Its about time the general upgraded that interior! Even tho its a concept, it looks great! Hopefully it will get incorporated into the truck as unchanged as possible.

GM should deffinately take this direction with the interior whether or not this unit makes production or not. It does seem very production ready, though.

Wow, the truck looks like a FORD and has the RAM Box.

Right in between is correct. The underbody protection system is cool but wouldn't it add weight to the truck.

Also, I wonder how hard it will be to do your own tune ups.

I do all maintenance on my cars / trucks but that underbody protection plate will just get in the way of the doing an oil/tranny flush.

I think it has way to many small features.

So what are the air tools for? I guess when it breaks you have all the capabilities to fix it on the road. Nice idea GM.

FIRST OFF- I like this truck alot! Now here is the kicker there is only 1 or 2 really new ideas about it. So far I think that it is the most unoriginal Truck out there. Even the side step for the bed is stolen from ford. The bed boxes came from the Ram truck line. and that grill Looks just like the front end of '05-'07 superduty. I think that it is a great layout and I do hope that they proceed with this to production, however. Come on GM Quit being a follower. I remember when GM was truly a leader in the truck market. But it is a good looking rig, and if they ever made a long bed version I would think about it. I just want to GM to think on their own.

This truck keeps looking better and better!
I would never consider one though, for ownership, because of the lack of a solid-front axle. It would be cool to see one go places like where I might take my mighty Power Wagon. There could be Chrysler (Power Wagon), Ford (Raptor), and General Motors (Sierra All Terrain) unity where the trail ends at the top of the mountain?

Ha..didnt GM and Howie Long make fun of the bed-side-assists on a ford in one of their commercials?

Excellent interview Mike. I thoroughly enjoyed your question about the "element of storage" found on the concept truck that "has been seen before".... Good 'ol Carl tap danced around that one.

Classic.

I guess we all forget the Avalanche has had bed side storage available since the 2002 model year. Where was the Ram box then?

Nice looking truck the only thing i don't like is the head lights looks a little small for that truck IMO

Good looking Ford truck.....ammm,I mean Chevy grrrrr....GMC!
Same dated interior......

Overall, I think this a one bad truck. For diesel pickup lovers, like my self, to have this available in a truck is great. I am a Ford owner right now and grew up on Chevy's. It has been a while since GM has impressed me in their pickup line. I do like the fact that they are copying everyone else's good ideas and incorporating with what already works for them. I can't deny that the new Ford got spanked all they way up and down the Rockie Mountain Shootout, since I do have one sitting in my driveway. Now for GM to put that powertrain into something like this, and get it right between the Raptor and the PowerWagon, I may consider buying one. Lets see what happens in a couple of years after the new PS has matured and GM has put their new front suspension to the test. Hope to see this vehicle at dealerships, lets say $55K-60K.

hahahaha first off, the front end looks like an 05-07 super duty (nice of GM to use ford's design as a template just as the 09 sierras heavy duty looked like the front end of a 95 f150 with minimal changes) and the body looks like a ram with GM fenders. secondly, i like how the guy trys to say that the side step and cargo box in the bed walls are what gmc customers should expect from them in a concept. hahaha thats after howie long made fun of the side step feature and tailgate step in GM's chevy commercials and now they are putting them on their trucks? haha mark my words, in the next 6-8 years GM will be putting both side steps and tailgate steps in their trucks. also using the ram box idea, classic GM taking ideas and presenting them as their own haha. althought i will admit i would like to see the next f150 have the box storage bins, and good thing ford hasnt criticized ram over that so it doesnt make them look like hypocrits like GM is looking like now haha

Ford was the first with the box steps. It was an industry first. I seem to recall Gary White, lead engineer at GM, at that time saying Ford's box side steps were a bad - don't solve problems and not what customers want. Now that GM has added the box side steps it is "thoughtful and what GM customers want." What a bunch of hypocrites.

Dang nabit, can't they just build a truck with a good suspension, diesel engine and an interior that you can hose out after a hard day at the farm or the lake? Gesh enough with the high dollar trucks that will never see thier potential used. I mean really, how many raptors now registered will ever do a Baja or any off roading? Look good at the marina attached to the boat though.

How many people hose out their new trucks anymore? Get out of the 80's.

I'm very surprised it ain't got a Blue oval in the grille and on the tailgate. This thing is a Ford copy all the way. I guess if you can't beat em, join em or try to copy them.

