What 295 owners told NHTSA about the 2021 GMC Yukon Denali Xl 1500

All lifters had to be replaced at 5,315 miles on 7/28/21 #7 Piston had to be replaced at 42,431 miles on 5/24/24 This vehicle has the 6.2 L V8 L87 engine that is part of NHTSA Investigation # PE25001 I am reaching the 5yr/50,000 mile drivetrain warranty and am concerned that this engine could have recurring problems.

NHTSA ODI 11643134

Engine locked up while driving and left me stranded in the cold for hours

NHTSA ODI 11642831

Font Camera failure. Front camera controls many "safety features" which fail without the camera. Vehicle under mileage warranty amount but not under time warranty ( 3 years ). Camera only covered under bumper to bumper.

NHTSA ODI 11641343

Complete failure of infotainment system in cold weather. This is a safety concern because most controls are operated through the infotainment system and can de distracting to a driver who is trying to operate all features of a vehicle while driving. For instance having cold children in the rear seats and not knowing if the heat is activated in the rear of the vehicle and at what temperature or if it is blowing at all. There is no manual indication of rear climate. This is already a safety bulletin for 2021 Yukon that for some reason my vehicle is not included in. GM recall number: N212327470 I want my vehicle included since this is a safety concern ( see above ) and this should be a real recall rather than a notification or safety bulletin.

NHTSA ODI 11641348

In September 2023, mere months after purchasing this vehicle, I was driving on the Mountain Parkway in Eastern Kentucky. Traveling the 70 mile hour speed limit, everything in the vehicle shut down, including my ability to use my breaks. Luckily, I was able to safely coast to the side of the road, which left me quite vulnerable as patrons passed at 70+ miles per hour. There were no advanced warning such as lamps, messages, or other symptoms of a problem. I had the vehicle towed to Hutch Chevrolet in Paintsville, KY where they indicated to me that the crankshaft locked up due to a crank bearing failure. They had to replace the engine and I was out of pocket $12,631.79.

NHTSA ODI 11640429

Had to replace an engine due to a main bearing failure, not the connecting rod failure thats being investigated. We pulled into the driveway with zero issue and zero suspect of issue, changed the oil as routine 5k miles, went to start it, and it blew the 400A starter fuse. It friction welded the crank to the bearing when I ahit the engine off. It looked like it flaked the coating off the bearing, then due to the recommended 0-20 thin oil, it didn't have the proper protection for metal on metal. Hoping that the main bearings get added to this investigation, because they are the same coating. Same manufacturer.

NHTSA ODI 11639256

The contact owns a 2021 GMC Yukon. The contact stated that while driving at 60 MPH, the vehicle's engine shut off without warning. The contact was unable to start the vehicle and was left stranded on the roadway for hours. The contact finally managed to have the vehicle towed to a dealer where they diagnosed the vehicle with a defective engine main bearing(engine failure). The vehicle remained in the dealer's possession where it had yet to be repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure but offered no assistance. The failure mileage was 28,450.

NHTSA ODI 11638715

Rear end locking up still after 3 attempts at repair. Concerned about an accident when the vehicle stops moving in traffic.

NHTSA ODI 11637876

My family and I found ourselves stranded on the interstate when our engine failed while we were driving on I-10 at 75 mph. The connecting rod bearing got lodged in the engine, causing it to seize. This put us in an extremely dangerous situation. I believe these vehicles should be recalled. I've been in discussions with GM to buy back the vehicle, but their leadership has declined my request. They are offering to replace the engine, but I do not want this vehicle back.

NHTSA ODI 11638168

My vehicle has software that controls the rear gate, cameras, and my safety features for blind spots—seat buzzer to warn of collisions and voice activated phone system. I recently had a safety recall involving my back wheels locking up during driving. I had the recall done by Power Chevrolet and it affected my cameras, which I noticed were longer accurate immediately after leaving the dealership. My seat buzzer kept buzzing warning me of a collision due to the cameras inaccuracy. I am unsure if it affected my blind spot warning but my car was unsafe to drive as the safety features fill in many blind spots in this big vehicle. Additionally I had been having issues with my back gate opening when it should not resulting in two stops to close it— one in Costco and one on [XXX] outside of Philomath, Oregon. These are safety issues. To get the software issues resolved, it cost an additional $210 for the updates and my back gate is still not fixed and no solution is offered. My fear is that people will be unaware their cameras or safety features are no longer properly calibrated and hit something or even worse, be unable to pay for software updates to make these features functional resulting in more crashes. I was unaware of the software updates ( I did all updates GMC pushed) needed to be done and this just continues on with more software updates to be released requiring future payments. I bought this car new and this was not disclosed or even discussed. GMC can push down updates that make other updates necessary and be an unending source of revenue for them. Oregon just passed a right to repair law but cars are exempt. This will result in unsafe vehicles on the road. My oil change cost me $350 with $210 the software updates. What were these safety related updates not done as recalls? INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11637648

