Potential buyer… issues online from loud minority or reason for concern?

[Cc16177]

My wife is shopping for an “upgrade” to her Toyota 4Runner and we are hoping for something with a usable 3rd row while maintaining some amount of trunk space as well.

Long story short: the Yukon Denali is her #1 choice.

Background: I drive a BMW and am not “afraid” of cars that are considered unreliable but generally that can be prevented by staying on top of maintenance, and not being an idiot with your vehicle.

My concerns are primarily GM customer service and less specific like “the 6.2 recall”. I understand that mistakes happen and recalls are necessary so I’m trying not to be blinded by that but beyond that, I see so many posts about people complaining that their vehicle is unavailable to them for weeks or months on end due to ongoing repairs.

How normal is that? Is this just the loud minority of people who are (rightfully) pissed about their situation? Or should I truly be concerned that issues will generally not be addressed… and maybe be more likely than other brands.

I’ve read quite a few of these threads on here and that’s what led me to make this post. I’d love to hear from people who are happy with their GM vehicle and/or have had issues that were properly addressed by their dealer.

 

[Tonyv__]

One thing I’ve always kept in the back of my mind is that 9 out of 10 people who have a bad experience will complain out loud. 1 out of 10 people will share how great their experience has been without being asked.

So keep that in mind, yes the risk is there but it’s just simply luck of the draw IMO

 

[Doubeleive]

if she can live with a 2020 then none of above applies.
Any wait period on any potential repairs is due to the current supply chain, sooner or later they will catch up
not sure where the unreliable reference stems from, none of mine have left me stranded in a couple decades unless i got a flat or ran out of gas

 

[homesick]

One thing I’ve always kept in the back of my mind is that 9 out of 10 people who have a bad experience will complain out loud. 1 out of 10 people will share how great their experience has been without being asked.

So keep that in mind, yes the risk is there but it’s just simply luck of the draw IMO

This is a basic rule of thumb in retail.

joe

 

[Cc16177]

That’s basically what I keep telling myself, but I’m picturing buying this for my family and then my wife calls me with my kids in the car and she’s broken down on the side of the road and I don’t need that these days… lol

 

[LegalBrief]

If you buy a 2025 the engine has already been updated. Look at the Tahoe it’s much nicer then the Yukon because it doesn’t have the vertical screen blocking your view.

All the dealerships regardless of brand have issues. Buy the GM extended warranty, it includes 10 days of rental car per incident. Buy after u but the truck, search this site for how to get it at a far price.

 

[Stbentoak]

If you buy a 2025 the engine has already been updated. Look at the Tahoe it’s much nicer then the Yukon because it doesn’t have the vertical screen blocking your view.

All the dealerships regardless of brand have issues. Buy the GM extended warranty, it includes 20 days of rental car per incident. Buy after u but the truck, search this site for how to get it at a far price.

HaHa.. I would beg to differ with that... That screen is gorgeous and doesn't block any view. Get a Denali with a 3.0 Duramax and go live a great life. No problems in 4 years with my 21 which lives on and no problems with my 25 either. Beautiful machine if you can bear the sticker. Super Cruise is great!

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Welcome to the Forum from NH.

Lots of knowledgeable folks here who freely share their knowledge, experiences, and perspectives. Knowledge is power.

I hope that you will become a participating member in the Forum's discussions.

You are already receiving sage advice from the knowledgeable folks on this Forum.

While the motor-related issue is real, only a very small minority of owners have run into this issue (I know, if it happens to you, then it doesn't matter what happens to anybody else).

 

[Marky Dissod]

One thing I’ve always kept in the back of my mind is that 9 out of 10 people who have a bad experience will complain out loud ...

GM segregates their new parts availabilities, and biases the best of their new parts for the assembly line.
If parts that WOULD be available to repair young vehicle's needs are predestined to the factory for new vehicles,
it follows that those complaining about waiting weeks for parts to fix their young vehicles are simply noticing either:
that GM did not order enough new parts
or
that GM's quality control has lapsed
or both.

 

[tjs3922]

My wife is shopping for an “upgrade” to her Toyota 4Runner and we are hoping for something with a usable 3rd row while maintaining some amount of trunk space as well.

Long story short: the Yukon Denali is her #1 choice.

