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I’m a former GM employee and I had a Yukon as a company car. I also personally own a GX. They are two different SUVs for two different clienteles. If you need the space, get a Yukon and dump it in 5 years when they next version is released. There is no comparable SUV with the space of a Yukon/Yukon XL without going to its GM cousins. Ford Expedition is close but is even worse mechanically. If you just need a Starbucks/mall crawler and don’t want to buy another truck for 20 years, then get a GX. Unfortunately, the GX will still have 20 year old tech in the infotainment…the GX will also fit in if you want to be a mid-level warlord in a second/third world country.
K1, GX470 non-nav are friendly to replace the head unit. GX470 Navi are impossible except using the “Tesla style head units” or swapping to non nav. GX460 have integrated climate controls, like the GX470 Navi, and will also require the “Tesla style head units”. Long story short, you’re stuck with what Toyota gives you unless you want something that isn’t 100% reliable in the form of the Tesla style.
I think about this a lot. I really like the GX. A lot. But three things keep me from buying one:
1. The safety. There’s no crash test ratings (probably because it’s too low volume), but check out the 4Runner’s NHTSA and IIHS ratings. For a modern car, they’re abysmal. The GX & 4Runner are closely related and share many parts. So it’s probably a safe conclusion that the crash tests would be similar. That’s my deal breaker. In theory I’d be fine taking the risk for myself, but not for any potential passenger.
2. The mileage. Not only is it a thirsty V8, it takes premium. Generally I don’t think this is a huge deal, but the fact that it has a small tank means you’ll be at the gas station pretty regularly. (My other car is a PHEV and I can get up to 2,000 miles on a tank.)
3. The technology - this isn’t so much an issue with the 22 now that they’ve added CarPlay support. But even with it, the rest of the tech is a couple generations behind the market.
All that said, the GX is just *cool,* it has an old school has character in a way that so few other new cars have right.
If it weren’t for the safety concerns, I’d probably buy one just to have it.
Downside with the Yukon SLT: you won’t get adaptive cruise. For a vehicle as giant as that road cruiser, it’s a game changer, but GM reserved adaptive cruise for Denali trims only. But it’ll definitely have better crash test ratings and safety features, as it’s a fully modern car.
Alternatives:
For my money, I’d probably look at a Tahoe Premier vs a Yukon—same ish price but it’ll be loaded with adaptive cruise. (I’d look at the suburban tbh, if you’re going that big, why not get the extra cargo room? But that’s very life-dependent.)
If you definitely need a body-on-frame option, consider a Lexus LX. But the commenter above is right—there’s nothing really in the class of the Yukon/Tahoe/Escalade.
Unless you want to risk your money on an FCA product, then you can check out the new Jeep Wagoneer. I’d lease that though…
I vote Lexus GX
https://www.consumerreports.org/car-reliability-owner-satisfaction/10-most-reliable-cars-a6569295379/
GX came in first this year.
Looking at the Yukon Denali myself. We have 3 kids and need the space. I don’t think the Lexus got very high marks for Car and Driver
Just went to see the Yukon, but I was struggling with the $1100 a month with $5k down for a GMC
I have a GX. Very reliable, but the features/tech suck and it is surprisingly small and thirsty. I’m pretty tall and everyone complains about sitting behind me. My wife also hates driving it so her highlander has become our go to family car. I’m happy with the GX because it has retained its value really well and has a good community, but looking back on it I should have gone with a sequoia or another full size suv or gotten a nice sports sedan.
I would love an LX, but they are lots of $$$. At that price point it’s hard not to look around at the German offerings.
Yukon! As a Lexus owner the interior is super outdated and zero tech. Also the GX is unchanged in the last 9 years so… not with it
But reliability is good. I think the final decision depends on how long you will keep the vehicle. Anything past 6 years I’d do the Lexus but shorter then I’d do the Yukon
If you lease it, Yukon.
If you buy it, Lexus.
They both feel great when they’re new. Go test drive three year old examples at Carmax and you’ll start to see differences. It isn’t glaring but you’ll notice more creaks and rattles in the GM product. I drove a used Escalade and a LX 570 back to back and you could tell the LX was going to last longer.
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Lexus of course