Total Complaints
33 filings
GMC YUKON DENALI XL · model year
33 NHTSA complaints, 3 crash reports for this specific cohort.
NHTSA overall rating
Not crash-tested
New Car Assessment Program
The 2016GMCYUKON DENALI XL carries 33 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 3 crashes, 0 fires, 0 injuries, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.
Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2016 YUKON DENALI XL is exterior lighting with 15 filings, followed by unknown or other (6) and electrical system (4). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability.
NHTSA currently has 2 investigation files overlapping the 2016 YUKON DENALI XL. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.
Total Complaints
33 filings
Crashes Reported
3 reports
Source
NHTSA ODI
Federal complaints database
At or below the fleet median complaint volume.
| Component | Count |
|---|---|
| EXTERIOR LIGHTING | 15 |
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER | 6 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 4 |
| POWER TRAIN | 3 |
| ENGINE | 2 |
| SUSPENSION | 2 |
| SERVICE BRAKES | 1 |
VEHICLE SHAKES AND HAS A ROUGH RIDE
TAIL LIGHT STOPPED WORKED, COMING BACK ON INTERMITTENTLY. $700+ FIX FROM DEALER
Mileage: 52,000
PEOPLE KEPT TELLING ME ONE OF MY TAIL LIGHT WAS OUT BUT EVERY TIME I'D GET HOME MY TAIL LIGHT WAS ON! THIS KEPT GOING ON FOR A FEW WEEKS UNTIL THIS TIME I CHECKED AND IT WAS OFF. I WENT TO HAVE MY OIL CHANGED AND MENTIONED THE ISSUE. THEY DIDN'T SEE A PROBLEM BECAUSE OF COURSE IT WAS BACK ON. ABOUT A MONTH LATER, THE SAME CYCLE STARTED. MY FRIEND NOTICED THAT WHEN I WENT OVER A BUMP IT WOULD FLICK BACK ON. WE TOOK IT TO THE LOCAL GMC DEALERSHIP THAT INFORMED ME IT WAS A COMMON ISSUE IN THESE VEHICLES AND THE COST TO REPLACE WAS ABOUT $1,000. ACCORDING TO THE DEALERSHIP THE ONLY OPTION WAS TO REPLACE AND NOT FIX. I DECIDED TO LOOK UP AN ALTERNATIVE AND FOUND OUT MANY OTHERS WERE EXPERIENCING THE SAME ISSUES WITH YUKONS RANGING 2-3 YEARS AS MY VEHICLE. AFTER HAVING IT REPAIRED FOR A FRACTION OF THE COST OUTSIDE OF THE DEALERSHIP A MONTH AGO IT'S BACK TO NOT WORKING AGAIN! FRUSTRATING PART IS THAT THIS IS HAPPENING TO SO MANY OTHERS... ON YOUTUBE ALONE THERE ARE SO MANY VIDEOS SHOWING HOW
TAILLIGHTS, BRAKELIGHTS WORK INCONSISTENTLY. NOTHING IS WRONG WITH THE BULBS. IT IS THE ASSEMBLY AND DESIGN. IT WILL COST ABOUT 1200-2000 DOLLARS. VEHICLE BARELY HAS 32000 MILES ON IT. THIS CAN LEAD TO AN ACCIDENT.
Mileage: 31,900
LED BRAKE LIGHT ON DRIVER SIDE JUST STOPPED WORKING. NO DAMAGE DONE TO THE EXTERIOR.
Mileage: 1
LED TAILLIGHT BRAKE LAMP WENT OUT. IT'S DEFECTIVE. TOO MANY PEOPLE ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM WITH NEW VEHICLES.
Mileage: 45,000
RIGHT TAIL LIGHT IS OUT. CANT BELIEVE !! ITS BEEN ONLY 2 PLUS YEARS RUNNING THIS VEHICLE. UNDER 50K MILAGE!! NEED GMC TO REPLACE OR FIX FOR FREE.
Mileage: 30,000
MY 2016 YUKON DENALI XL LURCHES FORWARD WHILE DRIVING ACTING LIKE IT IS HAVING ISSUES SHIFTING GEARS. I HAVE ALSO HAD AN ISSUE TWICE NOW WHERE WHEN I SHIFT FROM PARK TO REVERSE IN MY DRIVEWAY MY VEHICLE GOES FORWARD INSTEAD.
Mileage: 48,000
MY VEHICLE HAS ONLY 47,000 MILES AND MY PASSENGER SIDE BRAKE LIGHT IS OUT. THERE IS ALSO WATER AND MOISTURE THAT BUILDS UP IN BOTH TAILLIGHTS. I WAS TOLD IT WOULD BE $800 EACH TO REPLACE AND WAS NO LONGER UNDER WARRANTY. I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER AND PURCHASED THE VEHICLE NEW. THE VEHICLE HAS NEVER BEEN IN ANY ACCIDENTS. THIS IS A SERIOUS ISSUE AND NEEDS TO BE COVERED BY THE MANUFACTURER. THE LED LIGHTS SHOULD NOT GO OUT THIS QUICKLY.
Mileage: 47,000
I TOOK MY CAR INTO A GMC DEALER DUE TO A FUNNY NOISE. I HAD TO PAY $800 TO REPLACE MY BRAKE VACUUM. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT BRAKING PROPERLY PRIOR TO THIS FIX.