Why are they still using that crappy corporate steering wheel?? My '05 Avalanche has the best wheel GM has ever used...the buttons on the "new" one look like such an afterthought, very awkward.

Between that and the stabilitrak nonsense they've added, I see no reason to upgrade to a newer truck (HD or not).

I do have to laugh at the posted comments and how GMC is putting a spin on their copied items.
I like the side access steps on this truck and how they blend into the lower body when retracted. It would be nice if that is what is finally made available on the new GM's. It is a much prettier design than Ford's side step.
I like the Ram box on this truck as it isn't as big as the Ram Ram box.
The full length skidplates are a good idea. Finally - some protection for that low slung GM frame.
I hope it comes off easy for maintenance.
If you run in lots of mud it could trap a lot of goop and make your truck weigh a ton heavier.
The composite box is probably the way all of the truck makers will make their beds.
The Tacoma was first with a composite box - for those keep score of copied items. LOL.

Isn't composite a fancy term for plastic?

Nice truck.
Many good ideas.
I hope they do find their way into production.

Bob - got your GM hater rant all ready to go???

GM doesn’t have the balls to bring something like that to market. GM doesn’t do well niche market vehicles outside of the flagship Corvette. If they can’t build 100,000+ copies of something they won’t mess with it or they ditch it in a few short years (SSR) when sales numbers are low. If they did bring this to market, this would be another $60,000+ GM mall crawler truck with IFS, electric shift 4x4, leather interior, and every other cream of the crap hardware that true off-roaders don’t like or need. The truck is too big and bulky to try to follow a Raptor and doesn’t have the right suspension to try to follow a Power Wagon.

@ Lou and Frank- Hey What the heck is going on? It is another positive GM story but no bobsie twins... I am a little bit at loss of words.

Really looks like a great Truck, props to GM for finally doing something productive. But I think many of the comments preceding mine are accurate. Gm has taken some great features (features they previously made fun of) and comprised it into 1 interesting truck that copy's every1 else but hey it's looks like a great truck, Now lets hopefully get ready to see it in action and tested by PU.com.

people who think that it's a SD copy should go see an eye doctor!
And compare a picture of SD and GMC side by side. they look a lot different!

bring back the Topkick!

the grill looks like a Ford!

The Ford Explorer Sport Trac, was the first to have a composite bed. It was introduced in 2000 as a 2001 model.

The Toyoda Tacoma did not have a composite bed until the 2005 model.

@Buy American or say Bye to America! - thanks for the clarification.
I do like this concept truck.
I do hope they build it.
It might encourage Ram and Ford to offer a diesel in a "real" offroad packaged truck.
The baby diesels that all 3 have shelved would be ideal.
The big risk GM is taking is:
IFS will not allow it to crawl with the Power Wagon and heavy 3/4 ton capacity springs will not let it soak up terrain like a Raptor.
Good luck with staking out the middle ground.

that last comment does not sound like the real oxi

@Lou,

Watch starting at 2:29

http://www.f150videos.info/silverado-vs-f-150/

I know its already been pointed out several times in the comments but I can't help but bring it up again. The side step...Or (Man Step) as GM ''cleverly'' coind it when Ford first came out with it. It is infact a good idea, weather GM guys want to acknowledge it or not, the ''Man Step'' provides ton's more access to the bed, Even better with todays trucks getting taller, and wider than ever before. 1/2 ton's today weigh more and tow almost as much as 1-ton's 20 years ago.

All and all though I think the truck looks ok, I do see many things copied from both Ford and Dodge, but I guess that's just how this market works. I don't forsee this particular truck comming into production anytime soon. As someone else already stated GM does not do well in niche markets (Hold for the flagship Corvette). However I do think many of the design cue's from this truck will be seen on next genaration GMC trucks.

But just my 2c

From Tony "get out of the 80's". Well hell thats my decade dude. Fresh face out of high school and some service time in the Navy. Had the jeep with steel floors and just pull the plug to hose out the insides. Now you have to vacuum, shampoo, rinse and repeat. I say the heck with that. I'll take hosing it out any day of the week. I use to detail cars and let me tell you, 1 hour to do a real truck vs. all day to do the sissy-fied wanna-bees. But it's your money. Spend it anyway you want. Guess your truck never sees a day's work anyhow!

