GM released the first edition of the 2027 GMC Sierra 2500 HD order guide on September 11, and I read all of it so you would not have to. The short version: the two engines wear new codes, both transmissions now carry the Allison name, the 17-inch wheel is gone, the GVWR ceiling moves up to 12,300 pounds, and adaptive cruise control is standard on every trim from the Pro to the Denali Ultimate. The seven trims, the cab rules, the eight colors, and the Max Trailering Package all carry over as they were.
The longer version includes the part most dealer websites skip: GM has not published horsepower, torque, towing, or payload for the 2027 truck, so you will not find a 2027 rating on this page. If you need the fully rated truck today, the 2026 Sierra 2500 HD buyers guide covers the truck on our lot with every number in the door jamb, and the buy-now-or-order-a-2027 post weighs the two against each other.
On This Page
- What the 2027 order guide actually says
- Two new engine codes, and why we are not quoting horsepower yet
- 17-inch wheels are gone: the new 18-inch base
- GVWR tops out at 12,300 pounds
- Adaptive cruise, bicyclist braking, and the SLT head-up display
- What did not change
- How to spec a 2027 order using only what is verified
What Does the 2027 Order Guide Actually Say?
It says the 2027 Sierra 2500 HD is the same seven-trim truck with changes under the hood codes, under the fenders, and in the standard safety list. It says nothing about towing, payload, curb weight, or engine output, because the first edition has no specification or trailering pages. Both halves matter when you are deciding what to order.
| Item | 2026 Sierra 2500 HD | 2027 Sierra 2500 HD |
|---|---|---|
| Engine codes | L8T gas V8 and L5P Duramax, both with published output | L8S gas V8 with direct injection and variable valve timing; L6P Duramax turbo-diesel V8, B20-compatible; output not yet published |
| Transmission | 10-speed automatic on both engines | Allison 10-speed automatic on both engines, plus the PTO version on Pro and SLE diesels |
| Base wheel and tire | 17-inch aluminum on an all-season tire | 18-inch machined aluminum on an LT265/70R18E all-season; no 17-inch offered |
| Top GVWR | 11,900 lb | 12,300 lb, Crew Cab long bed 4WD Duramax with Max Trailering |
| Cruise control | Conventional on Pro, SLE, SLT; adaptive by package or on AT4 and up | Adaptive cruise standard on all seven trims |
| Technology Package | AT4 and up | Adds the SLT |
| Towing, payload, GCWR pages | Published | Not yet; coming in the GM Trailering Guide |
Everything in that table comes straight from the guide, not from a press release or a forum. Where the guide is silent, this post is silent too. The 2027 Sierra 2500 HD buyers guide carries the trim-by-trim detail; the sections below explain what each change means on a gravel section line.
Two New Engine Codes: Why Are We Not Quoting Horsepower Yet?
Because GM has not printed it. The 2027 guide lists the gas engine as code L8S, "V8 with direct injection and variable valve timing," and the diesel as code L6P, "Duramax turbo-diesel V8, B20-compatible." Neither line carries a displacement, horsepower, or torque figure. For reference, the 2026 Sierra 2500 HD on our lot is rated by GM at 401 hp and 464 lb-ft from its 6.6L gas V8 and 470 hp and 975 lb-ft from its 6.6L Duramax, and we are not assuming those numbers carry to the 2027 until GM says so.
What we can say is what the guide says. The gas V8 is standard on the Pro through the Denali with the 3.73 axle and a 170-amp alternator; E85 capability has been dropped. The Duramax is available on the Pro through the Denali and standard on the Denali Ultimate, which is still not offered with gas. Every Duramax includes the block heater, the exhaust brake, the 220-amp alternator, and dual 730 CCA batteries, and it is the only engine that can take the winter grille cover. Dual alternators, 220 plus 170 amps, are available on every trim. Axle ratios stay fixed to the engine, 3.73 gas and 3.42 diesel.
