I spent sometime getting to know the outside of the Sierra today by giving it a quick wash. You tend to study fit
and finish, character lines and designs a little more closely when you’re washing and drying. It confirms my reasoning
in picking the GMC over the Chevy Silverado: I believe that it received the better of the two facelifts in 2004.
The GMC Sierra is not ?scowly? like the Silverado, not as overbearingly ?big-rig? as the Ram, not as in-your-face as
the Titan nor squarish like the Ford. It sits in the middle, the anti-brand truck – people have a ravenous ?hate? for
Ford, Dodge or Chevy, but no one aims to hate GMC. It?s all boils down to a matter of taste (or what symbol Calvin
is peeing on in your rear window). The 2004 facelift gave the GMC as more prominent grill and a stylized chrome
bumper.
The wheels are easy to clean and look good. Not too much chrome with an understated GMC symbol in the center cap.
You could fit a small child between the tire and wheel-well (probably not a good analogy), but that?s all the allure of
the 4×4; tall-ride height.
One wish I have at the rear of the truck is a locking tailgate. I know it sounds minimal, but
there are tailgate thefts (no, really) and it would give a little sense of security back there.
Believe it or not, the truck was a quick clean even though it has a lot of sheet metal to cover. Panel gaps look
good and the fit and finish is on par for the full-size truck market. One last day and the Sierra is
sayonara.