Now, we’ve got our first look at the 2024 GMC Sierra EV Denali Edition 1, the premiere version of the latest full-size electric van based on the GM Ultium architecture used for a range of electric vehicles. increasing in size and variety. The majority of those models have yet to hit the market, but the cycle of announcements continues, including that for Sierra’s next relative, 2024 Chevy Silverado EV.
Other automakers also have quick plans for more electric trucks. Plans have been launched for Ford’s next-generation high-volume electric truckand GM might be planning too Smaller Hummer pickup for the GMC brand. Of course, there could also be the arrival of a delayed competitor to GMC, Tesla Cybertruck.
This week, GM’s luxury truck brand showcased hand-built prototypes of what will be the first in a series of vehicles. Sierra EV versions will hit the market by the end of the 2025 model year. Design is complete, but GMC executives have asked reporters not to touch the doors or get inside the vehicle at the media preview in New York City earlier this week because it’s an early-stage model.
The Denali Edition 1 will be the sole model of the GMC Sierra EV in the 2024 model year, with a price tag of around $107,000 and an EPA-rated range of at least 400 miles. Deliveries of the electric version 1 Sierras will begin “in early 2024,” followed by the 2025 model year by both an AT4-inspired off-roader with two-inch lift and Elevation base trim. According to GMC, the entry-level Elevation model’s base price will be around $50,000 — though not until demand for top-of-the-line Sierra EV models is met.
2024 GMC Sierra EV Denali Edition 1
GMC only revealed select specs for the 2024 truck, which includes 754 hp and 785 lb-ft of torque in “Max Power” mode, which offers zero acceleration times. to 60 mph is 4.5 seconds. (The Sierra EV won’t have Hummer’s “Watts To Freedom” or WTF modes.) Towing capacity is rated at 9,500 lb, and it can output up to 10.2 kilowatts of AC power. It will charge quickly at up to 350 kW, which means users can increase the range of 100 miles in 10 minutes under specific, optimal circumstances. It will also be GM’s first electric vehicle without a “Push to Start” button; It turns on automatically when the driver sits down, according to the chief engineer.
It seems safe to assume the truck will use a Hummer EV battery pack, or a very similar one, as it will charge at 350 kw using a series/parallel switch to connect the two packs. 400 volts to allow 800 volts to be charged. If a 9,400 lb Hummer EV is rated at 329 miles by the EPA, a perhaps three-ton Sierra EV would get 400 miles from the same 212.7 kWh of usable energy.
These trucks will be manufactured at GM’s “Factory Zero” (called Detroit-Hamtramck), and additional production capacity will later come from the Orion Assembly plant in Michigan, which currently builds two Chevrolet Bolt electric hatchback, this is GM’s only mass production EV. five.
2024 GMC Sierra EV Denali Edition 1
Visual restraint for ‘best’
Just as the GMC Hummer EV pickup is currently one of only two Ultiums in limited production, the “Edition 1” version of the GMC Sierra EV will be a limited edition with most of the features and options available. . In this case, it’s the brand’s most premium Denali trim level, which GMC is now chosen by nearly half of truck buyers. A GMC marketer explains that Denali models are “a shortcut for buyers to say “best”” in the luxury truck line.
That perception of luxury, along with the many upgrades in the Denali package, allows the brand to charge thousands of dollars more for a truck that shares the same transmission and size as lower-priced Chevrolet models. It was that same argument that convinced the White House Automotive Task Force to retain the brand after GM’s 2009 bankruptcy and government-backed restructuring: GMC made a good profit by using its platforms. foundation already exists.
On the surface, the Sierra EV is more elegant and restrained than the Chevrolet Silverado EV pickup that debuted in January at CES. While all GMC trucks are “grid-centric”, to use a new design term, the grille of a motor vehicle has been replaced with a “shield” that creates into a blank plate at the front end of the vehicle that is exactly like a truck: tall and square. The shield itself has a lit GMC badge and is surrounded by a bright border. The daytime running lights are located overhead, but the headlights themselves — both high and low beams — are at the bottom of the front light assembly, nearly knee-high. This helps keep the light at the right level in the rearview mirror of the smaller vehicles it can hit, GMC said.
It’s still a big truck, with the front end of the Edition 1 prototype almost on par with this 5-foot-11-year-old reporter. Interior space should accommodate five 6-foot-tall people, although we can’t confirm this in preview. Version 1 will ride on 24-inch wheels, the largest on any production truck, most likely using the same eight lugs as the Hummer and Silverado EV. A smaller 22-inch wheel comes with less expensive trim.
2024 GMC Sierra EV Denali Edition 1
Multiple load compartment lengths… and walking around corners
Lacking a traditional ladder frame and body, the Sierra EV also lacks a cutout between the box and the cabin. The unibody construction features a 60-40 split “middle door” that extends the bed into the rear seat area of the cabin, with split rear seat backs that fold down to extend the load floor. The cabin’s rear window also retracts into the folding center window, opening the entire rear of the cabin for higher loads. The bed length is 59 inches with the center door closed, expands to more than 108 inches when the door is open, and the load length can be extended to 132 inches with the rear door folded down.
2024 GMC Sierra EV Denali Edition 1
The Edition 1’s cabin has a fixed glass panoramic roof, with an 11-inch digital instrument cluster in front of the driver and a 16.8-inch touchscreen in the center of the dashboard for the infotainment, some vehicle controls and operating information. Drivers can use up to 14 separate camera views to pinpoint the location of large trucks, and all screens can be reconfigured to provide a preferred combination of information and data. driver’s preference.
Among the many features fitted to the 1st version was a pair from the Hummer EV that caught the attention of the public in TV commercials: a combination of rear-wheel drive and cornering ability. Place all four wheels in parallel to move the vehicle. inclined at an angle. That will be limited to the top-end Sierra EV versions, according to a GMC representative.
2024 GMC Sierra EV Denali Edition 1
Battery Latency
The lag between vehicle announcement and delivery start – 15 months or more in this case – is due to GM’s need to start mass production of Ultium batteries. With its battery joint venture partner, LG Energy Solutions, GM plans to have a total of five battery plants in North America, but the first one – in Lordstown, Ohio – will not begin mass production of batteries. necessary until the end. of this year.
That leaves volumes for the GMC Hummer EV and Cadillac Lyriq very low this year, and that’s limiting the production launches of the Chevrolet Silverado EV, Blazer EV, Equinox EV and now the GMC Sierra EV. All of those cars are already on display to the public and more to come, including from Buick. Meanwhile, Americans will begin to see TV ads and other marketing for the GMC Sierra EV, “coming soon.”
If the stars line up, 2024 will be an important year for General Motors electric vehicles. Until then, the company will be delighted to sell you a Chevy Bolt EV or EUV.
