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My truck is a 01 YXL. If your truck is still within 3 yrs / 36K, you should be covered by warranty.
Good Luck,
Dave
Nice people and great prices.
Camera
About 4,000 miles on the clock and we are still very happy. Gas mileage has improved from the high 15's to the high 17's. I guess the engine has broken in, and also we are driving judiciously and keep the tires at 33-34 psi. Going to San Antonio in a few weeks, looking forward to another road trip. Oil life monitor says we have 50% left, how cool is that! That's like a free tank of gas every 3,000 miles that I won't change the oil! Automatic climate control and power adjustable pedals are very cool too. And it handles very well for its size. This is my favorite vehicle I have owned so far, much more enjoyable than the minivan it replaced.
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Well, that a whole new bunch of problems we haven't had, knock on wood. We have problems with the knocking sound when you start the engine, stalling at odd times, oil use about a quart per month, and a grinding sound when you turn left or right and a high pitched sound that I can't identify but sounds like power steering but isn't. Has that made your day? I love the SUV but get no help from GMC. Nice polite replies though. Have you had any of our problems?
My wife won't ride in it anymore... Is this happening to anyone else??
Please let me know what was causing your problem. The GMC place can't find my problem.
Thanks,
Vernis Stanaland
Tyler, Texas
We have the 3rd row rear bench seat that is either up or down. Unfortunately, with 5 passengers, we can't have the seat down when we need more space in the rear.
Does anyone know of an aftermarket conversion that will allow a Split 3rd row seat in the XL? The Yukon has the split seat option for the 3rd row, why not the Yukon XL?
Thanks
-Replace entire front bumper assembly
-Replace front grill
-Replace side lower assist steps
-Replace rear bumper
-Replace chrome side door moldings with color-keyed Denali one
-Replace headlight/front turn signal/foglight housings (and appropriate bulbs as well--e.g., Denali low beam uses 9005 instead of 9006)
-Add Denali front/rear mud flap moldings (they're not really mud flaps but look at a Denali and you'll see what I'm referring to)
-Add Denali lettering to sides of vehicle
There may be a few other things I left out (e.g., if your side mirrors don't have the motorized fold in/out option and/or no puddle lights, you'll need to replace those too, although you may need some additional stuff in order to get the mirrors to fold in/out by themselves) but I think the above covers most of the major stuff...and that's just for the exterior--the interior of course is a whole different story.
I assume you're probably gonna try to find these parts at a junkyard or something 'cuz the cost for all of the above stuff brand-new ain't cheap...IOW you'd almost be better off just buying a Denali instead of trying to cosmetically change your Yukon into one.
I went there I test-drove it and it did make the same buzz noise.
They then told me that it is totally normal for 05 XL! I don't beleive them and then I come here to see whether there are 05 XL owners who have the same problem. Thank you and Merry Cristmas!
I can't say I've had that problem. At least they could recreate it on another vehicle. Do you have 2WD or 4WD? Is this happening on dry pavement? Is it while turning or pointed straight? If you park and then go into drive again does it happen, or only after you've gone from Reverse to Drive?
I guess mine makes a little bit of a noise when the steering wheel is totally locked to one side or another, but not when going straight that I've noticed. I'll try again and pay attention today.
I use mobile 1 synthetic oil also. My co work has a 97 yukon He was just told he had bad barren he has 107,000 he as change his oil as manufacture recommended.
I went for a test drive last night in an 06 YXL Denali. All of us in the vehicle (me, my son, and the salesman), noticed that upon getting onto the freeway, the vehicle ride had a very noticeable and rhythmic bounciness to it. I had previously test driven both a regular Yukon Denali and a different YXL Denali on surface streets only, and there was no bounciness to either. So this was a new experience.
I called my Dad, who's been a round quite a while (70+), and he said that GM truck frames with long wheel bases are known for having that bounciness to them on concrete freeways. He said that if you have it all loaded down with a full tank, gear, and perhaps a trailer, it goes away. He also said that if you drive it on a blacktop highway/freeway, instead of concrete, the rhythmic bounciness does not occur.
Have any of you experienced this? I tried searching on "bounc" (to catch all forms of the word), and didn't find anything with any answers.
Is there a way of cancelling this bounciness out using any features of the YXL Denali, such as AutoRide? Is that something that needs to be activated? Or is AutoRide always on?
Unfortunately the salesman was absolutely clueless about the Yukon and YXL Denali features. Didn't even know how to use the Navigation, so he couldn't show me its various capabilities. I'll need to find a different dealer.
I like the extra cargo space available in the YXL Denali, and I wanted to give it serious consideration, but that rhythmic bouncing really bothered me. I want to be able to take it on various excursions with or without a trailer and have a comfortable ride.
Please let me know if you have any ideas.
By the way...what's the story on using snow cables (not chains, but cables) with the 20" rims/tires on the Denalis? Any issues?
