2017 Tahoe Premier vs Yukon Denali---which would you buy and why?

Disclaimer: Links on this page pointing to Amazon, eBay and other sites may include affiliate code. If you click them and make a purchase, we may earn a small commission.

cardude2000

Full Access Member
Joined
Nov 12, 2015
Posts
2,931
Reaction score
1,037
I bought pretty much the same truck except the base wheels. As you are in Texas, not sure if you went with 4WD as I know a lot of the ones down there are 2WD. I'm in the northeast so mine is Siren Red Tintcoat with Cocoa/Dune interior...love the color combination. Premier, HUD and the base wheels. Fixed running boards. Also got the max towing. I can't stand the thought of now having 4-lo so I just got the package. Love it so far. Also had to search for this car. Didn't want to wait to do an order as I had a GM Card incentive expiring.

8/10 speed & 6.2 or 6 speed and 5.3?

It's getting hard to remember all the configurations.
 

rjrdomer

TYF Newbie
Joined
May 14, 2017
Posts
19
Reaction score
21
I just want to say Thank You to everyone that offered up their opinion/advice. I do appreciate all of your help! As of today, I'm still undecided. Can anyone tell me if the Magnetic Ride Control makes that much difference?

Thanks again!
To me, yes it made a difference. I drove a GMC Yukon SLT, Denali, and Tahoe Premier all on the same day. The sales people at both stores said I wouldn't notice much of a difference, but I did. My wife drives the Tahoe and she was coming out of an Audi Q5. I felt the magnetic ride control was more responsive, if that makes any sense. It made it a bit less trucky which was the goal for my wife coming out of a smaller Audi. I drive a 2002 Yukon SLT so for me,it didn't really matter. It was more for her.

I felt the Tahoe Premier was a nice balance between the SLT and the Denali. The Denali was a bit too flashy for my liking. I don't have the same issues passing on the highway as some others complain about. The car has its max horsepower at around 5k rpm, so if you're passing on the highway, you should get to that. Maybe I'm more tame of a driver but if a BMW sedan is doing 75, I usually don't need the extra umph the 6.2L would provide to pass him.

So here is why I went with the Tahoe Premier:

Magnetic Ride Control
5.3L takes regular fuel and to me, has enough power. If you're doing a lot of hauling...you may want to consider the 6.2L in a Denali or Silverado
I like the look of it better than the GMC. I like the bowtie and Chevy grille over the GMC
Easier to find with 20" wheels in my area. I drove both 20s and 22s and found the 20s to be a world of difference
Wife wanted HUD
I also didn't like that GMC stamps "Denali" on every damn piece of trim in the car. Headrests, steering wheel, etc. I'm driving a GMC...I know what it is. Don't need to try to fool me.

So it really comes down to your preference. Have you driven all of them? My advice is go and drive a GMC SLT and Denali. Then go over to the Chevy dealer and drive a Tahoe Premier within an hour of each other. See what you like. Drive different wheel sizes if you're unsure there. It DOES make a difference. I felt every little bump on the 22s. The 20s were better. I'd prefer 18s but you cant get a premier in 18s.

Also, look at prices. Maybe the Denali is nice and you like it, but stacked up against the Tahoe...you may not $8,000 like it.

I don't know where you live. Laura GMC near St. Louis or Everett in Little Rock generally post their rock bottom prices. See what's in their inventory and do some comparison shopping. Your local GMC dealer probably won't come close. But it should give you a base to negotiate off of. And if you can take the trip, go get the GMC at one of those stores. For Chevy....it's a little more difficult to find that high volume discount dealer with inventory. Quirk in Massachusetts is one. Classic in Texas is another.
 

Guardian

TYF Newbie
Joined
Dec 6, 2009
Posts
18
Reaction score
14
Location
San Antonio, TX
I bought pretty much the same truck except the base wheels. As you are in Texas, not sure if you went with 4WD as I know a lot of the ones down there are 2WD. I'm in the northeast so mine is Siren Red Tintcoat with Cocoa/Dune interior...love the color combination. Premier, HUD and the base wheels. Fixed running boards. Also got the max towing. I can't stand the thought of now having 4-lo so I just got the package. Love it so far. Also had to search for this car. Didn't want to wait to do an order as I had a GM Card incentive expiring.

