The 2026 GMC Yukon Denali Ultimate is a BETTER luxury SUV than a Lincoln Navigator

Hey guys, what's up? It's Joe, ready for Mady's Rides. I'm back at it at one of my favorite filming spot locations because guess what? We have one of my favorite full-size SUVs. What am I talking about? This vehicle right here. This is it. This is a 2026 GMC Yukon Denali Ultimate. But before we get into this full-size, full-on luxury SUV, let's talk about what's going on here. It's interesting. Because of vehicles like the Lincoln Navigator and the Cadillac Escalade, this luxury full-size SUV thing has really grown, not only with the luxury brands, but also with the professional truck grade brand known as GMC. Not only is the Yukon pretty versatile and pretty significant to their lineup, but now they take luxury and finishes to a new level. Of course, we still have the OG. The first one was the Lincoln Navigator, but the Lincoln Navigator has gone through some interesting changes, especially with the latest generation. So what I want to find out is if you want luxury, but you want it exactly a unique way with a V8, with lots of great tech, but not too much, do you go with this Yukon or do you go with a Navigator? Why don't we go ahead, let's dive into this one and see if we can find out. Right off the bat, love the presence this vehicle has. Yes, white is not my favorite color on a Yukon, but it works with all the dark elements. Now the front of the business signature style to GMC lighting, that large LED daytime running lamp and turn signal. You do have your LED headlights, and then working our way down, you do have your LED fog lamps, a little bit of gloss black, but I like this dark aluminum finish. This is very classy. Now as we come across the front grill, I'm very happy to report it's not all chrome. Love the dark chrome finish, not the bright chrome with the GMC badge in gray. That is unique to the Ultimate. So when you see it in gray, you know this is an Ultimate. You do have the gloss black around the perimeter, and then working our way down, the white and that aluminum finish, which looks absolutely superb. Absolutely superb at the front. Of course, we have a forward facing camera, adaptive air ride, magnetic ride suspension, lots of great technology to give you the perfect driving experience. But let me know what you think about the face of this Yukon Denali Ultimate compared to the Navigator. Now, as we rise up, same hood as previous model years. Nice strong indentations, pearlescent white. This isn't just like a refrigerator white, which is like a bright white. It's got a nice pearlescent sparkle to it. Coming around the bend, I hope you love big wheels, because I got some huge ones here. These flying saucers, these are actually identified as UFOs. You're looking at 24-inch wheel, that V-spoke design, little bit of gunmetal. Look at the way they machine the inner openings of all of those gaps with the Denali name on it. And if you're wondering, well, Joe, what's the size of this beast? Not only is it 22 inches in diameter, tire size is going to be 285 on the width, 40-series sidewall, all four corners. We have the adaptive air ride suspension. Lori's going to zoom in and try to show you the adaptive air ride system there with the shock absorber, the spring, the control arms, and of course, you're getting a two-speed transfer case and four-wheel drive in this thing, because remember, they want you to be able to use it. Just got to be careful not to curb these 24-inch wheels. Coming down the side, nothing flat black, everything painted. You get the ultimate badge. It's like the ultimate warrior. Remember him, man? I used to love seeing the ultimate warrior run down into the ring, watching wrestling as a kid, and then he would hold on to the ropes, and he would do this thing where he's like, ah! It's like, man, what did that guy take? What kind of drugs did he do? You do have your large side mirrors with the pearlescent white, the LED turn signals, your 360-degree cameras, the Denali name. I wish they would have done the dark chrome. This is where it's like they were doing so well at the front, and then they went with shiny chrome, even on that lower trim. It should be dark chrome all the way around. Now, when you open up the doors, of course, you're going to get those automatic dropping running boards. You have those bright silver aluminum roof rails up top. You can get your crossbars, get all your goodies up there for camping or whatever, doing your road trip, and then you have bright shiny metalwork along the bottom and on the outer edge of the passenger door. Of course, this is rear-wheel drive biased, with power going to all four wheels. Coming around the back, they do it right. They do it Rady's Ride style. Nice long roof spoiler, body color, your wiper is hidden and tucked away, so it doesn't take up any of this space. Here's the dark finish I like. Here's the shiny finish I don't like. So that's the Zonk on the Denali badge, but you do got your GMC looking good, LED lighting superb, the Yukon name, and then we finish it off on a high note. Dark chrome finish, and then you got that quad tip exhaust. Oh my God, staggered tip. I even like that rounded off square look on this thing. They did retune the exhaust for 2026 to give you a little bit more growl when you're in sport mode. And then this cover comes off, and you could tow plenty, good and plenty, with this Yukon Denali Ultimate. But while we go ahead, let's go pop the hood and see what engine