2025 GMC Yukon: Big Is Beautiful

Competes with: Chevrolet Tahoe, Ford Expedition, Jeep Wagoneer, Nissan Armada, Toyota Sequoia

Looks like: The current Yukon with a new front end and cabin

Powertrains: 355-horsepower, 5.3-liter V-8, 420-hp, 6.2-liter V-8 or 305-hp, turbo-diesel 3.0-liter six-cylinder engines; 10-speed automatic transmission; rear- or all-wheel drive

Hits dealerships: Late 2024

It wasn’t long ago that we were given a preview of the new 2025 Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban, and we figured that a new GMC Yukon wasn’t far behind — and we were right. Here it is, the updated 2025 Yukon, featuring many of the same updates the Tahoe received, such as mildly updated styling with new LED lights, a new interior with a much lower dashboard, some new tech, a modified trim lineup and other new equipment to keep it competitive in the expensive full-size SUV category.

Related: Can the Mammoth GMC Yukon Denali Get Good MPG With a Diesel Engine?

New Trims, New Looks

Like the rest of the GMC lineup, the Yukon gets a shuffled trim setup for 2025. Gone are the base SLE and SLT variants; instead, there’s a new Elevation trim that takes their place with more standard equipment and likely a slight bump in price. The AT4 off-road trim remains, as do the Denali luxury and Denali Ultimate super-luxury trims. A new AT4 Ultimate trim joins the lineup and takes the AT4’s off-road equipment and unique styling (plus an adaptive air ride suspension that can add 2 inches of lift) and combines it with a much more luxurious interior that offers “95% of what the Denali comes with,” according to GMC designers at the SUV’s unveiling in suburban Detroit.

All Yukons get new styling, however, which isn’t much different than the prior model’s but does present a cleaner face with a grille, headlights and bumpers that are more in line with the rest of the GMC lineup. New taillights out back help create a wider look, spanning the liftgate with additional trim to emphasize a horizontal look, and AT4s get a different bumper treatment with a raised lower edge for better approach angles and off-road performance. Wheels vary from 20 inches on the AT4 (better for off-roading) all the way up to massive new 24-inch wheels on the Denali Ultimate.

Gas and Diesel Options

Powering the 2025 Yukon is a carryover 5.3-liter V-8 engine that’s standard in the Elevation and AT4 trims; it makes 355 horsepower and 383 pounds-feet of torque. The upgrade engine (standard in the Denali, Denali Ultimate and AT4 Ultimate, and optional on the AT4) is a 6.2-liter V-8 making 420 hp and 460 pounds-feet of torque.

But the bigger news for 2025 is that the late-arriving turbo-diesel 3.0-liter six-cylinder engine gets both a power bump (to 305 hp and 495 pounds-feet of torque from 277 hp and 460 pounds-feet) and expanded availability. You can specify the diesel in any trim, including the new AT4 Ultimate; putting it in that trim creates a fascinating (and likely expensive) overlander truck that’s capable of impressive fuel economy, off-road ability and range, but also coddling passengers with luxurious trim.

New Interiors and Tech

Inside is where GMC spent the development money, giving the Yukon a new interior featuring a significantly lower dashboard like we saw in the Tahoe and Suburban. Redesigned for much better outward visibility, the Yukon also goes fully digital, with a reconfigurable gauge cluster on all trims.

But the big attention grabber is the 16.8-inch vertical center screen that combines touch-sensitive controls with real buttons and knobs to make for a massive, clear and complete control system. Like all of GM’s new vehicles, the control system switches to a Google-based operating system for additional integration with cloud-based features, but wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto are still standard and perfectly usable. And like most of the rest of GM’s new big-screen-equipped offerings, it’s not 100% touchscreen-enabled; there are still buttons and switches for high-use items, such as climate control and audio systems, and the new steering wheel is also full of buttons instead of touch panels.

There’s a bunch of new technology in the Yukon, as well, but the most interesting might be the first-ever appearance of night-vision technology. The thermal-imaging camera and display in the gauge cluster is optional, improving safety in poor visibility conditions like fog, according to GMC.

Other new equipment includes the optional Executive Seating Package on the Denali Ultimate, which brings massaging, heated and cooled second-row seats to the Yukon, as well as a Bose sound system with up to 22 speakers. As before, the Denali Ultimate features three full rows of actual leather upholstery (as does the new AT4 Ultimate) and genuine wood trim. There’s also a newly available rear-seat climate control package that features an 8-inch touchscreen, adding to the Denali Ultimate’s longtime role as a more affordable, less ostentatious alternative to the Cadillac Escalade.

Pricing and Availability

Pricing will be available closer to the 2025 GMC Yukon’s on-sale date late in the year during the fourth quarter.

More From Cars.com:

• GMC Teases 2025 Yukon, Shows Exterior Refresh
• 2025 Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban: Smoother Super-Sized SUVs
• How Do Car Seats Fit in a 2023 GMC Yukon?
• 2021 GMC Yukon Denali Review: Finally, the Denali Is Different
• These 10 SUVs Have the Highest Towing Capacity

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