Running a business in the Lowell / Grand Rapids area usually means a truck or SUV is doing double duty — hauling, towing, plowing, or just getting a crew from one job site to the next. The federal tax code has a specific set of rules for writing off that kind of vehicle the year you buy it, called the Section 179 deduction. Below is what the IRS itself says about those rules for the 2026 tax year, plus what GMC and Buick publish about the vehicles in our lineup. This page is informational only, not tax advice — the numbers come straight from IRS.gov and from GMC/Buick's own specifications.
What does Section 179 actually let a business deduct in 2026?
Under Internal Revenue Code Section 179, a business can deduct the full cost of qualifying equipment and vehicles in the year they're placed in service, instead of spreading the deduction out over several years of depreciation. For tax years beginning in 2026, the IRS sets the maximum Section 179 deduction at $2,560,000. That ceiling starts phasing out, dollar for dollar, once a business places more than $4,090,000 of qualifying property in service in a single year — so it's aimed at small and mid-size operations, not large fleets buying at that scale.
A vehicle has to be used more than 50% for business and placed in service by December 31 of the year the deduction is claimed. Separately, 100% bonus depreciation is back for qualifying property acquired after January 19, 2025, under the federal tax law passed that year (Pub. L. 119-21) — which can apply on top of Section 179 to amounts a vehicle's own cap doesn't cover.
Good to know: the deduction limit and the vehicle rules below are set by weight, not by brand or price. A $70,000 heavy-duty truck and a $70,000 heavy SUV can land in completely different places under Section 179, depending on what's printed on the vehicle's own federal certification label.
Why does a truck's Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) matter here?
The IRS splits vehicles into three weight classes for Section 179 purposes, based on Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) — the maximum loaded weight the manufacturer rates the vehicle to carry, not its curb weight:
- 6,000 lbs GVWR or under: treated as a standard "passenger automobile" under IRC Section 280F, with much lower first-year depreciation limits than the rules below.
- Over 6,000 lbs, up to 14,000 lbs GVWR — what the IRS calls a "heavy SUV and certain other vehicles": Section 179 is capped at $32,000 for 2026, unless the vehicle meets one of three exceptions below.
- Over 14,000 lbs GVWR: not subject to that $32,000 cap at all.
The $32,000 cap on heavy SUVs doesn't apply if the vehicle is designed to seat more than nine passengers behind the driver's seat, has a cargo area (open or capped) at least 6 feet long that isn't readily accessible from the passenger compartment, or is built as an enclosed cutaway/cargo-van shape with no seating behind the driver. Those exceptions are why a long-bed work truck and a three-row SUV can be taxed so differently even at a similar GVWR.
Where do GMC and Buick vehicles fall?
GMC and Buick's own specification pages don't publish an exact GVWR figure for most models — they list curb weight, payload, and towing capacity instead. The one GMC model with a published GVWR is the Sierra 3500HD Chassis Cab, rated at a maximum GVWR of 14,000 lbs on gmc.com — right at, not above, the 14,000-lb line, so it stays in the capped weight class unless it meets one of the three exceptions above (its cab-and-chassis, no-rear-seating build is the kind of configuration those exceptions were written for).
For the rest of the lineup — Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500HD, Yukon, Yukon XL, Acadia, Enclave, and Envision — GVWR depends on the specific cab, bed, engine, and equipment combination, and isn't listed on the general spec pages. The only place to get an exact number for a specific vehicle is the federal certification label on the driver's side door jamb, or the Monroney window sticker that comes with the vehicle. We're glad to pull that label number for any unit in our inventory before you make a purchasing decision.
Frequently asked questions
Does Section 179 let a business write off a vehicle's entire purchase price?
It depends entirely on the vehicle's GVWR and body style. A vehicle over 14,000 lbs GVWR isn't capped by the SUV rule at all; a heavy SUV between 6,001 and 14,000 lbs is capped at $32,000 for 2026 unless it meets one of the three exceptions described above; a vehicle at 6,000 lbs GVWR or under falls under the much lower passenger-automobile limits instead.
Where do I find a vehicle's actual GVWR?
On the federal certification label on the driver's side door jamb, and on the Monroney window sticker. Manufacturer marketing and configurator pages generally don't list it, since it changes by cab, bed, engine, and equipment combination.
Does the deduction change if I finance the vehicle instead of paying cash?
Section 179 applies to the full purchase price of qualifying property placed in service during the tax year, regardless of whether it's financed, leased (certain leases), or paid for outright. The specifics of how financing affects a given business's deduction are a question for a tax professional.
Is there a deadline for the 2026 tax year?
The vehicle has to be purchased, financed, or leased and placed in service -- meaning in actual business use, not just ordered -- by December 31, 2026, to be claimed on a 2026 return.
What's the difference between Section 179 and bonus depreciation?
Section 179 is an election with its own dollar caps described above. Bonus depreciation, currently 100% for qualifying property acquired after January 19, 2025, is a separate provision that can apply to the cost a vehicle's own Section 179 cap doesn't reach. How the two interact for a specific purchase depends on the business's full tax picture.
Is this page tax advice?
No. This is general information drawn from IRS.gov (Publication 946 and the Form 4562 instructions) and from GMC's own published specifications. Vehicle eligibility depends on the specific unit's configuration and a business's own tax situation -- talk to a qualified tax professional before making a purchasing decision.
Our sales team at Baker Buick GMC of Lowell, 746 W Main St in Lowell, can pull the federal certification label GVWR on any Sierra, Yukon, Acadia, Enclave, or Envision in current inventory so you're working from your specific unit's number, not an estimate. Our commercial/fleet contacts can also connect you with your own tax professional's questions about a specific deal structure.