2024 GMC Sierra 1500 Denali Ultimate Interior Review: The Luxury Pickup You Won’t Want to Get Dirty

Today's pickup trucks are rolling superlatives, with the top trims being more opulent luxobarges than humble work tools, and the uber-luxe 2024 GMC Sierra 1500 Denali Ultimate is no exception. In GMC parlance, this Sierra's two trim names ("Denali" and "Ultimate") denote its top-of-the-totem-pole placement. In short, it is the Denali-est Sierra 1500 Denali on sale.

As we succinctly put it in our first drive review, the Denali Ultimate is what you get if you simply went on the Sierra 1500 configurator and checked all of the boxes. It's basically the Maybach of pickups, and once you rocket into these stratospheres, you almost don't want to treat it like a truck at all.

Money, Please

To best illustrate this point, we'll start by working backwards, starting with the truck's MSRP and what that nets you.

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In total, the test vehicle GMC sent rings up to $85,540. Standard hardware includes a full safety suite, Denali premium suspension with adaptive ride control, a two-speed transfer case, a trailering package, a trailer brake controller, a 13.4-inch infotainment touchscreen with Google compatibility, wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, a Bose 12-speaker sound system, a 15-inch head-up display, digital rearview mirror, wireless charging, full grain leather seats, dual-zone climate, 16-way powered front massage seats, heated seats all around, ventilated front seats, and a leather-wrapped steering wheel.

The additional $3,000 in options amounts to the Duramax 3.0-liter turbodiesel engine, Downpour Metallic exterior paint, and the Super Cruise subscription. It is as fully loaded a truck as you can get.

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The Hits

Because of its open-pore wood and gratuitous use of the color brown, the Denali Ultimate is like a cozy log cabin on wheels. You're enveloped by soft leathers that aren't quite as buttery as what you'd find in a BMW but are still quality to the touch. The off-white, cream-colored stitching also offers a nice contrast; it can make it feel like you're sitting in a giant baseball mitt, if you're into that sort of thing. Thankfully, there's very, very little fingerprint-attracting piano black trim used throughout and there are physical controls for volume and climate functions.

The infotainment screen is bright, crisp, and straightforward to use. That it is well-integrated into the dashboard is just another plus. Having Google Maps running natively is a good touch, too, because it's an interface most are familiar with.

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At speed, the cabin is serene and well insulated against road noise, despite the big tires. The seats are comfortable even after a few hours of nonstop driving and rear-seat passengers will surely appreciate the addition of heated cushions on colder days. Legroom is generous for all, as are the various cubbies. We particularly appreciated the two gloveboxes. Hey, the truck is huge so it might as well but all that space to good use.

Super Cruise works as spectacularly as it always does, with its automatic lane-change feature buzzing the driver's seat gently before it makes a move.

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The Misses

In the face of all the things the Denali Ultimate does well, it only has a few fumbles.

There issomepiano black trim, and it's unfortunately located around a high-touch area: the climate controls. This got grubby fast and will continue to do so no matter how faithfully you clean it. The front-seat massage function is nice, but rather than being separately controlled by either a seat toggle or the touchscreen, you have to use the toggle to navigate a confusing screen menu. The truck's Google Maps failed to successfully navigate us out of the off-the-beaten-path place that is Brooklyn and maintained we were nine miles north of where we actually were for almost the entirety of our trip. Also, the windshield wiper controls are located on the end of the turn signal stalk, so you can sometimes accidentally activate them when you signal.

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From the front seat, it's easy to pretend the Denali Ultimate isn't a pickup at all but rather a luxury SUV. However, backseat comfort is nowhere near as good, and feels noticeably more bench-like.

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Finally, the auto-retracing and deploying running boards are a nice idea, but we wonder if having them on a pickup exposes them to a higher risk of damage.

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The Verdict

It's tough to imagine anyone hauling anything dirty in the cabin of a Denali Ultimate. The interior is simply too nice to scuff up. But, seeing as the trend of treating pickups as luxury vehicles is alive and kicking, it's likely no one will be hauling much of anything in these trucks anyway.

Asking the point of this truck is moot; what matters is much of this country has wide, sweeping roads where a mammoth, hugely capable, rolling sofa of a vehicle makes sense. Real-world utility aside, the GMC Sierra 1500 Denali Ultimate offers a damn fine place to sit and hang out. It nicely walks the line between offering enough features to feel upscale and showing enough restraint to not be overwhelming. And its hits far outweigh its misses.