What can I say about the GMC Sierra? This car and I have history. In the past I have been critical of its quality of construction, its dated and outmoded interior and its lack of body control. To be honest I’m amazed I’ve been given the keys to the new one but, as critical as some of us road testers are at times, the decent ones among us are always open to changing our minds when a model has been improved. And General Motors is nothing if not an improved company these days.
The 2014 Sierra, though, is a vehicle I find difficult to judge. And that’s because of the way it’s used in this region: as a car. But it isn’t a car, is it? It’s a truck. With a double cab that’s roomy enough for an entire chain gang of workers and a flat bed out back that’s large enough to double up as a nightclub dance floor, the Sierra is vast in every sense of the word. It’s no doubt perfect for US contractors and ranch owners who require lots of storage space for pipes, bags of cement or livestock, but why anyone would choose one as a car is beyond my understanding.
Take the suspension, for example. The underground car park in my apartment block is blighted by several plastic speed bumps and, when I drive my own car over them, the front end makes a feeble attempt at a bounce – let’s say half a bounce – before settling and regaining composure. The suspension is just the right side of firm, meaning there’s rarely any jarring and, when I take a corner at speed, it’s not going to make me feel ill. The Sierra, on the other hand, bounces a full four times at the same speed, and it’s still bouncing when the rear goes over the humps, setting off a wave of motion that makes everyone on board feel seasick.
As a car, this is far from ideal. But like I said, it isn’t a car. It’s a truck. So why do so many people here use these things as everyday transport?
For starters, it has physical presence by the, ahem, truck load. Its sheer bulk is incredible and, see one of these filling your rear-view mirror with headlamps set to “strobe mode”, your instant reaction will be to pull over. It’s like seeing an upended building bearing upon you – terrifying. Ah, so that’s it then – no wonder they’re so popular.
Driving the Sierra around Dubai’s urban roads is equally terrifying. It’s so large that narrow lanes need to be negotiated at a crawling pace if your mirrors are to remain intact. And, in three days of temporary custodianship, I only manage to find one place with parking spaces large enough to accommodate it without the rear end getting in the way of other traffic. That would be Ibn Battuta Mall, in case you’re wondering.
Get it on the open road, though, and it actually makes a case for itself. It’s far more refined than it used to be, it’s quiet and, thanks to that soft and bouncy suspension, really comfortable on the straight ahead. Knowing its limitations when it comes to its ride firmness, you simply take corners more slowly than you might in an actual car – as if there’s some cargo on that massive rear deck that you don’t want to spill all over the road.
The interior is improved, too. The materials used to trim the cabin are softer and plusher. The instrumentation looks more modern, the infotainment system is excellent and there are even high quality Bose speakers on this SLT version that fill the cab with lovely sound. Apparently GMC did its homework and asked Sierra customers how they ideally wanted their trucks to be kitted out and it’s something such as this.
If you’re going to be covering long distances in your work truck, you want a few creature comforts but also you want to retain that utilitarian look and feel. You don’t want your truck to be simply a huge car. The new Sierra, then, is more than fit for purpose.
There’s plenty of silky smooth power and torque available from the 6.2-litre V8 engine – 420hp and 624Nm respectively – and it can tow up to 5,443kg, making it ideal for pulling that iconic American Airstream trailer cross country. The Sierra also shuts down half its cylinders when they’re not needed, improving fuel consumption and easing the consciences of any who drive one. I like that. I like the fact that GM has carefully considered how to improve its trucks yet retain the characteristics that made them so popular in the first place.
But the fact remains that this is not a car and it’s possibly the worst thing you can use – this side of an artic lorry – to navigate city streets. Hit the side of a building with a Sierra and you may well reduce the entire thing to rubble. It’s a truck. It just so happens to be a comfortable, quiet and extremely bouncy one. But it’s also way better than it used to be and, when GMC says it’s at the top of its class, I see no reason to disbelieve it.
[ khackett@thenational.ae ]
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