New Member...07 Or 08 Denali...6.2?

[00'Yukon]

Hi guys, looks like you have a great forum here! i spend the majority of my internet time on a boating forum as i have a cabin on the lake in Northern Wisconsin. I do a lot of trailering with my Glastron boat (roughly #2500 fully loaded w/ fuel and gear) Currently i have a 2000 GMC yukon SLT with the 5.3, 3.73's, 4 speed 4L60 and 120,000 miles. I can not say enough good about it except that i just think i want a new vehicle(auto shocks getting worn out, ujoint on the tranny getting alittle lose ect.) and keep this one as a regular driver till it dies.

 

I actually recently drove a 2007 yukon denali (no towing although he was towing his 18 ft lund...heavy boat..and he say it was a breeze) around for a good amount of time since a friend had his rado getting serviced and go figure, they give him a fully loaded yukon denali w/ 33,000 miles to drive for a month while he waits for a new tranny. Needless to say, i let that ol' 6.2 rip a few times and man, i was very impressed at the acceleration on that truck. I feel that my 5.3 is by no means a slouch but wow...that 6.2 has some serious punch even w/ 20 inch rims and a 3.42 read end. Also, as we all know, the 07's have a vastly improved interior compared to my truck, especially the denali. I really like the fact of the 6.2 w/ the 6L80 6 speed rater than a 4 speed as well. I noticed it immediately on the highway.

 

To get to my point, i really, really like the new Yukons and want to step up to the denali powertrain/interior. Is there any upgrades for the future years that maybe i should wait another year? Also, how come thew denali has 23 less hp than the sierra denali and Escalade when they are all L92's and also, i remeber seeing in a car magazine(forgot which one) that the denali was .01 second quicker 0-60 than the escalade(could be the driver but they tested multiple times)?? Any impressions on the 6.2 for driving/towing? Thanks

[Jameson]

Someone will chime in on the towin aspect, I believe a member recently hauled 8K Lbs on a 700 or so trip and loved the denali's (Sierra, not yukon) performance during his trip. Anyways, my buddy has an 08 Sierra Denali, that thing is friggin awesome. Im not a fan personally of all the bells and whistles but I do wish I could afford a 45K dollar truck, bc thats what Id get.

[00'Yukon]

thanks for the quick reply jameson...yea im curious to see what others who have towed have to say...im not going to be towing 8000 lbs unless i hit the lottery and buy a yacht but ya never know...

[kutu]

I have a Nnbs 07 Seirra Denali, with 10,000 miles on it, and I think it is the best vehicle I have ever owned (I've had 15 new cars and 3 new trucks over the last 41 years).

 

I do not have any towing experience with the SD but as a daily driver and weekend trips, with maybe only 200 lbs in the bed, it has been great.

 

Please keep in mind that I am not an automotive engineer, so the following is just conjecture on my part:

Having come from a Yukon, I do have one issue. It seems that the GM rear leaf spring design is somewhat lacking. The movement (axle wrap/unwrap?) appears to manifest itself as slack (a slight bump) in the drivetrain when downshifting and the re-applying of power when going slow. I have heard a number of GM truck owners with similar complaints but I have not heard the same compliant from any Yukon/Tahoe owners. The only differenece I see is the leaf vs. coil spring and the weight.

[00'Yukon]

hmmm...thats interesting...i didnt notice it on the yukon most likely because of the coil vs leaf springs like you stated. have you towed? how do you like the 6.2?

[kutu]

I have not towed yet. The 6.2 is fantastic, I am getting over 19 mpg on the hwy and 18.5 on my commute to work. My overall milage since I rolled it off the lot is almost 18 mpg. By my crude calculations, it will go 0-60 in under 6.5 seconds- no bad for almost 3 tons and AWD.

[00'Yukon]

sounds pretty sweet...whats the difference in engines though between the slade, sierra denali, and yukon denali? all are L92's with VVT...i wonder why they drop 23 hp for the yukon denali and keep the 403 in the sierra denali? It doesnt make sense to me but what do i know?

[kutu]

sounds pretty sweet...whats the difference in engines though between the slade, sierra denali, and yukon denali? all are L92's with VVT...i wonder why they drop 23 hp for the yukon denali and keep the 403 in the sierra denali? It doesnt make sense to me but what do i know?

 

I wish someone in the know would tell us the difference.

[ChrisNJ]

I have both, a 07 Sierra Denali and a Yukon XL Denali, and I had two 8.1-4sp-4:10's before them, and a 6.0-4sp-4:10's before them. I have towed my 8K toyhauler with the Sierra and it did very well compared to my 8.1's (not as powerful, but the 6sp makes up for it), and better than my 6.0. I can only assume that the Yukon will perform as well towing, as it is identical, except for the rear springs and slightly more weight. I will be towing a lot more with the Yukon, but not till next year. Towing 6K or less with these is a kick in the bucket, as it is with the 6.0Vmax as well. The Yukon rides better to be expected, and the 6sp performs much better than my Sierra. I don't know why, and the dealer doesn't know why, and gm isn't saying if they know why or not, time will tell. Both are the best vehicles in 25 years and about 15 new vehicles my wife and I have ever owned. The Yukon impresses me slightly more than my Sierra, but both are fantastic. As for the HP issue, I believe it is just a marketing thing that Caddy makes GMC publish less HP. If you look at the performance curves of both, they are identical untill the Yukon Denali drops off it's HP at very high rpm. They may actually do something with it in it's computer, but I doubt it, and my foot can not tell the difference. Best of luck.