What Makes "Professional Grade?"

MuskyHunter · 07-30-2007, 05:48 PM

You hear it on every truck commercial, but what is professsional grade? What makes a truck professional grade and who are the professionals?

Papa_D · 07-30-2007, 05:52 PM

If trucks are like tools, all professional grade means is something that won't break in the first hour of continuous use, lol.

**walleeme** · 07-30-2007, 06:25 PM

I am a professional.
That's why I drive a Titan.

TitanBlue · 07-30-2007, 06:36 PM

If you buy a GMC, "YOU" are a professional. GMC trucks are professional because they said so! No legal definition in this application.

But in all fairness, professional tools are typically highest quality, Made in USA, Europe (mostly Germany, Italy, Swiss, Belgium etc.) or Japan, etc. Varies by industry.

Tools made in certain foreign communist countries are years away from being true professional, (irregardless of what they stamp on them) and are mostly the very worst available. I really feel sorry for workers and citizens in those countries that only have such quality to do their work with. Look in the dollar bin at Sears or the Auto parts store, and you'll know what I mean.

Very sad that people depend on those tools...

Treebasher · 07-30-2007, 07:02 PM

I get "Professional grade" appliances.. stainless, beefy looking kitchen appliances you'd see in restaurant kitchens that are used everyday, over and over and over, by a "professional" cook.

Now with trucks on the other hand, this term makes no sense to me. GMC makes high end trucks with all the bells and whistles. If it was "Professional grade" it'd be like the Chevy truck I drove for the city when I was 17, stripped down to the core. There was nothing special about that truck and it was used everyday, over and over and over, by a "professional" city truck driver...hey, that was my profession for a couple of summers.

Z33Fan · 07-31-2007, 06:49 AM

C'mon. Everyone knows the difference between "Professional Grade" GMC's and Chevys are lock washers on their fasteners...

I've heard that since I was a little kid, and it just shows you how crazy badge engineering is. Fact is, there is a significant amount of engineering in each new vehicle for safety/liability reasons (GM has 3 floors of their HQ locked down with legal files) and it gives the marketing folks something else to trump up.

**Blackbeauty** · 07-31-2007, 08:09 AM

Just remember, amateurs built the Ark.... Professionals built the Titanic...

**t22a80** · 07-31-2007, 10:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blackbeauty

Just remember, amateurs built the Ark.... Professionals built the Titanic...

HAHA good one BB!
I'm going to use that in the next design review for some of the projects I see done here!

SoBeGraphics · 07-31-2007, 11:12 AM

It's just a marketing term. It can be applied to anything.

KYDeepwater · 08-01-2007, 04:34 AM

GM probably paid a half million dollars to a marketing company to do a "Marketing Survey" to come up with this phrase. All marketing. I do remember back in the 70's if you owned a GMC you had money because they had cloth seats and carpet and AC. The lowly farmers had regular vinyl bench seats and rubber floors, no frills. GM could save a fortune in marketing costs just by consolidating their product line, then maybe they could spend some of these savings to improve the quality of the crap they sell.

donmecca · 08-01-2007, 06:51 AM

Ditto for Treebasher's comments.
I've worked in the construction industry for 18 yrs. in five states and the only "professional grade" I see amongsst the "professionals" building schools, offices and hospitals are stripped down, beat to hell, faded paint, bald tires, rusty tools in the bed -pick-ups of all brands.
The only clean, fully optioned trucks are driven by the company owners or top management that never go beyond the construction trailer parking area.

**DeadRiver** · 08-01-2007, 05:48 PM

all i can say is "professional grade" isn't available at harbor frieght, but it'll get you buy on the cheap...

"professional grade" in GM terms refers to their ability to charge you 50k for a truck that's worth 30k but crammed full of useless electronics and sensors, then there's the denali, which means you get a cooler stock grill.