2015 GMC Sierra 1500: Big Red Island Adventure

If you can't afford a boat, then Prince Edward Island's rural character almost cries out to be seen from behind the wheel of a pickup truck, as its small villages, rocky coastline, and bright red mud provide the perfect complement to the preferred ride of country folk across the country. A recent visit to Canada's smallest province saw me affirm my suspicions of how best to enjoy the Island's extensive network of two-lane and gravel roads when I was given the opportunity to commandeer a 2015 GMC Sierra 1500 for a week of Maritime exploration.

Canada's TARDIS

PEI occupies an unusual place in the space/time continuum where it sometimes feels like everything is close-by, and yet nothing is less than an hour's drive from your point of origin. Theoretically, one could slice a dagger across the heart of the province and go from tip-to-tip on the Trans-Canada in a matter of hours, but given the Island's rich history of fishing and sea-going glory, doing so would see you miss out on the vast majority of its modest settlements, which are clustered along the jagged edges of the map where the ocean meets the shore.

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The advantages of a vehicle like the 2015 GMC Sierra 1500 in coastal driving quickly presented themselves to me. For starters, the taller ride height of the full-size truck made it easier to appreciate the sights and sounds of both the Northumberland Straight and the sandier environs of Cavendish beach. It also offered a better vantage point to spot PEI's more unique attractions. Was that a giant Space Shuttle replica in the backyard of what appears to be a dinosaur museum? (Jurassic Bart's - and yes, it was). Does this particular rutted, red-dusted road take us directly to the ocean's shore where we can hunt for shells and crabs at low tide with the reams of Japanese tourists who flock to PEI, hoping to catch a glimpse of Anne of Green Gables? (Definitely). Is that really a Ferrari Testarossa parked in front of what looks like a trailer home? (Of course).

Store Your Booty

I also appreciated the versatility of the four-door crew cab GMC Sierra 1500 when it came to handling the various hauling and of course wardrobe-related demands my partner and I placed on it during our time together. Who needs a changing room at the beach when you've got collapsible rear seats and tinted windows in the back of your pickup? The same flip-up, split-bench design also made it easy for us to haul groceries back to the cottage, luggage home from the airport, and paper-bound treasures back from the several bookstores lined up side-by-side in downtown Charlottetown. Throw in comfortable captain's chairs up front and a new-for-2015 4G LTE Wi-Fi Internet hotspot (which proved to be more reliable than the wireless at our Island residence), and one could make an argument that camping in the Sierra's cargo bed might have been a more reasonable option than renting PEI real estate for the week.

Almost-There Drivetrain

There are a three engine options available with the 2015 GMC Sierra 1500 - a 4.3-litre V6, a 5.3-litre V8, and a later-in-the-year 6.2-litre V8. My tester was outfitted with the middle option, which offered up 355 horsepower and 383 lb-ft of torque sent through a six-speed automatic transmission. Four-wheel drive is optional with the Sierra, and was also outfitted to the truck I drove.

Prince Edward Island's interior might not be mountainous, but there were enough elevation changes on twisting back roads to call upon the full might of the 5.3-litre mill on a semi-regular basis. That the engine offers adequate power is not in question: I had no complaints about the acceleration provided by the GMC's eight-cylinder unit. Less impressive, however, was its six-speed gearbox, a design that is also offered with the truck's V-6. An occasional stumble and stutter at low speeds came through the accelerator pedal as the Sierra didn't seem sure as to which gear it should have selected. A saviour is on the horizon in the form of a much better eight-speed transmission will be available with the 6.2-litre motor when it appears in SLT and Denali trucks later in 2015, and I can only hope that its smooth act migrates to the rest of the Sierra's family of drivetrains soon afterward.

Holding Its Own

Every full-size truck on the market has a target painted in day-glo colours on its back, as the ruthless development cycle of one of the most profitable segments of the industry advances ever forward, knives out, in search of the next competitive advantage. From my comfortable driver's perch in pastoral PEI you wouldn't necessarily be able to tell that the GMC Sierra 1500 was engaged in a life-or-death struggle with also-excellent options from Ford, Ram, or Chevrolet, but the tension is real, and it's pushing truck builders to produce ever-better designs to tempt less-than-loyal customers to switch camps. With respectable towing, hauling, and fuel efficiency figures on its side - and a newly-found talent as a vacation tour guide - the GMC Sierra is deserving of attention from anyone currently in the market for a pickup.