At approximately 14,000 miles my 6.2L V8 engine had a lifter go bad on the truck. GMC covered this with warranty at the time. The truck seemed to perform well until I hit approximately 94,841 miles and then a lifter went bad again. I had an 85,000 warranty and this repair was not covered. I was quoted $6,500 to repair the truck by the dealer. I made a social media post and tagged GMC. GMC reached out to me directly and took $1,000 off of the repair and I paid $5,576.48 out of pocket to repair the lifters. GMC also offered an extended 2 year warranty on the engine at that point that is expires in September of 2025. I currently have 143,000 miles on the truck and my intent was to drive this truck for as long as humanly possible. I was told that this was designed to be a 500,000 mile truck. My engine is now burning approximately 2.5 to 3.5 quarts of oil between oil changes and I'm worried that there is something else wrong with the engine and that another lifter will go bad. I love my truck and can't afford another $6,500 to $10,000 repair. I sometimes get this car and other cars serviced for an oil change at the Mavis Auto in my neighborhood and the shop director who has been in the business has a friend who is a mechanic with GMC and he told me that his friend was given directive that if one lifter went bad 100% of the lifters, the housing and CAM shafts were to be replaced. (I'm not a mechanic so I may be missing some details here) Anyway - I've been informed about the NHTSA Investigation Into the V8 Engine in my truck which has opened my eyes to other mechanical defects associated with my truck. I'd like to make this report to protect myself and my investment. I do not want incur additional expenses related to manufacturer defects and I do not want to feel unsafe on the road with this vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11637675

Upon cold start vehicle rattles when idling down and growling noise when accelerating upon left or right turns. Also, has constant vibrations with sound of metal rattling at speeds above 30 mph. Forward collision light on without a significant amount of mileage on vehicle. I have taken my vehicle to dealership at least 5 times referencing the vibrations. Growling noise was heard by service advisor last visit October 2024, and he stated it probably were the tires. I advised him that brand new tires were put on vehicle, April 18th 2024, rear vibration has never stopped from time of purchase. I have asked dealership to check drivetrain as it is a know issue for 21 Yukon Denali. Vehicle has not received recall but was manufactured at Arlington plant where the parts of the drive shaft was not properly heated and differential is known for issue upon cold start. Vehicle powertrain warranty is due to expire August 2025 or 60,045 mileage. Therefore with that, the vehicle was placed in service August 2020 months before unproperly heated driveshaft recall was determined. My vehicle should be on the list for this recall as GMC noted this to have occurred on vehicle prior to 07/2021. In addition, a chirping noise comes from front of vehicle while idling and when automatic stop starts back up.There are already known recalls for two of issues noted above.

NHTSA ODI 11637446

The motor on my 2021 Yukon completely failed while driving on a busy state road. The blown motor was replaced by a local GMC dealership, so I do not know it's status or if it'd be available to inspect. My safety was greatly put at risk. I am blessed that my wife and children were not with me, if they were, I would be even more furious. While driving on a busy state road, the tachometer dropped to zero and the truck automatically shifted into neutral. I quickly realized the engine had shutdown, and attempted a restart while coasting. The motor would not restart and I was lucky enough to coast into a nearby parking lot. Had I been in traffic, on the highway, or at a stop light, the situation could have been even more dangerous. As it was, I was stuck in below freezing temps for several hours waiting for triple A. They sent the wrong tow truck twice, and I eventually cancelled the triple A call and called a local wrecking company to come tow the car more than 24 hours later...luckily in the interim I was picked up by a family member. The issue was simply stated to me by the mechanics at the local GMC shop as the motor had "blown", they didn't know why, and they completely minimized the magnitude of the situation. To the best of my knowledge the blown engine has only been looked at by GMC employees. There were NO warning lamps or other symptoms associated with any such failure of this type - which in my opinion, makes the matter even worse and more dangerous. I am frankly furious that GMC is not doing more to address these known catastrophic issues. They have said they will not extend the powertrain warranty and I've read online that people have had their "new" motors blow the same way that the old ones did.

