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2016 GMC Yukon

Gas Midsize / large SUV

20262025202420232022202120202019201820172016
Specs & fuel economyRecallsComplaintsCrash ratings
F
Safety Signal
53 / 100
FSafety Signal · 53 / 100
5Recalls · 1 critical
513Complaints · owner reports
4★Crash rating · NHTSA overall
19 mpgFuel economy · best combined
⚠️
Active NHTSA advisory: do not drive. Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls and see the recall details below.

The 2016 GMC Yukon is sold in the U.S. as a gas midsize or large SUV with 12 EPA-rated configurations. The most efficient version, the Yukon C1500 2WD, is EPA-rated at 19 mpg combined. NHTSA lists 5 recall campaigns for this model year, 1 rated critical, which gives it a Safety Signal grade of F. Owners have filed 513 complaints, most often about exterior lighting. NHTSA crash-tested it at 4 stars overall.

Specs & fuel economy (EPA)

ConfigurationPowertrainDriveEngine / motorCityHwyCombAnnual fuel*
Yukon C1500 2WDGasRWD5.3L 8-cyl162319$3,300
Yukon C1500 XL 2WDGasRWD5.3L 8-cyl162319$3,300
Yukon C1500 2WDGasRWD5.3L 8-cyl162318$3,450
Yukon C1500 XL 2WDGasRWD5.3L 8-cyl162318$3,450
Yukon K1500 4WDGas4WD5.3L 8-cyl162218$3,450
Yukon K1500 4WDGas4WD5.3L 8-cyl162218$3,450
Yukon K1500 XL 4WDGas4WD5.3L 8-cyl152218$3,450
Yukon K1500 XL 4WDGas4WD5.3L 8-cyl152218$3,450
Yukon C1500 2WDGasRWD6.2L 8-cyl152217$3,650
Yukon C1500 XL 2WDGasRWD6.2L 8-cyl152217$3,650
Yukon K1500 4WDGas4WD6.2L 8-cyl152117$3,650
Yukon K1500 XL 4WDGas4WD6.2L 8-cyl142017$3,650

*EPA estimate at 15,000 miles/year and EPA reference fuel/electricity prices. Source: fueleconomy.gov vehicle records.

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Recalls (5)

Electronic Stability Control (Esc)

high
652,967 vehicles

Problem: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2020 Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, and GMC Yukon, and 2014-2018 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles equipped with a 5.3-liter engine, a 3.08-ratio rear axle and four-wheel drive. If a wheel-speed sensor fails, while the vehicle is traveling between 41 and 60 mph in four-wheel or automatic mode, the Electronic-Brake Control Module (EBCM) software may activate the driveline-protection system.

Risk: Unintended activation of the driveline-protection system will cause unintended braking on the wheel on the opposite side of the failed sensor, causing the vehicle to pull to one side unexpectedly, increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the EBCM, free of charge. The recall began December 11, 2019. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N192261050.

NHTSA campaign 19V761000 · reported Oct 24, 2019 · General Motors LLC

Service Brakes, Hydraulic

high
3,456,719 vehicles

Problem: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2015-2017 Cadillac Escalade, 2014-2018 Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra, 2015-2018 Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon vehicles. The amount of vacuum created by the vacuum pump may decrease over time.

Risk: As the vacuum level drops, the brake assist decreases, increasing braking effort, extending the distance required to stop the vehicle, thereby increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reprogram the Electronic Brake Control Module, free of charge. The recall began October 8, 2019. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-630-2438, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006 or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N192268490.

NHTSA campaign 19V645000 · reported Sep 6, 2019 · General Motors LLC

Air Bags

high
40,683 vehicles

Problem: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2014-2016 Buick Lacrosse and Chevrolet Spark EV, Caprice PPV and SS vehicles, 2014-2017 Buick Encore and Chevrolet Corvette, Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles, 2015-2016 Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Tahoe, Trax, Suburban and Silverado 2500 and 3500 and GMC Yukon and Yukon XL vehicles, and 2015-2017 GMC Sierra HD 2500 and 3500 vehicles. While being previously remedied for recall 16V-651, the affected vehicles may not have received the complete software update necessary to remedy the recall condition. Without the update, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (SDM) softw

Risk: A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.

Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on August 4, 2017. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 17287.

NHTSA campaign 17V437000 · reported Jul 10, 2017 · General Motors LLC

Air Bags

high
3,640,162 vehicles

Problem: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2015-2017 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 HD, 3500 HD, Tahoe, Suburban, GMC Sierra 2500 HD and 3500 HD, GMC Yukon, GMC Yukon XL, Cadillac Escalade and Cadillac Escalade ESV vehicles and 2014-2017 Chevrolet Corvette, Silverado 1500, Trax, Caprice Police Pursuit Vehicle, GMC Sierra 1500, Buick Encore, and 2014-2016 Buick Lacrosse, Chevrolet Spark EV and SS vehicles. In the affected vehicles, certain driving conditions may cause the air bag sensing and diagnostic module (SDM) software to activate a diagnostic test. During this test, deployment of the frontal air bags and the seat belt pretensioners would not occur in the event of a crash.

Risk: A failure of the front air bags or seat belt pretensioners to deploy in the event of a crash necessitating deployment increases the risk of injury to the driver and front passenger.

Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will reflash the SDM software. Vehicles that have had a previous air bag deployment will have the SDM replaced. These repairs will be performed free of charge. The recall began on October 13, 2016. Owners may contact Buick customer service at 1-800-521-7300, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 16007.

NHTSA campaign 16V651000 · reported Sep 8, 2016 · General Motors LLC

Suspension

critical
Do not drive3,738 vehicles

Problem: General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2016-2017 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and 2016 Cadillac Escalade, Cadillac Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe, GMC Sierra, GMC Yukon and GMC Yukon XL vehicles. The front upper control arms may have inadequate welds near the control arm bushing.

