GMC Denali

Price Paid:  $43800.00 from Cerritos GMC

Year / Model Reviewed:
2004 Denali

Strengths:
Ability to seat 7 without extended or long rear cab. Great visibility, good stereo, functional middle captain chairs, XM & On-Star choices, and power.

Weaknesses:
Stopping power and gas mileage can use some improvement.

Summary:
Overall good example of 4-door SUVs.

Price Paid:  $54.00

Year / Model Reviewed:
2004 Yukon Denali

Strengths:
I'm 5 ft. tall and find it very easy to drive. I like the fact the pedals adjust to my height. It's very comfortable as a passenger also.

Weaknesses:
none at this time

Summary:
We recently bought our Gem in 2004. This is the most outstanding SUV we've ever owned. The ride is so smooth, it's as thought the tires aren't even touching the ground. We are very impressed with the On Star system that it came with.

Similar Products Used:
Toyota 4 Runner, and the Jeep Grand Cherokee. (no comparison)

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
2.00 of 5, 5.00 votes

Price Paid:  $56000.00 from Stevens Creek Pontia

Strengths:
Size and ease of getting in and out (I'm 6'3"). Smoothness of the ride, the proximity of the features.

Weaknesses:
Obviously it would have to be gas mileage (13 city, 17 highway)

Summary:
I know my review is going to be skewed, partially because this is the first new car I've ever owned; but I LOVE THIS RIDE. The smoothness, the comfort, the gadgets. It is like riding on air with everything at your fingertips. The Bose sound system really kicks, the lumbar works great for my back, the dual climate control allows me to stay cool when the passenger may want to be warmer, the navigation system is awesome, the driver 1 and driver 2 settings allow quick adjustments in the case of two drivers, and on and on. Plus it looks hot. Maybe I'll write another review in about a year, so you know whether or not I'm still as pleased. I hope so.

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
2.17 of 5, 12.00 votes

Price Paid:  $38500.00 from Don Miller, Madison

Year / Model Reviewed:
2003 GMC Denali

Strengths:
Beauty, power, seating comfort, road stability.

Weaknesses:
Cup holders. Location of electrical fuses. Ease of removing electrical fuses, ease of finding which fuse needs to be replaced. Ease of replacing electrical fuses, in the dark, without a flashlight on a god-forsaken highway in the middle of northern Wisconsin on a rainy night.

Summary:
The following tome tells you WHY you should get the Denali as opposed to a bench seated Yukon XL or Suburban. I’ve owned “Suburban” type vehicles going all the way back to my 1964 International Harvester “Travelall that I owned in and after high school. Since then, among other vehicles, my wife and I have owned 3 consecutive Suburbans prior to this Denali. I can state, without equivocation, that this is the finest vehicle I’ve ever owned, and we bought it used, trading in our 2003 Chevrolet Suburban for this 2003 Denali. We made the trade because we felt that GM had cheapened the seating in their “plain Jane” Suburbans so much that we were embarrassed to transport friends for any great distance. I’d always preferred the 60/40 split bench front seat over “buckets;” but the new 40/20/40 configuration was just never comfortable for a 3rd passenger in the front seat—and I though that the driver’s seat sucked as well. To me, the question was, why should we give up comfort for this middle “birthing seat” that separated my wife and I? Might as well have buckets. The middle seats in that our 2003 Suburban were deplorable. Our 1992 Suburban had excellent seating in all 3 rows. In the ’03 however, the seatbelt retractors wouldn’t allow you to lean forward—they would instead ratchet tighter when you leaned back creating more discomfort. Another issue was the small 5.whatever liter engine. It just did not have the power necessary to pull our boat over any great distances. We disliked that Suburban so much that we traded it off in less than a year. I could go on carping about our 2003 Suburban, but I will instead discuss what makes our 2003 Denali such a great vehicle. First of all, the seating provides greater comfort than I’ve enjoyed in any vehicle we’ve ever owned. We have the “quad” seating package with leather all the way back. The fact that the middle row of seats reclines is fantastic—especially for my children who are either in or approaching their 20’s. I hated giving up the 8th seat because we like to take groups golfing and 8 is just such a logical number for a group like that. But the fact of the matter is, we might have 8 people to tote around once or twice a year and so the trade off for the comfort of the quad seating package was well worth the loss of the middle front seat. The 5.7 liter engine is superb. I cannot believe the difference in power while towing our 21 foot SeaRay—which is an old and heavy boat that we’ll tow it to Lake Superior at the drop of a hat. The 17-inch wheels and torsion bar front suspension are stable and predictable in cornering. I am very impressed with the turning radius and we do not have the 4-wheel steering thing. Braking is smooth and “feels right,” and “there” when you need it, especially when towing. The Bose sound system is excellent. The location of controls and dashboard gages is very good to excellent. The only thing I don’t like about the interior is the cup-holder/ash tray arrangement. The little covers are a stupid design and open to easily, limiting what you can place on top of them. We have had problems with rain coming through the moon-roof, something that is still under warranty. I’ve always been a rear panel-door person. Our 2003 Suburban had panel doors, something I specified when we ordered it, but GM ruined those as well. In our previous (1992) Suburban we had a tailgate and I hated the high reach over it, though I always liked being able to drive with the rear window up—which would allow me to transport long boards and etcetera. When we purchased our ‘03 Suburban, I wanted panel doors, in part, because I couldn’t stand the thought of owning a Suburban type SUV that had a “mini-van” styled lift-gate; (go ahead, call me a mini-van bigot) a design which GM went to in exchange for the tailgate. That was a big mistake. The lift-gate on our Denali is an excellent design. No high reach over the tailgate and an unobstructed view out the rear window. I will never own panel doors again. Let me say this. If you’re considering the purchase of a Suburban sized SUV, just add a year to your loan and get a Denali. It is worth the extra money. It’s a great vehicle, and like so many of the Suburbans that we’ve owned in the past, we’ll keep this one for 10 or 12 years. And remember, NO ONE buys a Denali or a Suburban for the gas mileage!

Similar Products Used:
1964 Travelall, 1985 Suburban, 1992 Suburban, 2003 Suburban

Price Paid:  $39000.00

Year / Model Reviewed:
2003 Denali

Strengths:
hmm..this truck is not as stong as my fords...motor is ok makes wiered noises, alot of vaccum noise

Weaknesses:
brake suck even tho 4 wheel disk (dam hydro boost), poor qulaity for a $55,000 truck, crappy interior ( my sons $40,000 f150 is 1,000 time nicer)

Summary:
Had this truck for over three years and all I can say is that its ok. It has not had to many problems until around 38,000 miles. Drives side wheel bearing went, then at 50,000 upper and lower ball joints shot (car was greased by my son who is a mechanic), inner tie rod went, pass side wheel bearing went, and the heated seat on the pass side turn on by myself which I know is a bad switch.

Similar Products Used:
1999 gmc denali