truck.

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• Research the 2024 GMC Sierra 1500
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Ultimate Sierra?

If you’re looking for a luxurious half-ton pickup truck with a V-8, the GMC Sierra 1500 Denali Ultimate is, in fact, the ultimate choice; Ram has entirely discontinued V-8 engines in its 1500 pickup, and while Ford still offers its 5.0-liter V-8 in the F-150, it’s not available in top trims. The Sierra 1500 Denali Ultimate is an excellent luxury truck with a well-appointed interior, confidence-inspiring towing manners and a throaty exhaust note.

With an as-tested price of $87,305, our test truck was anything but cheap — though it was still the least expensive pickup in our comparison by a small amount. Ultimately (pun intended), luxury pickup shoppers will have to decide what matters most to them. If what matters to you is luxury with an old-school V-8 growl, the Sierra 1500 Denali Ultimate is the truck for you.

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