Starting in early June this year, the 2019 General Purpose Sierra pickup series will be offered in carbon fiber compartments, and the Sierra Denali 1500 and Sierra AT 4 1500 will be available in CarbonPro compartments. The CarbonPro compartment is made of GM's specially developed carbon fiber composite material, which has first-class dent resistance, scratch resistance and corrosion resistance.
GMC is committed to finding the right mix of materials, and through extensive testing, the pickup truck can withstand frequent shocks, loads and scratches. GMC vice president Duncan Aldred said: "CarbonPro uses the same raw materials as seven-figure supercars and even aerospace applications."
Compared with other pickup truck compartments, in addition to being more durable, scratch-resistant and corrosion-resistant, GMC carbon fiber compartments reduce weight by about 25% and reduce vehicle mass by approximately 27 kg. Because carbon fiber particles are a little rougher than painted steel and can withstand bumps and scratches without rusting the metal, no painting or other protection is needed.
The freight volume of the GMC Sierra pickup has been increased by one cubic foot (28.3 liters). This is because the carbon fiber requires less density (thickness) than the equivalent steel, so the cabin space is larger.
It is worth mentioning that GMC adds dents in the front of the cabin (cab side) to form a shape suitable for motorcycle tires, and adds more tethering positions for better fixing.
The new carbon fiber carriage successfully passed heavy and heavy load drop tests, including dropping cinder blocks from different heights, 816 kg of gravel, and 204 kg of water-filled steel drums to simulate what trucks might encounter in the real world.
A metal snowmobile was repeatedly loaded and unloaded into the truck compartment, including acceleration at full throttle, and the rider on the vehicle weighed 113 kg. Temperature tests in Arizona and Ontario ensure that carbon fiber can withstand extreme weather. Exhaust gas from a portable generator is used to direct heat to a certain part of the cabin to test actual wear resistance.