New guy, introduction and big question!

I didn't buy the new model but the same logic applies to my nbs with the space. The standard wheel base didnt have any room behind the up third row. And when the third row was folded up it had the exact same amount of room that my previous 2001 Durango limited had. So it was a no brainer to get the XL Denali. And the other selling point on the denali was the bigger V8, my 6.0 is awesome. It pulls so much better than the small blocks. I love it. The 6.2 in the newer denalis is awesome as well.

Wow guys thanks for all the invaluable feedback! This is exactly what I needed to know. From guys who've got some notches on their belt!

Today however was a very disappointing day for me. For the first time in a while the wife was excited about doing car stuff and she agreed to drive out to a GMC dealer to test drive a Denali. We were paired with a 2016 Denali in Midnight Amethyst Metallic with black leather interior. First I'll give MHO and then I'll go into some research.

The car exterior is a 10/10. The color was unreal and overall stance and presence were impressive. The baby seat fit behind the drivers seat, but just barely. I'm 6'4 and I was able to get into a somewhat comfortable position with the baby seat behind me. I think I could even do a road trip which is one of two reasons we need a bigger car. So far so good.
The leather seats were great. Black with white stitching, captain seats in the back. Really impressive.
So the exterior was fantastic, the baby seat just barely fit but it fit, and the leather seats were not only pretty but comfortable too. We were cruising.

Now I have to share the let down. The sticker on this particular car was just under $70K. Drive off, it was offered at just under $60K. After all is said and done, I can drive the car off the lot in the mid $60 range. That's a brand new 2016 Denali with all the bells and whistles. The problem is that I don't think it's worth it. While the exterior and leather seats were great, the rest of it was a huge disappointment. The dash was decent with some stitched leather but the rest of it was not good. Too much plastic, too much rubber. The center console is great storage but it looked cheap, just plain unfinished plastic. The armrests at the third row were just molded plastic, like something you see in a early 2000's pick up truck. The car we drove had 21 miles on it and the trim on the nav screen was already coming apart. Not a good way to make an impression. I've owned too many cars to know that this is just a simple fix but they want $65K for this particular truck, there should be any simple fixes that need to be done. The overall fit and finish of the interior was lacking.



The drive was very pleasant. The car had a good amount of torque and was able to get up and go. It let down later in the higher RPM ranges but it's not meant to be a race car so that I can get over. The steering was responsive but super nimble. I had the sensation that I was disconnected from the road. Almost like everything I did at the wheel translated to the tires artificially if that makes sense. All in all, it was a fun drive and you certainly have road presence.

The big problem of course is that for $65K you can get a TON of other very very nice SUV. For example, for the same price you can get a 2014 or maybe even 2015 Mercedes GL550. This truck comes with a 5.5L TT motor good for 429HP and 516TQ. With a tune that runs about $1K you can get those numbers up to 500+HP and 600TQ. This would bring the 0-60 down to the early 5 second range easy. That's nothing to squint at. The interior is stunning.







As far as space, the Denali has the competition beat. My main focus was rear cargo space, and rear leg room. The rear leg room will ultimately help with the baby seats, and the rear cargo helps with cargo. Lol. One more thing I was curious about was front leg room. I figure that number has to come in play when you've got a limited amount of space behind you due to baby seats.

Here's what I found:

2012 BMW X5M:
Curb Weight: 5,368 lbs
Front Row Leg room: 40 in.
Rear Leg Room: 36.6 in.
Trunk Cargo Space: 21.90 cu. ft.

2014 Mercedes ML550:
Curb Weight: 4,753 lbs
Front Row Leg Room: 40.3 in.
Rear Leg Room: 38.4 in.
Trunk Cargo Space: 36.2 cu. ft.

2016 GMC Yukon Denali:
Curb Weight: 5,746 lbs
Front row leg room: 45.3 in.
Rear leg room: 39 in.
Trunk Cargo Space: 57.6 cu. ft. With all three rows up = 15.3 cu. ft.

2014 Mercedes GL550:
Curb Weight: 5,578 lbs
Front row leg room: 40.3 in
Rear Row leg room: 38.5 in
Trunk Cargo Space: 49.4 cu ft. - With all three rows up = 16 cu. ft.

The Denali takes the cake in the front leg room and cargo space. However, when it comes to rear leg room it's only up by .5 of an inch on the GL. It has 8 more cubic feet of storage than the GL, but less than the GL with the third row up.
The X5M is just a joke, after doing some research I no longer consider it a legitimate SUV. It's fast as hell but that's it.