option is underneath it in this one. All right, guys, we got that massive hood open with the hood struts. Now, unlike the Navigator, you do have a couple engine choices when you go Ultimate. You can go naturally aspirated V8, or you could still get that Duramax turbodiesel engine. If you go Lincoln Navigator, you're stuck with one engine. It's the 3.5 liter twin turbo V6, that's that EcoBoost engine. What do we have under this one? It is that naturally aspirated V8, so 420 horsepower, 460 pound-feet of torque. It is mated to a 10-speed automatic transmission, zero to 60 in about 5.6 seconds. Top speed is governed around 125 miles per hour. The vehicle weighs right around 6,000 pounds, and you could tow over 8,000 pounds with this Yukon Denali Ultimate. But now it's that time. I told you, they retweaked the exhaust. We're going to hear what it sounds like in sport mode. Let's fire it up and see this beast roll. All right, guys, we're inside this big old 2026 GMC Yukon Denali Ultimate. It's a mouthful, but trust me, they did plenty to this interior. Can't wait to show you. Now, I know you're saying to yourself, well, Joe, if this competes with the Lincoln Navigator, I'm going to guess that the price is probably close as well. Well, yes and no. Lincoln Navigator, man, can go up to $130,000. This is a fully loaded Yukon, obviously, because it's the Ultimate. You're looking at an MSRP of $113,000. A lot of money, but it does bring a lot of luxury. Let me show you. To the door panels, love the two-tone interior. The leather up top, the contrast stitching, the gray with the dark, dark brown looks fantastic. Open-pore wood that was chopped down by Paul Bunyan and Blue. Then of course, you have your crisscross applesauce stitching on that nice soft armrest. You have your pickle in a bag pocket. You could put five of 7-Eleven's finest pickles in bags. And then down below is where easily you could get a Jersey Mike sub with extra pickles and mustard and a nice large Slurpee to wash it down. Then check out the Bose premium sound system. I mean, nice looking speaker, grill cover, tons of audio entertainment. Now, going from the door panel to the dash, love the material, the stitching, the open-pore wood that has the topography on it. That's a map that shows you elevation. If you failed social studies class, like the two-tone. On the side, you got a place to put a journal, maybe a book that you're reading. It's always good to have a book on you. Even if you're going, you know, I know some people like to carry books and they'll go to the park and they try to impress either a girl or a guy to make them think like they read a lot. Like, oh, I'm just reading, you know, War of the Worlds. They do that to hook up. Interesting. But, hey, people swipe right to hook up. What do I know? I do like on the side, though, you have the ultimate badge because this is the ultimate. And then watch this. Nice felt lining. You could put your Rolex in there and your iPhone 47 titanium edition. And then you have a nice integrated dash infotainment system set up, 16.8 inch. Yes, it's the portrait style, but I actually am digging the way they worked it really, really well. You have a real volume knob here and then you just tap the screen to do your heated seats, ventilated seats, three of these. You can do your recirculation and then you got your toggle switches for your dual climate control, which is really nice. I could hit home. I can bring up cameras. Look at this. Better cameras than what they had on the Artemis 2 that went around the moon. Was it the first time? Was it the second time? You tell me. And then we're right back where we started. All the familiar icons, Apple music, you got your entertainment hub, auto park assist. And then, of course, you could go into your settings as well. Let me throw it into reverse. You got your electric shifter over here for that 10 speed automatic. I'm just going to take the shifter and push up. Look at that. Beautiful. The 360, the whole shebam. Then you hit the tip, just touch the tip a little bit, rub the tip, and that's going to put it into park. Nice silver auto start stop button. And then there is a sea of gloss black, but I'll be honest, for the whole week that I've had this press suite vehicle, I've been driving it like this. Wireless charging, USB-C, USB-A, two cup holders, love the open pour wood is nice. And then you got the soft touch with the ultimate badge. And then watch this. You push the button up top and that slides back to where you could put a nice Edmunds coffee cake. That's what I want. And then in here is where you could keep some plastic ware, some forks, some knives, unless you're just going to eat it with your hand and stuff it in your mouth. That's one thing I miss. When my grandmother was still alive, I would visit her like a good grandson every week. And she would always have Edmunds coffee cake readily available. Those were the days. Lift this up, plenty of space in here. I mean, you could put a Sony Walkman, a Sony Discman. You can even get one of those Sony Action Walkmans. Those were like slightly waterproof. They were tape players. Do you know what a tape is? No, I'm not talking about masking tape. One day, one day I'll be able to tell you all about it. Not today. Leather, the ultimate badge. You see those coordinates? That's to my house. No, just kidding. That's the Mount Denali where the actual mountain is. Love the Bose speakers in the headrest. Look at the topography, the stitching, nice soft piping. Full