GM's plan to outmaneuver Toyota

GMC is already exactly where GM needs it to be. That doesn't mean that GMC won't be offering new and different products in the future. In fact, GMC recently extended its brand to include its first SUV with car-based engineering, the GMC Acadia SUV. It was also the first GMC product to be released without a Chevrolet version. (That's coming, though.)

It's just that, as it has for decades, GMC is already playing the role GM has assigned it.

GMC's reason for existing has always been to allow Pontiac/GMC and Buick/GMC dealers sell the same popular trucks Chevy dealers could sell. GMC trucks are a little more nicely appointed, though. In particular, the Denali line of luxury-trimmed trucks and SUVs has been a big hit for GM.

General Motors has now taken this concept one step further by combining Pontiac, Buick and GMC into a single marketing and retail channel. Buick and Pontiac's vehicle portfolios can each become smaller and more focused while still giving dealers a range of products to sell.

GMC's role in all this remains unchanged. It's there to bring in truck buyers.

Some platform-sharing among the three will still happen, as with the GMC Acadia and Buick Enclave crossover SUVs, but only when the vehicles can be clearly differentiated and each version really makes sense for the given brand.