In in San Antonio and I went with a 2WD. I don't pull anything and it's really my wife and I in the truck most of the time. I have the 5.3L with the 6-spd transmission. I don't do off-roading and I drive my vehicle mostly in city and occasionally on the highway. I'm retired so we're taking it easy and enjoying going where we want, when we want.

We also love the Siren Red Tintcoat with the Cocoa/Dune interior. It's really an amazing and classy combination. I have nothing but time so waiting for the factory order was just fine.

Congrats on the new wheels. I think you're going to enjoy it big time.
 

Miami-Dade

Staff member
Super Moderator
Supporting Member
Joined
Dec 8, 2016
Posts
3,854
Reaction score
4,821
Congrats on your Tahoe Guardian!!

Do not recall seeing a Siren Red Tincoat Tahoe anywhere..Very nice color.
 
OP
OP
D

Dcayman

TYF Newbie
Joined
May 30, 2017
Posts
7
Reaction score
1
To me, yes it made a difference. I drove a GMC Yukon SLT, Denali, and Tahoe Premier all on the same day. The sales people at both stores said I wouldn't notice much of a difference, but I did. My wife drives the Tahoe and she was coming out of an Audi Q5. I felt the magnetic ride control was more responsive, if that makes any sense. It made it a bit less trucky which was the goal for my wife coming out of a smaller Audi. I drive a 2002 Yukon SLT so for me,it didn't really matter. It was more for her.

I felt the Tahoe Premier was a nice balance between the SLT and the Denali. The Denali was a bit too flashy for my liking. I don't have the same issues passing on the highway as some others complain about. The car has its max horsepower at around 5k rpm, so if you're passing on the highway, you should get to that. Maybe I'm more tame of a driver but if a BMW sedan is doing 75, I usually don't need the extra umph the 6.2L would provide to pass him.

So here is why I went with the Tahoe Premier:

Magnetic Ride Control
5.3L takes regular fuel and to me, has enough power. If you're doing a lot of hauling...you may want to consider the 6.2L in a Denali or Silverado
I like the look of it better than the GMC. I like the bowtie and Chevy grille over the GMC
Easier to find with 20" wheels in my area. I drove both 20s and 22s and found the 20s to be a world of difference
Wife wanted HUD
I also didn't like that GMC stamps "Denali" on every damn piece of trim in the car. Headrests, steering wheel, etc. I'm driving a GMC...I know what it is. Don't need to try to fool me.

So it really comes down to your preference. Have you driven all of them? My advice is go and drive a GMC SLT and Denali. Then go over to the Chevy dealer and drive a Tahoe Premier within an hour of each other. See what you like. Drive different wheel sizes if you're unsure there. It DOES make a difference. I felt every little bump on the 22s. The 20s were better. I'd prefer 18s but you cant get a premier in 18s.

Also, look at prices. Maybe the Denali is nice and you like it, but stacked up against the Tahoe...you may not $8,000 like it.

I don't know where you live. Laura GMC near St. Louis or Everett in Little Rock generally post their rock bottom prices. See what's in their inventory and do some comparison shopping. Your local GMC dealer probably won't come close. But it should give you a base to negotiate off of. And if you can take the trip, go get the GMC at one of those stores. For Chevy....it's a little more difficult to find that high volume discount dealer with inventory. Quirk in Massachusetts is one. Classic in Texas is another.

Thanks for the info!!! This is the type of information i was looking to gather. I haven't driven all 3 on the same day. However I may go this weekend to compare them all. My wife is currently driving a GMC Arcadia Denali but she wants a bigger truck to haul all of the kids sports equipment. I'm currently located in South Florida but I can't find any dealer in the state to come close to Laura's GMC prices.