So now the dilemma. Do I buy the Denali and just deal with the shortcomings in the lux department or do I jump into a GL? OR, another option is that I could buy a 09-10 Suburban and make it a strict baby hauler/bug out truck and still have money to buy a fun weekend car like an 05 SL55..!?

If you want something that may be comparable to a Merc then you will prolly be better looking into the Escalades. And if you're looking at bigger then they make it in an XL as well. Even though GMC is the higher brand of the GM compared to the Tahoe and Burban, the Esky is the luxary line for GM.

All that you listed as cons for the interior looking cheap will be close to the best you can get for American made vehicles. Mercs are made by an entirely different design process.

TheVazha said:

The steering was responsive but super nimble. I had the sensation that I was disconnected from the road. Almost like everything I did at the wheel translated to the tires artificially if that makes sense.

Click to expand...

welcome to electric power steering. even weirder feel in vette
it is odd, but you can get used to it.

TheVazha said:

Wow guys thanks for all the invaluable feedback! This is exactly what I needed to know. From guys who've got some notches on their belt!

Today however was a very disappointing day for me. For the first time in a while the wife was excited about doing car stuff and she agreed to drive out to a GMC dealer to test drive a Denali. We were paired with a 2016 Denali in Midnight Amethyst Metallic with black leather interior. First I'll give MHO and then I'll go into some research.

The car exterior is a 10/10. The color was unreal and overall stance and presence were impressive. The baby seat fit behind the drivers seat, but just barely. I'm 6'4 and I was able to get into a somewhat comfortable position with the baby seat behind me. I think I could even do a road trip which is one of two reasons we need a bigger car. So far so good.
The leather seats were great. Black with white stitching, captain seats in the back. Really impressive.
So the exterior was fantastic, the baby seat just barely fit but it fit, and the leather seats were not only pretty but comfortable too. We were cruising.

Now I have to share the let down. The sticker on this particular car was just under $70K. Drive off, it was offered at just under $60K. After all is said and done, I can drive the car off the lot in the mid $60 range. That's a brand new 2016 Denali with all the bells and whistles. The problem is that I don't think it's worth it. While the exterior and leather seats were great, the rest of it was a huge disappointment. The dash was decent with some stitched leather but the rest of it was not good. Too much plastic, too much rubber. The center console is great storage but it looked cheap, just plain unfinished plastic. The armrests at the third row were just molded plastic, like something you see in a early 2000's pick up truck. The car we drove had 21 miles on it and the trim on the nav screen was already coming apart. Not a good way to make an impression. I've owned too many cars to know that this is just a simple fix but they want $65K for this particular truck, there should be any simple fixes that need to be done. The overall fit and finish of the interior was lacking.






The drive was very pleasant. The car had a good amount of torque and was able to get up and go. It let down later in the higher RPM ranges but it's not meant to be a race car so that I can get over. The steering was responsive but super nimble. I had the sensation that I was disconnected from the road. Almost like everything I did at the wheel translated to the tires artificially if that makes sense. All in all, it was a fun drive and you certainly have road presence.

The big problem of course is that for $65K you can get a TON of other very very nice SUV. For example, for the same price you can get a 2014 or maybe even 2015 Mercedes GL550. This truck comes with a 5.5L TT motor good for 429HP and 516TQ. With a tune that runs about $1K you can get those numbers up to 500+HP and 600TQ. This would bring the 0-60 down to the early 5 second range easy. That's nothing to squint at. The interior is stunning.

As far as space, the Denali has the competition beat. My main focus was rear cargo space, and rear leg room. The rear leg room will ultimately help with the baby seats, and the rear cargo helps with cargo. Lol. One more thing I was curious about was front leg room. I figure that number has to come in play when you've got a limited amount of space behind you due to baby seats.

Here's what I found:

2012 BMW X5M:
Curb Weight: 5,368 lbs
Front Row Leg room: 40 in.
Rear Leg Room: 36.6 in.
Trunk Cargo Space: 21.90 cu. ft.

2014 Mercedes ML550:
Curb Weight: 4,753 lbs
Front Row Leg Room: 40.3 in.
Rear Leg Room: 38.4 in.
Trunk Cargo Space: 36.2 cu. ft.