NHTSA ODI 11637103

My 2021 Yukon Denali has roughly 70k miles and this is now the SECOND time that my engine shut off while driving >55mph on the interstate in the past 3 months. The first time, I had the sensation that the car was running out of gas when I went to accelerate. After about 5-10 seconds, the engine turned off, but the electronics stayed on. I coasted to the side of the road and tried multiple times to start it without success. The engine sounded fine while turning over and over, but it would never start. That episode turned out to be a bad fuel pump control module, and after roughly $400 at the local Firestone auto repair shop, I was on my way (FYI, they didn't diagnose it; I learned that was the likely problem by reading online forums and basically demanded they replace the FPCM). Now, here I am about 3 months later, and it happened again, just two days after I had the vehicle serviced at the GMC dealership for a check engine light that was intermittently coming on. The technicians said I needed an update to the Engine Control Module which was completed. The main difference was that this time, I had zero warning. There was no sensation of running out of fuel or funny noises from the engine. I just went to give it gas and noticed it wasn't working. There was a warning on the dash saying push button to start the vehicle (once again, the electronics stayed on when the engine shut off). After coasting to the side of the road, the battery seemed to be good, but the engine wouldn't turn over. I had it towed to the shop and am being told I will likely need a new engine!

NHTSA ODI 11636897

In July of 2024 while coming back from vacation pulling our boat our 2021 Yukon Denali with 6.2L motor started making noise while traveling on the interstate. I started to get over to the shoulder as the car lost power. I finally got it over to the shoulder as traffic was heavy and it was pouring down rain. As soon as I got it to the side of the road the check engine light came on and the engine died. It would not turn over or restart. After about 3 hours along side the very busy highway in bad weather GM finally sent a tow truck to take it to the dealer. After a week in a half it was finally diagnosed with spun rod bearings and main crankshaft bearings. The car had just over 21,000 miles and had been serviced per the manufactures recommendations. It took over 7 weeks for the car to be repaired where they replaced the engine with a remanufactured engine. We did not get a loaner car since it happened in KY and we live in IN. Our family had to find our own way home and a way to get our boat home also. We then had to find our own way back to get the vehicle once it was repaired. GM did reimburse us for a rental car at $44 a day only and they did not pay any taxes or fees only the rental rate. You cannot rent a similar sized vehicle for $44 dollars a day. We spent approx. $2K out of our own pocket for expenses related to this breakdown. The vehicle now has approx. 29,000 miles on it and we have not had any problems since we got it back

NHTSA ODI 11636742

I was driving on the highway at about 70 miles an hour and my vehicle started to decelerate without warning, dash lights came on. I was able to safely get off to the side of the road. The vehicle would not start, so I had to call a tow truck. Once towed to the GMC dealership and looked at by mechanics, I was told the engine failed and I would need to replace it. I was also told there were metal shavings in the oil. My vehicle did this without any warnings. I never had the check engine light come on before this incident, nor were there any noises that would make me think something was wrong with my vehicle.

NHTSA ODI 11634169

The contact owns a 2021 GMC Yukon. The contact stated while driving approximately 20 MPH, there was an abnormal sound coming from the vehicle while turning right or left. No warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic to be diagnosed; however, a diagnostic result was not provided. The independent mechanic made the contact aware of an undisclosed recall however, the VIN was not included. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 76,052.

NHTSA ODI 11630970

While accelerating the vehicle began to make an audible liquid grinding sound and three error codes popped up, one after another. The engine light began to flash, however the vehicle kept moving. I limped roughly .5 mile to the closest service station where I subsequently had my vehicle towed to the dealership where it was purchased. Later notified the lifter and CAM failed. Mind you, this vehicle currently has 55,000 miles and has already had the transmission replaced at 45,000 miles due to metal flake in the transmission because of a faulty hose from GM. While I appreciate the dealership ordering a new engine for me, I do not feel safe driving this vehicle, and do not feel it should be resold to anyone given the MAJOR safety issues associated.

NHTSA ODI 11628371

The contact owns a 2021 GMC Yukon. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the message "Reduced Acceleration" was displayed, and the check engine warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle failed to exceed 40 MPH, and the vehicle was driven back to the residence. The vehicle was taken to BMI Automotive transmission shop, where the valve body and the intermittent speed sensor were replaced; however, the failure recurred while driving. The contact was able to drive to the residence. An unknown dealer was notified of the failure. The vehicle was in the process of being towed to the dealer. The vehicle was not yet repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA Hotline to report the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 56,500.

