Would you buy your Yukon or Tahoe again?

[Matt Averett]

What's up guys...brand new to the forum. I am a current Toyota owner (Tundra and Land Cruiser) and our last 5-6 vehicles have been Toyota or Lexus. Despite the fact that they are boring with not a lot of bells and whistles, the reliability is what has kept me coming back. That said, I came really close to buying a Yukon Denali a couple years ago for my wife until we stumbled onto all the online threads/articles about the booming/buffeting. That's when we decided to stick with Toyota and go with a certified pre-owned '14 Land Cruiser.

My Tundra Limited is an '08 and still in really good shape (only 150k miles) but I'm getting close to pulling the trigger on a new vehicle. That said...I absolutely LOVE the look, size, and features of these Yukons however the nightmare stories that I read online about vehicle problems and/or horror stories about getting shafted by the dealer scares the crap out of me. This is a huge investment to have to deal with a ton of vehicle/dealership problems.

So my question to you is...if you had to do it over again, would you buy another Tahoe or Yukon? There are so many of these things on the road...it is hard for me to understand whether the horror stories and negative reviews online are the minority, or the majority and folks keep buying them anyway.

Thanks for the help guys.

 

[swathdiver]

Welcome Matt. I reckon the troubles are with a small percentage overall as most people without problems do not frequent these forums. We don't see too many problems with the '17s and '18s either.

If I had a chance to buy my 2009 again, I certainly would without hesitation! LOL

 

[Miami-Dade]

As of right now I would buy another Tahoe again. So far at 37K miles just oil changes every 5K miles. My Tahoe is the first vehicle I really enjoy driving on long trips. I am always looking for a excuse to hit the road.

I generally talk to other Tahoe and Yukon owners when I take long trips and so far everyone I talked to loves theirs. Most are on their third or fourth Tahoe or Yukon and most of them keep them till 200K miles. So far they all plan to buy another one when they retire their old one if they live long enough.

Like James said the bulk of the happy Tahoe and Yukon owners do not join forums. All the owners I spoke to did not join Tahoe Yukon Forum or any other forum.

Welcome from Miami Beach&Brooklyn N.Y. Matt!!

 

[07 Denali]

As of right now I would buy another Tahoe again. So far at 37K miles just oil changes every 5K miles. My Tahoe is the first vehicle I really enjoy driving on long tips. I am always looking for a excuse to hit the road.

I generally talk to other Tahoe and Yukon owners when I take long trips and so far everyone I talked to loves theirs. Most are on their third or fourth Tahoe or Yukon and most of them keep them till 200K miles. So far they all plan to buy another one when they retire their old one if they live long enough.

Like James said the bulk of the happy Tahoe and Yukon owners do not join forums. All the owners I spoke to did not join Tahoe Yukon Forum or any other forum.

Welcome from Miami Beach&Brooklyn N.Y. Matt!!

We’ve had a 1997 Yukon (miss the tail gate!), 2007 Denali, 2013 Suburban, and 2018 Denali. The ‘97 had tranny issues (after 160k miles) and fuel pump (had to drop the tank), but those were common issues known for that model year. The ‘07 and ‘13 are both still running strong...sold one to a buddy and traded in the other. Besides normal maintenance, the only major thing I did was ball joints at about 130k on both. We have had great luck with our full size GM SUVs.

If you are new to the vehicles, the only recommendation I would make is to opt for 6.2 liter engine, especially if you are looking at an XL. While the 5.3 is great around town, if you ever plan to tow anything or take the family through the mountains, at times that engine is undersized for the Yukon XL.

We’ve had many GM trucks as well...4.3 liters, 5.3 liters, 6.2 liters, and the 6.6 liter diesel. We have had no major issues with our GM vehicles. Maybe we are fortunate, but we have had a number of them over the years so our sample size is pretty good to not have any issues. We do maintain them well though.

Technology wise, I would say GM is slightly behind, but ride quality I would say they take the cake.

Our plan with our 2018 is to wear out the drive train and if the body is in good shape, replace the drive train and keep her going. The suckers are pricey, but they tow family and toys and give us a great deal of utility not found in many vehicles.

Our 2018 is the short wheel base Yukon Denali. We have not experienced any buffeting issues (22 inch wheels).

Best of luck to you on your search and welcome to the forum!

 

[Blueinterceptor]

I’m on my 4th tahoe/suburban of this generation. Pretty good car overall. I’ve been a Chevy guy buying k5 blazers Tahoe’s and suburban for 3 decades now. Very few problems. Mostly a noise here or there. Nothing catastrophic.
Test drive your vehicle. And take her up to the max speed you expect to drive regularly. You will hear fewer things at 30 mph than you would at 75 mph.