2016 GMC Yukon Denali:
Curb Weight: 5,746 lbs
Front row leg room: 45.3 in.
Rear leg room: 39 in.
Trunk Cargo Space: 57.6 cu. ft. With all three rows up = 15.3 cu. ft.

2014 Mercedes GL550:
Curb Weight: 5,578 lbs
Front row leg room: 40.3 in
Rear Row leg room: 38.5 in
Trunk Cargo Space: 49.4 cu ft. - With all three rows up = 16 cu. ft.

The Denali takes the cake in the front leg room and cargo space. However, when it comes to rear leg room it's only up by .5 of an inch on the GL. It has 8 more cubic feet of storage than the GL, but less than the GL with the third row up.
The X5M is just a joke, after doing some research I no longer consider it a legitimate SUV. It's fast as hell but that's it.

So now the dilemma. Do I buy the Denali and just deal with the shortcomings in the lux department or do I jump into a GL? OR, another option is that I could buy a 09-10 Suburban and make it a strict baby hauler/bug out truck and still have money to buy a fun weekend car like an 05 SL55..!?

Click to expand...

Option two is good but I don't think you would be happy. Check out the Escalade

I was underwhelmed with the GL450, not mentioning severely lacking space in third row and trunk. I have 5 kids, so the GL was in line with our previous Infiniti QX. XL was our only option, especially as others have alluded to once you begin to try to get people in and out of third row comfortably as well as the much needed cargo space.

I understand the dealership experience is underwhelming compared to the imports, but they are great trucks.

TheVazha said:

Wow guys thanks for all the invaluable feedback! This is exactly what I needed to know. From guys who've got some notches on their belt!

Today however was a very disappointing day for me. For the first time in a while the wife was excited about doing car stuff and she agreed to drive out to a GMC dealer to test drive a Denali. We were paired with a 2016 Denali in Midnight Amethyst Metallic with black leather interior. First I'll give MHO and then I'll go into some research.

The car exterior is a 10/10. The color was unreal and overall stance and presence were impressive. The baby seat fit behind the drivers seat, but just barely. I'm 6'4 and I was able to get into a somewhat comfortable position with the baby seat behind me. I think I could even do a road trip which is one of two reasons we need a bigger car. So far so good.
The leather seats were great. Black with white stitching, captain seats in the back. Really impressive.
So the exterior was fantastic, the baby seat just barely fit but it fit, and the leather seats were not only pretty but comfortable too. We were cruising.

Now I have to share the let down. The sticker on this particular car was just under $70K. Drive off, it was offered at just under $60K. After all is said and done, I can drive the car off the lot in the mid $60 range. That's a brand new 2016 Denali with all the bells and whistles. The problem is that I don't think it's worth it. While the exterior and leather seats were great, the rest of it was a huge disappointment. The dash was decent with some stitched leather but the rest of it was not good. Too much plastic, too much rubber. The center console is great storage but it looked cheap, just plain unfinished plastic. The armrests at the third row were just molded plastic, like something you see in a early 2000's pick up truck. The car we drove had 21 miles on it and the trim on the nav screen was already coming apart. Not a good way to make an impression. I've owned too many cars to know that this is just a simple fix but they want $65K for this particular truck, there should be any simple fixes that need to be done. The overall fit and finish of the interior was lacking.



The drive was very pleasant. The car had a good amount of torque and was able to get up and go. It let down later in the higher RPM ranges but it's not meant to be a race car so that I can get over. The steering was responsive but super nimble. I had the sensation that I was disconnected from the road. Almost like everything I did at the wheel translated to the tires artificially if that makes sense. All in all, it was a fun drive and you certainly have road presence.

The big problem of course is that for $65K you can get a TON of other very very nice SUV. For example, for the same price you can get a 2014 or maybe even 2015 Mercedes GL550. This truck comes with a 5.5L TT motor good for 429HP and 516TQ. With a tune that runs about $1K you can get those numbers up to 500+HP and 600TQ. This would bring the 0-60 down to the early 5 second range easy. That's nothing to squint at. The interior is stunning.

As far as space, the Denali has the competition beat. My main focus was rear cargo space, and rear leg room. The rear leg room will ultimately help with the baby seats, and the rear cargo helps with cargo. Lol. One more thing I was curious about was front leg room. I figure that number has to come in play when you've got a limited amount of space behind you due to baby seats.