The transmission line is the other change. In the 2026 guide both gearboxes were simply "10-speed automatic." For 2027 the gas, diesel, and diesel PTO transmissions are each printed as "Allison 10-speed automatic." The PTO version is still limited to the Pro and SLE with the Duramax and 4WD. Gas buyers get the Allison name for the first time; whether anything mechanical changed inside is not something the guide says, so I will not say it either. The engine section of the 2027 guide keeps the current wording as GM updates it.
What a new engine code does and does not mean
A new RPO code is a signal that GM revised or replaced the engine, not proof of what changed. Any site printing 2027 horsepower or a 2027 tow rating today is either guessing or copying the 2026 figure and hoping. When the 2027 GM Trailering Guide lands we will update this post and the buyers guide the same day.
17-Inch Wheels Are Gone: What Is the New Base Wheel and Tire?
The 18-inch machined aluminum wheel with dark grey pockets, last year's SLT wheel, is now the base retail wheel on the Pro and standard on the SLE and SLT. It rides on a new LT265/70R18E all-season tire with a matching spare. The 17-inch aluminum and steel wheels and the 17-inch tires do not appear anywhere in the 2027 guide.
The rest of the ladder holds. An 18-inch steel wheel remains for fleet orders only. The LT275/70R18E all-terrain is standard on the SLT, available on the Pro and SLE, and included with the X31 Off-Road and Protection Package, which also brings the 20-inch bright-face wheel. The AT4, Denali, and Denali Ultimate keep their 20-inch wheels on LT275/65R20 all-terrains, the AT4 can still take the BFGoodrich KO3, and 20-inch and 22-inch dealer-installed wheels remain on those three. The AT4X gets a new 18-inch wheel code on its 35-inch LT305/70R18 mud-terrains, and the AEV Edition keeps its AEV Salta wheels.
Here is why the wheel change is more than trim. The Max Trailering Package requires 18-inch or larger wheels, and until now a base Pro or SLE on 17s had to step up a wheel to take it. For 2027 every Sierra 2500 HD already meets that requirement, so the package decision is down to the Duramax, the cab, and the trim. One wrinkle: the all-season base tire is not available with the package, so a package truck goes on the all-terrain, which on a gravel section line is what I would recommend anyway. The 2027 towing and Max Trailering post walks through the package on the new truck.
The 18-inch machined aluminum wheel with dark grey pockets is the floor of the 2027 lineup: base retail on the Pro, standard on the SLE and SLT, and already the size the Max Trailering Package asks for.
GVWR Tops Out at 12,300 Pounds: What Does That Tell You?
It tells you the 2027 truck is allowed to weigh more, loaded, than the 2026 truck was. GVWR is the most the truck itself may weigh with people, fuel, cargo, and the hitch weight of the trailer on it. The 2027 menu runs from 10,000 pounds with the lowered-GVWR option up to 12,300 pounds on a Crew Cab long bed 4WD Duramax with the Max Trailering Package. The 2026 ceiling was 11,900 pounds.
A few points on the menu follow the cab and engine you pick. A Crew Cab standard bed 4WD Duramax with the package is 12,150 pounds; a Crew Cab long bed 4WD Duramax without it is 12,000 pounds; the same truck with the gas V8 is 11,350 pounds. The AT4X moves from 11,025 gas and 11,350 diesel in 2026 to 11,150 and 11,750 for 2027. The lowered 10,000-pound option is still offered on the Pro, SLE, SLT, Denali, and Denali Ultimate, not on the AT4 or AT4X, and it still reduces towing and payload.
What GVWR does not tell you is the part to be careful with. It is not the trailer rating and it is not GCWR, the truck-and-trailer total. A higher GVWR usually means more payload, but payload is GVWR minus curb weight, and 2027 curb weights are unpublished, so there is no honest 2027 payload number to give you. The 2026 truck on our lot is rated up to 20,000 pounds conventional and 22,390 pounds gooseneck, properly equipped, and those 2026 figures are in the 2026 towing section. For the 2027, the trailering information label in the driver door jamb of the truck that arrives is the final word; until then the 2027 GVWR section is the only capability number we publish.
