GMC (General Motors
Truck Company) is the name of the
truck division of GM (General Motors), the two should not be confused for each other. There is a confusing history to the naming of the brand.
GMC was originally named the Grabowsky Motor Company, an independent auto manufacturer. Grabowsky was renamed as the Rapid Motor Vehicle Company.
General Motors bought Rapid and turned it into a subsidiary, and also did the same thing with a company called Reliance.
Soon after, GM created a new brand named GMTC (General Motors
Truck Company) and
folded both Rapid and Reliance into GMTC. GM later renamed GMTC as GMC a few years before WW1, as homage to the original brand acronym by Max and Morris Grabowsky brothers.
GM states that GMC officially stands for the General Motors
Truck Company. Although the T is removed from the acronym on
paper, in theory the letter still exists.
GMC is typically different from Chevrolet for three reasons. As it is more expensive, works on heavier duty trucks (such as in both world wars), and allows for experimentation of niche vehicles that would not sell well under Chevrolet, like the
2021 EV
Hummer.