Here's what I found:

2012 BMW X5M:
Curb Weight: 5,368 lbs
Front Row Leg room: 40 in.
Rear Leg Room: 36.6 in.
Trunk Cargo Space: 21.90 cu. ft.

2014 Mercedes ML550:
Curb Weight: 4,753 lbs
Front Row Leg Room: 40.3 in.
Rear Leg Room: 38.4 in.
Trunk Cargo Space: 36.2 cu. ft.

2016 GMC Yukon Denali:
Curb Weight: 5,746 lbs
Front row leg room: 45.3 in.
Rear leg room: 39 in.
Trunk Cargo Space: 57.6 cu. ft. With all three rows up = 15.3 cu. ft.

2014 Mercedes GL550:
Curb Weight: 5,578 lbs
Front row leg room: 40.3 in
Rear Row leg room: 38.5 in
Trunk Cargo Space: 49.4 cu ft. - With all three rows up = 16 cu. ft.

The Denali takes the cake in the front leg room and cargo space. However, when it comes to rear leg room it's only up by .5 of an inch on the GL. It has 8 more cubic feet of storage than the GL, but less than the GL with the third row up.
The X5M is just a joke, after doing some research I no longer consider it a legitimate SUV. It's fast as hell but that's it.

So now the dilemma. Do I buy the Denali and just deal with the shortcomings in the lux department or do I jump into a GL? OR, another option is that I could buy a 09-10 Suburban and make it a strict baby hauler/bug out truck and still have money to buy a fun weekend car like an 05 SL55..!?

Click to expand...

you are comparing apples to oranges here pricewise.
comparing a used car price with a new car price to me would be irrelevant especially when you say denali isnt worth the sticker price.
a fair comparison would be similar year vehicles with similar miles on them and similar type configurations.

AppocAlexx said:

If you want something that may be comparable to a Merc then you will prolly be better looking into the Escalades. And if you're looking at bigger then they make it in an XL as well. Even though GMC is the higher brand of the GM compared to the Tahoe and Burban, the Esky is the luxary line for GM.

All that you listed as cons for the interior looking cheap will be close to the best you can get for American made vehicles. Mercs are made by an entirely different design process.

Click to expand...

In all fairness, you are spot on. I guess I didn't properly manage my expectations. You are correct, apples to apples would be comparing the Escalade to the GL. I'll never forget when I got my 2000 Tahoe Limited. The sticker on it was $24 and some change, and that thing was fully loaded with dual tone leather seats! For $65K I was expecting a bit more in the interior..

gat0r said:

welcome to electric power steering. even weirder feel in vette
it is odd, but you can get used to it.

Click to expand...

Yeah I bet. I can totally see how it would make driving the truck long term possible, and enjoyable.

#1taho said:

Option two is good but I don't think you would be happy. Check out the Escalade

Click to expand...

CMac16XL said:

I was underwhelmed with the GL450, not mentioning severely lacking space in third row and trunk. I have 5 kids, so the GL was in line with our previous Infiniti QX. XL was our only option, especially as others have alluded to once you begin to try to get people in and out of third row comfortably as well as the much needed cargo space.

I understand the dealership experience is underwhelming compared to the imports, but they are great trucks.

Click to expand...

Agreed. They are fantastic and I'm trying to shake my bad trip to the dealer. I will test drive another one asap.

toi said:

you are comparing apples to oranges here pricewise.
comparing a used car price with a new car price to me would be irrelevant especially when you say denali isnt worth the sticker price.
a fair comparison would be similar year vehicles with similar miles on them and similar type configurations.

Click to expand...

Yes you are 100% correct, however, I was comparing an older GL to a BNIB (lol) Denali. As in, a used GL with some miles on it would compare to a brand new Denali as far as value, IMO of course.

Still where the new Denali (2015+) has them all beat is exterior styling. Holy moly what a GORGEOUS auto.

If you can get a loaded Denali out the door under $60K get it !! You can always focus it with a tuner later. The interior trim and fit pieces can be overcome by your dealer.

If want more serious go call Hennessey in Houston. For around $15K you can put that Denali south of 5 sec 0-60 and still keep your 3/36000 factory warranty.

Volvo XC90 R Design. It's more in your price range and you'd be impressed with the interior. Get the Polestar tune. Might not be lighhtening quick but you're getting a big ride for the fam so slow your boat. There ya go

Otherwise, you need to step it up to at least a 2015.5 Esky if you want to be impressed with the interior. There's always the QX80 as well. The interior materials are far superior, but the interior itself is starting to show some signs of aging.

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