Cadillac Owners Forum banner

Help me settle this?

1341 Views 16 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  Gristle Boy
Me and a friend are having a debate about GMtrucks:

Me:You do know that GMCs are just rebadged Chevys, right?

Him: Other way around mike, GM takes mos pride and puts most money into GMC
Him: Notice how you go to a used truck dealer and its 75% chevy and 25% gmc, yea cuz no one wants to give up their gmc, they last forever

Me: Actually Chevy is the main one because unlike GMC, they have an entire line of cars. "Today, for the most part, GMC offers the same trucks available under the Chevrolet brand. A Sprint, for example, was a rebadged Chevrolet El Camino, the Sierra is a rebadged Chevrolet Silverado, etc." In the past the GMCs were more work oriented up until 1973. In fact, GM puts the most money into Chevy and Cadillac.
Me:The real reason why you see more at used dealers:
"In the United States GMC is usually sold by dealers in combination with Buick or Pontiac, typically at lower volumes than the equivalent Chevrolet trucks."

Care to help me out? ;P
1 - 17 of 17 Posts
GMCs are better looking. Problem solved.
Other than the 67-72 I have to disagree. But its all preference
The GMT800 Chevy front end was pretty boring and average compared to the front end on the same generation GMC. Also, GMC had the Denali and 4 wheel steer versions of the trucks that Chevrolet did not. GM tends to treat GMC as the uplevel truck brand often lumping in the same options the Escalade gets. Denali = Escalade with slightly less content but same motor. Chevy Tahoe does not get the 6.2L 403hp engine option, nor did it get the 345hp 6.0L block in the GMT800 Series. The Bose systems in the GMT800 Denali and Escalade were identical, while the Bose system in the Chevrolet products was actually a less powerful system.

This extends down into the mid-size trucks as well. The 1998-2000 GMC "Envoy" (the one everyone forgets about, prior to the GMT360 one) was a technological marvel for it's time... HID headlights, heated seats, CD Changer, Bose and on and on and on... compared to the VERY sparsely equipped Blazer of the same time-frame. Substantively speaking, GMC trucks generally seem to be favored over the Chevy counterparts.

Looks-wise, the GMT400 and GMT900s are actually pretty damn similar ironically enough. The GMT900 Tahoe DOES look alot better than the GMT900 Yukon, which already looks dated.
See less See more
From Wiki:

Though GMC and Chevrolet trucks are mostly identical, their differences have varied throughout the years. While Chevrolet is marketed towards a mainstream audience, GMC vehicles are marketed as "professional grade", more work oriented vehicles. Traditionally, GMCs have had different trims from Chevrolets (i.e. grille, emblems, and other minor aesthetics), larger engine options, and generally a very slightly lower price. Between 1962 and 1972, most GMC vehicles were equipped with quad-headlights, while their Chevrolet counterparts were equipped with dual-headlights. Starting in 1973, with GM’s introduction of the new "rounded line" series trucks, GMC and Chevrolet trucks became even more similar, ending production of GMC’s quad-headlight models, and setting the standard for the Chevrolet/GMC line of trucks for over thirty years. During this period, the sister models of the two companies (Silverado/Sierra, Blazer/Jimmy, Tahoe/Yukon, etc) shared everything except trims and price. GM has recently begun a divergence in design between the two lines with the 2007 model Silverados and Sierras, which have slight differences in the shapes of their body panels and overall looks.

Today, for the most part, GMC offers the same trucks available under the Chevrolet brand. A Sprint, for example, was a rebadged Chevrolet El Camino, the Sierra is a rebadged Chevrolet Silverado, etc. Alongside sister brand Cadillac, all three share the Suburban/Tahoe SUV platform due to Cadillac's upscale Escalade and Escalade ESV brands, with GMC's Yukon Denali being more close to the Escalades.

In the United States GMC is usually sold by dealers in combination with Buick or Pontiac, typically at lower volumes than the equivalent Chevrolet trucks. GMC's trucks, vans, and SUVs offer more options and standard features than Chevrolet, while Chevrolet is often offered as an entry-level car.[citation needed] In Canada, GMC is sold by Pontiac-Buick-GMC dealerships, usually at volumes equivalent or greater than the comparable Chevrolet trucks.

In 2007, GMC introduced the Acadia, a crossover SUV, which is the company's first unibody vehicle.

In 2009, GMC will introduce the all-new Terrain, a mid-size crossover SUV based on GM's Theta platform which will slot below the Acadia as GMC's smallest crossover. Its predecessor, the GMT-360 based Envoy, was discontinued with the closure of GM's Moraine, Ohio plant on December 23, 2008.
See less See more
Production volume wayyy higher for Chevys. GMC come at more lux trim level. Mechanically the same.
I have a '01 Sierra C3 btw. Greatest truck I have ever owned, will NEVER sell it!
Production volume wayyy higher for Chevys. GMC come at more lux trim level. Mechanically the same.
I have a '01 Sierra C3 btw. Greatest truck I have ever owned, will NEVER sell it!
That's the one with the 4 wheel steering right? How has that system held up over the years?
The GMT800 Chevy front end was pretty boring and average compared to the front end on the same generation GMC. Also, GMC had the Denali and 4 wheel steer versions of the trucks that Chevrolet did not. GM tends to treat GMC as the uplevel truck brand often lumping in the same options the Escalade gets. Denali = Escalade with slightly less content but same motor. Chevy Tahoe does not get the 6.2L 403hp engine option, nor did it get the 345hp 6.0L block in the GMT800 Series.
I must agree that I think the GMC looks better than the 99-02 front ends except the HDs. After that I think that the GMC looked 'tougher' than the sharp front ends of the Chevy as well.