NHTSA ODI 11626922

I was driving 55 mph and the engine failed without any prior warning. I was partially blocking traffic while waiting for a tow truck. The car was taken to a repair facility and diagnosed. Spun rod bearings on cylinders 1 and 2 damaged the crankshaft. I purchased this car $49,000 45 days ago and have made one payment on a car that is not drivable and parts are not readily available. There is a GM service bulletin because this is a known issue but not a recall. The power train warranty is up by mileage not time. I contacted the dealership and GMC and they will not assist with repairs.

NHTSA ODI 11626737

My vehicle has a message that pops up and says "Service Transmission Now, Unable to Shift Soon". I took my vehicle in to a GM dealership and they did a diagnostics and told me that it needed to be "updated and "rebooted". This was not covered under my power train warranty because it was software. However, the message is stil showing and my vehicle is not shifting, jumping, and not wanting to drive- indicating that the transmission may be going out. This is a safety hazard.

NHTSA ODI 11626474

I bought a brand new Yukon Denali in 2021. In 2022 at 12,000 miles, the car was riding extremely rough. It was diagnosed as a transmission issue and the transmission was rebuilt after 90 days in the service department at a GMC dealer. Later in 2022, I started getting low oil lights on the dash. The car was brought back to GMC and I was told that there aren't any leaks evident so nothing was done. This happened repeatedly over the last 2 years, at multiple GMC service departments. No leaks, nothing to see here. Last week, the car started shaking violently while driving, with multiple warning lights appearing on the dash. Finally the car just died and I had it towed to yet another GMC dealership. This time I was told that the bearings, piston rings and lifters were all to blame and the car needed a new engine. Of course, now the car is out of warranty. GMC needs to remedy the engine issues in the 2021 models. There are MANY reports of this happening with this engine.

NHTSA ODI 11619285

While on a red light and foot on the break, the car turned off completely and would not turn back on after many tries. Truck was towed but mechanic did not find any issues with vehicle as he turned it on with no issues. All lights flashed and indicated battery was low but was not warned prior. The previous week, the truck shut off completely as well but it turned on quickly.

NHTSA ODI 11618694

On 9/23/2024, I was driving my 2021 GMC Yukon Denali down the road, when the Engine seemed to lose power, and the accelerator no longer worked. There were no indications of any errors or alarms on the Dash, and all functions on the interior of the Cabin showed as normal. The vehicle switched into Neutral, and the engine shut off and I was unable to control or accelerate. This is a extremely serious situation and extremely dangerous in terms of Safety.

NHTSA ODI 11616267

[XXX] on [XXX] Yukon stalled mid-drive as we exited [XXX] toward [XXX] . This is the SECOND stall on this Yukon. I had reported the first stall on June 04-2024 [11594097]. This time it would not start at all, and locked into P. There was a strange noise coming from the engine when we were on [XXX].We were going 65mph. My husband told me to start recording a video so that we can capture the noise, within 1-min as we started to exit on [XXX] towards Wake Forest, the sound was getting louder, the car started shaking as we started to slow down towards the entrance to [XXX], the engine cut-off. It smelled like burning, there was no smoke but the smell was strong.  It would not start after multiple attempts, it would not shift it locked on P. At this point, the ENGINE LIGHT went on! Electric was still on, air conditioning turned off, no messages on the dashboard. The only warning was a metal like rubbing coming from the engine. I will upload this 16-min video to TikTok as a multipart series, since my multiple complaints have been falling on deaf ears! We called Gm Roadside for a  tow, they said to call 911. We called 911 about 4 times and they did not have anyone to come. Gm roadside assistance could not get AAA to come until 9:45pm. AAA called us around 9:40 informing us that the available tow cannot move this Yukon because it would not shift gear to N and it will require a specific tow truck. We called back GM roadside about 5 times, just run around with no solution and a lot of attitude and lack of concern! Finally the Raleigh police Supervisor arrived, minutes later a State trooper offered assistance. They wanted the car off the road, GM was still on the phone and put them on speaker with the officer. Finally the office requested their tow as GM FAILED to get a compatible tow truck, we paid out of pocket, CASH! The Police drove us home around 11:30pm! GM DID not have contracted equipment for their OWN Trucks! New lows for GM! Incredible! POST COVID INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

NHTSA ODI 11612079