GMC has reached new heights with the 2026 Acadia Denali Ultimate.
The brand launched its luxury Denali trim package for model year 1999, and it has been elevating the trim ever since. This year’s Denali Ultimate brought the vehicle’s interior excellence to another level, earning a Wards 10 Best Interiors & UX award.
You might wonder what the difference is between the Denali and the Denali Ultimate. So did the WardsAuto judges, who turned to Therese Pinazzo, director for Buick and GMC interiors, to explain.
“Denali Ultimate features exclusive interior appointments that set it apart,” Pinazzo explained in an email. Those features include “upgraded heated and ventilated Woodland Mahogany full-leather massaging front seats (with plaited contrast stitching), Paldao wood laser-etched accents and embossed topographical maps on the seat backs and door trim, unique floor mats, and Denali Ultimate badging on the vehicle’s back seats.”
In other words, GMC focused on the details and used materials, technology and designs to elevate the vehicle in brand-consistent ways, therefore upgrading the interior experience in noticeable ways. Let’s unpack the efforts further.
Authentic materials and detailed design
The Woodland Mahogany color provides a richness to the leather. A close analogy would be to a saddle, something that is both functional and aesthetic.
“The rugged Western-lux theme is unmistakable and very much on brand, with its embossed leather and decorative stitching throughout,” observed Dave Zoia, a Wards 10 Best Interiors & UX judge.
Notably, the stitching in many surfaces — particularly evident on the large leather-covered console storage lid — is a plaited pattern, not a continuous running line.
The open-pore Paldao wood — used on the IP, stretching from the right side of the gauge cluster to the A-pillar on the passenger side, as well as for door trim — is a rich brown and not only coordinates well with the color of the seats, but like the leather of the seats, it is absolutely obvious this is actual wood, not some hydrographic appliqué.
Another design element that stood out was GMC's use of a topographical pattern throughout the vehicle: laser etching used on the wood surface is also echoed on the door trim and seat backs. These details provide an aesthetic underlining of the adventurous aspect of the Acadia Denali Ultimate.
What’s more, it is clear that the interior designers didn’t stop with things that are in immediate sightlines, as a “premium” feel is executed throughout the cabin.
“Even the details you feel every day are elevated: the floor mat is a looped carpet construction with a Denali Ultimate metal accent, reinforcing the cabin’s layered, premium execution,” said Pinazzo.
Easier interfaces
But all of this about wood and leather shouldn’t overlook another aspect of the vehicle: silicon.
There is a 15-inch diagonal, vertically oriented infotainment touchscreen in the center of the instrument panel. It is actually designed into the surface, flanked on either side by HVAC vents.
There is a large knob centered on the lower portion of the screen. Depending on what function is shown on the screen the knob can be used to turn up the volume or to scroll through menus, contacts, settings, etc.
And below that knob there is a row of mechanical switches — an intentional choice at a time when some vehicles are eliminating most knobs, switches and buttons.
“We chose a purposeful mix of screen and tactile hardware to deliver a true command-center experience,” Pinazzo explained. “The large knob and seven mechanical switches provide precise, eyes-up control you can operate by feel, while their layout mirrors the on-screen UI for an intuitive, well-integrated interaction. It’s a premium, technical execution that reinforces connection, precision, and driver command.”
Things that are frequently used — like HVAC and audio controls — get the physical interfaces so the driver can maintain eyes on the road, not swipe through screens.
Tech, too
The vehicle is equipped with nine camera views and a function called “HD Surround Vision,” which provides a 360-degree overhead view of the vehicle by creating a high-resolution stitching together of the camera views.
The Acadia Denali Ultimate has over-the-air update capabilities, and has Google built-in, which provides access to Google Assistant, Google Maps and Google Play.
Also, part of the package is Super Cruise, GM’s hands-free driving technology. Another Wards 10 Best Interiors & UX judge, Robin Warner, noted: “Being equipped with Super Cruise, this Acadia enjoys an edge over the competition when it comes to ADAS. It simply works better. You get low-stress, hands-free driving.”As the Acadia Denali Ultimate is a three-row, seven-passenger vehicle, access to the third row is important. To facilitate it, there is a lever that tips and slides the second row forward. Because it is a sport utility vehicle (cargo capacity behind the third row: 23 cubic feet; third row folded: 57.3 cubic feet; second and third rows folded: 97.5 cubic feet), there is push-button folding of the seatbacks, accessible in the rear cargo area.
All in, the Acadia Denali Ultimate driven by Wards 10 Best judges has a sticker price of $67,290.
“I was stunned by the price — in a good way,” noted Zoia. “I expected something stickered well above this one’s bottom line.”
