general problems of the 2016 GMC Yukon - part 1

My vehicle has been in 16 times since I bought it the most recent incident is for the engine which started about six months ago. It’s been in since then for other issues concurrently with this one it hesitates like it’s getting stuck in sand before it wants to go first the mechanic told me he didn’t sense it but the thermostat was stuck open so they fix that. Second time it went in they thought it was some sort of a filter and some other components I’m not sure. Again it was not fixed then my son and I were out in minnesota freezing cold night in November and go and drive and then when again it was the drive train this time that got fixed a month ago about a week ago it starts making a noise like there’s too much snow in the tires. I get my car washed every few days but I got it washed again and that didn’t fix it so it’s in the shop again and I’m paying for a rental again. I have the walser guard thank the lord because it’s paid for itself about 15 times over. I’ve gotten two transmissions, an air conditioner, two sensors the arm that other people have complained about I don’t know exactly the name of it the trailer component that you plug into also blew out my seven way and I had to have my seven way wire fixed so I’m nervous about plugging that back in. My dad passed away and I spent $70,000 of my inheritance by this car. I should’ve flushed it down a toilet instead. Everybody makes fun at work that this car is literally gonna kill my kids and I because every other day it feels like we’re stuck on the side of the road.

There is a hesitation when trying to accelerate. The car will then slam forward and there is a rattling noise that the car also makes. This has almost caused accidents. I was driving in town which is where I do most of my driving.

Faulty transmission at 90,000.

I bought 2016 Yukon xl 9/2020. At 74k miles (2022), the transmission was replaced by warranty. Now (2025), at 126k miles, the transmission needs replaced again. This can’t be normal.

The transmission is going out and it started with a shudder. The change for the transmission filter and oil was only a temporary fix. It also shifts hard or there is a delay in the shift.

The transmission quit working and we were almost in an accident. This is a known issue on the interweb and I think gm needs to step in and help!.

The contact owns a 2016 GMC Yukon. The contact stated while driving 70 mph, and attempting to accelerate, the vehicle jerked, then briefly lost motive power before the engine seized. The contact was able to coast to the side of the road. The transmission warning light was illuminated. The vehicle failed to restart. The vehicle was towed to a friend's residence. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired for the most recent failure. Days before the failure, the vehicle jerked while driving at various speeds. The vehicle was taken to auto zone; however, no cause for the failure was found. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 143,000.

The contact owns a 2016 GMC Yukon. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle unexpectedly downshifted with the check engine warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was diagnosed that the transmission had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 250,000.

The car started to have issues shifting when driving- automatic transmission. It would jolt or shudder to try to shift. I was at a light intersection attempting to turn left to go on the on ramp of a highway, it attempted to shift as I sped up from a stop and it got stuck and started making a sound as if you were to press the brake and gas at the same time, similar to that, a car was coming in my direction at the same time and it finally clicked into gear. Absolutely terrified me, my father in law came and switched me vehicles and took mine to the dealership where it stayed for 3 days and they diagnosed it saying it needed a new transmission, quoting us at $11,000. Obviously we can’t afford that. We had all the filters and lines of the transmission cleaned. And now it’s just gotten worse and worse. That was the first time it happened. Now it’ll shudder like that any time it’s switching gears at any speed. Another time since then, it got stuck in the same situation after pulling out of my kids school driveway, it got stuck and wouldn’t click, when it finally did it started shaking uncontrollably in the street and thankfully I live two streets over and made it to my street before it just shut off on its own. I coasted it right into the front of our house and then it would not come back on, at this time we searched the internet over and over to find try to find an easy fix. We let it sit before it came back on. This is our family vehicle. I’ve seen that many many people have this exact issue with this exact same year and model. Its not coincidental and it’s extremely unsafe. Especially with kids in these vehicles. I’m terrified one day when it gets stuck or shuts off we will get hit.

When accelerating from a stop, the engines revs up to really high rpm's before shifting hard into 2nd gear, and again while shifting hard into 3rd gear. This started in the last week. The engine/trans currently have ~133,000 miles. Accelerating slowly, not exceeding 1,500-1,700 rpm will reduce this occurence, but it takes significantly longer to get up to speed, which is a problem when entering 55 mph traffic. We've had to pull off the road to avoid causing an accident while merging with traffic since the transmission seems like it won't shift, causing me to have to let off the accelerator to try and allow the transmission to shift so I can continue accelerating.

