This interview comes from Vlad Y. from Post Falls, ID. Enjoy!
What is the Year, Make and Model of your truck?
2015 GMC Sierra 1500 Crew Cab SLE
What is your favorite thing about this truck?
The exterior and interior design.
What is one thing you don’t like about the truck?
Nothing really, just that it’s slowly showing signs of wear and tear, wish it would stay new and undamaged.
How did the truck become yours? Is there an interesting story?
Both of my neighbors had white GMC trucks with similar years, so I fell in love with the look of these trucks. Later, a local dealership got one on their lot, so with wife’s support/approval I bought it :)
How long have you had the truck?
4 years
Have you had to take it in for unplanned repairs? How often?
Couple years ago something major happened inside the engine, it got really noisy and really weak. Thankfully the warranty covered this whole issue. About a year ago the rear differential started leaking lots of oil. Took the truck in and told them that when I bought from them there was grass sticking out from rear wheel differential, they investigated, and confirmed that someone ran the truck into some dirt and damaged the seal and bearings in front of the rear wheel differential. Warranty covered all that too.
Have you noticed any rust or body defects develop?
The truck has been in couple small accidents other than that nothing is wrong.
How does it handle on turns?
The truck turns just fine while not in 4-wheel drive setting.
How is the torque and power on the truck?
This is V8 5.3L EcoTec3 VVT DI 6-speed Automatic with 355 Horse Power and 383 Torque, so it feels and sounds amazing. If I need to take off fast, it does exactly that.
Have you tried to tow anything with it? If so, how did it handle it?
Never towed anything with it yet.
When accelerating, does transmission shift gears smoothly?
Yes the transmission shifts smoothly most of the time. Once in a while after you get used to the truck you know when to release the gas pedal to let it shift smoother. I think all cars have this, once we get used to them, we just know how to treat the transmissions.
When driving on the freeway, how loud is the road noise in the truck? How about the interior shaking and rattling sound?
Maybe because this truck is still kind of new, only 7 years old, it’s pretty quiet everywhere and no rattling sounds yet thankfully :)
How is the road visibility when driving at night? Talk about the headlights, fog lights performance.
This is my first bigger truck so I always feel like I’m in a tank. The visibility, headlights, and fog lights are all great, no complaints.
How does the interior feel?
My truck has black leather interior with sexy white stitching throughout. Feels, smells, and looks great.
How do seats feel? Do they have heated seats? Do they heat comfortably?
Seats are nice and soft, passenger seat heater had to be replaced (by warranty). I’d rate the heating/comfort of seats somewhere at 8 out of 10.
How is the sound system quality?
Love the sound/bass quality. So far haven’t heard of anyone else’s stock car audio better than mine.
Would you recommend this truck to others? What would you say to someone if they were not sure if this is a good truck to choose?
I am on GMC trucks side 100% and will always recommend it when asked. Depending what people want to tow maybe choose 2500 or 3500 GMC, but for city 1500 is more than enough. Go ahead, compare and research, GMC trucks have the least complaints and breakdowns, just make sure to compare to similar type heavy trucks.
Do you have any interesting stories about the truck or anything involving the truck?
One thing I’ve noticed, multiple people, multiple times already, when they got into this truck they are surprised and pleased with its interior. I still have that feeling every time I get into it. It’s a pure joy to drive this awesomeness.
Anything else you would like to share?
When I bought the truck, I got the highest optional warranty with it. I believe all American and German vehicles should be under warranties all the time due to their poor quality (judging by close friends and personal experience). Yet the comfort, cool looks, and fun features are in most American and German vehicles.
Also, with recent crazy truck prices, I’m realizing I could make $10-20K on this truck, but I like it so much that I am not willing to give it up. I’d say this is a good proof of how awesome this truck is.
Valik loves tinkering in the garage and is currently restoring a 2000 GMC Sierra 1500 truck. He also writes about the progress on this blog. When not in the garage, Valik is also a web developer and a blogger. I know, strange, a hand in two completely different worlds. And that is the way he likes to keep it.