Fwiw...I called Laura's GMC but they told me they won't lease me a car since I'm out of state. The salesman told me they had too many issues collecting sales tax for different states and counties. So I'm trying to find a dealer that will offer the same type of discounts as Laura's. I'll check with Everett in Little Rock. Thanks Again!
 

rjrdomer

TYF Newbie
Joined
May 14, 2017
Posts
19
Reaction score
21
Thanks for the info!!! This is the type of information i was looking to gather. I haven't driven all 3 on the same day. However I may go this weekend to compare them all. My wife is currently driving a GMC Arcadia Denali but she wants a bigger truck to haul all of the kids sports equipment. I'm currently located in South Florida but I can't find any dealer in the state to come close to Laura's GMC prices.

Fwiw...I called Laura's GMC but they told me they won't lease me a car since I'm out of state. The salesman told me they had too many issues collecting sales tax for different states and counties. So I'm trying to find a dealer that will offer the same type of discounts as Laura's. I'll check with Everett in Little Rock. Thanks Again!
Thanks for that info. I shopped Laura and Everett online only during my research. I never called either dealer since we decide to go with the Tahoe. But I do think, like you said, dealing with a high-volume out of state dealer may be easier if you are a cash buyer or are using your own financing. Leasing adds a few different issues to the equation.

Another difference, I'm not sure if I mentioned it along the line. Heads up display...I believe it may come standard on the Denali. It is an option on the Tahoe Premier to the tune of $500 or so. Even if you don't like/won't use the HUD, the instrument cluster is more refined and more digitized. With the HUD comes an 8" screen in the dash and only the speedo and tach are analog. Without HUD, you get the 4" screen and all of the gauges are analog. I recommend getting it. The whole middle section is customizable.

I've put pictures below to compare the two. 2015-Chevrolet-Tahoe-LTZ-instrument-cluster.jpg 2016_Chevrolet_Tahoe_42.jpg
 

jpcortese

Member
Joined
Feb 8, 2017
Posts
41
Reaction score
7
Location
Naperville IL
Thanks for that info. I shopped Laura and Everett online only during my research. I never called either dealer since we decide to go with the Tahoe. But I do think, like you said, dealing with a high-volume out of state dealer may be easier if you are a cash buyer or are using your own financing. Leasing adds a few different issues to the equation.

Another difference, I'm not sure if I mentioned it along the line. Heads up display...I believe it may come standard on the Denali. It is an option on the Tahoe Premier to the tune of $500 or so. Even if you don't like/won't use the HUD, the instrument cluster is more refined and more digitized. With the HUD comes an 8" screen in the dash and only the speedo and tach are analog. Without HUD, you get the 4" screen and all of the gauges are analog. I recommend getting it. The whole middle section is customizable.

I've put pictures below to compare the two. View attachment 83440 View attachment 83441


I have HUD in my Corvette Z06 and have to have it in my next SUV. Being able to keep your eyes on the road and not at the dash panel is a real plus. It's why I have been interested in the GMC Denali. If it is available in the Tahoe Premier, I'll be taking a serious look at it.
 

WillCO

Full Access Member
Joined
Sep 10, 2016
Posts
465
Reaction score
322
Location
Castle Rock, Colorado
The HUD was a staggering $1100 on the BMW 5 series I had previously. I bought off the lot, so I ended up with a car that had one.

Meh. It felt like a gimmick. It was sorta cool but it washed out with polarized shades and my wife hated it enough to make me turn it off whenever she drove.

I'm not sure whether people are staring at their dashboards for extended periods of time as they drive down the road. I feel like a large numeric MPH indicator in the middle of the dash - which the Tahoe/Yukon have with any configuration - provides 95% of the utility that a HUD provides, at no additional cost.

Caveat, though. I am in a Chevy right now after 16 consecutive years of BMW ownership, and my point of view is that cars in general are getting too expensive with too many gewgaws that nobody really needs driving up the cost and complexity. So I am admittedly a crab on this topic. Get off my lawn.
 

Forum statistics

Threads
132,323
Posts
1,865,999
Members
96,919
Latest member
steezy5oh
Top