Mileage: 47,500
I WAS ON THE RAMP GOING APPROX. 45-50 MPH ACCELERATING TO BE ABLE TO TURN ONTO THE 70 MPH HIGHWAY WHEN MY SUNROOF EXPLODED. IT WAS LIKE A GUN WENT OFF IN MY VEHICLE. IT SCARED ME TO DEATH AS GLASS WAS FALLING ON ME. I SHUT THE INSIDE PROTECTOR AND LOOKED AROUND AND THERE WERE NO PEOPLE, TRUCKS, CARS OR OVERPASS AROUND. THERE IS GLASS ALL OVER THE INSIDE OF MY VEHICLE. THE PIECES CONTINUED TO FALL THE REST OF MY TRIP. I CONTACTED THE DEALERSHIP IMMEDIATELY AND THE GUY SAID HE NEVER HEARD OF IT. GMC HEADQUARTERS WAS NO HELP EITHER. I HAVE READ THIS IS A MANUFACTURER DEFECT.
Mileage: 44,000
BRAKE LIGHT WORK INTERMITTENTLY. VERY DANGEROUS WHEN YOU DON'T IF THEY ARE WORK OR NOT
Mileage: 36,765
BOTH TAIL LIGHTS HAVE CEASED TO FUNCTION WITHIN 6 MONTHS OF EACH OTHER. GMC STATES THAT THE ORIGINAL PARTS WERE DEFECTIVE, BUT WILL NOT COVER REPAIR. EACH LIGHT COSTS ~$700 PLUS LABOR. THIS SHOULD BE A RECALL ISSUE.
Mileage: 55,000
INTERMITTENT TAIL LIGHT/BRAKE LIGHT FAILURE.
Mileage: 65,000
BOTH REAR TAIL LIGHTS HAVE FAILED UNDER 40,000 MILES. DEFECTIVE! PLEASE RECALL!!!
Mileage: 40,425
BOTH REAR TAIL LIGHTS HAVE FAILED UNDER 40,000 MILES. DEFECTIVE! PLEASE RECALL!!!
Mileage: 40,425
LEFT REAR LED BRAKE LIGHT WORKS ON AND OFF.
Mileage: 37,900
THE REAR BRAKE LIGHT WORK INTERMITTENTLY. IT'S MOSTLY THE DRIVER'S SIDE BUT HE BOTH GO ON AND OFF WHEN I'M DRIVING AND PARKED. I HAVE ALMOST BEEN IN SEVERAL ACCIDENTS. I AM AFRAID I AM GOING TO GET REAR ENDED WITH MY CHILDREN IN THE CAR. I HAVE SEEN MANY VEHICLE JUST LIKE MINE WITH AT LEAST ONE BRAKE LIGHT OUT. WHEN HE LOOKED THIS UP ONLINE IT IS A KNOWN ISSUE. MY SISTER HAS THE EXACT SAME YEAR MAKE AND MODEL. SHE EXPERIENCED THE EXACT SAME BRAKE LIGHT ISSUES. SHE OPENED A CASE WITH GM AND THEY WORKED WITH HER TO COVER IT AND CHARGED HER THE DEDUCTIBLE. SHE WAS OVER THE 36K MILES GM CONSTANTLY REFERENCES. THIS IS SO UNSAFE. THE AIR ON THIS VEHICLE ALSO DOES LOT STAY COLD. IT TURNS WARM WHEN I SLOW DOWN.
THE REAR BRAKE LIGHT WORK INTERMITTENTLY. IT'S MOSTLY THE DRIVER'S SIDE BUT HE BOTH GO ON AND OFF WHEN I'M DRIVING AND PARKED. I HAVE ALMOST BEEN IN SEVERAL ACCIDENTS. I AM AFRAID I AM GOING TO GET REAR ENDED WITH MY CHILDREN IN THE CAR. I HAVE SEEN MANY VEHICLE JUST LIKE MINE WITH AT LEAST ONE BRAKE LIGHT OUT. WHEN HE LOOKED THIS UP ONLINE IT IS A KNOWN ISSUE. MY SISTER HAS THE EXACT SAME YEAR MAKE AND MODEL. SHE EXPERIENCED THE EXACT SAME BRAKE LIGHT ISSUES. SHE OPENED A CASE WITH GM AND THEY WORKED WITH HER TO COVER IT AND CHARGED HER THE DEDUCTIBLE. SHE WAS OVER THE 36K MILES GM CONSTANTLY REFERENCES. THIS IS SO UNSAFE. THE AIR ON THIS VEHICLE ALSO DOES LOT STAY COLD. IT TURNS WARM WHEN I SLOW DOWN.
TAKATA RECALL - THE BRAKE LIGHTS WORK ON AND OFF. SOMETIMES THEY COME ON AND WE'VE BEEN STOPPED MULTIPLE TIME TO SAY THEY ARE NOT WORKING. I'VE ALMOST BEEN REAR ENDED AS A RESULT! EXTREMELY DANGEROUS DRIVING CONDITION. IT FHAS OCCURRED WHEN I AM AT A STOP LIGHT OR DRIVING AND SLOWING DOWN ON A CITY STREET. I HAVE SEEN MANY GMC YUKON XLS ON THE ROAD WITH NO TAIL LIGHT AND MY SISTER OWNS A 2016 YUKON XL AND IS HAVING THE EXACT SAME ISSUE.
Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.