2019 GMC Yukon: What to check before buying

Lifter and valvetrain failure on the 6.2L V8 dominates these reports. Drivers hear ticking, tapping, or knocking. Then the engine shakes, misfires, and loses power, often at highway speed and sometimes with no warning light. Some engines seize outright. Dealers replace lifters, pushrods, and camshafts or quote close to $15,000 for a new engine. Failures cluster between about 53,000 and 106,000 miles. Owners note that the engine recall for later Yukons does not cover the 2019. The 2 injuries come from a separate report of cabin fumes making occupants dizzy.

The engine ticks, knocks, or bangs, usually with no warning light. Misfires and heavy vibration at road speed are early signs. Diagnoses include failed lifters, failed cam phasers, and catastrophic engine failure that needs a full replacement. Most failures fall between 104,389 and 110,000 miles, though one occurs near 7,000. Owners link their cases to NHTSA action number PE25001, but their VINs fall outside any recall, so they pay for the repair or leave the truck unrepaired. In one case, coolant gets into the engine days after a lifter repair.

The automatic transmission slips, shudders, or stops delivering power. The engine revs but the truck will not accelerate, sometimes in the middle of a left turn into traffic. Other drivers feel hesitation and jerking in the lower gears before the check engine light comes on. Dealers find failed torque converters and replace the whole transmission, which owners say costs over $6,000. Most failures land between about 78,000 and 111,000 miles. A few filings here repeat the lifter and camshaft failures listed under engine.

Most of these reports involve a persistent "Service Trailer Brake System" warning. The chime repeats every few days or never stops, even on trucks that have never towed, and the trailer brakes stop working when they are needed. Owners cite a service bulletin that calls for replacing a wiring harness connector. Some dealers replace a fuse instead and the warning returns. In one crash-related report, moisture corrodes the connectors and forces the truck into an undrivable reduced-power mode. Other reports describe stability control kicking in at highway speed, a liftgate opening on its own, and dead taillights.

Power steering cuts out suddenly, usually with a "Service Power Steering" or "Power steering disabled" message. Some trucks lose assist at highway speed. In one case the wheel locks straight before the driver reaches an off-ramp. Others start with no assist until the system resets. Several cases begin under 17K miles. Drivers also report steering that feels disconnected at highway speed and a wheel that surges in turns. One crash with 2 injuries follows a sudden hard pull to the left at 60 to 70 mph.

In two reports the brakes lose power at road speed and the driver cannot stop normally. One case traces to a failed vacuum pump, after which a "Brake Assist" message appears. Automatic emergency braking also engages on its own while the truck pulls away from a light, which forces the car behind into a panic stop. The "Service Trailer Brake System" warning shows up in this category too, chiming repeatedly on trucks that never tow. One owner says the brake lights stopped working completely within the first year.

The airbags fail to deploy in both reports, and both involve serious frontal impacts. In one, another vehicle at about 65 mph hits the driver's side front corner, and the driver suffers fractured ribs and a fractured hip. The other is an elk strike at 65 mph. These filings record 3 injuries in total. A separate steering complaint also describes a highway crash in which the airbags did not deploy.

Shocks and struts fail early. Rear shocks seize, which makes the truck hard to control over bumps. Front struts leak on both sides, and the body bounces excessively while handling and steering get noticeably worse. No warning lights come on before the problem appears. Dealers say the electronically controlled struts were a new design for 2019 and call the failure common on these Yukons.

The engine surges to high rpm on its own within minutes of starting, in drive or reverse, and nearly causes crashes. It happens about twice a week, and the problem cannot be reproduced on demand. The other report is an engine that gives out on the interstate at night, shaking and losing speed with no warning. The dealer says it sees this failure often and quotes $16,000 for a new engine, and the owner learns the 2019 is not part of the recall.