When it launches later this year, the 2019 Sierra Denali will feature a new suspension control technology called Adaptive Ride Control (ARC).
GMC tells us that ARC delivers “premium driving refinement with exceptional responsiveness”, with “a high level of primary vehicle motion control, but with better ride isolation”. The system consists of three components:
- Active dampers that are individually controlled every two milliseconds in a continuous range between the softest and firmest damping
- Relative wheel-to-body position sensors at each wheel
- A dedicated control unit with integrated sensors that detect heave, pitch and body roll motion
Damping is adjusted at each individual wheel when the Sierra is cornering, braking and accelerating, and damping rates will change when Sport mode is selected by the driver, or automatically when the system detects heavy trailers or large payloads.
Not Magnetic Ride Control
Don’t let the name fool you: Adaptive Ride Control (GM RPO code Z45) is not just another name for GM’s incredible Magnetic Ride Control, since ARC does not use magnetic dampers/magneto-rheological fluid. Instead, it uses different (and perhaps less sophisticated) active dampers.
Think of Adaptive Ride Control as Magnetic Ride Control “light”. Another way to look at it is that of a version of Continuous Damping Control, which is available on GM cars like the Buick Regal and LaCrosse and crossovers like the Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT4 and XT5, as well as the GMC Acadia, but adapted for the requirements of a pickup truck.
GM’s decision not to use the world-famous and universally-vaunted MagneRide system on the 2019 Sierra Denali is a head scratcher, especially given that the last-gen, K2 platform Sierra Denali was equipped with Magnetic Ride Control (RPO code Z95) as standard, with the truck often regarded as the best-riding and best-handling truck in the world because of it.
With some skepticism, we’ll reserve judgement until we experience Adaptive Ride Control for ourselves in the 2019 Sierra Denali during an upcoming media drive, and will report back on our findings then. In the meantime, stay tuned to GM Authority as we uncover more details about GMC’s all-new Sierra.
Availability
Adaptive Ride Control is assigned GM RPO code Z45.
It is standard only on the 2019 Sierra Denali and is not available on any other trim level or equipment group.
In addition, the feature is not available on any trim level of the 2019 Silverado 1500.
GMC Sierra Resources & Info
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Comments
I am shocked you have not sampled the other versions of this system nor understand where it comes from.
I have it on the Acadia and it is a very good system. It is a very active system and works to counter bumps and dips. It also stiffens the loaded side of the vehicle to control body roll.
It also acts with the vehicle settings and can stiffen up in sport mode.
It is a system from ZF and is similar to what is used on some top models in Europe.
The system works about as well and is lower cost to offer and cheaper to repair for the customer.
we almost bought the Acadia with out and by luck found one at a good price and it was worth the added cost. The option price is only $1200 on the Acadia but we got the vehicle for just $400 more than the identical Acadia with out the suspension.
My Acadia in sport mode drives like a GXP Bonnie but with a better ride. It is more touring car like.
I even had a loaner Acadia to ours for my truck and I could compare them back to back and it is worth the money.
I’m shocked that you’re either misunderstanding what is written or are being inflammatory on purpose and for no reason. Not to worry, I’m delighted to set you straight.
The system being used on the 2019 Sierra Denali has never been used in any other GM vehicle. It is somewhat similar to Continuously Variable Damping, but is far from being the same.
So not only is it the case that I fully understand this system and its origins, but you are the one who doesn’t understand the topic at hand, as nobody outside GM employees has sampled it.
Now, even if ARC were the same as CDC (which it is not), then it would behave completely differently in a truck application, also meaning that nobody has tried it outside of GM engineers and those currently driving the capture test fleet (in which there are 12 Denalis).
So in conclusion: you are completely wrong because:
1. Adaptive Ride Control is similar but not the same as CDC.
2. You have never driven a vehicle with Adaptive Ride Control, despite being aware of CDC.
3. I have driven a Regal equipped with CDC for a year as part of the GM capture test fleet, and therefore have a very good understanding of this technology, which ARC is not.
4. This is the only article that brings attention to ARC in the new Sierra… as most of the world thinks that ARC is Magnetic Ride Control on the new Sierra Denali.
I’ll let you come back and try again. Hopefully your follow-up will have a less pompous tone… though I’m sure you will start off bemoaning that I misunderstood you, and am taking your comment “personally” (believe me, I’m not), and all that jazz.
Right or wrong you don’t have to be a condescending prick, Alex.
I’ve grown tired of reading your snap back often exxagerations of articles and responses. You strike me as a magazine car guy who has little to no working knowledge of what you claim to be an expert on.
Arctic – you sadly mistook sarcasm and personality for condescension and “prickiness”.
It is even sadder that you consider standing up to a wrong comment that attempts to improperly disparage one’s work and credibility as something bad or as a negative quality. According to you, I should just take it lying down… right? Wrong.
I happen to know exactly what I’m talking about and I make no excuses for it, because I’m a professional who does this for a living and who has worked in this industry for a solid decade (which in my case is the length of my career). That’s not to say I know it all… far from it… but when it comes to this particular story, it is the product of much research and journalistic legwork that has gone on for the last month.
