Sad Day - Moving on to a Truck

[DenaliCountry]

Well since my Yukon soiled the bed at 34K I decided to move into a GMC Sierra. Picked this up yesterday. 2025 GMC Sierra Denali Ultimate with the LZ0 Duramax. So far I really love this truck, made some excuses to drive around and run some errands today and have 0 regrets with the decision (Supercruise is pretty awesome as well!). I definitely loved my Yukon but I am just not willing to take on the risk of another 6.2l failure and was on the fence about a truck to haul stuff to and from the cabin anyway, so the engine failure made this an easier decision. I'll definitely miss the Yukon, depending on how GM handles the NHSTA investigation I may be back one day lol.

I quickly debadged and had the windows tinted today. I am sure there will be some other adds along the way but this thing doesn't need much!

I'll keep poking in at the forum to help where I can if other people have issue or questions.

 

[bryan8252]

Congrats! Beautiful truck and I love the debadging. Just curious... did you consider a Yukon with the Duramax? If so, why did you decide to go with the truck?

 

[swathdiver]

Well since my Yukon soiled the bed at 34K I decided to move into a GMC Sierra. Picked this up yesterday. 2025 GMC Sierra Denali Ultimate with the LZ0 Duramax. So far I really love this truck, made some excuses to drive around and run some errands today and have 0 regrets with the decision (Supercruise is pretty awesome as well!). I definitely loved my Yukon but I am just not willing to take on the risk of another 6.2l failure and was on the fence about a truck to haul stuff to and from the cabin anyway, so the engine failure made this an easier decision. I'll definitely miss the Yukon, depending on how GM handles the NHSTA investigation I may be back one day lol.

I quickly debadged and had the windows tinted today. I am sure there will be some other adds along the way but this thing doesn't need much!

I'll keep poking in at the forum to help where I can if other people have issue or questions.

You don't have to leave. You can also join us over at the SilveradoSierra forum. Many of us have both.

 

[WalleyeMikeIII]

Congrats, I drove a 3.0 Denali Pickup on Monday, I agree w/ your assessment of the powertrain. Really want to expeerience it in a Yukon, and fortunately there is a guy at work who has one...I just need to make a point to ask and try, I know he wiill let me. I have heard it drinks DEF like crazy when towing...so keep us posted on that.

My observations of the Pickup were only noise related...missed the laminated front window glass, so its a bit more wind noise. And I felt like the mirrors are smaller...but could get used to that. Also, didn't love how much of the console space they waste on the shifter...seems like the implementation on the SUV's is a bit nicer that way. Otherwise, loved everything else about the one I drove. I could see myself in one.

Did the dealer treat you right on everything? Enjoy that thing, it is a beautiful ride.

 

[DenaliCountry]

Congrats! Beautiful truck and I love the debadging. Just curious... did you consider a Yukon with the Duramax? If so, why did you decide to go with the truck?

Thank you! I considered it but not a ton of them available at the moment and also the price point of the Denali's and AT4's have surpassed ridiculous lol at over $90K spec'd the way I would have wanted. I have also driven mostly trucks in the past and was debating on getting back into one. We bought a cabin and typically are hauling a bunch of stuff to and from on the weekends so a truck will definitely help with that.

 

[DenaliCountry]

You don't have to leave. You can also join us over at the SilveradoSierra forum. Many of us have both.

Thank you, I will definitely do that!

 

[DenaliCountry]

Congrats, I drove a 3.0 Denali Pickup on Monday, I agree w/ your assessment of the powertrain. Really want to expeerience it in a Yukon, and fortunately there is a guy at work who has one...I just need to make a point to ask and try, I know he wiill let me. I have heard it drinks DEF like crazy when towing...so keep us posted on that.

My observations of the Pickup were only noise related...missed the laminated front window glass, so its a bit more wind noise. And I felt like the mirrors are smaller...but could get used to that. Also, didn't love how much of the console space they waste on the shifter...seems like the implementation on the SUV's is a bit nicer that way. Otherwise, loved everything else about the one I drove. I could see myself in one.

Did the dealer treat you right on everything? Enjoy that thing, it is a beautiful ride.

Thank you. I agree on the console and mirrors, they chewed up a lot of real estate on the center console and the mirrors are definitely smaller but I hardly notice the mirrors to be honest. The location of the wireless charging station under the console lid helps free up space under the screen. I have a VERY short experience with the 3.0 but so far I would recommend this engine to anyone. It has a lot more power and torque than you think, surprised me considering some reviews I have seen. I will let you know on the DEF consumption, I have some towing to do in the next few weeks so we'll see how that goes.

Yes, they took care of me. They discounted the truck substantially and gave me a fair trade value based on what I saw on KBB and the local market so I felt good about the deal.

 

[Stbentoak]

I have a VERY short experience with the 3.0 but so far I would recommend this engine to anyone. It has a lot more power and torque than you think, surprised me considering some reviews I have seen.

Once people drive one of these and actually experience it and see all the benefits. they quickly become believers. It's too bad these vehicles are rare as hens teeth, especially in the Yukon Tahoe format. It's the perfect road vehicle. That's why I have another one on order.