Thanks for any assistance you may be able to provide.
Mike
Thanks.
Mike
However, I'm still interested in getting an upgraded wheel/tire via aftermarket that upgrades the look, and that can still handle the unpaved roads, snow cables, pot holes, etc.
Has anyone found a comprise along the lines of an 18" custom wheel/tire rig? If so, is there a good online vendor that you could point me to? I live in Southern California, so I imagine there may be several outfits down here I can visit, but it would be great if I could at least see an online catalog to choose from.
Any help is appreciated.
Thanks.
Mike
Regarding break in of the vehicle. Just how important is it to not go over 55 mph, and to not shift down, during the first 500 miles? I'm fairly certain that both of those things have already happened just in the course of the dealer transferring the vehicle from another dealer. The freeways here in Southern California have everyone driving at high speeds (70+), and I'm willing to bet that whoever drove it down could have easily used engine braking at some point. The vehicle had about 100 miles on it when I took delivery.
Regarding the topic of being towed. The manual clearly states that the vehicle cannot be towed, otherwise the drive train will be damaged! Now, given that every vehicle I've ever owned has been towed at one time or another, I just want to make sure I understand what they mean by towing. The manual talks about the fact that the wheels cannot touch the ground while being towed. So, that means towing the vehicle should always be done via a flat bed truck. I'm ok with that.
However, what about just moving the vehicle at slow speeds, such as when getting it up on the flat bed?
Or what about pushing it out of my driveway to jump start it?
What about getting pulled out of the snow or mud via the recovery hooks?
I guess I need to make absolutely sure that the vehicle never "coasts" in neutral at more than a walking pace.
Sorry if the questions seem silly. I've never owned an AWD (or even a 4WD), and I'm excited about using it for family treks to mountains, snow, trails, and good old road trips. I want to make sure I make the thing last and keep it working well.
Anyway...any info you have is appreciated. I'm also going to call the dealer and see what the service guys have to say.
Thanks.
Mike
Has anyone here done anything like that? I've done a little research on it, and it appears that full blown suspension lift kits aren't available due to the autoride (nor would I necessarily want such a major modification). I've heard of something called a "body lift", not sure about the difference.
Any insight is appreciated.
Thanks.
Mike
FWIW--I'm running 22" wheels/tires on my DXL and for the most part, try to avoid road conditions that are really adverse for those sized shoes. However--I have driven on snow-covered roads (2-3 inches deep) and on fairly-rugged (i.e., no large rocks to drive over) dirt roads on my 22's w/o any problems...of course, I do drive a bit more conservatively than I probably would if I were running on the stockers. Potholes--well, I know I'm taking my chances in that regard--but as with any kind of choice, there will always be compromises.
Just my opinion, but 18" is not much of a compromise if "big-wheel" look is part of the equation since there isn't much of a perceptible difference from going up only 1" in size. I think that as long as you drive a bit more conservatively under such road conditions, 20" is a much better compromise in both looks (size-wise) and performance. OTOH--since you mentioned about the possible need for using snow cables...I guess it would be a bit difficult to find cables for 20" tires although I would imagine that it might only be a matter of time before some manufacturer starts offering them, what with the increased proliferation of big wheels/tires being offered these days.
About the vehicle towing issue--the AWD system on the Denali cannot be put in neutral (I'm not talking about putting the tranny in neutral--that's a different thing altogether) unlike that of most 4WD vehicles. The technical explanation that describes why this is so eludes me at the moment (someone please help me out) but suffice it to say, it is because of this issue that the Denali cannot be towed at speed w/ all four wheels touching the ground. You can however tow/move it at very-slow speed (e.g., pushing it) for very short distances such as during those situations you mentioned w/o risk of damage to the transfer case.
Steve, Host
By the way, the guy at the Express Lube says they offer two types of tranny service, one drains and the other, they put some kind of vacuum on it to really 'drain it right', or something like that . . . doesn't sound right to me, does it . . . ?
-Chris
Mike
One thing I noticed is that the crank bar assembly used to lower the spare tire doesn't quite clear the bumper while making the revolutions. If you're real careful, you can tug on it just as it's coming around to the bumper for each crank, however, it's best to use a towel or something soft on the end of the iron, so it won't damage the paint on the bumper. If they had just extended the length another inch, that would have taken care of the issue.
I'm wondering if anyone has put together a custom spare rig that would allow a true full size (i.e. 17" or 20" setup) to be stored underneath the vehicle. I asked my dealer service advisor once, and he asked a tech, who said they had done it before. But now that I've spent some time underneath, I don't see how they could, unless they removed the spare winch and did some kind of welding of another cross-bar in order to properly center the location for the larger spare.
Has anyone heard of anything like that?
