It's the little things...

[ember1205]

Now that I've owned my truck for a month or so, I started giving some thought to the various "little things" about it that GM really hit the mark on and others where they completely whiffed. This is NOT about major issues - it's about the small aspects that can really set a vehicle out from its competition. In some cases, these little touches are things that I had to go into the menus to configure, and posting them here might even make folks aware of features on their truck that they didn't even know they had!

 

Things that GM totally missed:

 

- On the trucks with color-matched handles, why is the tailgate handle still black?

- Why doesn't the lock cylinder in the driver's door also unlock the other doors and lock them as well?

- Why doesn't the lock cylinder in the driver's door operate the power windows? ESPECIALLY to roll them up?

- Why doesn't the RDS information show up with the FM radio station freuqency in the little block on the NAVI display? The XM data does...

- Why do the contacts always default back the ones stored in the head unit and not my phone?

- Why can't the sunglass holder actually hold a pair of sunglasses from a decade later than the 40's?

- Why doesn't the navigation have a "Home" address setting and an option to choose "Go Home"? No matter where you go, you always go home afterward - it will be your destination 50% of the time.

- Why can't the navigation actually understand what I'm saying to it? I ask for a fast food chain, and it thinks I asked for an address. Lots of other weirdness here.

- Why don't we have a "Sport" mode to disable AFM?

- In the trucks that have only one battery, why is installed up near the firewall and not out front where it would be much easier to reach to change, charge, or attach cables for a jump start?

- A drop-in bedliner that a) doesn't cover the front rail and b) has to be secured by drilling holes through your brand new bed (self-tapping screws).

- Changing the MID -AND- the large display to phone call details when I get an incoming call. A) I don't need to see who I'm on the phone with or for how long, B) I don't need the same data in two different displays, and C) I need to see the navigation information - NOT my phone call data. This is a major distraction and absolutely not helpful.

 

 

Things that GM really hit a home run with:

- The vehicle in the navigation display is actually a truck.

- The display remembers what mode I had it in when I turned it off and returns there on startup.

- A mute button that also unmutes (steering wheel control) for when I'm at a drive thru or similar.

- A nice, large touchscreen that supports things like sliding up to expose the whole collection of radio presets and sliding your finger across the map to move the area of the display.

- Being able to roll down the windows with the FOB -AND- being able to configure whether or not this feature is on.

- Having the heated seats come on with remote start in cold weather -AND- be able to configure whether or not this feature is on.

- SD media card slot as well as USB interfaces for media.

- Outlets that are controlled by the key switch instead of being always on (an override switch to toggle the mode would be a real nice touch, but not necessary).

- Damping of the tailgate for easy open / easy close.

- Adjusting lines in the rear view camera that show you how far your wheels are turned (the more curved the lines are, the more your wheels are turned) - excellent for those that whip into parking spaces and leave their front wheels cocked and then have to back up with cars parked on either side of them when they leave.

- The rear camera stays on for a few seconds after you take it out of drive - extremely helpful when backing up to connect a trailer and you need to make minor adjustments.

- Delayed locking: The doors don't lock until all doors are closed for five full seconds after you hit the lock button on the door. It's very helpful when you have to get something out of the back seat. This is a menu-configurable item.

 

What little things make one of these lists for you?

[nfisherman]

This is a bigger issue than you probably intended, but I wish the paint job was better on my Sierra. I waxed my wife's 2015 Honda Odyssey yesterday. I know. It's a different vehicle for a different application, but the Odyssey's paint job is much better. It seems thicker. It's harder to chip and scratch. Honda even put a thin strip of paint-protector film on the door edges. We've had the Odyssey for 4 months compared to 2 for my Sierra. My wife has twice the miles on the van but my trick has many more rock chips than hers, even though we drive on basically the same roads. GM should do better with paint.

[beetle]

A GM miss.........Power seat does not have a tilt feature (the entire seat does not tilt fore and aft), strange considering every other vehicle I've had did.

[smrr1]

memory seats on all power seats would be nice. it drives me nuts when someone moves my seat. about to unplug it. on the old school manual seats it is easy to find the notch you like but the power seats are hard to get back how you like it with out memory settings.

[ember1205]

This is a bigger issue than you probably intended, but I wish the paint job was better on my Sierra. I waxed my wife's 2015 Honda Odyssey yesterday. I know. It's a different vehicle for a different application, but the Odyssey's paint job is much better. It seems thicker. It's harder to chip and scratch. Honda even put a thin strip of paint-protector film on the door edges. We've had the Odyssey for 4 months compared to 2 for my Sierra. My wife has twice the miles on the van but my trick has many more rock chips than hers, even though we drive on basically the same roads. GM should do better with paint.

 

While it certainly isn't the kind of thing I'm hoping for here, I can understand. Some companies do paint well, and others... Well, not so much.