This extends down into the mid-size trucks as well. The 1998-2000 GMC "Envoy" (the one everyone forgets about, prior to the GMT360 one) was a technological marvel for it's time... HID headlights, heated seats, CD Changer, Bose and on and on and on... compared to the VERY sparsely equipped Blazer of the same time-frame. Substantively speaking, GMC trucks generally seem to be favored over the Chevy counterparts.

Looks-wise, the GMT400 and GMT900s are actually pretty damn similar ironically enough. The GMT900 Tahoe DOES look alot better than the GMT900 Yukon, which already looks dated.
Yes, the GMCs do tend to have slightly nicer trim options. Aren't most of the engines technically made by Chevy though?

From Wiki:

Today, for the most part, GMC offers the same trucks available under the Chevrolet brand.
Yeah, I used that :D

That's the one with the 4 wheel steering right? How has that system held up over the years?
Axed, too bad it sounds like a great feature.

Production volume wayyy higher for Chevys. GMC come at more lux trim level. Mechanically the same.
I have a '01 Sierra C3 btw. Greatest truck I have ever owned, will NEVER sell it!
What does the C3 mean? Is that the top trim?
See less See more
Nope. C3 was AWD only. 4WS came the next year. Truck has never been down for anything but scheduled maintenance.
Not really sure what "C3" actually means. Googled it once & I believe it has something to do with GMC's 100th anniversary.
Yep, if its AWD is must be more luxury than function :D
You would be wrong, my friend! This thing has got me through some extreme road conditions far better than any of the 4WDs I've owned (I don't off-road but the roads up here are ubershitty in winter).

& yes, it is a luxury p/u. Same interior as a Denali.
Yeah, I was talking about off road and stuff. The main thing I like about 4wd is that you can turn it on/off and the Lo towing mode it has.
I have a '01 Sierra C3 btw. Greatest truck I have ever owned, will NEVER sell it!

Oh wow! A C3! I've heard of those from the senior tech at my biggest account (a B/P/GMC dealer) but never seen one. They were all wheel drive, all wheel steer, had the Escalade HO 6.0 liter and the Denali interior and were a one year deal. The C3 designation was a 100 year anniversary thing. It stood for a century of three corner stones of GMC. I don't remember what they are though lol.
Pontiac, Buick, GMC? LOL If that were the case we'd need a C2
Im going to have to go with GMC on this on V-Eight, reason being, my mom has had her '02 Envoy SLT XL from '03-Present. Barley anything wrong with it, used as a daily driver all year round. NOTHING has ever gone wrong other than things that normally would, she just turned 100K miles on her and she still starts like a dream one the 1st crank. I HAD a '02 Chevy Trailblazer LT prior to owning my '99 Cadillac STS, which rode nothing like my moms truck. She loves it because it has the 'car' ride to it with the SUV ability, mine on the other hand had the very 'trucky' ride. I never could tell the difference between rides until I got my Cadillac. WOW, now I know luxury, power, and elegance, OF WHICH the Trailblazer was none of them. However, Chevy's are good cars, they may have lower trims/options than GMC but I would take ANY Chevy over a comparable import any day.

My whole family is made up of GM vehicles, hell its all my dad will buy!

-Dad: '04 Pontiac Grand Prix GTP
-Mom: '02 GMC Envoy XL SLT
-Me: '99 Cadillac STS (Z RATED! WOOT!)

One thing I will never forget is the horror stories my dad would tell me about him working on Mustangs. He built a 350 from block up (traced one down from a vette) dropped it in a 4 door caprice and rick-rolled all his friends. He said the day he sold it the mechanics at the dealership were sitting in back figuring out how to take the engine out of the car. :(

But, I digress, GMC at least in my personal opinion seems to have a higher built quality than Chevy. Maybe the fact that Chevy HAS the higher production ratios means that less work or less attentive work is being put into them? Whereas GMC has a lower production ratio, thus, higher standards/build quality?

Not sure but that's my .02 cents!

~X
See less See more
But the trucks are built in the same plant. The argument was mainly just about the mechanical parts. GMC DOES have a better trims and interiors though. I don't think I'd trade my 94 Silverado for a Sierra though, because it has outlasted many of my friends.
C3 is NOT 4 wheel steer. It does have the 6.0 325hp engine & it WAS a one year run (they made 4400, probably why you haven't seen one). The following year they renamed it a Denali & added the Quadrasteer option which kinda screwed it up (can you say clearance lights? gag).
1 - 17 of 17 Posts
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top