electric assist for the passenger, full electric assist for the driver, and you have massage seats. Watch this. So what I'm going to do is I just hit the button, and then that is going to allow me to bring up the massage seats. So you have massage seats for the passenger and the driver. You do have a digital rear view mirror. That person's been parked there. I think they might murder us. So if nobody hears from us after this video, call Dateline. And then up top, you got that panoramic sunroof with the sunshade, which is really nice. A lot of people ask, Joe, why don't you open it up all the way? Do I really need to? It opens all the way, I promise. Why don't you come over here, though, to the business side? I got a steering wheel with Super Cruise I want to show you. Come on over. Hi, guys. Business time right now. I'm getting a massage. You don't even know it. Feels good in this seat. You do have the Denali sill plate. Ultimate badge looking good. I do love the aluminum brake pedal, aluminum throttle. What I don't love, and I have to zonk, is that sad, sad dead pedal. Seat controls, easy to get to. They feel good when you're operating them. You have two memory seat settings. I'm six feet tall, plenty of room in this. I mean, this is full size. Come on. Steering wheel. This is our Super Cruise. That's that semi-autonomous, hands-free driving. The best in the biz from GM. The leather, heated steering wheel. You just tap the button. Got all your other controls. Nice flat black. There are paddles behind the wheel to go up and down that 10-speed automatic. And then you have a nice assortment of buttons over here, your 360-degree camera, hill descent control. You got your different drive modes, your 4x4 system, lights. And then this is a power tilting and telescoping wheel. And you have that beautiful gauge cluster. What's nice is you can configure it 20 different ways from Sunday. Look at that. Both the navigation, your assistant driving, the night vision. This does have night vision. Takes a few seconds, so it has to do its calculation. But there it is. That's cool. Look at that. I love that. But it's bright out, so we really can't utilize it very much. And then there we are. And then on top of that, you have a ginormous, it's like a 15-inch head-up display. Wow. But let's get into the mid-row and third row and see how this stacks up against the Navigator. All right, guys. Mid-row and third-row time. I'm telling you right now, kids are spoiled today. I remember back when I was a kid, my mom had a nine-passenger Buick Grand Estate wagon. We didn't have TV screens in it. We didn't have wireless headsets. You get all of that in this freaking vehicle. But let's start with the seats. Same great leather as up front. The speakers and the headrest, the ultimate badge. And then an armrest that I would be perfectly happy to rest my arm on. Look how nice and beefy that is. That's how it should be. Entertainment. This is where your kids are spoiled. Look at this. YouTube, Hulu, Disney, all touchscreen. And I can swipe. You got HDMI ports. We didn't even know what the hell an HDMI was when I was a kid. And then you have your wireless headset with the GMC logo on it in those nice pockets. Slide on in, two cup holders, and then you have an 8-inch touchscreen for the AC controls, your blower fan, temperature. The sad news is, well, it's not so sad anymore. No longer do they kind of skimp. They give you everything. Ventilated seats, three stages apiece, and three stages of heated seats. You know how we used to have ventilated seats when we were a kid, when I was a kid, is you'd sit on a bag of ice. You would stop at a gas station and sit on a bag of ice. USB-Cs, HDMIs, a home power source. Love the gravity. You even have massage seats in the back. You know how I would get a massage seat? My dad would give me something to cry about. That's the massage he would give me. Unbelievable. All that. I have my own screen here. What's nice is if you're really short, like if I do this, it's probably really weird on camera right now, I could tilt it down, and I could suck on my pacifier, and you could watch it that way. Oh, that's going to hurt tomorrow morning. Ow. Seats feel good though. Lori's looking at me right now like, what the hell is wrong with you? You do have full power assist. Look at that. Wow. Where did that come from? Nice to see that. Go forward, backward, recline, and lots of headroom. But while we go ahead, let's get into the third row and see if those passengers are going to be spoiled too. All right, guys, third row time in this three-row full-size SUV, and of course, being a Yukon, you got plenty of room back here. I mean, who are we kidding? Nice high headliner. You have USB-Cs on both sides, which is a plus. I just wish that they would give us some leather here. This is just hard plastic, so that's a zonk. But you do get the same great seat material, which is a big, huge thumbs up, because even some of the top luxury brands don't do that. And I like the way the AC vents are located nice and high, so you could really get that cool air on you. But while we go ahead, let's get into the cargo area, because I'm going to take you for a spin in this Denali Ultimate. All right, guys, cargo area time. You have two different buttons. You do have a button up here where you can pop the rear glass, or you have a button down here where you pop the whole liftgate. Voila! It opens right up, nice electric assist. You're going to be greeted to a little over 20 