 

With that said - if you have a "I need to call GM and file a complaint" sort of item, that isn't the type of item this thread was started for. It's in the spirit of things that GM did a nice job with to set themselves apart, or things that they should consider to BETTER set themselves apart.

 

Basic, overall quality is most definitely -not- something that GM should aspire to.

[ember1205]

memory seats on all power seats would be nice. it drives me nuts when someone moves my seat. about to unplug it. on the old school manual seats it is easy to find the notch you like but the power seats are hard to get back how you like it with out memory settings.

 

I don't know all of the trim levels well enough to know the answer to this - do any of the trim levels offer this? I know that Ford, for example, adds this feature for the driver's seat in the Limited trim and it's available as an add-on in other trims. And, I agree with you that someone moving my seat drives me nuts. Maybe that's part of why I drive most of my vehicles with the seat all the way back - it's easier to locate that position.

[irish4life8911]

 

I don't know all of the trim levels well enough to know the answer to this - do any of the trim levels offer this? I know that Ford, for example, adds this feature for the driver's seat in the Limited trim and it's available as an add-on in other trims. And, I agree with you that someone moving my seat drives me nuts. Maybe that's part of why I drive most of my vehicles with the seat all the way back - it's easier to locate that position.

I do know the SLT and Denali packages have driver side memory seats, with two driver memories. The buttons are on the door. They also have an "exit assist" feature where the seat moves up when you turn off the truck

[ember1205]

I do know the SLT and Denali packages have driver side memory seats, with two driver memories. The buttons are on the door. They also have an "exit assist" feature where the seat moves up when you turn off the truck

 

It's the buttons being on the door that's a nice touch here - many manufacturers used to mistakenly put these further inside the vehicle and made it about impossible to adjust the seat prior to getting in. When the vehicle can recognize which FOB unlocked the door and set the seat up based on that ID, that's another nice touch (don't know if GM does this).

 

The Easy Entry / Exit Assist type of feature works REALLY well when it incorporates a power telescoping wheel that retracts automatically when you pull the key.

[irish4life8911]

 

It's the buttons being on the door that's a nice touch here - many manufacturers used to mistakenly put these further inside the vehicle and made it about impossible to adjust the seat prior to getting in. When the vehicle can recognize which FOB unlocked the door and set the seat up based on that ID, that's another nice touch (don't know if GM does this).

 

The Easy Entry / Exit Assist type of feature works REALLY well when it incorporates a power telescoping wheel that retracts automatically when you pull the key.

I agree with you with all the pros and cons.

 

I have an slt all terrain and I don't have the power telescoping steering wheel. It's actually manual. They got that wrong.

 

A few more minor cons:

1. Steering wheel not centered with driver seat, it's actually a few inches to the right. You get used to fast though

2. Tailgate doesn't lock with key fob.

3. Intellink display can't be changed with a different pic.

4. Too much chrome trim on upper level trims.

5. Interior leds are not bright enough

6. No vents for rear seats (except for floor vents under driver and passenger seats)

7. No spare toggle switches/ accessory switches

 

Things they also did well:

1. Interior storage. Cubby holes everywhere

2. Ease of lifting rear seats, you cab do it with one finger

3. Power folding mirrors with key fob, if feature is turned on.

4. All Windows down with key fob, if turned on.

5. Bose stereo is awesome

6. Cargo management tie down system in bed.

[fondupot]

You can program a contact into your Navigation to be Home, or Work, your GF's house, your Wife's house, the strip club or whatever. Not hard.

[SteveBBB]

One of my likes is the new cloth seat material. All my previous Silverado's cloth seats were made with Velcro like material, everything stuck to it. Huge improvement!!

[SouthpawHD]

No air vents to the rear seats is a huge miss for me and quite frankly, it's a rather dumb mistake too.

[YQatari]

I second the rear air vents! Keyless entry and engine start would have been a nice touch from GM too!

[ember1205]

You can program a contact into your Navigation to be Home, or Work, your GF's house, your Wife's house, the strip club or whatever. Not hard.

 

You're missing my point... Regardless of what I program into the unit, I can't just hit or say "Go Home" to get that route. Every vehicle I've had over the last ten years with Navigation has had this feature... Even my Tundra and that had the absolute worst Navigation system I've ever used.

[fondupot]

 

You're missing my point... Regardless of what I program into the unit, I can't just hit or say "Go Home" to get that route. Every vehicle I've had over the last ten years with Navigation has had this feature... Even my Tundra and that had the absolute worst Navigation system I've ever used.

 

You'd still have to program your home address in other NAV units. So you make a contact for home. Then when you go into NAV you click contacts....then home...I don't really see the fuss.

 

I bet you could use voice to say "navigate to contact: Home" and it would probably do it too.