It is even more ironic that you have taken issue with my tone, despite it matching the tone initiated by scott3… no more and no less.
So that’s really it then – according to you, someone in my position should be all smiles, while getting kicked in the teeth and being accused of not being informed or understanding the topic at hand, despite reality being completely the opposite Sorry, but not in this case and not here.
By the way, who asked you to provide your opinion about me in the first place? It’s ironic that you feel the need to throw around subjective comments that are highly judgmental and condescending (about another person – myself – whom you do not know and have never even met), but yet you take issue with others (myself) from making comments in direct response to another comment, while making the slightest attempt to make overarching statements about that person.
So should we talk about that… or perhaps we could talk about what I think about your comment, or what you come across as?
Thank you for further proving my point as to the egomaniac type of person you are.
It’s getting harder and harder to find decent car sites.
“It’s getting harder and harder to find decent car sites.”
Don’t confuse replies associated to your personal opinion with the quality of GM Authority as a publication. Lest I remind you that no other “car site” has covered this particular feature.
“Thank you for further proving my point as to the egomaniac type of person you are.”
Meanwhile, nobody here has thrown any labels your way… but I’m glad you continue to see the need to label and slur others.
So maybe the issue is the quality of you as a visitor/reader, and not the site?
This particular feature was mentioned and noticed months ago. You guys ate dissecting the announcements and making every line into a new topic to spread over the last few months ago. I have no problem with this, but it isn’t something new you guys discovered.
As a writer/ moderator / etc it would be a lot more professional if you didn’t get right in the mud with someone who disagrees or doesn’t like what you say. These sites are full of people who can really drag the site down. My point is that when the site (and in this regard you are representing the site) joins in it can really wreck the experience. If you are a teacher for a 3rd grade class and the kids are screaming and pulling each other’s hair, are you going to too?
Please show me where this feature was noticed months ago, and especially where it was explained how it works and that it is different from Magnetic Ride Control.
And as for getting in the mud: it’s not about that at all. It’s about correcting a comment that is false and untrue. But standing up for oneself and correcting a falsehood is apparently not a virtue or quality that you agree with or value.
Please do not confuse professionalism with setting the record straight.
That said, one would think that calling people names as you did falls under the category of “dragging the site down”.
Here’s the bottom line: I made a semi-snarky reply to a comment that was factually incorrect. You made an emotional reply to a comment that you personally did not like. There is a vast difference between the two. In retrospect, I should have just deleted your replies in the first place, but didn’t – letting you fight a non-battle in public. That is professionalism.
Either way, this ridiculous conversation ends here.
Guys just let it go.
I am ok with Alex.
This is the web and it can be cold, impersonal and misunderstood.
Forums are a place for opinion, debate and passion and it can get blunt.
I posted my reply to Alex below and I hope he understands where I was coming from.
The typed word holds little emotion and at times can add more meaning then expected or intended.
I know doing web work is tough to and often it is a part time or under paid work. Too often unpaid.
if you plan to be on the web you have to learn not to be overly sensitive or take it too personal. Also you need to try not to hold grudges.
The anonymous nature of the web also has a part to play in all this too.
Alex usually does well with his stories here, Most are good but no one hits a home run every time and I mean all of us no matter what we do.
Bravo Alex!
It is about time someone told scott3 to take a seat.
Scott, buddy… There are so many different ways to talk and discuss our favorite vehicles but the way you do it pretty much always involves instigating and trying to put someone else down.
Youre like the wanna be know it all who everyone turns away from any time you enter a room because its impossible to have a decent conversation with you without being insulted.
It’s realy sad too cuz your comments are often good but the way you deliver them just plain out sucks. I cringe every time I see your handle show up in the replies. You must have some kind of inferiority disorder to be like this.
Also Alex – thank you for pointing out that the 2019s do not have magnetic ride. I work at a GMC dealer and everyone just assumed that adaptive ride system is a new name for magneRide. I’ll be sure to send this to all my guys for informational purposes.
Peace fellas
I was not being inflammatory I was just honestly taking this based on how it was written.
You stated “. Another way to look at it is that of an adaptation of Continuous Damping Control, which is available on GM cars like the Buick Regal and LaCrosse and crossovers like the Buick Enclave, Cadillac XT4 and XT5, as well as the GMC Acadia, but for the requirements of a pickup truck”
So I mistook this as being like the suspension my new Acadia Denali based on your statement.
That is all.
So you may want to re edit the story to better clarify what you really meant. As it is the statement I pasted here leads one to think different.
If you has stated. “The system being used on the 2019 Sierra Denali has never been used in any other GM vehicle. It is somewhat similar to Continuously Variable Damping, but is far from being the same”. Then it would not be confused with the first statement you wrote. Simple enough?
My shock [Pun intended] that I expected based on your reviews you had driven one of these systems before. I intended no ill will what so ever here. Just with the vehicles driven I assumed you had samples a few of them.
Maybe you will get the hang of this writing thing with some more experience. LOL!
Now that is Sarcasm. Yes I am just kidding.
Thanks ArcticDog It is the web it goes with the territory.