I like the concept, I think their is a significant portion of this that is likely to carry over to the next gen GMC.. but.. the truck built as is, sold to the public would easily be in the 60K range if not higher.

The Raptor IMO is about as high as you can go for a offroad truck $40K - $50K. Sure everyone wants a diesel for the power and better mileage but when you see that $6K or more option for the diesel and factor in the upkeep, how reasonable is it to build this truck. If GM also offers this truck with a gas engine and keeps the price range in the $40K to $50K range I think they have something.

My 2 cents..

Yep, never fails, the ford fan boys come out in droves to pick apart this concept because it's a GM product.

The common complaints are like this: looks like a ford, they copied ram's side storage box, Howie long made fun of the "man step" " GM only copies ideas from other manufactues" etc, etc, etc, and yada, yada, yada.

This concept is fricken beautiful and looks better than the fords raptor or dodges power wagon. I think I have the ford and dodge critics figures out. They feel threatened by GM'S concept and that is the main reason they feel the need to attack and tear down anything GM does or produces.

As far as Howie Long making fun of fords man step, you needed a man step to reach anything in the pick up box of the ford. The Chevy and Gmc trucks are much easier to get in and out of than ford or dodge. I know the attacks will continue on GM no matter what they come out with by the ford fan boys, who always feel threatened by GM.

GM fans don't feel the need to attack ford or dodge everytime they produce a product. You know it's true and so do I.

Too big, wide and heavy for the serious off-roader!

Low ground clearance (tire size) for the weight of the truck.

@oxi,

It is not a serious off-roader. The Raptor is a serious off-roader.

I do like the attempt GM is making but they keep shooting themselves in the foot which is laughable at best.

Hysterical!!

I like the looks of this truck. They need to build it. That is the grill that Ford needed on their SD. The ideas that they robbed from Ford and Dodge should be on every truck anyway.

The only reason that they did this bed step is because they lifted a truck 3". But then again, it's a 100% better design then what you see on a ford.

Shawn V: better watch talking like that or all the mall-crawlers are going to come out in a vengence, I have been flamed or making similar comments before....lol :)

My next truck will have basics, like rubber floor, ext cab, maybe eletric windows...haven't decided yet. But the grey steel wheels are a must, I am tired of polishing the Chrome on my lariat as of late.

Hell, I think I am going to buy white or silver to make it easier to clean. I am dead serious, you are exactly right on taking longer to clean a fancy truck. So far, I have found a Nissan Titan with these features, all for ~ 27K OTD, and that is with 4x4. I won't have to worry about stains with kids, grease from car washes getting on the carpet, etc. I would even go black wheels on it to get away from the brake dust :)

This truck looks NOTHING like a Ford. I think it is a neat concept, but where are all the folks with the kind of money to spend on these specialties? damn, 50-60K for a pickup truck? Nice, but not a good price...that goes for any brand.

Looks a lot like the 2005 SD. Whenever one of the automakers comes up with something nifty the other brands/fans will bash it but these things usually end up being copied. Now if Ford or Dodge would build something similar to this I'd be sold.

@ Bob - since you are so obsessed with Ford truck box heights combined with the fact that you believe that big duffus Howie Long, I'll set the record straight for you.

F150 box depth - 22.4 inches
GM 1500 box depth - 21 inches

Ford F150 - 1.4 inches deeper.

Tailgate load height (tailgate down)
Ford F150 - 34.6 inches
Gm 1500 - 33.8 inches

Ford f150 - 0.8 inches taller

Seems to me that for most average sized guys there isn't a big difference.
Do you actually own a truck?
Like I said before: you must have really short legs as you keep tripping over your little dangling bowtie.

@ Bob - Just out of curiousity, I looked at HD specs. I just wrote down the data for F250 or 2500 crewcab 4x4's.

F250 box depth - 20 inches
GM 2500 box depth - 21 inches

GM box depth - 1 inch deeper

F250 tailgate load height - 35 inches
GM 2500 tailgate load height - 37.8 inches

GM load height 2.8 inches higher

So GM lies their ass off to make fun of features they do not have.

GM`s website is full of lies.
TruckTrend `Whale Watching` stated that GM does not claim any responsibility for the accuracy of their comparison tools. They have glaring discrepancies to make their products look better.
http://www.trucktrend.com/features/consumer/163_1010_whale_watching_the_comparison_test/irresponsible_comparison.html

I do not trust anything that GM corpse says or does.
There are another 260 billion reasons not to trust them as well.

