2012 GMC Yukon Overview Change Vehicle

2012 GMC Yukon review with specifications, fuel economy data, safety information, reliability ratings, a photo gallery, and The Vehix View.

The GMC Yukon is a full-size SUV that’s about the same size as the far more satisfying GMC Acadia, but is built with a more rugged truck frame for greater towing and payload capacity. It is a corporate twin to the Chevrolet Tahoe/Suburban, and competes against the Ford Expedition/Expedition EL, Nissan Armada, and Toyota Sequoia.

All GMC Yukon SLE models have standard fog lights, roof rack rails, and recovery hooks for 2012, and the StabiliTrak stability control system is now equipped with Trailer Sway Control and Hill Start Assist technology. The Yukon SLT gains standard heated front seats, and the SLT can be optioned with a new Side Blind Zone Alert system and a heated steering wheel. The Yukon SLT’s optional navigation radio features a hard drive for 2012, and includes satellite radio, a USB port, Time Shift recording capability, and optional real-time weather reporting. New colors include Crystal Red Tintcoat and Quicksilver Metallic.

GMC sells numerous versions of the Yukon SUV, and this review pertains specifically to the short-wheelbase standard model in SLE and SLT trim. Yukon XL, Yukon Denali, and Yukon Hybrid models are covered in separate reviews.

The base Yukon carries an SLE badge, and is equipped with power windows, power heated side mirrors, power door locks with remote keyless entry, triple-zone air conditioning, cruise control, a leather-wrapped tilt steering wheel, Bluetooth hands-free connectivity, and a Bose audio system with a CD player, an auxiliary audio input jack, a USB port, and satellite radio. Cloth upholstery covers the six-way power front bucket seats, three-passenger second-row bench seat, and three-passenger third-row bench seat, and the Yukon SLE is dressed up with a chrome grille surround, automatic headlights, fog lights, dark tinted rear privacy glass, and 17-inch machined-finish aluminum wheels. A locking rear differential and trailering equipment is also standard, along with a trip computer, outside temperature and compass displays, and an auto-dimming rearview mirror. Finally, every Yukon is equipped with OnStar telematics including Automatic Crash Notification and Turn-by-Turn Navigation.

GMC offers numerous options for the Yukon SLE. You can replace the standard front bucket seats and the center console with a front bench seat for a total of nine-passenger capacity, and the SLE can be upgraded with a Trailering Package (3.42 axle ratio, trailer brake control, transmission and oil coolers), a Z71 Suspension Package (skid plates, heavy-duty trailering equipment, high-capacity air cleaner, 17-inch alloys with on/off-road tires), and a Convenience Package (power adjustable pedals, remote engine starting, rear parking sensors, reversing camera with in-mirror display). A rear seat DVD entertainment system is also available on this model.

If you want leather seats, you’ll need to get the Yukon SLT, which also comes with a HomeLink universal remote and the contents of the SLE Convenience Package. Choosing the Yukon SLT also provides access to a wider variety of optional features. In addition to the Trailering Package and Z71 Suspension Package, the Yukon SLT can be equipped with the SLT-2 Package (heated second-row seats, power liftgate, power folding side mirrors) and the Sun, Entertainment and Destinations Package (power sunroof, navigation radio with hard-drive, extended satellite radio service, reversing camera, rear-seat DVD entertainment system), and a self-explanatory Chrome Package.

In addition to these option packages, the Yukon SLT can be upgraded with power retractable assist steps, power-release second-row fold-and-tumble seats, second-row bucket seats, 10-way power heated and cooled front seats, heated second-row seats, and a heated steering wheel. The Yukon SLT can also be ordered with 20-inch polished or chrome-clad wheels, an Autoride real-time damping suspension, and a new-for-2012 Side Blind Zone Alert system.

A 5.3-liter V8 engine with Active Fuel Management is standard on the 2012 GMC Yukon. Active Fuel Management shuts down half of the engine’s cylinders when cruising, braking, or idling to conserve fuel, resulting in an EPA-estimated 15 mpg in the city and 21 mpg on the highway, whether you’ve for four-wheel drive or not.

The E85-compatible V8 makes 320 horsepower at 5,400 rpm and 335 pound-feet of torque at 4,000 rpm, delivered to the rear or all four wheels through a six-speed automatic transmission with a tow/haul mode and a 3.08 axle ratio.

With 4WD, the Yukon is equipped with a standard single-speed Autotrac transfer case. An Autotrac two-speed transfer case with Neutral is optional, and facilitates the ability to flat-tow the Yukon.

GMC equips the 2012 Yukon with four-wheel-disc antilock brakes, a traction and stability control system that includes Trailer Sway Control and Hill Start Assist, and a package of six airbags that includes side curtain protection for the outboard seating positions in all three rows of seats. Optional safety-related features include rear bumper parking sensors, a reversing camera, and a Side Blind Zone Alert system.

OnStar with Automatic Crash Notification is also standard, and puts a live operator in touch with the Yukon’s occupants in the event of an airbag deployment. Even if nobody inside the SUV is able to respond, the operator can send help to the Yukon’s exact location to speed rescue.

In crash tests conducted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the 2012 GMC Yukon receives an overall rating of 4 Stars. Broken down, the Yukon gets a 5-Star rating for frontal impact protection, a 5-Star rating for side-impact protection, and a 3-Star rollover resistance rating. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has not performed crash tests on the GMC Yukon.

Reliability is expected to be average. That’s the prediction made by both Consumer Reports and J.D. Power and Associates.

One reason to buy a traditional, full-size, body-on-frame SUV like the 2012 GMC Yukon is for towing capacity. In this regard, the Yukon can schlep up to 8,500 pounds of trailer.

Another reason to buy a traditional, full-size, body-on-frame SUV like the 2012 GMC Yukon is for cargo capacity. Here, the Yukon measures 16.9 cubic-feet behind the third-row seat, 60.3 cu-ft behind the second-row seat as long as the third-row seats have been removed from the vehicle, and 108.9 cu-ft with the third-row seats removed and the second-row seats folded down.

A third reason to buy a traditional, full-size, body-on-frame SUV like the 2012 GMC Yukon is for passenger capacity. If you get the optional bench front seat on the Yukon SLE, this GMC will hold nine passengers. Not comfortably, mind you. But nine people can fit inside if absolutely necessary.

The Yukon’s third-row seat is not a happy place to be. It is mounted close to the floor, and offers adults very little in the way of leg and foot space. Kids sit low, like they’re in a padded cavern. The best place for them is stored in the garage under protective plastic, or sold on eBay.

The 2012 GMC Yukon is built in Arlington, Texas.

Buy a 2012 GMC Yukon for its intended purposes, and you’ll probably be quite happy with it. Buy it for other reasons, and we think you might end up regretting the purchase.

By Christian Wardlaw