 

[chicagofan00]

Overall it’s been a pretty good experience after 44,000 miles. I’ve got a few minor quibbles here and there but I would say that I’d buy it again.

 

[adventurenali92]

@Matt Averett , what generation are you considering buying?
I’m young(ish) lol and only on my 4th vehicle. So I’m not by any means experienced with the latest generation GMs, only what I’ve read and seen here in the world of TYF. I have quite a few regular clients of my auto detailing business that have the latest generation and they all are pretty happy. One of my good friends is a customer and traded in a 14 Lexus RX350 on a CPO 15 Yukon Denali and over all really likes it. It’s got some minor interior trim issues, but nothing major by any means.
My best friends parents own a 2015 Escalade esv. I believe this is like their 6th GM that they’ve owned and it’s spectauclar. I detail it often. Been on many road trips with them, all trouble free, and they always say, yup we are life time full size GM owners, even with two Ram diesels, a Ford super duty, and a Chevy topkick 4500 parked in the driveway. Lol. GM in my opinion builds a solid SUV, and I was doubtful after coming to GM after 2 extremely reliable dodges.

 

[sumo]

Yes but I would opt for the 6.2 engine and after owning mine for 11 years in New England, I would of taken more action with undercoating and rust preventative espically around the rear wheel wells and rear doors

 

[Rdr854]

Maybe. The reason I say maybe is not because I am dissatisfied with my Suburban. In fact, I like it a lot. Rather, the question will be whether it is the best choice when it comes time to replace. The only complaint that I have is that a rough road at slow speed can be very punishing (as I experience on my way home from work each time I take it in.

If I were looking for a new large SUV right now, I would consider the Suburban LS and the base Expedition MAX. Since I do not plan on towing, both would be very capable vehicles.

 

[Dlayne]

Welcome Matt. I reckon the troubles are with a small percentage overall as most people without problems do not frequent these forums. We don't see too many problems with the '17s and '18s either.

If I had a chance to buy my 2009 again, I certainly would without hesitation! LOL

Agreed, it may also be referred to as the vocal minority We are on our 4th Denali and all ran well into the 150k range with about 15% of those being towing miles. We had a few little issues here and there but no more than our BMW’s (M3, 335ix, 328d) or Audi’s (A4 Avant, A3 and RS6..that had issues!). I am a maintenance freak though. We have had one weird issue with our 2017 (Bose amp coming on randomly and would drain battery), otherwise trouble free and no buffering issues.

However, just to be sure we did make sure we had an extended warranty with the ‘17. In full disclosure, I did have engine mounts on my ‘07 break. Mechanic said it had something to due with all the mods (Black Bear) and towing too quickly

 

[Matt Averett]

@Matt Averett , what generation are you considering buying?
I’m young(ish) lol and only on my 4th vehicle. So I’m not by any means experienced with the latest generation GMs, only what I’ve read and seen here in the world of TYF. I have quite a few regular clients of my auto detailing business that have the latest generation and they all are pretty happy. One of my good friends is a customer and traded in a 14 Lexus RX350 on a CPO 15 Yukon Denali and over all really likes it. It’s got some minor interior trim issues, but nothing major by any means.
My best friends parents own a 2015 Escalade esv. I believe this is like their 6th GM that they’ve owned and it’s spectauclar. I detail it often. Been on many road trips with them, all trouble free, and they always say, yup we are life time full size GM owners, even with two Ram diesels, a Ford super duty, and a Chevy topkick 4500 parked in the driveway. Lol. GM in my opinion builds a solid SUV, and I was doubtful after coming to GM after 2 extremely reliable dodges.

Thanks for the responses guys! I’m looking at likely an ‘18 Yukon Denali 4WD (new or CPO). Since it will be my daily driver, I would love to get one of the Ultimate Black editions.

 

[orchidcrazy]

Definitely!!!! I had an '03 Yukon XL for 11 years, put 190K ish miles on it. If i had taken care of the undercarriage (also in New England) I would have kept it. Best vehicle ever and up to that one, I was never one to keep a vehicle more than 2 - 3 years and I'm 53 so lots of cars in my life.

Traded it in on a Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited with a Hemi engine thinking with 2 kids in college, I was good to downsize - wrong! Didn't consider moving kids back and forth. I expected electrical issues with the Jeep since I had one previously, what I ended up with was non-stop engine issues. Jeep ran great on 4 cylinders but when it got into 8 it would limp, my sons 4 cylinder car drives better than it did. Was in the shop every 2 - 3 months the whole 2 - 3 years I had it. Chrysler was a nightmare to deal with. They had a series of about 4 years that they were making engine change changes and refused to acknowledge what was happening; since it happened with most all engine - it was labeled 'normal'.

