Considering a 24 or 25 Tahoe/Yukon or Suburban

[Offthesheet]

Hello all, we have been in Toyota Vans and SUVs for a while and considering making the jump due to size etc. any thoughts on the gm products vs Toyota?

Also between the 5.3, 6.2 and the diesel what engine do you recommend most for reliability? Lastly, how are the new trucks for reliability?

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Welcome to the Forum from NH.

Lots of knowledgeable folks here who freely share their knowledge, experiences, and perspectives. Knowledge is power.

I hope that you will become a participating member in the Forum's discussions.

There are a number of threads here on 2024 trucks that you can search for and read. There's not too much here yet on 2025 trucks.

 

[Tahoe14]

You are going to get a lot of different opinions which can be very confusing, kind of like what is the best oil. There is a lot of good information on this forum about each one if you have the time to read some of it. There are pros and cons to each one. If it was me and I was going to spend that much money I would research each one and then most importantly as a buyer I would go drive each one and then decide for myself. Good luck with your decision.

 

[BacDoc]

Since you asked about comparison to Toyota I think you are looking at Sequoia. That was my original choice for a new SUV as Toyota does have a great reputation for reliability and quality control.

First I was not a fan of hybrid and smaller engine as I am a V8 guy and there is no replacement for displacement, but I was open minded and figured Toyota would have the technology dialed in. Gotta say that the driver position was good, all the cameras, climate controls etc were in the right place but the interior even on the Limited looked and felt “plasticky”. Truck drove nice but under full throttle it had the turbo delay and felt like the motor was under powered to me. Just listening to the truck at idle was disappointing too. I think some of us love the sound of the motor and it’s a big part of the drive experience - nothing like a V8!

Also the rear cargo area is a lot smaller than the Tahoe. The floor is higher due to the battery and when third row is down the shelving to make it level is kinda weird and not like Toyota. It seemed like an afterthought to fix that problem of unlevel floor.

It’s got a good tow capacity according to the specs but with the 6 cylinder hybrid the fuel economy is no better than GM V8 models.

As far as reliability I have read the Toyota and Lexus forums (the new GX 550 is a beautiful truck but too small for me) that a lot of Toyota fans are disappointed with the new offerings and the decision to discontinue the venerable Toyota V8. You see talk about lifter failure and bearing problems on this site, on the Toyota sites they also have problems with the new Imax Force turbo engines. Maybe even more than GM proportionally as they sell a lot less big trucks.

Sequoia is a beautiful truck for the people who want a big SUV and don’t need the room of the Tahoe/Yukon and don’t mind paying msrp or more. The 2 Toyota dealerships I looked at, both told me that paying msrp or below was not an option and both dealerships had mark up 2-3k above the window msrp.

 

[vcode]

Since you asked about comparison to Toyota I think you are looking at Sequoia. That was my original choice for a new SUV as Toyota does have a great reputation for reliability and quality control.

First I was not a fan of hybrid and smaller engine as I am a V8 guy and there is no replacement for displacement, but I was open minded and figured Toyota would have the technology dialed in. Gotta say that the driver position was good, all the cameras, climate controls etc were in the right place but the interior even on the Limited looked and felt “plasticky”. Truck drove nice but under full throttle it had the turbo delay and felt like the motor was under powered to me. Just listening to the truck at idle was disappointing too. I think some of us love the sound of the motor and it’s a big part of the drive experience - nothing like a V8!

Also the rear cargo area is a lot smaller than the Tahoe. The floor is higher due to the battery and when third row is down the shelving to make it level is kinda weird and not like Toyota. It seemed like an afterthought to fix that problem of unlevel floor.

It’s got a good tow capacity according to the specs but with the 6 cylinder hybrid the fuel economy is no better than GM V8 models.

As far as reliability I have read the Toyota and Lexus forums (the new GX 550 is a beautiful truck but too small for me) that a lot of Toyota fans are disappointed with the new offerings and the decision to discontinue the venerable Toyota V8. You see talk about lifter failure and bearing problems on this site, on the Toyota sites they also have problems with the new Imax Force turbo engines. Maybe even more than GM proportionally as they sell a lot less big trucks.

Sequoia is a beautiful truck for the people who want a big SUV and don’t need the room of the Tahoe/Yukon and don’t mind paying msrp or more. The 2 Toyota dealerships I looked at, both told me that paying msrp or below was not an option and both dealerships had mark up 2-3k above the window msrp.

