Faults:

Mechanically. Nothing.

Had a leaking transmission hose, replaced at dealership.

Had clicking steering gear dampener rings. Dealership denied this was happening, told service advisor to replace anyway. They were in fact, bad. There is a TSB out on them.

Has a rattle in the dash near OBD II sensor that is slowly driving me mad.

Drier line on A/C had pinhole leak. Replaced o-rings, seals, drier line and compressor. Paid for parts and 1/4 labor because of dealership's goofs.

General Comments:

It's a base model 4.3 crew cab 4x4. So gas mileage is okay, acceleration is there. Everything I haul can either fit in the bed or only towing a small single axle trailer. Has no issues hauling anything loaded on single axle trailer. No fancy options, just cruise control and Bluetooth. Vinyl floors and cloth seats, makes it great for cleaning up messes both from work and kids. First vehicle with vinyl floors and I'll never go back to carpet.

Engine idles smooth and runs well. Not the 5.3, so it doesn't really have the get up and go, but can pass a slow driver without a problem. Transmission is... whatever. It has phases and I'm just blaming the adaptive driving module in it. I drive mostly rural and highway without a lot of idling and mostly using cruise control. Very small amount of city driving. Sometimes the transmission operates flawlessly, sometimes it shifts hard, sometimes it shifts erratically. Took it to the dealership three times and they cannot find an issue. Sometimes when cruising around 45mph at low RPM, the truck shakes and acts like it's stuck in between gears. Could be a drive line issue, not sure, have learned to forget about the issue.

Truck rides stiff. Have rode in other GMC Sierra's from the same or newer year and mine definitely rides stiff. Seats are comfortable on long trips, plenty of leg and head room. GMC Intellilink is finicky, sometimes it doesn't want to pair up with my phone. Usually shutting the truck off and restarting solves the issue. I'm averaging around 17.9 MPG mixed, best I got was 18.1.

Starting to develop a tick at idle and acceleration, believed to be slight exhaust leak at manifold. Will check and advise when it gets louder.

That being said, it's a truck. A base model truck. It does exactly what I need, when I need it. Starts up on frigid mornings and keeps on going without an issue during the dog days of summer. Hauls stuff that needs to be hauled and can handle any task that I need done.

The headlights are kind of weird at night, it's like they're not big enough for the vehicle. I drove my coworker's 2014 Silverado and noticed a significant difference in night driving visibility. Forums online have suggested doing a 15/16 LED conversion off a SLT or Denali model. Waiting for price of used headlights to go down; current price is around $450 USD for ONE used headlight assembly.

Oil filter is in a good spot, but is tight against the oil pan. Only a strap wrench will fit, however, a stabilizer bar and cross member is in your line of leverage which makes taking the oil filter off a pain. Tightening is also annoying since there isn't enough clearance to get a firm grasp on the filter to hand tighten. When the oil drains from the pan, it hits another stabilizer bar and makes a big ol' mess in the garage. Have extra rags and some sawdust around for clean up. Basic maintenance on the truck is easy and affordable.

Passenger side seat gets off track if you slide the seat all the way forward. Usually takes some caressing and cussing to get it to work again.

Plastic trim pieces fall off easily but go back on with ease. Door panels and seat backs scratch easily.

Faults:

- Alloy wheels began pitting and losing chrome finishes. Got a bit ugly. They also warp quite easily surprisingly and do not hold tire beads well. This also caused issues with valve stem seats on two of the wheels

- Over-cycling thermostat caused a cracked radiator so the truck leaked coolant. Luckily GM put out a social coverage TSB on it and provided replacement under power train warranty coverage (VERY VERY quietly I might add, but I was able to find it after a lot of digging online; my dealer hadn't even heard of it but I gave them the info I researched and sure enough it existed).

- Infotainment was occasionally intermittent. Turning truck off and turning back on usually solved it.

General Comments:

Overall a good truck, but not without faults and frustrations. Honestly, with the exception of the thermostat issue, which would have been a $1500+ fix had I not been able to find the TSB special coverage warranty code, the truck was very reliable and served me well. The remote start was wonderful in extreme weather (as it automatically turned on interior climate control) and the creature comforts of the truck were certainly nothing to shake a stick at - and it had a lot of them. Reverse camera, puddle lights, side steps, heated leather seats and steering wheel, BOSE stereo, XM, the list goes on. Two of my favorites: The power rear sliding window and spring assisted tailgate were GREAT. That said, the Bluetooth connectivity was pretty pathetic. Only worked properly about 60% of the time. I eventually just stopped using it because it was so frustrating.

Performance was... OK. It was good enough for a heavy pickup, but sometimes the transmission would get confused and not shift/kickdown properly. Unfortunately, and probably worst of all, the active fuel management (AFM, cylinder deactivation) was cool at first, but eventually I came to hate it. Made the truck feel clunky and hesitant, on top of burning about a quart of oil every 5-7k miles. Plus, it did not net me much fuel mileage improvement over previous trucks. Average was about 16 MPG and I did mostly highway driving. Sometimes I could crest 20 MPG but only if I was really, really trying. Not even worth it in my opinion over the full-time V8, especially an LS.

Weather did not stop this truck. Point it at snow and drive. HOWEVER, the traction control and stability control cannot be fully disabled. Stability control will automatically turn itself back on if it detects 'excessive' slipping and will start cutting fuel in an attempt to regain traction. Also very frustrating after you tell it to turn off. Standing water and large puddles were no problem getting through though.

Comfort was good. Seats were supportive but still soft enough. Back seats had OK room but I didn't expect greatness since it was the double cab, not the crew cab. Visibility was also great (because of course it was). Handling was OK. Not great, but it's a pickup so this isn't the vehicle to buy for great dynamics.

And 'OK' was kind of the theme to this truck. It did most everything well enough but it wasn't... fun. It was boring honestly. It lacked a certain quality that made me like it beyond its good looks. It was good to have for a while and it served its purpose, especially when it had to do 'truck things', but I don't miss it, which is a shame. I will likely be looking elsewhere for my next pickup.