The contact owns a 2016 GMC Yukon. The contact stated that while driving at 65 mph and attempting to accelerate, the vehicle briefly shuddered before returning to normal functionality. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who diagnosed a failure with the torque converter. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was unknown.

Without warning, giving vehicle low consistent pressure on gas pedal to move forward slowly (2-3mph) vehicle rpm jumped up then suddenly shifted and vehicle jerked forward in a school zone. Behavior continued and vehicle was ultimately towed.

Transmission constantly jerks taking off under normal operating conditions from a stop, has a hard time staying into gear (hunts for gear) while cruising at highway speeds. Slips/slams into gear when attempting to pass.

Transmission failure, hard shifting, slipping and loss of power also severe shuddering. Very dangerous driving. I had to have the transmission replaced after taking the vehicle to a dealership and upon verification from same dealership reproducing the transmission failure. Massive financial loss, dealership stated these transmissions are known to fail. Manufacturer has been notified by numerous complaints. Compensation is warranted.

The transmission malfunctions, shifting is inconsistent and shifts by itself. Shudders and causes the engine to increase and decrease in rpms. This causes the engine to lose power. The truck will slow because of bad shifting and stall. The dealer did a diagnostic test and verified the transmission problem. The vehicle was inspected by the vehicle brand dealership. There were no warning lights or any other signs of the transmission failure.

Transmission failure at 90,000 miles.

Code p0711 appeared during a scan after noticing some roughness during acceleration. Code shows transmission temperature sensor failure which is a known issue and recall for this vehicle model.

While taking my children to school, the vehicles rpms began to jump, causing the vehicle to lose power. Which resulted in myself and two children stranded on the side of the road. The vehicle had just crossed over 110,000 miles when the transmission completely broke apart from the inside. There was no other warnings or lights that appeared on the dash prior to or after. We had been given an estimate from gm for $6200 for a new transmission. . But that was extremely difficult to afford. We ultimately had to have the transmission rebuilt due to it costing $3,000 less, so we could continue going to work. We are still having issues with the transmission even after taking to back for a 2nd time to be reprogrammed. It’s extremely frustrating to have paid so much for this Yukon to have transmission go out with as many miles as it did, plus with no warnings.

Merging onto highway and my car would not get up any speed . Was almost crushed by a tractor trailer. If I hadn’t had a long merge lane I could have been killed . Apparently my transmission failed. This is certainly a safety issue . Your car should not just quit! . Called dealer and they said the problem is known but GMC is not doing anything about it! please help 75,000 $ car should last !.

The contact owns a 2016 GMC Yukon xl. The contact stated that on numerous occasions while driving at various speeds, the vehicle hesitated and jerked. The contact stated that the vehicle lunged forward. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer several times and diagnosed that there was a defect with the transmission. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 134,000.

On December 6, 2022, while I was driving on a busy highway, my 2016 GMC Yukon jumped out of gear and slowed down until it was at a dead stop. I managed to pull over on the shoulder, but not before I came extremely close to another car running to the side of the vehicle at an intersection. Luckily the other driver had good breaks! once I passed this busy intersection, I inched it very slowly to the shoulder. Luckly the road was on a decline and not an incline. I called a tow truck to tow the vehicle to a certified gm mechanic. The shop verified that the transmission went out. The mechanic stated that there was really nothing I could have done to prevent it without some type of warning. The vehicle only had 81,000 miles at the time and there were no warning lights blinking or signs that it was about to go out. Only sign was that morning while driving to work there was a hard shift between 2nd and 3rd gear but it wasn’t long after that the transmission went out. I had a new transmission installed on 12/09/2022.

Without warning my 2016 Yukon denali jerked so forcefully into drive it felt like we were hit from behind. It went into gear and sped into intersection and stalled. We were almost hit. This is a huge problem with2016 GMC's and they are aware of it. It is the 8 speed transmissions that are causing this. They refuse to help get it fixed. I think they should be forced to! I will be out thousands if I can even find a shop that can get that transmission. , they are back ordered because so many failures.

