The 2021 GMC Sierra AT4 Is Too Expensive For Its Own Good

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 Is it damning with faint praise to say that this GMC Sierra 1500 AT4 diesel would make a good used truck someday? 

"This is not a bad truck. But it is expensive; as tested, this Sierra costs just under $65,000. That's a lot of money for ""not bad"" when Ford and Ram will sell you an excellent truck.  "

The general consensus among my colleagues is that GM's latest half-ton pickups are quite underwhelming, especially given their massive importance to the company. Ford and Ram put a ton of effort into upgrading their half-tons, and you just don't get the sense that GM tried nearly as hard. The company coasted on its market share, and while it still sells a huge number of pickups and should continue to, Ram is eating into GM sales and Ford is still the clear king. That's a problem for one of your most popular, most profitable vehicle lines.

If you drove the Sierra in isolation, you'd think it was pretty good. Quiet, easy enough to drive given the considerable size, and equipped with the modern conveniences you'd expect, including a simple, functional infotainment system. But both the Ram and Ford have better interiors and more advanced tech, and the coil-sprung Ram offers a far more refined ride. The GMC's interior already feels dated despite the truck being on sale just two-and-a-half years, and that becomes a bigger problem with increasingly expensive trims like this AT4. It's hard to see where all the money goes here when $65k at a Ford or Ram dealer buys a bonafide luxury truck.

Of course, some of the money goes to the AT4's off-road goodies; mud-terrain tires, a 2-inch lift, new shocks, and perhaps most importantly, rugged styling tweaks. These are not the makings of a hardcore off-roader. But in GM's defense, it is working on a ZR2 package for the Chevy Silverado, which should challenge the Ford Raptor and RAM TRX. 

Really, the AT4 package is probably just enough to satisfy the many who like to make their trucks look more off-road ready, without any intention of leaving the pavement. 

This truck also had GM's excellent new 3.0-liter diesel straight-six. It's a $1000 upgrade over the standard 5.3-liter small-block, and as we found with the new Chevy Suburban, it's worth every penny. This is one of the smoother diesels on the market today, and the improvements in fuel economy will quickly pay for themselves. Matching the EPA's 24-mpg combined rating was a cinch, and 460 lb-ft of torque make this big truck feel rather sprightly around town. The diesel is paired with GM's now-familiar 10-speed auto, and the best thing I can say about this trans is that you don't really notice it. Thank good programming, the diesel's torque, or some combination of the two.

My tester came equipped with GMC's new carbon-fiber bed, which comes as part of a $1070 package that can only be optioned with additional packages. GMC says it cuts weight by 100 pounds compared with a steel bed and reduces the risk of corrosion. It seems a bit superfluous, but the carbon-fiber surface doesn't require a bedliner, so this package might be worth the extra cash. 

Even more useful was this truck's MultiPro tailgate, standard on all but the base Sierra.The Multipro opens in a number of different and useful ways, which makes loading things into the bed so much easier, and it provides a nice seat when needed. I'd say this tailgate makes it worth going for the GMC over the Chevy, but it's now available as a $260 option to the Silverado. 

I enjoyed my time with this Sierra. I just couldn't wrap my head around the price, especially knowing how much more you get from an F-150 or a RAM 1500. Even if you skip the AT4 and carbon-tailgate packages and get a similarly equipped SLT, it still costs around $60,000. I think that's why this rig will be far more appealing 5-10 years from now. Aside from sticker shock, it's a perfectly pleasant truck to live with, equipped with an excellent engine. 

And yes, I think that is damning with faint praise.