Adaptive Cruise, Bicyclist Braking, and an SLT Head-Up Display: What Is New Inside?
Three things, and the first is the biggest for a Pro, SLE, or SLT buyer. Adaptive cruise control is standard on all seven trims for 2027. On the 2026 truck the Pro, SLE, and SLT came with conventional cruise, and adaptive cruise took the SLE Preferred or SLT Preferred Package; only the AT4 and up had it standard. Now a base Pro work truck holds its following distance on Highway 12 the same way a Denali does, which on a February morning with a stock trailer behind you and a grain truck ahead is worth more than any chrome.
Second, the standard Sierra HD Pro Safety group renames one of its pieces: Front Pedestrian Braking becomes Front Pedestrian and Bicyclist Braking. The rest of the group, Forward Collision Alert, Following Distance Indicator, Automatic Emergency Braking, Lane Departure Warning, IntelliBeam, and Buckle to Drive, is unchanged and standard on every trim. Pro Safety Plus on the SLE and SLT still adds Trailer Side Blind Zone Alert, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, park assist, and the trailer cameras on Crew and Double Cabs.
Third, the Technology Package, the Rear Camera Mirror plus the 15-inch head-up display, reaches the SLT for the first time, with the SLT Preferred Package or the SLT Premium Package. On the 2026 truck it was AT4 and up only. The SLT is the volume trim on our lot, and the camera mirror is the piece I would push hardest for anyone who pulls a gooseneck stock trailer, because a loaded trailer blanks a regular mirror and the camera sees past it. It stays in the AT4 Premium Plus and Denali Reserve packages and standard on the AT4X and Denali Ultimate.
What Did Not Change for 2027?
Most of the truck. The seven trims are the same, and so are the cab rules: Pro in Regular, Double, or Crew Cab with 2WD or 4WD; SLE in all three cabs, 4WD only; SLT and up as Crew Cab 4WD only; AT4X as a Crew Cab standard bed only. The Denali Ultimate is still Duramax only.
The Max Trailering Package still adds the 3500 HD frame, leaf springs, and shocks, the 12-inch rear axle, the spray-on bedliner, and the gooseneck and fifth-wheel prep; it still requires the Duramax and is still not offered on the Double Cab or the AT4X. Gooseneck prep is available on all seven trims. Snow Plow Prep, the heavy-duty front camper spring, and both X31 packages carry over with the same rules. Every trim package has the same contents it had, with one exception: the SLE Preferred Package no longer lists adaptive cruise because it is now standard.
The eight colors carry over with no addition and no deletion; Coastal Dune and Glacier White Tricoat simply lose the "new" tag they wore in 2026. The interiors, the screens, the Bose systems, the MultiPro tailgate on the SLT and up, and the 12 tie-downs at 500 pounds each are unchanged. Everything the what-was-new-for-2026 section introduced last year is still here as the second-year version.
How to Spec a 2027 Sierra 2500 HD Order Using Only What Is Verified
You can build a sound 2027 order today without a single unpublished number, because every decision that matters is an equipment decision.
- Pick the engine by the job, not the rumor: the Duramax if you pull a gooseneck, want the Max Trailering Package, or need the PTO transmission; the gas V8 if the truck mostly carries and occasionally tows.
- Choose cab, bed, and drive: this sets your GVWR code. A Crew Cab long bed 4WD Duramax is the 12,000-pound truck without the package and the 12,300-pound truck with it.
- Decide on Max Trailering now: it cannot be added later, it needs the Duramax, and it is not available on the Double Cab or the AT4X.
- Pick the tire for the road you live on: the all-season base tire is fine for pavement; for county gravel take the all-terrain, which is required with the package anyway.
- Layer the packages: Snow Plow Prep and dual alternators for a winter truck; the SLT Preferred Package plus the Technology Package if you want the camera mirror.
- Read the label when it lands: the trailering information label in the driver door jamb carries the payload and trailer ratings for that specific truck. Compare it to the 2026 truck on our lot before you hook anything to it.