Toyota went back to a solid rear axle on the latest gen, which really affected cargo/seat space. Every review I've seen questioned the logic of this.....

 

[mtcatgriz]

Hello all, we have been in Toyota Vans and SUVs for a while and considering making the jump due to size etc. any thoughts on the gm products vs Toyota?

Also between the 5.3, 6.2 and the diesel what engine do you recommend most for reliability? Lastly, how are the new trucks for reliability?

 

[luvHarleys]

Hello all, we have been in Toyota Vans and SUVs for a while and considering making the jump due to size etc. any thoughts on the gm products vs Toyota?

Also between the 5.3, 6.2 and the diesel what engine do you recommend most for reliability? Lastly, how are the new trucks for reliability?

I
This diesel is NOT like the HD Duramax trucks. It’s unlike any diesel offering by GM in the US. It’s like the 2500+/F250+ that rumble around making diesel noises, and, don’t like constant restarts, but are built to idle for weeks if need be on jobs sites.

It’s the best engine in the 1500 series truck/large SUV line of GM vehicles, imho. And I’ve Burbs since 1988 through 2021, as well as a 5.3 2015 GMC Sierra, and 2019 5.3 Tahoe LT.

Historically, I’ve had a VW Rabbit diesel -55mpg; Volvo straight diesel, and a MF diesel …lol.. farm tractor.
And, using the old military Chevy off the shelf diesels pickups - while beasts, that experience pushed me away from US made diesels.

The 3.0 engine was designed/built by Opal utilizing European diesel technology, under guidance of/with GM specs. which have been greatly successful over the years for everyday users.
The inline straight 6 cylinder configuration has demonstrated, over time, to be the best configuration for many diesel engines for durability and torque etc.
There is a Utube video of the Senior GM Engineer about how this engine came about.

Now I have about 15k miles on the truck. I’ll never go back to a gas engine.
The 6.2 has had bearing issues; don’t know if GM has that under control yet.
AFASIK, the lifter issue is still present , but frankly, other than hearing about bad bearings, I only follow the diesel 3.0 pages.

Hope GM stays with this engine - it’s a solid winner. Very nice torque, very smooth and quick acceleration without having to punch it - you’ll be going faster than you think.

MPG:
22mpg on our short runs/food, etc
28.8 typical on the road
27.5 @ 75-80mph
30-31 @ 60-72mph
25.1 @ 85mph (I live in Texas y’all)

Good luck with your search!

Also, Rivard in Tampa; Covert in Austin, and a place in Mo give nice discounts straight off sticker, and are use to ‘fly in’ buyers, or drive down buyers

 

[mtcatgriz]

I purchased the Yukon Diesel and put about 65,000 miles on it. It performed well until we had transmission problems in Wyoming. Not a good place to break down! We limped in to A GM Dealer in Boulder Colorado, and there it sat for 5 months. Despite many phone calls to GM nothing happened. I finally called the state Attorney General…and then it got fixed. No rental or loaner provided even though it was under warranty.

No more GM for me!

 

[ZKWBQD]

Hello all, we have been in Toyota Vans and SUVs for a while and considering making the jump due to size etc. any thoughts on the gm products vs Toyota?

Also between the 5.3, 6.2 and the diesel what engine do you recommend most for reliability? Lastly, how are the new trucks for reliability?

I have owned both. I've owned many suburbans, Tahoes, and a Toyota Sequoia. You'll find the Toyota to be more reliable. The problem is that the Sequoia went to a hybrid version which I did not want. I'm now driving a new Tahoe that I like, once I permanently disabled the engine stop-start and the daytime running lights.

 

[JayceeP]

Sequoia cargo is brutal but Toyota tends to make a bulletproof product.

Love our 2024 Yukon XL SLT so far with the diesel. Tons of torque and pulls very well on the highway. This thing will cruise!! To the post above, very good mpg and pleased with it thus far after 1,300 mils of ownership.

I’d get the XL or suburban… if you’re gonna go big, go all the way. I also like the look better, especially with the 22” wheels. I felt the SLT was well euppped, didn’t need to jump another $8k for the Denali.

Things I don’t like:
-weird steering wheel and seat adjustments. I don’t feel the steering wheels comes out far enough toward the driver. I’m 6’4 and feel like I really need to reach for the wheel with the seat back. Awkward.
-what’s up with the climate auto fan speed setting being so hard to adjust? My F150 has it right on the touch controls… the Yukon has it buried in the digital menu so you can’t really change it on the fly
… can’t really come up with anything else.