 

[genestoy]

I went with my friend a little over a month ago to our GMC dealer to look for a new Sierra as his 2018 GMC Sierra was in their shop for a tranny flush and broken motor mount which was going to cost 2K to get repaired. We drove a couple of 2025 Sierra 5.3 trucks but neither of them had the equipment we wanted. The only 2025 Sierra they had with the right color and equipment with the max tow package was a LZ0 Diesel so we drove that and they made a deal we could not refuse including covering the 2K shop work. I was with him yesterday for lunch and to date he has only used about half the tank of DEF with over 1500 miles on the truck and 300 of that towing his 7000 pound travel trailer. We have traveled quite a bit together towing our trailers and previously with the 2018 Sierra when going up steep grades my 22 Yukon 5.3 towing my 3500 pound trailer would leave him far behind. We just went on a short 300 mile trip together and the LZ0 Duramax stayed right with we on the grades and he had a big smile on his face!

 

[Protect1989]

As a 1500 diesel owner (LM2), the motor has been great. On road trips the mileage can’t be beat. There are some cons/things to be aware of for those new to diesels

- if you floor it, it’s slow. That’s not to say it’s fast, but it’s very torquey and if you learn to gradually push down on the accelerator it feels much quicker.

- diesel is more expensive. Even in texas it’s sometime $1+ more per gallon

- repairs are more expensive

- diesels prefer longer drives. Using it around town isn’t a problem, just be sure to go on some longer drives sometimes or give it full throttle every now and then

- oil changes/filters are all going to be more expensive

 

[DenaliCountry]

As a 1500 diesel owner (LM2), the motor has been great. On road trips the mileage can’t be beat. There are some cons/things to be aware of for those new to diesels

- if you floor it, it’s slow. That’s not to say it’s fast, but it’s very torquey and if you learn to gradually push down on the accelerator it feels much quicker.

- diesel is more expensive. Even in texas it’s sometime $1+ more per gallon

- repairs are more expensive

- diesels prefer longer drives. Using it around town isn’t a problem, just be sure to go on some longer drives sometimes or give it full throttle every now and then

- oil changes/filters are all going to be more expensive

All good points, my thoughts below.

Where I am at Diesel is cheaper than premium by about $0.30/gallon which is what the 6.2l requires + 20-30 MPG compared to the 12-14 I was getting with the Yukon (sub 9 MPG when towing).

The LZ0 with 30 more HP and 35 lb/ft of torque more than the LM2 definitely helps + the truck is lighter than the Yukon by about 1K lbs. So far the LZ0 has not left a lot to be desired in terms of performance, however, it's definitely not a race car.

I've got 100K miles to worry about repair cost so for now I am not terribly worried about it.

Noted on the shorter trips, I don't have a commute other than dropping kids at school and to the airport for work 2-3 times a month. We head to the cabin every other weekend at 200 miles of highway round trip. I also do a mix of highway and stop/go on the weekends so it's definitely not just a grocery getter, hoping that will be enough to keep it cleaned out.

Based on my assessment the oil changes are maybe $30-40 more per oil change? Based on my mileage I might do ~3 oil changes a year or less.

 

[DenaliCountry]

Once people drive one of these and actually experience it and see all the benefits. they quickly become believers. It's too bad these vehicles are rare as hens teeth, especially in the Yukon Tahoe format. It's the perfect road vehicle. That's why I have another one on order.

I agree, wish I would have driven one sooner. So far I am really loving the truck. It took a lot of searching to find the spec I wanted with the diesel. They are hard to find especially in the tahoe/Yukon config. With the 6.2 issues (I say that loosely only because mine had the issue lol) and now that they put the LZ0 in the SUV I wonder if more people will make the switch.

 

[PPK_]

Well since my Yukon soiled the bed at 34K I decided to move into a GMC Sierra. Picked this up yesterday. 2025 GMC Sierra Denali Ultimate with the LZ0 Duramax. So far I really love this truck, made some excuses to drive around and run some errands today and have 0 regrets with the decision (Supercruise is pretty awesome as well!). I definitely loved my Yukon but I am just not willing to take on the risk of another 6.2l failure and was on the fence about a truck to haul stuff to and from the cabin anyway, so the engine failure made this an easier decision. I'll definitely miss the Yukon, depending on how GM handles the NHSTA investigation I may be back one day lol.

I quickly debadged and had the windows tinted today. I am sure there will be some other adds along the way but this thing doesn't need much!

I'll keep poking in at the forum to help where I can if other people have issue or questions.

I just bought ‘24 yukon and a ‘25 sierra.. the yukon has a 5.3 and i changed oil at 25 hrs… the same thing on the sierra with a 3.0l

All things being equal.. maybe the tooling on the 5.3 is about used up? Left pic is the 5.3 with a magnet run over the filter… right side is the 3.0. The duramax looks pretty decent… there was a lot on the 5.3 filter and also in the drain bucket… i wish had two duramaxes.. bummer!

I added the drain bucket from the 5.3.. if you at it it has lot in there..

 

[Seamus]

Our plan was to move to a Denali Yukon XL diesel a while ago. Already owned the Sierra Denali w/ LM2 so we knew it was a winner and had to get the 3.0. Its is a hens tooth ! Very hard to find as we wanted. We loved my pickup so much and have done many roadtrips its a keeper. It is about the best truck I have owned and I have had many. LOVE this truck. My wife needed the upgrade due to dogs and kids and we nailed down a beautiful escalade ESV a 2018 which has less AFM issues. Will delete the lifters at some poiunt before it happens. Great truck....but its crazy we still gravitate to the Sierra LM2! I despise any comments that arent owners of the truck. Because anyone who owns one gets over every little thing printed or said....and becomes a convert and fanboy of this motor. We have a 6.2 and a 3.0 at the same time. Both cool in different ways....I'd take the 3.0 hands down everyday all day!!! Congrats and enjoy

 

[buckwild27]

You don't have to leave. You can also join us over at the SilveradoSierra forum. Many of us have both.

Definitely welcome with a Pro Grade truck