Information About GMC Sierra Hybrid Truck

The 2005 GMC Sierra Hybrid is really just a regular old GMC Sierra 1500 truck, but with integrated starter and generator (ISG) and regenerative braking. With the ISG, the engine shuts off at stoplights and instantly starts when you step on the gas. The regenerative braking means you never have to plug it in. This vehicle was a valuable learning tool for GM; it learned it must go deep into hybrid technology or go home.

The GMC Sierra truck for sale looks like a conventional extended cab Sierra 2WD pick up truck with big stick-on graphics on both the side and the rear tailgate. These proclaim the vehicle’s hybrid-ness. But this one is not really a hybrid. At least, it’s not what the world thinks of as a hybrid. It has really only two pieces of what can be labelled true hybrid technology: the integrated starter and generator (ISG) and regenerative braking. Oh, and you can also plug large electric power tools into two sockets near the back of the box and run them off the battery pack. But that feature hasn’t got all that much – if anything - to do with this being or not being a hybrid.

This Sierra won’t attract the high school set with its regular size wheels, a 4-speed automatic, conventional 5.3L V-8 engine (5300 Vortec) and unfashionably long box. Which would probably make it just about ideal for a tradesman or a farmer – especially if that person has to work on job sites that aren’t serviced with electricity. With the exception of the heavy sticker price, this one would seem to have almost everything you’d need or want in a working pick up truck.

It’s not really a hybrid. At least it’s not in the sense that the Lexus RX 400h and the Honda Accord Hybrid are hybrids. Like the Japanese (or real) hybrids, the GMC hybrid has regenerative braking and ISG. However, unlike them, it only has a small (42W) battery pack. The sole purpose of the battery pack seems to be to re-start the engine at stoplights and, of course, to power the APO, which will be of use to many tradesmen and farmers.

It’s very comfortable for two adults. But more can actually fit in. With back-hinged (suicide) doors providing easy access to the small but practical-sized rear bench, two full-size adults could sit back there in relative comfort for short trips.

The GMC Sierra Hybrid truck drives like a regular 2WD GM Sierra pickup most of the time, which shouldn’t come as much of a surprise since that’s what it is. The major difference between driving the regular Sierra and the Hybrid can be felt when you’re stopped for more than a few seconds – like at a traffic light – the engine shuts off and what you’ve got is complete silence. This can be eerie at first, especially if you’ve never driven any other hybrid vehicle. Then the instant you step on the gas pedal, the engine fires back to life and you’re off.

The second big difference is regenerative braking. When you take your foot off the gas – for example, when you’re descending a hill or even a modest grade - you feel a slight drag. That’s the system collecting the energy from the slowing vehicle and storing it in the battery pack for future use. This too can be off-putting at first. Finally, you have to be wary when you’re stopped on a grade because with this system, the auto transmission won’t hold the vehicle from rolling backwards. You have to keep your foot on the brake to prevent smacking into the car behind.

But even this modest or hybrid-light system should return 10% - 12% better fuel economy than the regular Sierra V-8.The GMC Sierra Hybrid truck is an important transition vehicle for GM. When the current fuel consumption regulations were enacted back in the mid-1970s, light trucks accounted for perhaps 20% of new vehicle sales and farmers and other business owners mostly used them. However for the past few years well over 50% of the vehicles GM has been selling in North America have been light duty trucks, a category which includes pick up trucks, minivans and SUVs. The majority of these have been purchased by families.