2002 GMC Yukon Denali XL
The world's premier luxury SUV.

In the world of luxury sport utilities, there are a broad range of
offerings. The executive Navigator, the stately Range Rover, the
sporty ML. But do they really offer the utility and practicality or
the rugged good looks of the Denali XL, whose luxury more than
keeps up with its competitors? Maybe not.

Exterior: 9.5/10

Though the Denali XL has relatively distinctive looks, there
could've been more to tell them apart from the stock Yukon. The
Denali boasts very attractive five-spoke 17" polished alloys on
massive Michelin CrossTerrains, a shiny metal grille,
reflector-beam headlamps, a custom chrome fan-shaped exhaust
pipe, Denali badging on the passenger and driver doors, and some
different, muscular-looking "lines" on the body. Though the
Denali's main competition, the Navigator, is more distinctive, the
Denali is better looking overall. The Denali has very clean styling
that doesn't use mass amounts of body-side cladding or any other
ridiculous over-doings. The running boards are nice-looking and
make entry and exit a breeze. Overall, the Denali looks
intimidating, tough, and handsome.
***New for 2002: Boo-yah 17"5-spoke chrome rims, we've been good boys/girls this year***

Utility: 10/10 (there's a lot of it)

No detail was left out in making this the most useful and practical
vehicle on the planet. There is a hiding-place or cupholder for
everyone in the vehicle, things that fold up or pop open, and
generally one would get the idea that this vehicle would be fun to
be in for a long road trip. In the cargo area, there is a handy and
easy-to-use cargo cover and a cargo net, plus a floor mat and
plenty of carpet. The cargo area, with the cover up, is easily large
enough to hold a person! A power point and auxiliary door lock
controls are also present. The 3rd row seat is a fixed 3-person
bench, that with the click of two buttons pops out and can be
removed, or folded flat. 3rd row passengers get storage nooks and
cupholders. The 2nd row passengers are truly lucky. They have a
60/40 split folding bench, where the outboard passengers's
cushions can be heated with a press of a button. The 40 portion
can slide and tilt forward to allow relatively easy entry to the 3rd
row. In the middle portion of the 2nd row is a fold out tray with
dual cupholders and storage. In front of the 2nd row, on the back
side of the front center console, is another nifty set of fold-down
cupholders, dual power points, the excellent rear seat heat
controls, and controls for the audio system, replete with
headphone jacks, volume, and media controls. In the front, there
is a massive lockable center console that, with a press of a
button, pops open the bottom half to store coins and CD's, and
yet another power point. Pressing another button causes a
"writing table"-like thing to pop up and reveal further storage.
Giving a light touch to the panels in front of the consoles reveals
more dual cupholders and an ashtray, and another power point.
Finally, there is a massive glove compartment.

Interior and comforts: 9.5/10

When you enter the interior, you are quickly informed that this
was not a cheap vehicle, by the intoxicating scent of aromatic
Nuance leather. Oh, and speaking of leather, there's a lot of it. All
three rows are almost entirely covered with buttery-soft leather,
with very little vinyl in sight. Even the nifty contoured headrests,
the armrests, and the console is covered in Nuance leather. In the
few places there are vinyl, such as the seatbacks, it's relatively
well concealed. The plastic on the dashboard is solidly
constructed and has a high-quality feel. The seats in all the rows
provide good lumbar and lateral support, and there is mass
amounts of hiproom, even in the 3rd row. I was impressed by the
fact that all of the seating positions were comfortable–this is a
true 8-passenger vehicle, not a 6-passenger vehicle with 2 more
crammed in. Legroom is impressive also, about 41/39/36. These
seats are well padded, and feature an attractive stitch pattern as
well as two-toned leather. The rear seat heaters are a definite
selling point. Up front, there is dual-zone heating on the bucket
seats. These bucket seats in front offer a whopping 12-ways to
adjust them, including 6-way cushion control, 2-way backrest
control, 2-way lumbar support, and even 2-way side bolsters
(frivolous, but cool!). The drivers seat has a handy memory
system also. The fake dark cherry wood trim looks real, but
touching it reveals its plastic heritage. For 48 grand, they could've
given us a little real wood, *cough* Navigator has real walnut trim
*cough*. Thank God they didn't overuse the wood trim. The
OnStar system is helpful, and with the purchase of the Premium
Package, the folks at Onstar can do everything from giving you
directions and ordering pizza, to getting you email and stock
quotes, to hands-free calling. As for the radio and climate
controls, I'll describe them later, but the ergonomics are fantastic
in this vehicle, with everything in reach of the driver. It is a
pleasure to be in the Denali, in any of its seats.

Climate controls: 10/10

The climate controls are well laid out, and get to work fast. 10
adjustable air vents throughout the vehicle, controlled
thermostatically for front and back, do this work. In the front, there
is front climate controls with rear climate controls on the ceiling,
as well as a second set of rear climate controls further back on
the ceiling for the 2nd row to adjust. The whole system is efficient,
effective, and easy to use.

Radio: 10/10

You have to love Bose. I mean, what other SUV (besides that
darn Range Rover) offers eleven speakers custom-engineered and
tuned for the vehicle? The sound that comes from the
AM/FM/Cassette/Autochanger is audiophile quality and offers 250
watts of power. The controls are quite simple, and the rear audio
controls are a godsend. Hefty 6" speaks in the doors, a multitude of creatively placed
tweeters, and some burly RichBass subwoofer action in the rear left panel make for some
disgracefully loud, rich detailed sound that's an experience for all 8 riders.

The Ride: 9.5/10

Little betrays to the passengers, that this is a truck that they are
riding in, such is the quality. The Autoride suspension neutralizes
the bumps. Insane amounts of sound insulation cancels out all
noise, giving a cloud-like ride. The ride is quite soft and
comfort-tuned; if you want off-road prowess go for the Z71 Tahoe. A speedbump at high
speeds will give you a quick and horrible reminder that this is indeed a truck. Other than
that, it rides like a Caddy (only with better handing :-).


The Handling: 9.5/10

No slipping and sliding here, folks. The AWD system is excellent
and great for all types of weather and driving conditions. The tires
are top-notch and despite this vehicle's mammoth dimension, the
turning circle is pretty tight. The truck feels secure and not tippy. Amazingly it whips through
corners with elan and a definite feeling of security, I was impressed to say the least.

Powertrain: 10/10

The 6.0L Vortec churns out a whopping 320 horses and 365
pound-feet of torque, giving plenty of motivation to this 5800 pound
beast. Acceleration is swift and power is plentiful. Another nail in
the Navigator's coffin. Off the line power is impressive and lane changes are instantaneous.

Gas Mileage: 4/10

Definitely not for the faint of heart. Only the truly brave dare press
the fuel button on the trip computer; when I did, it read 8.5 mpg.
Hopefully this truck can do better than that at other times. For
this reason, it's not too smart to use this vehicle for all trips large
or small, or if you live in a hilly area. Translation: you're going to
be filling that 32.5 gallon fuel tank very frequently. However, once the truck is broken in
I've seen it get about 13 or 14 mpg, pretty decent

Overall Value: 9/10

The Denali offers quite a bit more than the normal Yukon, but at a
very high price. But compared to the competition, it's a pretty
good deal. And it doesn't look like the mafioso Nav ;-)
Amount Paid (US$): 48000
Condition: New
Model Year: 2002
Model and Options: loaded!