3500 lbs towing capacity sounds reasonable from a unibody trucklet with a 4.9L V8 and the 2 Mode Hybrid system. Could be more without the Hybrid option, and with 4/AWD.

I see a lot of Ridgelines, so this will sell well if they make it.

The real question is why would a GM concept sketch have KUMHO tires?!?! An American car company can’t even put American manufactured tires on a concept sketch?

I fully expect that the production Denali XT will feature styling that is more practical and more conservative. I love the concept and I expect to like the production truck. GM needs to produce this vehicle in 2-door as well as 4-door versions. Buick-Pontiac-GMC does not need the G8 ST. Put the Holden badges back on that thing and keep it in Australia.

Based on the interior sketches, one thing that I really love about the GMC is that it marks a return to driver-oriented instrument panels. I am all for selling GM products on the world market. Unfortunately, manufacturers including GM adopted symmetric setups as a strategy to accommodate world markets on the cheap.

The GMC Denali XT shows that GM once again understands that its first priority is to design cars that accommodate drivers. All others come second.

Great job.
Comment by Richard, posted on February2 at 10:15 pm

I would think very little will change between this and a production model.

The wheels would be smaller 20in max off the lot. Which is fine to me. Anything over 20 inches would start to erode road handling and this machine would be perfect for some muscle car tuning.

The tail gate would lose relatively little but still retain the styling.

The headlights would likely not be banks of LEDs and the whole space, while going unchanged in shape, would lose the grating and add turn signals and/or running lights.

The grill would be more inline with current GMC offerings though aftermarket grills will be a dime a dozen in short order.

The mirrors would likely change but could still stay. Most buyers will not care if the mirrors fold or some such. Wiring for power mirrors would easily run through the supports.

The interior from the Youtube vids (Thanks F451), looks mostly doable. I would like to see the LED strips make production. I kinda’ doubt the steering wheel will make it and a few of the dash details.

Seeing the current crop of GM SUVs, the Denali XT looks mostly doable as is. There wouldn’t be much toning down if any. GM seems more willing lately to build what they show when they can. It is sad the VOLT got re-skinned, but the concept still lives and that, like this, is all that matters.

Those griping about how this is not “truck enough” for one reason or another are missing a very important point: Not every one wants a behemoth not needs to tow/haul tone of stuff frequently if at all. If you need a bigger truck go buy one. For those who could use the utility of a full P/U, I can’t fault them, but for those who want big machine but find most Trucks too big or just not their “cup of tea”, then this will make their day.

This is totally cool and I could see this over that Holden Pseudo-truck GM wants to sell under Pontiac’s banner. A waste, they should have stuck with the sport wagon.

Frankly I would get one.

Me, I’m different. I’d just rather buy a cheap used truck that I’m not scared to throw a yard of lime or crushed gravel into the back of.