Video: 2024 GMC Sierra 2500 Denali: 4 Things We Like, 3 Things We Don’t

Now, we've often been critical about GMC and their Denali trim, and saying that the actual price that they're commanding for this thing doesn't quite match up to the level of quality that they were delivering. Well, that changes for the '24 model year, at least in this top, top Denali Ultimate trim. You've got really nice stitched leather in here. You've got actual wood trim, despite the fact that it's got some weird laser engraving of Mount Denali itself. You've got really nice metal trim, good plastics. Everything feels very solid and well put together. This is considerably better than it has been in terms of Denali trims over the last several years. Now, is it as nice as the top Ram pickups, which kind of hold the benchmark in my mind for interior quality? It's getting close. Second thing, the tech is working better than expected. GM is switching to a Google-based operating system for its infotainment systems, and we haven't always had the best luck with the thing. Sometimes it doesn't wanna connect cell phones very well if you're in an area that doesn't have strong data signal. Sometimes the voice controls don't work. But in this new '24 GMC Sierra HD, I haven't had any of those issues. It's actually really worked quite well, and essentially worked as promised. And you can certainly enjoy this large touchscreen. It's mounted up very high. It's easy to use. You have reconfigurable gauges as well that give you a number of different themes to use. Everything in here seems to work really well, and I'm really glad that we're not switching entirely over to touchscreen everything. There's still a bank of buttons and switches, and all the stuff that you use frequently still has dedicated knobs. The third thing I like about the new '24 GMC Sierra Denali HD is that it actually drives like a luxury truck. Now, big trucks like this are most impressive when you're actually towing something behind you or have a big load in the bed because then the heavy-duty truckiness of it is kind of offset by the fact that you've got a lot more weight. But what's more impressive is making it drive super nice when there's nothing in the bed and you're not towing anything, and they've really accomplished that. It's quiet in here. Even with this big V8 diesel Duramax engine under hood, it's still really quite refined. The ride is not bouncy. It is not truck-y. The steering is not weird in any way, like any kind of super quick ratio that you need for an HD truck. All in all, the thing really does feel nice and refined and comfortable. You could drive this thing for a couple hundred miles and be perfectly comfortable the entire way. The fourth thing I like about the new GMC Sierra HD is this trailering tech. It really does show that they started to put a lot of thought into their trailering stuff. You've got things like the new transparent trailer, which is now available for more kinds of trailers, not just big box trailers. But also the shifter is now on the steering column where it should be for any HD pickup, and that has allowed them to relocate this, the trailer brake controller from the actual dash to the console, right where it falls to hand and where it's most easy to use. In an emergency when you wanna control the trailer brakes, it's right here instead of having to reach forward on the dash. That, to me, is a fantastic feature. What do I not like about this thing? Well, first thing, it is absolutely huge. (chuckling) I mean, it's bigger than HD trucks have ever been, and that is both necessary and a problem. Traffic cones disappear out the hood because you can't see over the hood or to the sides very well. Visibility out is not great just due to its sheer size and the small gun-slit window that you have here. And forget parking it in your home garage, that's not happening. Forget parking it in a municipal parking garage, that ain't happening either. What the heck do you need something this big for that you didn't need it to be this big just a few years ago? Second thing I'm not so fond of, it is extremely expensive. This fully kitted-out 2024 GMC Sierra 2500HD Denali Ultimate 4x4 Crew Cab comes in just a few thousand dollars short of a hundred thousand dollars. I know that everything's gotten more expensive over the years, but that is just an insane amount of money for a pickup truck. Now, GMC is probably actually going to sell all of the Denalis that they make. It is actually the most popular trim level in the GMC Sierra lineup, so y'all seem to be comfortable paying that amount of money for a big pickup like this. I think you're nuts. And the third thing I'm not so fond of, it is extremely thirsty. Now, this being a massive HD diesel pickup, General Motors is not required to actually report fuel economy numbers for it. But in my driving for the past week around town, it's been getting about 16 miles per gallon, which is not great by any means, but which is pretty typical for a big HD diesel pickup like this. Now, that number will drop if you actually tow something or put a load in the bed. But frankly, if you have a big pickup like this, you're pretty much used to that number. Overall, the new 2024 GMC Sierra HD Denali Ultimate is a really nice pickup truck. The upgrades are noticeable, and if you have need of a great big pickup truck like this, well frankly, this is a really nice upgrade to shoot for. If you'd like to learn more about the new lineup of 2024 GMC pickups, you can look everything up on cars.com. (bright upbeat music)