I drove a $77,000 GMC Yukon Denali to see if the massive SUV lives up to its premium reputation - here's the verdict
The "Onyx Black" Yukon Denali landed in my driveway and promptly filled it up. Note the Denali grille, a massive yet intricate signature element.
This Yukon Denali is more compact, if you will, than the XL I previously sampled.
From stem to stern, it's about 204 inches, with a cargo capacity when all three rows of seats are deployed of about 15 cubic feet.
The XL is around 244 inches long, with more than twice as much cargo area and a notably larger third row.
Our tester came with 20-inch aluminum wheels, but if I were buying, I'd go for the optional 22-inchers, to better fill those huge wheel arches.
... and Denali badging are bold, but not overwhelming nor garish.
As with its sibling SUVs, the Yukon Denali provides a retractable step to ease getting in and getting out.
The "Jet Black" was quite nice and also looked as if it could stand up to a bit of punishment. That's GMC: ruggedly premium.
Even though this SUV is the extended-length version, there still a lot of real estate between drive and third-row.
The rear captain's seats are large and comfy.
A drawback: That's not much in the way of cargo area with the third-row deployed.
... Changes the situation dramatically. As it turned out, I was able to use the smaller third-row seat to transport kid number three, with the large seating area folded down to tote some extra load.
So what's the verdict?
The standard-length Yukon Denali is a bit more driveway friendly than the XL, which of course can make you think at times that you should be driving passengers to the airport. But make no mistake: it's large, and it's in charge.
For long freeway journeys, the SUV is ideal: comfortable, smooth, powerful, with a nice-shifting 10-speed auto that does everything in its power to deliver 22 mpg (you'll get only 14 in city driving) and a 420-horsepower motor that means passing semis is academic.
The interesting thing about the Chevy Tahoe/Suburban-Yukon Denali-Escalade triumvirate is that you could plausibly pick any one and be perfectly happy. The Chevy is a workhorse, the GMC is fancier, and the Caddy is plush. It comes down to how much premium "content" you're in the market for and what you want to spend.
It also comes down to a bit of branding. If the Chevy is low-key and the Caddy is high-end, the GMC is for gentlemen contractors and farmers. It's a vehicle that I would wash quite often to keep that black exterior looking sharp. Not as often as the Caddy, but more often than the Chevy.
The bottom line is that when I have my entire clan in the picture for a journey of some ambition, I'm always pleased to have a GMC Yukon Denali in the driveway. And so are they. I mean that: Families like big SUVs, especially if they're families that have to move around.
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