Risk: Inadequate welds may allow the control arm to separate from the bushing, compromising steering and increasing the risk of a crash.

Fix: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the left and right front upper control arms and realign the vehicle, free of charge. The recall began on May 18, 2016. Until the repairs have been made, owners are advised not to drive their vehicles. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, or GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is 42190.

NHTSA campaign 16V256000 · reported Apr 28, 2016 · General Motors LLC

NHTSA investigations

Service Brakes, Hydraulic:Power Assist:Vacuum — Brake Vacuum Pump Failure (closed)

On November 20, 2018, the Office of Defects Investigations (ODI) opened PE18-012 to investigate instances of sudden onset of a hard brake pedal that could result in extended stopping distance due to an issue with the brake assist vacuum pump in model year (MY) 2014 through 2016 GMC Sierra 1500 and Chevrolet Silverado 1500 series pickup trucks and MY 2015 through 2016 Cadillac Escalade, Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe, and GMC Yukon SUVs.If the brake assist vacuum pump fails to operate as intended, the amount of brake power assist supplied to the driver can be significantly reduced, extending the subject vehicle stopping distance. GM stated that the root cause of pump failures was due to

Opened Nov 20, 2018 · closed Apr 10, 2022 · action PE18012

Owner complaints

513 complaints filed

14 involved a crash, 2 a fire, 9 injuries, 0 deaths reported by owners.

Filed by year — 2015: 1 · 2016: 17 · 2017: 12 · 2018: 53 · 2019: 166 · 2020: 81 · 2021: 34 · 2022: 46 · 2023: 20 · 2024: 27 · 2025: 35 · 2026: 21

Most-cited components

  • Exterior Lighting — 211
  • Service Brakes — 92
  • Electrical System — 90
  • Power Train — 74
  • Engine — 61
“BRAKE LIGHTS OUT. !! FIRST WAS DRIVER SIDE NOW BOTH SIDES !! DEALERSHIP SAYS MODULES NEED TO BE REPLACED AND NO LONG HAVE WARRANTY COVERAGE . IT WAS 3 YR /30,00 !! I'M JUST 38,000 AND JUST PAST 3 YRS !! ABSOLUTELY RIDICULOUS $1,500.00 FOR EACH SIDES JUST FOR THE PARTS !! UNBELIEVABLE!! THAT'S NOT INCLUDED TIME AND LABO…”Jun 22, 2019 · Exterior Lighting · NHTSA owner report
“MY PASSENGER TAILLIGHT HAS GONE OUT. THE GMC DEALER HAS SAID THEY HAVE HAD THREE INSTANCES THIS WEEK ALONE. THEY CAN REPAIR IT AND MUST BE REPLACED THE TAILLIGHTS ARE DEFECTIVE AND NEED TO BE RECALLED.”Jun 3, 2019 · Exterior Lighting · NHTSA owner report
“WE WERE TRAVELING IN OUR YUKON WHEN ALL POWER WAS LOST TO THE VEHICLE. THE STEERING WHEEL LOCK FUNCTION ENABLED BEFORE WE WERE STOPPED. SINCE THERE WAS NO POWER AND IT IS PUSH BUTTON START, THERE WAS NO WAY TO CONTROL THE VEHICLE. OUR DEALER SAID TO THEIR KNOWLEDGE THERE IS NO WAY TO UNLOCK THE WHEEL. LUCKILY OUR CHILD…”May 20, 2019 · Electrical System · NHTSA owner report

Complaint counts are raw owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects, and scale with how many were sold. Use them to spot patterns, not to rank.

Crash ratings

ConfigurationOverallFrontalSideRolloverRollover risk
SUV 4WD★★★★☆★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆☆22%
SUV 4WD★★★★☆★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆☆22%
SUV 4WD★★★★☆★★★★☆★★★★★★★★☆☆21%
SUV 4WD★★★★☆★★★★☆★★★★★★★★☆☆20%
SUV RWD★★★★☆★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆☆23%
SUV RWD★★★★☆★★★★★★★★★★★★★☆☆23%
SUV RWD★★★★☆★★★★☆★★★★★★★★☆☆20%
SUV RWD★★★★☆★★★★☆★★★★★★★★☆☆21%

NHTSA New Car Assessment Program.

Other Yukon model years

D

2026 Yukon

3 recalls · 65 complaints

B

2025 Yukon

2 recalls · 78 complaints

C

2024 Yukon

3 recalls · 169 complaints

C

2023 Yukon

4 recalls · 442 complaints

F

2022 Yukon

5 recalls · 339 complaints

F

2021 Yukon

14 recalls · 537 complaints

F

2020 Yukon

4 recalls · 81 complaints

D

2019 Yukon

3 recalls · 124 complaints

F

2018 Yukon

5 recalls · 125 complaints

C

2017 Yukon

3 recalls · 359 complaints

Sources & method

Safety Signal starts every model-year at 100 and subtracts points per open NHTSA recall campaign by severity: critical 15 (fire risk, park-outside or do-not-drive advisories), high 8 (brakes, steering, airbags, loss of drive power, structure, battery), moderate 6, minor 3 (software, labels, lighting fixed by an update). Floor 35. A ≥ 90, B ≥ 80, C ≥ 70, D ≥ 60, otherwise F. Complaint counts and NHTSA crash ratings are shown separately and are not blended into the grade.

EPA figures come from fueleconomy.gov vehicle records (ids 36617, 36618, 36615, 36616, 36625, 36627, 36624, 36626, 36694, 36695, 36702, 36701). Recalls, complaints, investigations and crash ratings come from NHTSA's public flat files, refreshed weekly.

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