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Pickup sales may hit 2M units for first time since 2007

Even as fuel prices creep back up, trucks are still a hot item among new-vehicle shoppers. To see how popular pickup trucks still are, you don't have to look any further than how much effort automakers put into the continual one-upmanship of their trucks. Backing this fact up, USA Today is reporting that the segment could top two million sales this year - a total not matched since 2007, though still far from the pre-recession, three-million-unit levels.
Through August, the Ford F-Series continues to be the segment leader with almost 500,000 units sold, but the Chevy Silverado (328,269), Ram 1500 (234,642), GMC Sierra (122,232) and Toyota Tacoma (110,293) are all seeing at least 20-percent sales increases, helping to account for around 1.44 million truck sales so far this year - not including possible outliers like the Suzuki Equator and Chevy Avalanche.
This year alone, General Motors has completely redesigned its fullsize trucks, Ram and Toyota have significantly updated their offerings, the next-gen Ford F-150 will be out next year and Nissan is promising an all-new Titan around the same time with an eventual Cummins diesel under the hood. It would seem, then, that truck sales are poised to continue their upward trend.

2020 GMC Sierra 2500 HD and 3500 HD spied on public roads

We saw spy shots of the Chevrolet Silverado HD a short time ago, and now it looks like GM has got the 2020 GMC Sierra Heavy Duty trucks running around in public too. The one we're looking at here appears to be a 2500 Denali Crew Cab, distinguished easily by the same Denali grille on the 2019 Sierra 1500. Aesthetic differences between the front fascias on the 1500 and 2500 HD are small, but the 2500 is a bit more muscular in the hood and lower trim treatment. GMC doesn't look like it's hiding a whole lot with this camouflage, since the sheets over the grille and headlights are mostly transparent. The black tarp over what appears to be a hood scoop leads us to believe it will have the same type of hood design as the 2018 HD. Other interesting bits revealed here are around the rear of the pickup. We can see the same interface for the MultiPro six-way tailgate on this truck as the 1500, so at least the Denalis will have the trick tailgate (we'd expect every trim to have it, though). Just like we saw on the Silverado, the Sierra HD gets the stepside feature just ahead of the rear wheels. LED taillights are clearly visible through the thin veiling, and GM's rear steps remain as well. in addition to this 2500 HD, our spy photographers also caught a 3500 HD model. This one isn't a Denali, as the grille shows its hand again. The grille is different than any of GM's designs on the new trucks we've seen thus far, actually. GMC showed us a teaser of what a new Silverado HD grille would look like months ago, but this differs even further than that. It looks rather minimalistic under the sheet for now, with strong horizontal slats. The actual shape and design of the truck is revealed for the most part, since it's just wearing a thin body wrap. Its mirror design appears to be different from last year's, as the arm is completely solid. A sidestep right in front of the rear wheels carries over from the 2500 HD too. We imagine both this truck and the Silverado HD will debut early next year during auto show season. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Next-gen Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra may use carbon fiber

It's been generally accepted that the next generation of full-size GM trucks will use some sort of strong, lightweight material for the beds while retaining steel for the cab. While aluminum seems like the most obvious choice, according to Automotive News, the Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra will incorporate both aluminum and carbon fiber in their beds. The publication cites sources from within GM, though it seems the introduction of this comparatively exotic material mix is still a few years off. While carbon fiber is both stronger and lighter than steel and aluminum, it takes significantly more time and money to produce, essentially relegating the material to small-volume cars. The main benefit for trucks is the resulting reduction in weight to improve fuel economy without sacrificing the tough, rugged capabilities truck buyers expect. The Ford F-150 made the switch to aluminum for the 2015 model year and it's proved highly successful. It seemed like it was only a matter of time before the competition followed suit. Automotive News says that the next-gen trucks will launch with aluminum beds and that it will take a couple of years before we'll see any carbon fiber incorporated into the design. Even then, only look for the composite material on higher-trim models, with a trickle down to lower-spec trucks possible further in the future. In 2011, GM announced it was working with Japan-based Teijin Limited on a carbon fiber reinforced thermoplastic. There's a good chance that material's introduction will be on trucks. Related Video: News Source: Automotive News Plants/Manufacturing Rumormill Chevrolet GM GMC Truck