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2019 Sierra Features Only One Auto-Dimming Mirror

GMC’s all-new 2019 Sierra is loaded to the gills with new technologies, such as a very flexible tailgate, a carbon fiber box, task area lighting, and a rear camera mirror. But despite these high-tech features, the all-new truck soldiers on with only one auto-dimming mirror.

In other words, GMC’s all-new full-size pickup truck has the auto-dimming feature only on the driver-side exterior mirror, but not on its passenger-side counterpart, regardless of model, trim level, equipment group, or options package.

2019 GMC Sierra Passenger Side Mirror Not Auto Dimming

Why It’s Important

Auto-dimming mirrors provide the utmost convenience, comfort and safety, as they significantly reduce the light that is reflected off the mirror glass (produced by the headlamps of a following vehicle) and into the eyes of the driver.

The feature was introduced years ago in order to improve vehicle safety by:

  1. Eliminating instances in which the driver would become temporarily visually impaired by the light reflecting off the mirror.
  2. Eliminating distractions that require the driver to relocate his or her head to avoid the light reflecting off the mirror.
  3. Avoiding instances where the driver would not be able to use (look at) the side mirror because of strong light being reflected from the headlamps of the following vehicle.

Auto-dimming mirrors bring similar benefits to non-driving vehicle occupants (passengers), but the focus has been and continues to be on the driver.

Ultimately, having two auto-dimming mirrors is better than having only one – for drivers, owners and occupants alike.

2019 GMC Sierra Denali 1500 - First Drive - Exterior 008 - rear three quarters driver side

Why It’s (So Very) Disappointing

To truly comprehend why having only one auto-dimming mirror on the 2019 Sierra is so disappointing, we must first look to GMC’s role within General Motors.

For the last decade, GM has invested a significant amount of time, money and energy into positioning GMC as a premium-level brand that’s a cut above the rest… one that’s Professional Grade that enables you to feel Like A Pro thanks to offerings that go one step beyond normal. From that standpoint, not including a basic feature such as a passenger-side auto-dimming mirror is downright blasphemous on the part of the product planners.

Even more disappointing is the fact that this is the case regardless of which 2019 Sierra model one picks: the base Sierra model doesn’t have an auto-dimming passenger-side mirror, and neither does the range-topping Sierra Denali, which starts at a not-insignificant $58,000. At the least, the higher-trim models should have the feature standard, but alas they do not. The situation is a repeat of that seen on GM’s Cadillac current ATS and CTS models.

But wait, it gets even worse: the Sierra is one of GM’s best-selling and profitable vehicles, with GM turning a rather significant and hefty profit on every model it sells. The 2019 Sierra will be no exception to this due to two factors:

  1. A slight increase in price compared to the current, K2 Sierra, and
  2. An assortment of optional features and packages (like the aforementioned Rear Camera Mirror, CarbonPro Box, MultiPro tailgage, to name a few)

So despite a higher price, a passenger-side auto-dimming mirror did not make the cut. Meanwhile, other premium and luxury automakers have figured out ways to include two auto-dimming mirrors on their vehicles.

2019 GMC Sierra Denali 1500 Interior 007 - Bind Spot Zone Alert

Not Breaking The Habit

Equipping only the driver-side mirror with auto-dimming functionality has been a long-time GM tradition, with every single Sierra generation foregoing the auto-dimming function for the passenger-side mirror.

It’s quite concerning when you consider that the truck is equipped with the same mirror technology today as it was two decades ago in 1999, when the first-generation Sierra launched. Though the crimes of older GM products under “Old GM” management were understandable and ultimately written off as mistakes, their repetition by the “New GM” is concerning.

2019 Silverado, Too

Right about now, you may be wondering whether the Sierra’s corporate brother – the 2019 Silverado – is also in the some boat, and the answer is yes. We will cover the Chevy’s issues in a subsequent installment.