Is the 2027 Sierra 2500 HD the One to Order?
| Worth it if | Skip it (buy the rated 2026 on the lot) if |
|---|---|
| You want adaptive cruise on a Pro, SLE, or SLT without paying for a package You are an SLT buyer who wants the camera mirror and head-up display You want the highest GVWR ceiling GM has put on a 2500 HD Your truck can arrive over the winter in the exact color, cab, and package you want |
You need a published tow rating and payload before you sign Calving, a hay contract, or a snow contract needs the truck this fall You want to see, drive, and weigh the exact truck first You are matching the truck to a trailer that is already near the limit |
Key Takeaways
- The 2027 Sierra 2500 HD carries new engine codes, L8S gas and L6P Duramax, and both transmissions are now printed as Allison 10-speed automatics.
- GM has not published 2027 horsepower, torque, towing, or payload; the only new capability number is a GVWR ceiling of 12,300 pounds.
- 17-inch wheels are gone; the 18-inch aluminum wheel is the base, which means every 2027 already meets the Max Trailering Package wheel requirement.
- Adaptive cruise control is standard on all seven trims, and the Technology Package reaches the SLT.
- Trims, cab rules, the eight colors, and the Max Trailering Package rules are unchanged; the rated 2026 truck is on our lot today.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the 2027 Sierra 2500 HD engine new?
The codes are new: L8S for the gas V8 with direct injection and variable valve timing, and L6P for the Duramax turbo-diesel V8, B20-compatible. GM has not printed displacement, horsepower, or torque for either one, so we do not know yet what changed inside. Both pair with an Allison 10-speed automatic.
What is the 2027 Sierra 2500 HD towing capacity?
Not published yet. The 2027 order guide has no trailering pages; the ratings will come in the GM Trailering Guide. The 2026 Sierra 2500 HD on our lot is rated up to 20,000 pounds conventional and 22,390 pounds gooseneck, properly equipped, and those 2026 figures are the ones to shop against today. When a 2027 arrives, the trailering information label in the driver door jamb carries its rating.
Are 17-inch wheels still offered on the 2027 Sierra 2500 HD?
No. The 18-inch machined aluminum wheel on an LT265/70R18E all-season tire is the retail base, an 18-inch steel wheel is fleet-only, and the all-terrain, 20-inch, 22-inch, and AT4X 35-inch options sit above that. Every 2027 Sierra 2500 HD therefore meets the Max Trailering Package wheel requirement from the factory.
Is adaptive cruise control standard on the 2027 Sierra 2500 HD?
Yes, on all seven trims, including the Pro work truck; conventional cruise control is no longer listed. On the 2026 truck, adaptive cruise was standard only from the AT4 up and took a package on the SLE and SLT.
My Take on What Is New for 2027
The honest headline is that the 2027 Sierra 2500 HD is a better-equipped version of a truck that did not need fixing, with one large unknown attached. Standard adaptive cruise on a Pro, the camera mirror on an SLT, 18-inch wheels on every truck, and a higher GVWR ceiling are real, verified, and worth having. The engine codes are new and the numbers are not out, and I would rather say that plainly than print a figure I cannot stand behind at the scale.
If your operation can wait for a truck that builds over the winter, spec it on equipment the way the how-to above lays out. If you need a rated truck before calving, the 2026 on our lot is the same seven trims with every number already in the door, and I will put both in front of you side by side.
The full trim, package, wheel, GVWR, and safety detail lives in the 2027 GMC Sierra 2500 HD buyers guide, and the rated 2026 truck is in the 2026 buyers guide. Or stop by Beadle Chevrolet GMC at 2200 US Hwy 12 in Mobridge, or call or text 605-845-7277, and we will build the order sheet together.
About the Author
Lexy Tabbert — Beadle Chevrolet, Mobridge, SD
Lexy Tabbert is the Director of Sales and Marketing at Beadle Chevrolet in Mobridge, South Dakota. She covers Chevrolet and GMC vehicles, trim comparisons, and buyer guidance — helping families, ranchers, and ag operators across the region find the right truck and configuration for their needs. Learn more about Lexy.