BLING BATTLE! -- 2021 Cadillac Escalade vs. 2021 GMC Yukon Denali: Comparison

What's going on youtube When it comes to large three-row suvs general motors has long dominated This is especially true on the luxury end of the spectrum with the one-two punch of both the escalade and the yukon denali So with both of them fully redesigned and better than ever. Let's see how these two luxury suvs stack up So the first thing we'll do is establish the pricing and equipment levels of these two Obviously as luxury suvs neither of them are going to come cheap So starting off with the yukon denali its introductory price tag is just under seventy two thousand dollars Now we have every possible option currently available on this example So our final price with destination is going to ring in at eighty one thousand eight hundred and fifty dollars As expected the cadillac will be more expensive than that This example is a pre-production model So there was no sticker but according to cadillac's build and price the price tag of this premium luxury four-wheel drive Would be eighty seven thousand two hundred and ninety dollars all in So let's start things off by checking out the brand new exteriors both of which look very bold For the yukon gmc doubled down on all the classic and popular queues By giving the denali a very large satin silver grille with the typical boxy shape On the other hand the escalade departs further from its typical design With a silver and black mesh grille being featured across most of the trim levels The other big departure is the switch to horizontal oriented led headlights instead of the previous generation stack design And then accentuating the sides of the face. You have a beautiful daytime running light and turn signal The yukon's lighting is also fully led with the signature bracket design However, it does include fog lights, which the escalade does not have Heading to the sides both have large 22 inch alloys with many other designs available And then out back you'll find very different designs The gmc again plays up the rugged and boxy look with bracket shaped led headlights and quad exhaust outlets down at the bottom While the escalate goes for a really classy look with trapezoidal exhaust outlets And full led taillights that run the full length and also have a cool animation to them Now moving past the design choices Both suvs are loaded with features like mirrors that heat fold dim and include blind spot monitoring And as far as your other safety features as you would expect these two will have you covered with all the typical safety systems But the one thing that's important to remember is that only the escalate will give you the option of the supercruise autonomous driving system Next we have the warranties where cadillac offers a longer one for both the basic and powertrain Though they both include one free complimentary maintenance visit And finally while we don't have full numbers the towing should be pretty much the same for both of them So walking up to the vehicles both are obviously going to have smart entry systems But you'll notice that the escalates fob is more premium with real metal trim along the side The other thing to note is that the escalates door handles are electronic and have a touch sensor built in behind them While the yukon requires the press of a button to unlock However at this price point the yukon gives you power deploying running boards Now checking out the interiors themselves. They couldn't possibly be more different While both look luxurious the escalate immediately cast a high-tech vibe as soon as you open the door Its cabin is finished in parchment moulin leather and the denali's in jet black wide grain leather The seats themselves are both 12-way power adjusting heated and ventilated Now beyond the seats both interiors have great materials The gmc's cabin is beautifully crafted with leather across the upper dash and door trim Open pour wood through the middle and then real aluminum down below Even with that though the escalades interior is nicer still Thanks to great attention to detail like the leather trim on the screens and sleek aluminum climate controls Now after startup, this is where the tech difference really starts to become apparent The gmc has a mostly analog gauge setup while the cadillac uses a 14.2 inch digital one That is part of the broader 38 inch oled display We'll gradually talk about all the advantages of this system But in regard to the gauges themselves, they are fully reconfigurable with several different design choices Additionally, the escalade has augmented reality navigation that appears right here in the gauges and pops up instructions over a live camera view of the road in front of you Of course, it pretty much goes without saying that both have heated leather wrapped steering wheels with power adjustment Now the next area to evaluate is interior storage where the yukon is the one that comes out ahead While both consoles are the same size The gmc has more storage in the doors and in the area that's taken up by the shifter in the cadillac The escalade though has advanced ambient lighting And circling back to those shifters the gmc uses a push button style instead of the dash mounted one on the escalate When you go into reverse both 360 degree cameras are a plus But the caddy has the extra ability to spin around the vehicle Alrighty, so now that brings us to the audio systems. So let's go ahead and take a sample With headrest mounted speakers the escalade will have the edge here Now let's go ahead and return to those infotainment screens For the yukon we have a 10.2 inch hd display integrated into the dashboard and running the latest software While this is a nice system. The escalade simply has a lot more wow factor Its display is a 16.9 inch oled display with the highest resolution I have ever seen in a vehicle And it also has a very distinct and very cool curve Finally ending the front part both have panoramic roofs Now the rest of the video will go fast because there are a lot of similarities in the rear areas Since these two obviously share a platform both have large improvements in leg and headroom over the outgoing generations The features are also largely the same both having their own climate controls Heated rear seats and lots of connections for devices You will notice one difference and that's that our denali has the optional rear seat entertainment system Which is also available on the escalade, but would cost an additional two thousand dollars The third row is the same as the second with huge gains in legroom and comfort. Thanks to the switch to an independent rear suspension However, the similarities run out when we get to the cargo areas Both are a lot larger than last year's models But some packaging differences make the yukon have the greater cargo capacity behind the second row and as a maximum So that's it for the interiors. So now let's take a look at what's under the hoods As far as the powertrains are concerned these two siblings share most things Both come with a large 6.2 liter v8 making 420 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque Which is paired to a 10-speed automatic transmission and four-wheel drive Since the escalade was pre-production and the yukon was a pre-sold unit. We did not drive either of them However, it is reasonable to infer that acceleration and overall performance will be very similar Having driven the related tahoe We can comment on some aspects like the fact that the 10-speed automatic transmission is extremely smooth in its operation Shifting definitely nice. This is a good and responsive transmission ironically Co-developed with ford and also used in its big competition the expedition Yeah, they have the exact same transmission a little bit different tuning. But yeah, it's mechanically the same transmission and In both cases, it's a good transmission magnetic ride control also works wonder for the ride quality But be aware that the escalade does not have it as equipped at this price point while the denali does include it As mason mentioned when he was going over the rear areas Um, we've moved to an independent rear suspension So that's going to pay benefits in the way that it rides in addition to big benefits in the way it's packaged Yeah here on the premiere we also have magnetic ride control so that is an excellent system we've seen in other general motors products and it really Changes the way that things ride. Um Compared to the outgoing generation. This feels a lot less springy and bouncy So when you go over like the bridge there, you know, you're having the adjustment that's happening, you know, right in milliseconds And it really keeps things under control. You don't have this bouncing sensation. You don't sway around it really Makes something that's huge. This is a huge vehicle, but makes it feel like a lot more maneuverable and less Just gigantic both the escalade and the gmc will offer an air suspension as an option later in the year And last but certainly not least we have to revisit the pricing and discuss value This mid-level escalade will cost five thousand four hundred and forty dollars more than the fully loaded yukon So to represent that we will award a quarter point per thousand dollars of difference or 1.25 points to the yukon Well guys that is where we are going to finish up this comparison video As you can probably tell both these suvs are massively improved all around Offering copious amounts of luxury along with fantastic utility and capability Make sure to let us know in the comments below which one of these two you would pick And thanks for joining us for another car confections comparison Be sure to subscribe for more comparisons lots more content about these gms uvs and everything else auto related Thanks for watching and stay safe out there