GMC Logo on grille of 2019 GMC Sierra Denali 1500 015

The GM Authority Take

The tradeoff GM chose to make on such a basic part/feature is significantly disappointing, especially for a premium-level product like the Sierra. Perhaps a better way to describe the Sierra, then, is a product that is marketed as being premium, but is instead quite mainstream in reality. And that is a shame, since the 2019 Sierra does so many things well and gets so many other things so right, with the cabin and other details (such as the passenger-side mirror) being particular exceptions.

So here’s to hoping something changes to rectify this… though instituting a directional change at an enterprise like GM is easier said than done.

More 2019 Sierra Info & Reporting

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GM Authority Executive Editor with a passion for business strategy and fast cars.

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Comments

  1. Could GM make cost cutting any more obvious? This is premium vehicle. What are they doing?

    Reply
    1. This kind of thing is maddening. Even on a highly profitable vehicle like this, they squeeze every possible penny out of it. Does Mary Barra have a clue this bean counting nonsense even happens and is allowed to prevail?? Who in the bowels of GM is allowed to de-content their products year after year? The 2019 Cruze loses most of the features that made it at least competitive and the press has been ranting for two years about the cheap interiors of even high-end trims like Denali, High Country and Avenir.

      Reply
    2. Cost cutting?…No such thing. They just triple what it costs, then add it to the bottom line. Which is why this missing feature on a $50K truck is baffling. Oh, wait…I forgot…”Everyone else is doing it”

      Yeah Chevy is “Finding new roads”. However, they are doing it behind all the rest.

      Reply
  2. GM will always work in these weird ways. I guess it all comes down to costs and market. My dads 01 Buick Park Ave had rain sensing wipers and a mirror that went down when in reverse but my 11 Regal did not have that stuff. You would think after years of innovation and cheaper technology they would incorporate those features.

    Reply
  3. Someone is really hurting for something that offers no significant value or will be a make or break decision for the buyers. Was this really deemed an entire article rant? Nope, just a slow news day.

    It is something else to beak long term, ever see the discolored mirrors on older vehicles with this technology? Yeah, that last thing I want is my truck in 10 years to make it appear I am looking through a stained glass window at cars in my rear view, hard pass.

    Also to note, you are in a truck, I can probably count on one hand the number of times a light has reflected off my mirror and appeared significantly bright for a few moments, a quick head adjustment fixed that until the light was gone. Wow, what was free could has cost another $50…

    Reply
    1. Mate, tell your doc to call the pharmacy – it’s time to get back on those meds so your thinking and commenting can live up to your user name.

      So then… you try to characterize an auto-dimming passenger-side mirror as “Something that offers no significant value”. That’s ironic, given that the feature in question 1) improves convenience, 2) improves safety and 3) is used by the majority of the developed automotive world… but from your standpoint, it offers “no significant value” – a twisted perspective, if there’s ever been one.

      The fact that you are ok with a “quick head adjustment” to hide from the reflecting light proves my point: in a modern truck designed and engineered in the 21st century that easily creeps up into the $60,000 range, one should not have to make any “quick head adjustments”, during which one can get into a nice fender bender. A part that’s worth $3.00 per mirror (yes, that’s the exact number) is worth it to prevent fender benders, and it’s worth it for general convenience and comfort.

      But by your standpoint, features like a CornerStep rear bumper, memory seats, the MultiPro tailgate, LED cabin lighting, perimeter lights and rear camera mirror all offer “no significant value”, right? Your can go without all of them, can’t you? With that line of thinking, you’ll be introducing a restyled truck with the feature set from the 1980s. So much for progress, convenience, and using technology to benefit human kind.

      I’m curious how you would explain why every automaker with self-respect that values its products has auto-dimming mirrors on both sides of the vehicle as STANDARD equipment. Care to comment on that, do you?

      Even more twisted is your feeble attempt to characterize someone spending nearly 1,000 words on a topic as a “slow news day” article. The fact that GM Authority does not do “slow news days” is beside the point. More importantly, the fact that I spent 1,000 words presenting and describing the problem associated with the mirror should tell you that I feel passionately about this topic and as unimportant as it may seem to you, it is a significant issue. It also offers an insight into how GM thinks about its products (in relation to being really good or just good enough).