Oh Bob, you haven't noticed? The box height is much higher on this concept than the current trucks. That is why the window on the rear door curves up. Looks like GM is moving away from their sales pitch of "lower is better." Looks like you might need that "man step" afterall. :) Now you will have to start saying how you like this feature! Because you love everything about GM no matter what. Anyhow, although the F150 has the higher box height, the current Super Duty does not. So if you were consistent in your arguments (but you aren't), you will be be buying a Super Duty instead of a 2012/3 Silverado HD.

They were referring to the height of the bed rail and on the ford it is a lot higher to reach over when standing next to the truck than it is on the Chevy. That is why ford needs a side step to reach items in the bed. The Silverado is much easier to reach items in the bed when standing next to the vehicle.

The GMC concept truck does sit much higher than a stock truck and that is why side steps are a great idea.

Here's some stats for you,

best fuel economy in a half ton pick up truck? GM
most horsepower and torque in a half ton? GM
GM doesn't have to lie about features or specs on their trucks. Oh, did I mention the Durmax beat the powerjoke in every performance catagory you can mention, even if it is rated lower in horsepower and torque!

Apart from the concept sitting higher, the bed walls are also higher, look at it in proportion to the windows. It's higher up than current Chevs and GMCs. Bob, quit the name calling. It doesn't make you look any better.

@Bob- Do you work for the accounting department at GMC?

If you want p/u box lift over height all you need to do is add tailgate height to the box depth.

I'll do the math for you:

F150 - 22.4 + 34.6 = 57 inches
GM 1/2 - 21 + 33.8 = 54.8 inches

F150 - 2.2 inches higher lift over height

F250 - 20 + 35 = 55
GM 3/4 - 21 + 37.8 = 58.8 inches

GM 2500 - 3.8 inches higher lift over height

There is the math for you.

Looks like GM's HD's need the man step more than the Ford HD's.

The reason ford offers a side step on their trucks is because the height of the bed rails is much higher on the ford than the GM. No fuzzy math in the world will change that fact lou. They are not talking about bed depth, so quit trying to say that ford and gm are very close. stand next to a ford f-150 and next to a gm half ton pickup and see for yourself louie.

That is what Howie Long was referring to and not bed depth.

Hay Louie, GM'S trucks don't need the "Man Step" because real men drive GM trucks. Little girlie men drive ford trucks and need a man step to get in the ford trucks.

Lou, you and ford deserve eachother because your both losers! have a nice day now.

I'll take a manstep any day of the week. At least my ford will be around in 15 years..

Dan thats if you won't drive it.

"The reason ford offers a side step on their trucks is because the height of the bed rails is much higher on the ford than the GM. No fuzzy math in the world will change that fact lou." - Bob

So much higher????? Here I will show you it is not.

A scam that GM uses in their video to mislead you on comparing bed height, is to compare different bed/cab configurations. GM compares the height of the Chevy short bed crewcab to Ford's F-150 supercab 8' long bed truck. The key here is Ford's heavy duty 8' long beds are almost 3" higher than Ford's short bed crewcab. GM doesn't want you know that because it will expose their bed rails height comparison as being a lie.

Here is the real comparison comparing short bed crewcab to short bed crewcab:

Ford F-150: open tailgate to ground: 33"
Ford F-150: pickup box depth 22.4"
http://www.ford.com/trucks/f150/specifications/

Using Lou's numbers for the GM since I wasn't able to find it.
GM: open tailgate to ground: 33.8"
GM: pickup box depth 21"

Bob, Total height of the bed rails can be found by adding the tailgate open height to the box depth.

Ford total height of the bed rails: 33 + 22.4 = 55.4" high
GM total height of the bed rails: 33.8 + 21= 54.8

Ford F-150 side bed rail height is only .6" higher or about a half inch!

Is a half inch a jump shot, Howie and Bob????

What about the tailgate? As for needing the man step because Ford is higher, GM's tailgate is .8" HIGHER THAN FORD.

Either way you slice it GM is just a big crybaby. They can't beat the competition in features so they have to make up lies. Then a few years down the road GM copies those same features (steps, boxes, heated stearing wheels) and hope everyone forgot how GM was bashing these features when they were on the competition's trucks.