I ask because I've had true full size spares in the past, and they come in real handly. They can make a real difference, especially if you get a flat while on vacation, and you're in an area where there isn't an abundance of locations to get the tire repaired (e.g. up in the mountains enjoying the snow). It can really rob an entire day sometimes, and it's not good to drive on a wheel/tire that's a different size like that, particularly in winter weather conditions.
Please let me know if any of you have heard of a way of mounting a true full size spare (in my case, 17").
Thanks.
Mike
I do know the owner's manual says that after you change the flat tire, you can store it where the spare came from. I also have 17" wheels.
My guess is that the spare is close enough in size that you can drive on it safely for a long distance at any speed. Equipping a vehicle this big with a small spare would be too dangerous. It is probably the same circumfrence as the regular tires.
The supplied spare is 16". Specifically, it's a P245/75R16, Goodyear Wrangler ST, with rating of 109S. The OE tires on the Yukon XL Denali are P265/70R17 Wrangler HP, with rating of 113S.
I think it's fine to drive on a spare that's slightly smaller and with a different rating for up to a day, as long as the roads are nice and dry, and the vehicle isn't heavily loaded or pulling anything, particularly if the spare goes on the rear.
However, if the spare goes on the front, or we're up in the snow where the road conditions aren't so nice, then I think it could affect handling negatively quite a bit.
By the way, I crawled way under to check the clearance of the tire all the way around with a measuring tape, and it looks like there's another 1.9", which should handle a full size wheel/tire combo after all. It didn't look like it had that much clearance when I glanced at it earlier, but the tape confirms it.
I suppose the only issue is when mounting the flat wheel/tire, it would be good to have some sort of wheel cover that could be put in place, to prevent road debris/hazards from damaging the aluminum wheel (particularly if I upgrade to some really nice rims).
They just need to make the jack handle extensions a little longer, so the jack handle won't slam into the bumper when cranking!
Regards,
Mike
Seems like this is a recurring issue with all Denali's. Also have bad bearing in front differential.
Cost on tranny = $1200 to $2600.
Cost on differential = $700 to $1000.
I can't believe this happens on a $50k+ vehicle with only 58k miles on it. It really sucks.
I applied Lexol cleaner and conditioner to the light tan leather in my 2005 Yukon XL today. I have been reading the car care forums and some other websites, and this was recommended by a lot of people. I like it very much. Until now, I have only used Maguiar's quick wipes, and while they do remove a lot of dirt quickly, they tend to leave a slick residue even after drying. Not terribly greasy, but not ideal. In my opinion, the Lexol cleaner is not highly potent. The seats were not all that dirty to begin with, but I had to rub for quite a while to remove a few scuff marks. However, in combination with the conditioner, I am very pleased. The seats are left feeling very soft and supple, and not at all slick or greasy. Some other members in the car care forums have suggested that the Lexol conditioner may darken or discolor very light leather, in fact the back of the bottle says so too. So I tried just a spot on the back seat to be safe. No discoloration at all, as far as I can tell.
The seats have started to develop "character lines" or "stretch marks" after 6 months and 8,000 miles. Not cracks or creases, but the type of "breaking in" you see on a leather jacket. I was hoping they would stay taught and smooth for life, but I have read elsewhere that this type of breaking in is normal. Not a problem, I guess, as long as the Lexol keeps them soft. I may still use the Maguair's now and then for intermediate cleanings, you could see the dirt being picked up on the wipe. But I will continue to do the Lexol conditioner every couple of months.
My next project, maybe this weekend if it still feels like June outside, will be to wax it again and apply Rainex to the glass and get new wipers.
Happy motoring to you all!
And, I would get one of the last '05s instead of an '06. The current incentive is $8,000 off of '05s and $5500 off of '06s. The only difference as far as I know is that for 2006 they combined the XM radio and OnStar into a single antenna instead of two separate ones. Totally worth saving and extra $2500, IMHO!
I am very happy with my 2005 Yukon XL SLT, and not real crazy about the 2007 makeover. I would be all over one of the remaining 2005 Denalis if I had the means. Good luck, and let us know what you decide.
Unless there's interest in starting one, please toss out your city/highway mpg in here.
Steve, Host
The Odyssey may very well get better fuel economy than the Denali--if even only by a slim margin--but obviously one wouldn't even consider a Denali unless power was a big factor. I mean, who would tell themselves, "I would consider getting a Denali even if it didn't have that 6-liter engine in it..."? Sounds like you definitely are attracted to the additional power the Denali makes over the Odyssey, fuel economy be darned. IMHO if you plan to do mostly highway driving, can control the urge to romp on the gas pedal for the most part, and don't plan to do a lot of long-distance heavy towing, the Denali should be good enough for you. OTOH--if there will be quite a city driving mixed in, then the Denali isn't it for you since I can definitely tell you that real-world city fuel economy sucks big time...rarely can I get 14 mpg (based on 90% surface-street driving) out of my DXL; low-13's are more the norm for me.