GMC Canyon vs. GMC Sierra 1500
The GMC Canyon vs. GMC Sierra 1500 may come across your radar for people wanting a reliable and durable work truck this year. We have watched these pickup trucks evolve over the years, shifting into a more rugged, tech-filled, and comfortable ride experience for you and your passengers. Plus, they are two best-sellers for their respective brands. In this post, we want to break down the GMC Canyon vs. GMC Sierra 1500, including everything there is to know about these pickup models. Stay tuned, and let's get into this below!
Overview
Looking at the GMC Canyon vs. GMC Sierra 1500, both trucks are a nice size, offer seating for up to 5-6 people (Sierra offers up to six), start in the high $30s new, have perky base engines, and achieve decent towing capacities. Between them, the Sierra is bigger and offers more bells and whistles. You also have the GMC Canyon towing up to 7,700 pounds, while the Sierra 1500 sees a whopping max of 13,300. Think of the Canyon as the little sibling to the Sierra.
Exterior and Design
Looking outside the GMC Canyon vs. Sierra 1500, you have two rugged designs, with the Sierra being a tad bigger and bolder. Below, we will detail the dimensions for the latest generation of trucks to give you some perspective on their sizing.
GMC Canyon
- Length: 213.2 inches
- Width: 72.4 inches without mirrors, 84.4 inches with mirrors
- Height: 79.8 inches for the 2023 model, 80.4 inches for the 2024 model
- Wheelbase: 131.4 inches
GMC Sierra 1500
- Crew Cab, Short Bed: 231.92 inches long, 81.24 inches wide, and 75.49 inches high
- Crew Cab, Standard Bed: 241.45 inches long
- Double Cab, Standard Bed: 231.9 inches long
- Regular Cab, Standard Bed: 210.97 inches long
- Regular Cab, Long Bed: 229.7 inches long
Note: The Sierra 1500's height can range from 75.4 inches to 78.35 inches, and its wheelbase ranges from ~126 to 147 inches.
Bed and Cab Size/Configurations
For your bed size between the Sierra 1500 and Canyon from GMC, the Sierra is bigger with a 5 x 8 foot, 6 x 6 foot, or 8 foot bed, while your Canyon model comes standard with a 5 x 1 foot bed.
The cab size will be a regular, double, or crew cab for GMC Sierra shoppers and a standard crew cab for Canyon pickups.
Interior
The inside of the GMC Canyon vs. Sierra 1500 is different, with the Sierra offering more space at the front and rear. As we said before, the Sierra has seating for up to six people, so there is quite a bit of area inside, depending on your truck's configuration. The Canyon from GMC has always been more petite, but we wouldn't call it small or cramped.
Interior specs for the Sierra 1500 include everything from an available Bose audio system to a standard touchscreen display and HD Radio, wireless charging, available camera views, heated and ventilated front seats (a massage feature is available in newer models), a power sunroof, a power sliding rear window, and so forth. There are a lot of luxury features in a Sierra.
The GMC Canyon's interior features a large touch screen, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, cloth, CoreTec, and perforated leather seating materials, a six—or seven-speaker audio system, available remote start, a Wi-Fi hot spot, and more.
Engine and Performance
The engine specifications between a GMC Sierra 1500 and Canyon pickup truck start similar but vary more as you upgrade engines. The GMC Canyon has one engine in its current generation, the 310-horsepower 2.7-liter 4-cylinder Turbomax engine. The Sierra has a few engine configurations, including its base 2.7-liter turbo high-output four-cylinder, 5.3-liter EcoTec3 V8, 3.0-liter Duramax turbo diesel V6, and 6.2-liter EcoTec3 V8.
The Sierra has 305 to 420 horses, making it a much quicker choice for your pickup truck if you upgrade in engines.
Towing
The towing differences between a GMC Canyon vs. Sierra 1500 are also notable, with the Sierra beating the Canyon by nearly double towing capacity. We will break these figures down below per model.
GMC Canyon: The current-gen standard 2.7-liter Turbo High-Output engine has a towing capacity of 7,700 pounds, while the Canyon AT4X with Edition 1 Package can tow 5,500 pounds. For 2019/2020/2021/2022 Canyons, you see 3,500 to 7,000 pounds max towing between the available engines.
GMC Sierra: The Sierra can tow between 9,500 and 13,200 pounds, depending on the engine and trim level as of recent years. However, here are the towing figures for the past few models:
- 2022 GMC Sierra 1500: The towing capacity ranges from 8,800 to 13,000 pounds.
- 2021 GMC Sierra 1500: The towing capacity ranges from 7,400 to 11,800 pounds.
- 2020 GMC Sierra 1500: The towing capacity ranges from 6,600 to 12,100 pounds.
- 2019 GMC Sierra 1500: The towing capacity ranges from 6,500 to 12,200 pounds.
Fuel Economy and MPG
Your fuel economy and MPG for the GMC Canyon vs. Sierra 1500 pickups will be competitive. Base engines for either truck are your best fuel-efficient bet. The engines inside the Sierra and Canyon have changed over the years, so we will go by the latest-generation figures.
GMC Canyon: Up to 19 city / 23 highway MPG
GMC Sierra 1500: Up to 23 city / 29 highway MPG
Safety Features
The safety and technology inside the GMC Canyon vs. GMC Sierra 1500 will be similar at a standard level, as these are from the same brand. You can expect standard safety specs like:
- Lane departure warning, forward collision alert, rear park assist, and rear vision camera
Get the GMC Canyon and GMC Sierra 1500 at Tim's Truck Capital
Now that we have finished this GMC Canyon vs. GMC Sierra 1500 model comparison, there is no better used truck dealer to visit than Tim's Truck Capital right here in Concord, NH. We have plenty of pre-owned GMC trucks to shop for and will be here to answer your questions or concerns. Drive safe, and let's get you into the perfect pickup!
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