Early Days of GMC

General Motors was founded in 1908 and purchased the Rapid Motor Vehicle Company and the Reliance Motor Car Company in 1909. The Rapid Motor Vehicle Company was founded by Max Grabowsky, who developed some of the first pickup trucks ever. The Rapid and Reliance companies formally merged in 1911, and 1912 marked the year that the name "GMC Truck" appeared on the first mass-produced truck. In GM's early years the company struggled financially and eventually forced out William Durant, the founder of GM. Upon leaving, Durant co-founded Chevrolet, which he brought under the GM umbrella when he bought back into GM in 1917. Today, Chevrolet is GM's best-selling brand, offering a range of award-winning SUVs and trucks. Through its first couple of decades, GMC Truck became known for innovative, powerful trucks, and sales steadily grew. With the outbreak of WWII, GMC became a major supplier for the U.S. military and provided the armed forces with over 600,000 trucks.

GMC Today

GMC was known as "GMC Truck" until 1996. Today, the brand is still synonymous with exceptional and durable trucks, with GMC and Chevrolet trucks consistently mirroring each other in key ways. However, the GMC name is now oriented toward the premium and luxury market, providing exceptional power and capability alongside upscale finishes and features, and offers vehicles well beyond the truck segment. The current lineup includes the Sierra 1500, Sierra HD, and Canyon trucks, the Yukon, Yukon XL, Acadia, and Terrain SUVs, and all-electric models like the Hummer EV and Sierra EV in our EV lineup.

Two trim families define modern GMC. The Denali luxury trim, introduced on the 1999 Yukon, brought near-luxury refinement to the lineup and now spans nearly every model, with Denali Ultimate at the very top. The AT4 off-road family answers from the capability side, with factory-lifted suspensions, skid plates, and trail hardware straight from the plant.

GMC's modern vehicles are the culmination of more than 100 years of automotive engineering experience. That is the kind of history and heritage that pays off, and that we are proud to represent at Rivard Buick GMC, the number one volume Buick and GMC dealer in Florida.