      Finally, an OEM auto-dimming mechanism is not subjected to any of the issues you describe related to “discoloration”. You’re thinking of poorly-engineered aftermarket solutions.

      Wait wait… I think that’s the pharmacy calling. Your meds are ready. Drive carefully and avoid any “quick head adjustments”.

      Reply
  4. It really does make one wonder just what lessons have been learned at GM in the nine years since its spectacular, humiliating bankruptcy.

    Reply
  5. I don’t know this for a fact in the New 19 truck but how does the inside rearview camera mirror dim when not being used as a camera mirror? If you don’t have the inside Camera mirror does the standard one auto dim? As for only one outside dimming rearview mirror it is pathetic they do not have it on both. I know having a last generation truck it annoys me to this day

    Reply
  6. The bean counters and greedy execs are still running the show, not R&D, not the engineers, and this despite the obvious lessons that should have been learned during bankruptcy.

    Instead of the $17k profit they make on these per unit on average, what if GM could do with maybe just $15K? Just think of the improvements they could make in quality and amenities. How much could one self mirror cost GM from the supplier with such a mass order ? $20?

    Reply
    1. Reply
    2. Had GM not made the commitment to offload the majority of its $50 billion in health-care liabilities. They most likely would have had no problem surviving the Financial crisis the banking and real estate industries caused shortly afterwards.

      SEPTEMBER 31, 2007
      “Historic agreement in that the UAW will assume responsibility for health-care costs by overseeing an independent trust funded by GM to the tune of $29.9 billion, with an additional $5.4 billion in future years.”
      Source
      https://www.caranddriver.com/news/gm-and-uaw-reach-tentative-labor-agreement-car-news

      I was doing automotive commercials at the time and lost my job to layoffs. No one was buying cars so the Italian automaker, that makes a full size pick up slashed its ad budget.

      Put blame where it belong, the banking and real estate industries when speaking of the U.S. auto bankruptcy’s

      Reply
      1. You are listing some of the valid reasons, another reason is outlined the above article. There are so many more examples. They had something to prove and it’s business as usual instead. The problem is systemic.

        Having only one self dimming mirror in a vehicle isn’t the end of the world but it sure is asinine and speaks volumes about their disconnect and their willingness to cheapskate where they can, even in this price category.

        Reply
  7. Can you imagine being part of the sad, pathetic committee at GM that routinely meets to nickel and dime features, materials and designs to the point that vehicles are at a competitive disadvantage, the media and public are ranting and the company bolsters its “just good enough” image?? What power they possess.

    Reply
  8. I could care less about a passenger side auto dimming mirror, and to be honest, I don’t think it is on a single truck buyer’s radar. Talking from experience, as a I work at a GM Dealership. Ford doesn’t have it, Ram doesn’t have it, Nissan doesn’t have it, Toyota doesn’t have it, Honda Ridgeline doesn’t have it. So not a big deal.

    That being said, why they didn’t bring back rainsense wipers to the truck like we had in 2008 boggles my mind. And why, in the Denali, did they not add in a POWER tilt and telescopic like what the Yukon has? Ford also has a power tilt and telescopic.
    Both Ford and Ram have rainsense.

    As far as I know, super-cruise will be coming in 2020 so that’s a bonus!

    Reply
    1. By all means GM should follow the crowd as they strive for “That’s good enough”.

      Reply
  9. More cost cutting by GM. Just like it’s poor grade leather (feels more like vinyl after a year) in current models.
    Someone named Brian will be here shortly to defend GM while they (GM) laugh all the way to the bank with $17k on average for these vehicles. Sad!

    Reply
  10. C’mon, My _08 Mercury Mariner has 2 auto dimming exterior mirrors, and an auto dimming, inside rear view mirror.

    The same car that has no rear HVAC vents, no heated seats, no USB ports, and a 4 Spd trans.

    Reply

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