cubic feet of space with that third row up. On the passenger side is where all the action's happening. You have a home power source with a little cover, and then this is going to allow you to power lower the seats. So nice to have that 60-40 split. They fold down really cleanly. And there's the USB-C that Lori was showing you in that third row when I was sitting there. And then, of course, to bring the seats back up, look at that, wham, bam, thank you, ma'am. Feels good, looks good. But does it drive good? I don't know. Why don't we hop into this one, this Yukon Denali Ultimate, and see how the on-throttle goes. All right, guys, we're behind the wheel of this 2026 Yukon Denali Ultimate. I do have it in sport mode, and what's cool is when you use the mode selector knob, you have your different modes that are easily accessible, and it has a cool graphic on the screen. I'm going to leave it in sport mode, and what we're going to do is we're going to go on-throttle. I could pull up cameras, which are cool. Are you ready? On-throttle, here we go. Nice smooth torque delivery of that V8, 6.2 liter underneath the hood. Really cool the way you can leave the cameras up if you want to, and you can change all the angles while you're driving. Not a lot of brands allow you to do that. Easy to swipe, get into your Google Maps, that nice large head-up display. And then, of course, the seats, I mean, I'm getting a full massage while I'm waiting here or I'm waiting here while I'm driving, and you can see all the different options that you have. It feels very realistic as well. One thing I forgot to point out is you'll notice how the passenger side of the dash is a little lower. That's to give the passenger better visibility out the front of the vehicle, but I love how easily configurable the gauge cluster is, all by a press of the button on the steering wheel. Really, really nice. You got that night vision, which is perfect for those that live out maybe in a woodsy kind of area, and you'd be surprised. You may think that this big vehicle is hard to drive. With all this great technology, it's actually not very hard to drive, believe it or not. Steering feels good. You got your digital rear-view mirror, good sound to any material, all the safety features you could think of. No power folding side mirrors, which is interesting. Surprised they didn't do that on this Yukon Denali Ultimate. You can hear the sound of that V8. If you don't want the V8, you can get the Duramax turbo diesel engine in this, something you definitely can't do in a Lincoln Navigator, and you can't do it anymore even in a Cadillac Escalade. But you got awesome visibility out the windshield, and you would think that the ride is going to be a little stiff with those 22-inch wheels. It's actually not at all because of the magnetic ride suspension with the adaptive air ride. It really allows you to have the utmost in comfort and control from behind the wheel. But I love the torque in this thing, especially when you go to pass people, really nice. That 10-speed is really geared nicely with this GMC Yukon. You got your different drive modes, and you got plenty of amenities. I mean, mid-row heated, ventilated, and massaged seats with power assist. That's pretty substantial. And that's how it should be for a vehicle this size and this much luxury. But it's really easy to maneuver this big truck. Getting to that infotainment system is well within reach. And I love the leather on the wheel. Leather on the steering wheel feels great. Let's go on throttle. On throttle, here we go. Like I said, zero to 60 in 5.6 seconds. Not too shabby for a big behemoth like this truck is. And then they were very smart to leave the AC controls as toggle switches at the bottom down here. And even though you have to touch the screen for the ventilated seats, it's not that big of a deal. I mean, it's an easy tap in that location for the heated and ventilated seats. And your heated steering wheel is right here, easy to get to, real physical button. But the way that they're able to get so much technology, so much luxury in this Yukon, it just has changed the name of the game because before you would have to go Cadillac Escalade if you wanted to go GM product and you wanted a full-size SUV and you want full-size luxury. But now you can do it in a GMC, get that professional truck grade and get all the luxury that you want, all the luxury that you need. But I'm hoping that this has been a good, quick overall review of this 2026 GMC Yukon Denali Ultimate. We're going to get back to where it all began and wrap this one up. So I'll see you in a split second. Hi guys, always a good day when the sun's out, Lori's got her guns out, and we're just knocking these down one at a time. Definitely got to thank GMC getting us access to this Yukon Denali Ultimate. Now let them know in the comment section, do you go Yukon Denali Ultimate or are you taking your money over to Lincoln and get yourself a Navigator? Let me know down in the comment section. But if you're new to the channel, you're on your way out, hit that subscribe button. I promise you it's worthwhile. I'll come back for more. If you are a subscriber, then you're being part of the Raised Reds family. Of course, we got to thank LGR. She is working that camera like the champion that she is. She also has a black belt in Taekwondo. So do not mess with Lori or you're going to get a throat chop. Thank you, Lori, for all that you do. And just like always, guys, I'll see you on the next ride.