Finally made it...

[Stbentoak]

Sorry couldn't take better pictures. Was in a hurry and it was about to rain. Drove it about 170 Mi today home, used super cruise for about 120 of it. Have to say pretty impressed. Overall it rides probably better than it should on 24s, engine smooth tranny smooth, appears right out of the box that it will have a little less fuel economy than the lm2. Long ways to go to break it in though. Lots to learn also even though many things are the same. Big display doesn't bother me or my seating position. Appears to be able to do a plethora of things using Google as a basis. Just getting into figuring it out. Can only hope this one will be as good to me as my 21 was.

 

[Jayhawkeye3]

Can you share your build sheet? I’m looking at building one almost identical (or Tahoe version).

 

[Stbentoak]

It was basically an Ultimate with 3.0 Dmax , Brembo's and Night Vision... Professional up fitter removed all body parts prepped and painted black with clear coat, if they couldn't be ordered as a black factory replacement piece like around the windows which were all replaced with AT 4 Black pieces. Wasn't cheap..... nothing good ever is...

 

[Jayhawkeye3]

Nice! I didn’t realize the window trim only comes in silver other than AT4 but I guess it makes sense like the Hoe RST. why did you replace vs wrap those?

 

[Stbentoak]

Wrapping works, but only if you are committed to hand washing. (Which I am, by the way,,,). If they are factory black pieces... well, you just don't have to ever worry about them again. Lasts as long as the vehicle...

 

[Txhunter]

Congrats on the beautiful truck. I plan on ordering my ultimate as soon as the 2026's open. Think I will go with the 22's instead of the 24's, but will see. Don't think i'll get the night vision, just seems way to small for what it is. If you don't mind sharing, did you get any % off MSRP?

 

[Tonyv__]

Are those the factory 24s that have Denali engraved in them?

 

[Jayhawkeye3]

I wrapped the c pillars and tail lights on my 2018 expedition and have used a car wash hundreds of times. After 7 years the wrap is finally showing signs. Not bad!

 

[Joseph Garcia]

I love that color!

 

[Bdmiller4494]

@Stbentoak - Very nice ride, finally here. Mine should be coming in the next week finally. Can you let us know your initial thoughts on the upgraded brake package? Make much of a difference in braking power?

 

[Txhunter]

I am curious on the brake package as well. I found them for $2-2.2K on the market, so if i went that route, i would just install them myself. Not a job for everyone, but definitely cheaper than the $3.6K through GM.

 

[Stbentoak]

@Stbentoak - Very nice ride, finally here. Mine should be coming in the next week finally. Can you let us know your initial thoughts on the upgraded brake package? Make much of a difference in braking power?

Its definitely firmer than my 2021, but these vehicles need all the brakes they can get. Always thought the 21 was mushy.....

 

[Stbentoak]

I wrapped the c pillars and tail lights on my 2018 expedition and have used a car wash hundreds of times. After 7 years the wrap is finally showing signs. Not bad!

My 21's wrap was receding in many places. Not totally terrible but noticeable. Didn't want any wraps any more....

 

[Stbentoak]

Are those the factory 24s that have Denali engraved in them?

Yes, I had them stripped and Gloss black Powder coated. It holds up very well and is sharper and cheaper than other factory rims....

 

[Stbentoak]

Congrats on the beautiful truck. I plan on ordering my ultimate as soon as the 2026's open. Think I will go with the 22's instead of the 24's, but will see. Don't think i'll get the night vision, just seems way to small for what it is. If you don't mind sharing, did you get any % off MSRP?

Nope and didn't care.... Ultimate's that are Diesels are rare unicorns...

 

[JayceeP]

Nice rig. I do think I prefer the black accents over all the chrome my 2024 XL SLT has.

Shoulda got the Denali ffs!‍

 

[Tonyv__]

Yes, I had them stripped and Gloss black Powder coated. It holds up very well and is sharper and cheaper than other factory rims....

Nice. I’ve been looking for them but I can only find one seller and he’s asking close to 5k

 

[Stbentoak]

Also, as an FYI I bought 2024 WT front mudflaps for Power boards and they fit the 25 perfectly. Even clear the 24's with no worries. Front and Back WT are the way to go for these vehicles.. again, not cheap, but exactly what you need, exactly where you need it....and I hate crap up and down the sides of my vehicles....

 

[CMoore711]

Sharp Ride for sure there @Stbentoak. And what a lucky daughter you have as well to be handed the keys to your '21!

Interested to see some more real world pics of the dash layout and center screen if you get a chance to post some of those.

 

[Stbentoak]

Here are some various pictures of the big screen layouts as well as the DIC layouts. Sure, they could have allowed you to customize it better, no doubt about it, but by and large this thing is pretty fabulous. Absolutely crystal clear and absolutely as big as a bed sheet. The very bottom picture is a picture of myradar app open which is a weather app that can pretty helpful when you are traveling. You can see things brewing from 100 miles away.
Note that the very first DIC picture if you look under the warning sign, it also shows markers for transmission temperature and oil temperature as well as coolant temperature and Fuel Gage on the outboard markers.