Background: I drive a BMW and am not “afraid” of cars that are considered unreliable but generally that can be prevented by staying on top of maintenance, and not being an idiot with your vehicle.

My concerns are primarily GM customer service and less specific like “the 6.2 recall”. I understand that mistakes happen and recalls are necessary so I’m trying not to be blinded by that but beyond that, I see so many posts about people complaining that their vehicle is unavailable to them for weeks or months on end due to ongoing repairs.

How normal is that? Is this just the loud minority of people who are (rightfully) pissed about their situation? Or should I truly be concerned that issues will generally not be addressed… and maybe be more likely than other brands.

I’ve read quite a few of these threads on here and that’s what led me to make this post. I’d love to hear from people who are happy with their GM vehicle and/or have had issues that were properly addressed by their dealer.

I have driven GM products since the mid 80's with almost no issues. I don't keep my vehicles long but still no issues. Since 2015 I have had 3 Suburbans and 4 Yukons with NO issues.

I think its the squeaky wheel theory. When someone does have an issue they are complaining loudly (especially US cars). I get it, if my vehicle were laid up for 3 weeks I would be an unhappy camper.

My belief is that by the early 2000's almost all manufacturers have the same build quality. Mostly very good. One thing I have noticed with friends and family that own Toyota and Honda is that they brush off vehicle issue and lack of modern tech while ripping American cars. Just my experience.

 

[KMeloney]

That’s basically what I keep telling myself, but I’m picturing buying this for my family and then my wife calls me with my kids in the car and she’s broken down on the side of the road and I don’t need that these days… lol

NO ONE needs that, ever. But no manufacturer is can guarantee that you'll never have any problems with its vehicles.

I love my '23 Denali. And yeah, it's on the recall list -- so I'll take it in for the "engine test" when told I can. In the meantime, I'm enjoying the hell out of it.

 

[Marky Dissod]

One thing I have noticed with friends and family that own Toyota and Honda is that they brush off vehicle issue and lack of modern tech while ripping American cars.

Vast majority of Toyota & Honda drivers don't have the cojones to aim for 250,000 miles.

... no manufacturer can guarantee that you'll never have any problems with its vehicles.

OK, but lately, with all the quality control issues across several manufacturers (American, German, Japanese, Korean),
they can practically guarantee that you WILL have problems, only question is how many problems.

 

[PPV_2018]

I have driven GM products since the mid 80's with almost no issues. I don't keep my vehicles long but still no issues. Since 2015 I have had 3 Suburbans and 4 Yukons with NO issues.

I think its the squeaky wheel theory. When someone does have an issue they are complaining loudly (especially US cars). I get it, if my vehicle were laid up for 3 weeks I would be an unhappy camper.

My belief is that by the early 2000's almost all manufacturers have the same build quality. Mostly very good. One thing I have noticed with friends and family that own Toyota and Honda is that they brush off vehicle issue and lack of modern tech while ripping American cars. Just my experience.

No disrespect man, but i don’t, and never have understood the sentiment of “oh I’ve never had an isssue from any of my cars” . . . from those that trade in vehicles ever 2 years or less and basically only drive the current model year — you’re not going to have issues. Especially nowadays where cars are SEEMINGLY designed to be great for the warranty period and then after that is a roll of the dice.

Of course there are some exceptions like the whole 6.2 grenading itself thing, which the OP for some reason said he’s not really concerned about, which personally would be my number 1 concern. Actually it is, I’ll never purchase a GM truck with the 6.2 for this very reason.

How about people that own their vehicles for 10, or 20 years.. which are most real world applications. Will they say they’ve never had a problem, of course not. But are those “problems” typical maintenance related, or issues with bad quality and faulty designs, that’s what needs to be considered.

. . .

I do agree with the majority of members here that the old adage the squeaky wheel gets the grease. People are far more likely to tell someone else about a BAD expiereince over a good one. I use the pizza place analogy all the time. If a pizza place serves 20 customers, 18 of them absolutely love it, 2 had a horrible experience, you’ll probably hear from those 2 that hated it before the ones that loved it.


. . . That being said, GM is having some serious quality control issues right now. Maybe i wouldn’t avoid GM completely, but a 6.2 is OUT of the question. Either a 5.3 or the 3.0 diesel would be the only two engine option’s I’d even consider — things like customer service and that kind of stuff is totally secondary. You don’t get customer service worth a damn anywhere nowadays anyways.

