PREVIEW: 2011 GMC SIERRA DENALI HD

The heavy duty commercial pickup market goes upscale with the reveal of the 2011 Sierra Denali HD at the 2010 Work Truck show in St. Louis, MO. This dolled up beauty with its additional chrome, color matching body trim, upgraded interior and more will go into production this summer.

Unlike your high school prom date there is substance to this beauty. To meet the power needs of the commercial truck customer, the 2011 model has two improved engine choices available; the 6.6L Duramax rated at 397 HP with 765 lb. ft of torque or the Vortec 6.0L V8 rated at 360 HP. According to GMC both are best in class for power, with improved fuel economy and the ability of the Duramax to run on B20 biodiesel, but with all things pickup trucks that might last a year.  The engines are mated to the Allison 1000 6-speed for the Duramax and the 6L90 6-speed automatic for the gas V8. In addition to power, a truck buyer needs bragging rights on capacities. To meet that need the Sierra Denali delivers with up to 16,000 lb. conventional towing capacity and 6,335 lb. payload capacity. As time goes on, The Truck Blue Book hopes to put the 2011 GMC Sierra Denali HD to the test.  As we get more information, we’ll pass it along to our readers.