4 kids under 8 what should I get? 2015 too many issues?

scblur · June 1, 2015

New to the site, but have read extensively on here and other GM sites in researching a new car. I am looking to get my wife a new car, currently we have a Mercedes R class with 6 seats but it is getting a bit older and time to find a new car.

We naturally thought Yukon XL or Suburban would be the best choice. I would pick either an LT with luxury package and Navigation and sunroof, or an SLT with Nav and sunroof. On paper they look really close and frankly she will not notice any difference - is there really? Either way we want the 8 passenger so no second row buckets which is hard to find here in the Bay Area. Is it a pain for kids to get to the third row? New would have one fixed car seat behind the driver and then booster for 2 others so they can sit wherever.

As I have researched I have seen so many issues reported from the pressure, 4wd issues, software glitches etc.., that it makes me wonder if it is a good idea to buy a 2015 or if waiting for a 2016 is better? None of my friends with a 2015 has had an issue but they all got them right as they came out. I also rented an LT in New Orleans for 10 days back in February and did not notice any of these issues

We also looked at a Ford Expedition EL Platinum which has a lot of really positive reviews, where the reviewer presumed ahead that the GM would be better but the Ford won the comparison. My wife drove it and said they both felt about the same to her. The other less practical is a GL350 bluetec which blows away the GM interior but just is too limiting in the trunk so we would need to regularly put the Thule box on top for any trip.

So my real question is, if you were to buy a car that was just delivered to a dealer are you rolling the dice or have people not reported issues (either fixed the cause or just not enough time to have them develop)

Thanks

mohanman · June 2, 2015

I don't have any kids (yet), I have a Tahoe 2015 Z71 and have not had any problems at all, but I only have 3500 miles so far. Its awesome.. far better than my previously leased so called "superior german engineering" BMW x5 .. what a piece of crap.. was in the garage all the time. Never again.

sahls01gmc · June 2, 2015

We went with a Traverse. My wife didn't want to drive anything bigger (Doesn't like driving my truck). And we HAD to have the second row bucket seats, otherwise the 11 year old would have to jump over the second row because of the 2 car seats, which are both "permanently" attached. I have 3 kids, and the Traverse worked out perfectly for us. The 11 year old has the back seat all to herself, and it actually has MORE interior room than the Tahoe or Explorer. Now, the Yukon XL or Suburban would have more room, but we didn't need that much.....yet!

With having booster seats, you can probably get away with a bench seat in the middle. I'd say give it a shot at the dealership, give it a dry run loading the kids in and out before you buy something.

Good luck, and WELCOME!

FogDucker · June 7, 2015

Hi scblur,

I rolled the dice and am very happy with my 2015 Yukon Denali. I've only had it for a few weeks and have 'the boom', but it's mild and isn't a show stopper for me. My family hasn't noticed it. It was built in late April and has no other issues.

I've got 3 kids, a medium sized dog and we're a fairly active family - at the ski hill every week during the winter, to the cottage nearly every week during the summer and at least one long trip [Ontario to Florida] each year.

I drove a Buick Enclave for the last 4 years and while it was a great vehicle, it wasn't nearly as capable, especially in snow. It had 2nd row bucket seats which meant that the 3rd row was always in use which also meant less cargo/dog space. I supplemented with a Thule on the roof. I wasn't a big fan of how the Enclave handled when loaded up for long trips or with 7 passengers - just too sluggish and bouncy. I drove a Chrysler Pacifica for 4 years prior to that which I outgrew. Nice car, other than the transmission that often went thunk.

My Yukon has a bench which all 3 of my kids [all under 12] are comfortable in - even queen bee in her fixed car seat in the middle. I couldn't find any other vehicle with the same interior width. I haven't had the need for the 3rd row yet [big weather-tech cargo cover for the 4-legged one], but access is easy using the convenient buttons. I'll likely use the 3rd row ~4 weeks a year.

I'd test out those buttons to see if the folding would interfere with the car seats/tethers. It's a 70/30 split bench, so you'd want to rehearse entry and exit. See if the kids could reach the buttons without climbing around too much. If I really needed seating for 8, I'd even contemplate the 3+2+3 models, even though they're base models - I can't recall how they could be optioned. Super convenient day-to-day use and room for the outlaws when needed. Also remember that they'll grow! Parental involvement may be required now, but soon the 8 year old will be able to manipulate seats with ease!

I have no regrets with my Yukon which is comfortable, capable and very safe.

Good luck with your decision.

--
Marc

becker87 · June 8, 2015

Brother-in-law and sister have a 2015 Yukon XL, very nice to ride in and drive. They have three little ones(2-4-6) with the 2nd row buckets, just leave one seat folded down to allow the two bigger kids to crawl back there and just put it up when there is another passenger.

JohnnyRay · June 16, 2015

We were dead set on buying a Tahoe, until we discovered the booming/buffeting noise during the test drive of the one we were to purchase. We had test driven about 4 Tahoes by that point and hadn't noticed anything. Within minutes during the test drive, we noticed the sound, my ears started hurting and we both got headaches. The absolute deal breaker for me is: WAY too much money to spend on a vehicle that they don't know what's wrong or how to fix it! I've had many vehicles over the years...issues crop up. But they need to be fixable! Sure, we could have gone and found another Tahoe that wasn't making the noise or causing ear pain, but what if it started up several hundred miles down the road? What then? Because I've not seen GM fix this issue and by the look of the number of barely used Tahoes for sale in my area, a lot of folks have decided to dump the SUV, take the loss and move on.

You'll have to decide for yourself...if your new SUV starts making your family sick, will you put up with it, trust GM to come up with a fix (it's been almost a year now these vehicles have had the issue) or are you willing to lose thousands when you get rid of the vehicle? For us, none of those options sounded very good and we moved on and bought something else.