 

[tjs3922]

No disrespect man, but i don’t, and never have understood the sentiment of “oh I’ve never had an isssue from any of my cars” . . . from those that trade in vehicles ever 2 years or less and basically only drive the current model year — you’re not going to have issues. Especially nowadays where cars are SEEMINGLY designed to be great for the warranty period and then after that is a roll of the dice.

Of course there are some exceptions like the whole 6.2 grenading itself thing, which the OP for some reason said he’s not really concerned about, which personally would be my number 1 concern. Actually it is, I’ll never purchase a GM truck with the 6.2 for this very reason.

How about people that own their vehicles for 10, or 20 years.. which are most real world applications. Will they say they’ve never had a problem, of course not. But are those “problems” typical maintenance related, or issues with bad quality and faulty designs, that’s what needs to be considered.

. . .

I do agree with the majority of members here that the old adage the squeaky wheel gets the grease. People are far more likely to tell someone else about a BAD expiereince over a good one. I use the pizza place analogy all the time. If a pizza place serves 20 customers, 18 of them absolutely love it, 2 had a horrible experience, you’ll probably hear from those 2 that hated it before the ones that loved it.


. . . That being said, GM is having some serious quality control issues right now. Maybe i wouldn’t avoid GM completely, but a 6.2 is OUT of the question. Either a 5.3 or the 3.0 diesel would be the only two engine option’s I’d even consider — things like customer service and that kind of stuff is totally secondary. You don’t get customer service worth a damn anywhere nowadays anyways.

Correct. I do not expect issues on my vehicles with 2-3 years on them. Just answering from my perspective. I will never ever keep a car more than 3-4 years if that.

 

[Stbentoak]

And the vast majority of people don't keep cars 10 to 20 years......The vast majority don't even keep them six to eight years.

People that are actively investing in 10 plus year old vehicles are a minority. People don't have the time, wherewithal, or patience to deal with old vehicles with multiple systems falling apart.

 

[the 18th letter]

And the vast majority of people don't keep cars 10 to 20 years......The vast majority don't even keep them six to eight years.

People that are actively investing in 10 plus year old vehicles are a minority. People don't have the time, wherewithal, or patience to deal with old vehicles with multiple systems falling apart.

I think it’s the other way around. More people are keeping cars longer. New car prices are getting more and more expensive.

 

[Dave in Gig Harbor]

2018 Silverado 1500 with the 6.2 engine. I did oil changes every 6k miles, using A/C Delco filters and the proper weight and spec oil. Had Blackstone analyze the oil twice and both times it came back looking good and suggesting an oil change interval of 7300 miles. My engine is not in the recall group. At 80k miles, it developed a loud tick and went straight to an independent shop. It had a bent pushrod and $5k later, all the lifters and the bad pushrod were replaced. At 93k miles, another pushrod on the other side broke in half (after going over a speed bump!). Took it to a Chevy dealer and $12k later, I have a new long block. GM helped with the cost, but I have no idea how much that was. Not a happy camper and have NEVER had issues with the other Chevy truck or the five Suburbans we have owned. I think the variable cylinder system is to blame and I figured it may have save me $2k over the 93k miles, but cost me $17k in repairs.

 

[scotflyer]

I just had a 2025 Yukon Denali with 3.0 built. Dealer (Rivard Buick/GMC) in Tampa is FANTASTIC. Vehicle built and delivered to me in 7 weeks. My initial choice was a 2025 Lexus LX SUV. It just fell short on many aspects.
I could not be happier with build quality, specs, and 3.0 engine.

 

[dbphillips]

Correct. I do not expect issues on my vehicles with 2-3 years on them. Just answering from my perspective. I will never ever keep a car more than 3-4 years if that.

That is expensive!

 

[MrMonte]

While I did have an AFM lifter separate on my 2018 Yukon Denali at 88K miles & did an AFM delete I am now passed the 125K miles with 1 battery replacement, on 2nd set of tires and just replaced the struts & shocks it has been a fantastic vehicle. Still plenty of pad left on original brakes too.

I have no plans to replace mine but if I did I would be willing to get a 2025 Yukon Denali.