2022 diesel towing experience vs. 2018 Denali 6.2 gasser

[WalleyeMikeIII]

Top of receiver is 21” from floor unloaded on an XL Denali with Air Ride.

 

[clogan2]

Top of receiver is 21” from floor unloaded on an XL Denali with Air Ride.

I've got a 6" drop hitch on my Tahoe, and would need at least another 4" drop to get my 6'x 10' utility trailer level. That thing is HIGH!! I'd much rather tow with my F150, no drop needed.

 

[Seamus]

omeone commented above that the 6.2 is an "unreliable" motor. I don't know if that is completely true...GM has had its issues w/ the AFM/DFM on the gassers,

Oh it's true. There are thousands of posts and cases, that they cant even stock parts for the repairs. There is no comparison to your old LS based AFM system. They had some issues but nothing like todays truck. Different lifter and system and most people had the issue from poor maintenance on the LS. I had a 2013 Suburban for 118K with not one issue also. Mobile one oil changes every 5k. FYI it was only 4 lifters in that LS system. Your odds were low. This truck has 16 of them, AFM, DOD, DI and auto stop. The results are what we are seeing. They also used a substandard lifter. Its a huge mess for Gm and its customers. But to have these issues so early on indicates they will all have the issue. Jeeze, we were standing in the rental lot awaiting our suburban for the summer road trip and a lifter went just as they pulled up!! 7500 miles on it. Had to wait for another one, and the guy said they had several of them at Enterprise! Thats saying a lot. We were concerned the whole trip out in the middle of nowhere. We are awaiting a Denali XL 3.0 and came across a few 6.2 gassers...would never consider it with the info we now know. But I truly understand being in a cold climate and short trips, gas is a better choice and you have a warranty.

 

[Banks22]

Well, I can chime in a bit. 22 Denali w/ 6.2L gasser, tow a 4500lb boat on often. Previous vehicle was a 2013 Suburban LTZ w/ the 5.3L.

I use weight carrying hitch, not distributing. Air ride keeps the squat out, tow totally level, both in my 2013 and in the new 22 Denali. It was a must have option for me.

Now, the 6.2 Denali w the 10 spd is a whole different, way better experience than the 5.3/6spd in my 2013.
Literally, never even feel the boat back there w/ this 6.2/10sp. Great power, smooth trans, very capable.

My Summer, normal city driving w/ the 6.2 does about 15 MPG. Highway, last couple trips, driving sane (70-75 interstate, 60-65 on 2 lane roads), I averaged 20.7 MPG over 470 miles.
Towing, seems to be more like 15-16 in same driving pattern. I have my first long towing trip (500 miles each way) coming next week, will advise after that on fuel economy on that trip.

Someone commented above that the 6.2 is an "unreliable" motor. I don't know if that is completely true...GM has had its issues w/ the AFM/DFM on the gassers, but I believe the bulk of the recent issues were attributed to a bad batch of lifters (although, there have been reports of lifter issues outside the recalled range). That said, I had the same AFM lifters in my 2013 5.3L, and it gave me 115k trouble free miles...I don't think the 6.2 is inherently unreliable, its pretty proven, but the lifter thing turns some off..I bought it knowing this, because for my daily driver needs (short trips) in cold climate, I didn't think the diesel was a good fit (I am in Minnesota).

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Nice lookin ride!

 

[sickk21]

I have a 22 Denali that makes a shit tow vehicle but I don’t have air ride. Apparently doesn’t have rear load leveling at all compared to the three previous generations. Don’t need to tow anyways because it’s an unreliable, rattling pos.

 

[WalleyeMikeIII]

Nice lookin ride!

Thanks. I and that rig just spent a week in Ontario fishing…was a nice way to travel that 1100 miles round trip. Boat weighs about 4200 lbs full of fuel. Averaged 13.4 MPG with most of it at 74MPH on the interstate/4 lane divided highways, and about 250 miles of 55-60MPH on Canada’s 2 lane highways.

 

[Seamus]

Thanks. I and that rig just spent a week in Ontario fishing…was a nice way to travel that 1100 miles round trip. Boat weighs about 4200 lbs full of fuel. Averaged 13.4 MPG with most of it at 74MPH on the interstate/4 lane divided highways, and about 250 miles of 55-60MPH on Canada’s 2 lane highways.

This new Yukon has to be one of the best road trip tow vehicles out there right now. They really stepped up the interior and ride quality. This is why they cant keep up with the demand. I like both the Land rover and GLS550, and both ride beautiful, but would never own out of warranty. So it cost more, does less, and have to get out if it when warranty is up. The GMC is a winner. And it can be serviced anywhere in the country.

 

[DenaliCountry]

I've got a 6" drop hitch on my Tahoe, and would need at least another 4" drop to get my 6'x 10' utility trailer level. That thing is HIGH!! I'd much rather tow with my F150, no drop needed.

I have an Anderson Rapid Hitch with a 10" drop. I couldn't unhitch my boat when I first towed with it and couldn't even get my enclosed snowmobile trailer hooked up to my 2019 and the 2022 is a hair taller so even though the hitch was stupid expensive, I'll never need another one regardless of the truck I am driving. I'd say go with a 10" adjustable drop hitch otherwise you'll need a couple of them if you have different trailers.