Looked for a year to find an SLT loaded up with a bench but without a sunroof; bought mine with 31K miles and I am thrilled. My kids are 11 and 13 hours from home - what a great drive this beast is! Do I need the size - nope, but I love it! Gets far better gas mileage than my Jeep ever did. It's so comfortable for a long haul, I drove 13 hours door to door to pick up my daughter and wasn't wiped - its just comfy. I have my rear seat folded most of the time - I can now go to Costco and not have to put the middle seats down as I had to with my Jeep. The Jeep was all nose, little cargo and with the non-square rear, it really cut into what you could carry.

I have the 5.3L engine. Had one in my XL and we towed with it. Made staying within capacity challenging but we towed little, drove around town alot. I originally wanted the higher gears but when I found one without a sunroof, I jumped on it thinking again, I don't tow that much and if I tow again it would most likely be a lightweight for just hubby and I.

I specifically didn't want a Denali - not a fan of the grill, not a fan of the magnetic shocks they had on the years I was looking at, not a fan of the extra bells and whistles which to me are just more things to break. My wish list was the heated steering wheel, bench 2nd row, 20 inch wheels without a sunroof. I had to cave on the 20" wheels but I got everything else I wanted and the 18" ride quite nicely - just don't look as ballsy.

Folks complain about the Nav system - it's fine. Is it a Tesla? Nope. Folks complain about squeaks, rattles - it is a truck based SUV. My only gripe with my vehicle is that I can't use the steering wheel controls to search out the next radio station as I did with my Jeep. The steering wheels controls only bump through the preset stations - it's a small peeve to have to use my arm to reach the radio to search up or down. Also, my XM radio in my GC did not cut out as much as the Sirius XM radio in the Yukon.

 

[swathdiver]

My only gripe with my vehicle is that I can't use the steering wheel controls to search out the next radio station as I did with my Jeep. The steering wheels controls only bump through the preset stations

Use the "seek" button under the "source" button to go the next radio station or track or chapter. That is of course, if you have a GMT900, 2007-2014 truck!

 

[orchidcrazy]

Use the "seek" button under the "source" button to go the next radio station or track or chapter. That is of course, if you have a GMT900, 2007-2014 truck!

Call me stupid... but my steering wheel controls on the back of the steering wheel only advance through whatever stations I have preset - I can seek only using the radio buttons under the radio. What am I missing here? Mine is a '16.

 

[swathdiver]

Call me stupid... but my steering wheel controls on the back of the steering wheel only advance through whatever stations I have preset - I can seek only using the radio buttons under the radio. What am I missing here? Mine is a '16.

Not sure on yours, reread page 121 of your manual.

 

[orchidcrazy]

Not sure on yours, reread page 121 of your manual.

That covers cargo for my year but did find what my issue is - what I want is not an option on my '16 Yukon. Per page 7 of the infotainment manual, the steering wheel buttons control 'Favorites' (pre-selected stations) on the left rear of the steering wheel and 'volume'' on the right. I like to be able to just seek through stations be it Sirius XM or radio. When I am driving through different areas, I don't have pre-selected favorite stations for the areas I am in - only those around my home. So you have to 'seek' via the radio itself.

 

[08HoeCD]

To the OP:
If trouble-free reliability is important to you, then leaving Toyota to get into GM is a mistake. Yup, I said it.

I like my (older) Tahoe a lot and would buy it again, but I knew it would have small to moderate issues here & there, and I was prepared for that. I've always considered Toyotas more like appliances----they don't have much soul, so they are kinda boring. That's perfectly fine for lots of people, but I don't buy into driving boring cars/trucks. The upside is that Toyotas generally run perfectly and don't require excessive maintenance to run a long time that way.

 

[LTahoeFL]

Hey Matt. I would absolutely by my Tahoe again. I am on my third Tahoe in the last 20 years. In between I have had a Ford F150 and Dodge Durango, both for very short periods. In my opinion the Tahoe is far superior. Sounds to me like most complaints are about shady dealerships. BTW - I never buy new. All my Tahoes were used. Just like anything else, do your research and you will be prepared....

 

[Doubeleive]

I would and have bought another and will again when the time comes, I ran my first one over 300k and might on my 2nd one, Maintenance is important to do for any vehicle, I learned a long time ago if you don't take care of your car it wont take care of you.

 

[LTahoeFL]

That covers cargo for my year but did find what my issue is - what I want is not an option on my '16 Yukon. Per page 7 of the infotainment manual, the steering wheel buttons control 'Favorites' (pre-selected stations) on the left rear of the steering wheel and 'volume'' on the right. I like to be able to just seek through stations be it Sirius XM or radio. When I am driving through different areas, I don't have pre-selected favorite stations for the areas I am in - only those around my home. So you have to 'seek' via the radio itself.

Thanks for the post. Just this morning I was trying to figure out why I couldn't scan from the steering wheel. Now I know why. Thanks