Just curious if anyone knows if there are any differences between GMC and Chevy trucks. It seems I have heard that GMC has better quality in their materials or craftsmanship or something.
Branding and possibly materials but that depends on trim level you seek. Craftsmanship is likely the same as they may be built at the same factory.
I will saw my mum had an 1988 “GMC” Suburban on title that had some Chevrolet labeling on it likely by mistake by factory workers.
The volume of these models is low enough that they have to be produced on the same assembly ine; so the diffenrnsce is imaginary.
Before they phase dou the big Chev Impala, it and the large Buick and the Cadillac were really clones, exept for exterior styling. Ditto for Lincoln Town car, Ford Crown Victoria,and Mercury Grand Marquis.
Years ago I worked fo Outboard Marine Corporation who made Johnson and Evinrude outboard motors. Aside from the shroud and the paint they were identical. We were always amused by someone at the Boat Show swearing that a Johnson was not as good as an Evinrude. The same model was sold by Sears under their name.
The only difference is the amount of chrome and the marketing. The GMC version markets to commercial applications, Chevy to the general public. Same truck.
The lettering is about the only difference.
There haven’t been any differences in Chevrolet and GMC trucks for a long time. However, back in the 1940’s through at least the early 1960’s there was a difference. The GMC trucks used a 6 cylinder engine with a larger displacement than the engine used in the Chevrolet trucks. I think that the GMC truck engine may have been around 261 cubic inches as opposed to 216 or 235 cubic inches in the Chevrolet. I remember reading about swapping out the engine from a Chevrolet passenger car of the early 1950’s with a GMC truck engine. Apparently it would bolt right in and this was called a “Jimmy” mill. When the Chevrolet introduced the 265 cubic inch V-8 engine in the pick-up truck line in 1955, this was the newly introduced V-8 engines on the Chevrolet cars. GMC introduced a 287 cubic inch V-8 in its pick-up line in 1955 and it was the Pontiac engine–much different than the Chevrolet engine. It also seems to me that GMC offered a V-6 in its pick-up trucks in the late 1950’s or early 1960’s, while the Chevrolet 6 cylinder pick-up was an inline engine. Also, the GMC pick-up introduced the GM Hydramatic transmisssion to its line of trucks in 1953–Chevrolet didn’t offer an automatic transmisison option in its pick-up trucks until 1954. Even so, the Chevrolet automatic was the GM Hydramatic. However, for at least the last 25 years, the Chevrolet and GMC have been the same except for nameplate.
As a side note, back in the late 1930’s, Chrysler corporation offered a pick-up truck with the Dodge nameplate and the Plymouth nameplate. The trucks were almost identical in appearance, but the Dodge engine had a somewhat larger displacement.
Except for trim, they are the same truck.
While this is not true for all years the Silverado is made in the USA and Mexico. The Sierra is made in Mexico. The first 3 digits of the vin is called the WMI or WORLD MANUFACTURER IDENTIFIER code. The first digit is the country of origin. The Silverado is made in the USA and the vin starts with “1”. The Sierra (most if not all) vin starts with a “3” so that means it is made in Mexico.
Just got back from auto show. They had a Silverado made in Mexico and the Sierra was made in Canada. There are 2 or 3 factories for this vehicle.
Back in 84 when I bought my S-15…The day I picked it up the salesman showed me a S-15 that just came in. It was fitted with a S-10 tailgate.
GMC and the comperable Chevy truck are made in the same plant using the same parts and same workers. They are IDENTICAL trucks.
Thanks for the updates guys! GM has complete flexibility as to where to build vehicles; in fact plant managers bid on a production schedule of several years for a particular car or truck. Having said that, the best North American plant GM has is the Oshawa, Ontario plant in Canada. One of their worst ones was (now closed, I believe) Tonawanda, New York, and also one in Massachusetts.
Although the plants likely all use parts from the same source, the assembly quality varies quite a bit from plant to plant.
Ford’s best plant is Hermosillo, Mexico, where the Fusion is built, I believe. Their Oakville, Canada plant also prodcues a good quality product; the new Edge and its Lincoln twin crossovers are built there.