Expediton Vs. 23 Yukon Denali Ultimate

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Epic Dad

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Man that new 23 Yukon Denali Ultimate is insanely good looking and it has one mean grille! I sure wish that the Expedition had a grille that mean. I was seriously considering trading my new Expedition Platinum for the Yukon Denali Ultimate UNTIL I found out that the thing can only tow 7,800 lbs max. For GMC to always brag about being PROFESSIONAL GRADE, they sure are lacking! What all of your thoughts? I love that my Expedition kicks everyone else's butts at towing. Although if they did come out with the Excursion again then I'll be all over that!
 

dlcorbett

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For $93k I'd get a navigator.
Expedition has been/still is/will be for the foreseeable future the only full size SUV that can tow proper weight.
What about the wagoneer and sequoia?
 

Squark

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I tow a 33' ~7,500lb travel trailer with my 2018 Expedition Max Limited w/max tow. It handles the weight fine, but can get a little unsettled in windy conditions. I started looking at trucks to replace it, but my wife really wanted to keep the third row for our 3 kids. So to prove to her all SUVs would have this issue I rented a Yukon XL Denali from Turo. It did much better with our trailer. The suspension was less busy and I didn't have to fight the wind nearly as much. It's not as good as a heavy duty truck, but it's better-enough for the 6 times a year we camp. My Expy has the base suspension (now with Bilstein 5100s) and the Yukon had magnetic shocks (CCD), so it wasn't apples to apples. The tow rating is lower (7,900lb vs. 9,000lb), but our trailer still fits in the specs. I'm cutting it closer on the payload and GCWR numbers, though.

One other big thing for me is the Yukon offers a four-corner air suspension. I love the idea of the suspension being able to level the rig when I put the 800lb of tongue weight on the back. I'm sure I'll regret it if it breaks while we're on a trip, though.

I was on the fence for a while, but I've had a ton of issues with my Expedition and ordered a Yukon XL last month. I love the Expy when it works, but it's been in the shop a lot. Cam phasers x2, both turbos, 6 shocks, ignition coil, transmission slipping into neutral on the road, sunroof, leaking rear differential, and more. The GMC dealer said theirs aren't perfect either, but I'm hoping the 6.2L pushrod engine will be more reliable than my EcoBoost. But I sure will miss the low-end torque of the EcoBoost.

Disclaimer: I have a 2018, the first year of production for the current generation. I know from this forum that a lot of the issues I've experienced have been addressed in newer models. I'm in no way hating on the Expedition. I just didn't have a great experience with mine and am looking for a change. But I still love it when it's not in the shop!
 

2020FordRaptor

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Man that new 23 Yukon Denali Ultimate is insanely good looking and it has one mean grille! I sure wish that the Expedition had a grille that mean. I was seriously considering trading my new Expedition Platinum for the Yukon Denali Ultimate UNTIL I found out that the thing can only tow 7,800 lbs max. For GMC to always brag about being PROFESSIONAL GRADE, they sure are lacking! What all of your thoughts? I love that my Expedition kicks everyone else's butts at towing. Although if they did come out with the Excursion again then I'll be all over that!
Too expensive. 93k is a nice Navi Reserve. Plus the Expedition is better in any way anyway.
 

Deadman

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After owning a 18 Navigator and an 18 Expedition, I can't say enough about how much more practical the Expedition is. Its just laid out so much better on the interior. The Navigator is cool if you just want flash, but its not user friendly at all. The Nav interior made me claustrophobic, you were literally trapped in it. Sure there was luxury stuff on the Nav, but that stuff doesn't butter my biscuit. I guess my point is, for them being so similar, I'd buy the Expedition over the Nav even if the price wasn't less! My opinion

I'm really eyeing up a Cadillac Escalade V EL! 650 supercharged HP. Get em before Uncle Sam kills them off!
 

GixxerJasen

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I just went and looked at the GMC. I don't get it, doesn't look that good to me, certainly not enough to tempt me to trade. I actually think the Tahoe has a better looking front end.
 

Zig10

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One of my coworkers bought a new Yukon Denali and it really is quite nice inside. Tech is well executed, and exterior, as a personal preference, is not bad looking. Ride and NVH are quite nice. Towing capacity is what kills it for me, and I agree that it is ridiculous that they even built it with less than 9000 lbs capacity. Can't go with less than that and still tow my boat and take my family with me.

The Wagoneer is likely my next stop once the hybrid comes out. Too many stupid issues with my Expy and the dealer to trust it long-term, unfortunately, though now that I have redone the suspension I am pretty happy with the current performance. It's a shame that Ford let the quality control fall so far. Maybe the next gen will be better and I'll be back then.
 
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