Thanks for clearing that up Alex.
On another note: my comments from 1st Aug re: American CUV sales falling, are still “awaiting moderation”? Can you advise why?
It’s my pleasure!
And it’s likely that your comments are awaiting moderation due to being caught up in our spam filters, which have been aggressive lately due to an increased amount of spam/bot comments over the last few months. I will look into it shortly and approve. Thanks for letting me know.
I don’t understand why GM limits its features on to certain models only. How come Silverado doesn’t have a Denali equivalent? High country is not the same, and GMC needs king Ranch competitor too.
Why does it take so long to catch up other guys? And when they do, they don’t leap frog? Yes there are some features that GM offers that other guys don’t but much more not when other guys do!
I had a CTS a decade ago with panoramic sunroof and some other goodies that GM is not still offering in 2019 trucks! Why??? Why are these things are limited to caddy’s and are not offered with these expensive trucks??
I have family who bought Ford over GMC for one reason “why should I spent same money and get less features, no 360 degree camera, no panoramic sunroof, no keyless start, etc.”
And one last thing, style! Who designed these trucks?
When Dodge put a cummins engine in there trucks in 1989, they some agreement with ford that so ford don’t use this engines, dodge can’t have a crew cab for 20 years, they had a crew cab before, and in 2009 as 2010 model, dodge also came up with a mega cab to at least offer something close to crew cab. My question is, does GM have something similar going on and that’s why they can’t use the features available today? Or what?
It’s possible the new system works better or lasts longer when the truck is loaded or towing. But then, this a trophy/Sunday truck, not what I’d call a working truck (I worked for a farm supplier for 20 years), so that probably isn’t critically important for most buyers.
I certainly won’t spend ~$1k on a new MRC shock for my DTS, when/if the time comes, and it’s not because it’s 10 years old.
Decalan, it annoys me too that you have to buy the top of the line to get a single, desirable feature , but I guess they all do that now. When I was young, you ordered nearly everything a la carte–and nearly everything was extra cost. Floor mats, FM radio, A/C.
Arctic – you sadly mistook sarcasm and personality for condescension and “prickiness”.
He wasn’t the only one. But it’s your site, you can drive viewers away if you want to.
If having a “real” conversation results in “driving viewers away”, then I’m ok with it.
What I don’t understand is what impact the aforementioned conversation has on you specifically.
It’s the tone and apparent lack of respect, plus my parents and extended family put a higher value on harmony than most (probably all modern ones). Unless that’s a very old pic, you may not be aware just how much the Boomers (guilty), TV, movies, and now internet anonymity have coarsened social discourse.
One of the political sites that I once visited lost other viewers (that I know elsewhere) because the owner increasingly belittled his disagreeing commenters. It adds up.
One reason I come to auto sites is for some relief from the noise. You may understand better when you’re also an old fart.
But, as I said, it’s your site, which I enjoy otherwise.
One wonders why develop this system unless it’s very cost effective and could be offered to all vehicles in the GM fleet costing under $40K leaving the Magnetic Ride Control for $40+K vehicles; there’s no discussion of how well this new Adaptive Ride Control functions in off-road conditions .
I have MRC on my 2016 Denali and love it. It clearly provides a better ride than what I got from my 2014 Sierra.. I know MRC works but does it work as well on pickup truck as it does on a Cadillac or a Vette? No idea but maybe GM found a better solution that was more suited for heavier vehicles (truck)s vs MRC for cars? Regardless, looking forward to hearing more about it.
Until. Someone delivers the tech details here we will have to wait and see just what we get.
I do have the ZF system in the Acadia and there is a marked difference between it and one with out.
I have not driven tha Truck version of the MRC but have sampled it in Other models mostly Vettes. It works well.
I do know with dealing with customers with crash damage and or failure they are not happy with the repair cost.
I checked my ZF system parts cost befor buying and it is not cheap but is cheaper. But for the difference in performance it is very acceptable as the bot work similar.
Now this is a different system after Alex clarified it so we need to see just what this offers.
Hoping it is significantly more reliable than MRC. Had to do my ATS’s front shocks at $1k per corner at under 50k miles (just over the 4 year warranty at that point; ). A specialty dealer I’ve helped with leasing told me MRC issues were super common among GM SUVs and that he prefers to only buy non-MRC K2XX’s for his dealership. Also had a GM buddy confirm all the longevity issues, we had a good laugh about it.
Reliability issues with MRC? Sure, they exist, but I don’t think they’re any more or less prominent than CDC systems, for instance. Although the repair costs for MRC is greater than the of CDC, that’s for sure.
Are MRC/CDC repairs generally covered by the extended warranties that dealers sell?
I highly doubt they would be covered by extended warranty. Magnetic ride control is a suspension component is considered a “wearable” item in which GM’s extended warranty does not cover the shocks in the current gen truck. I would assume it would be the same for the next gen also. If something were to malfunction within factory warranty I have seen GM replace them.
I can’t believe GMC dropped the adjustable foot pedals. I was ready to buy 2019 Denali, but this killed the deal. My wife is only 5′ and doesn’t want to sit right against the steering wheel to drive.