I currently have 109024 miles on my Yukon. At the time the issue first occurred, it had 108998 miles. Up til that moment, it was running perfectly. About 5 miles into my drive on 11/13/2022 it started to shutter at the top of 2nd gear, then a hard shift into 3rd. The shutter repeated at the top of 3rd, before a hard shift into 4th gear. I turned around & returned home. Checked the fluids, everything was fine. Let it sit, had to drive it to work (6 miles or so) on 11/14/22 & it shuttered at the top of 2nd & 3rd gear again. Took it to wallingford Buick GMC (in CT) Tuesday 11/15/22. Upon inspection, it was confirmed the transmission failed. $6538. 31 for a new, replacement transmission. It's still at the shop, waiting for the new transmission to be delivered. I've maintained my vehicle, have regular oil changes & inspections of the powertrain components. This came totally out of the blue. No warnings, or any indication of pending doom.

We first noticed the vehicle's lack of power and sudden increase when driving at a stop light/sign. We checked and replaced spark plugs, cables, coils, and a new battery. We became highly concerned when the vehicle would accelerate while driving and the rpms would toggle between 500-1500 rpms without pressing the gas. We immediately took it to an authorized mechanic, who found excessive noise from the transmission area and found debris/metal. No codes were present when a system performance was done. The vehicle only has 68806 miles on the odometer. The transmission had to be fully replaced, which cost over $7k. The replacement was done. This seems to be a common issue (transmission replacements) with this vehicle as now we're hearing more about it. Please check this as we could have easily been in an accident from the loss or increase of power without notice and no warning lamp indications. This was a very expensive repair caused by the manufacture and not user error. We paid a lot for this particular vehicle and certainly love it but am concerned about this expensive safey/mechanical issue. Please call me for any questions (napoleon erazo 972-740-8783).

Had transmission serviced at the dealer in may 2021. The rpm's are revving in first gear and my mechanic said I need to go back to dealer to have the transmission serviced again. There have been multiple reported problems with this transmission and a recall needs to be issued. The dt-45096 transflow cooler flush machine and dt-52263 transmission fluid exchange kit with mobil 1 fluid was requested at the may 2021 visit.

At 90500 miles my Yukon xl started shuddering and the transmission started failing and I have never used it to pull anything so this was very dissatisfying for a 75k vehicle.

The contact's sister owns a 2016 GMC Yukon. The contact stated that while her husband was driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle lost motive power. The contact's husband was able to restart the vehicle; however, the vehicle was only able to reverse but not drive forward. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence, where it was diagnosed by an independent mechanic with transmission failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The dealer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that the warranty had expired. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 90,000.

2016 Yukon denali xl 4wd shifts hard from 1st -2nd shifts hard from 2nd -1st random delay in accelerating from stopped (this is my main concern as I have 2 disabled child that almost gives them whiplash) 45-55 sometime feels like I am driving over. Rumble strips 45-55 has loss of power when attempting to pass a vehicle local GMC dealer charged 300$ to change fluid to high performance & it still has same problems.

Automatic 8 speed transmission shudder issues. Slipping, jerking, clunking, delay, loss of power. Local GMC "replaced fluid as in latest service bulletin".

The contact owns a 2016 GMC Yukon. The contact stated that while driving at an undisclosed speed, the rpm gauge was high, and the vehicle stalled. The check engine warning light was illuminated. The contact was able to restart the vehicle and drive to her residence. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic. The mechanic informed the contact that the failure could be related to the transmission. The vehicle was not diagnosed nor repaired and remained with the independent mechanic. The dealer was made aware of the failure but informed the contact that the next available appointment was in January 2022. The manufacturer was not made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 92,000.

The contact owns a 2016 GMC Yukon. The contact stated while driving at various speeds, the transmission was slipping between gears. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where the failure could not be duplicated. The dealer replaced the transmission fluid twice; however, the failure recurred. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, where it was determined that the transmission wiring harness had failed and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure and referred the contact to the NHTSA hotline for assistance. The failure mileage was approximately 65,000.

A/c condensing unit leaking. Appears to leak from small tack weld on the top area of the condensing unit. All of the r134 went out and left with no a/c. Seems to be a common problem and ignored by GMC.

My 2016 GMC Yukon sle vibrates really bad on high speeds starts from 70mph and up I took it to do a wheel balance and the problem is still there also I check the VIN for any recalls and nothing I search and I have seen that all chevy tahoes Cadillac escalade GMC Yukon have the same problem and they havent fix it. Does any one knows how to fix it or if theres gonna be any recall on the problem. . Thank you.

Vehicle shudders, jerks excessively, and shifts erratically when accelerating. Had transmission serviced, fluid flushed, pan cleaned, transmission filter changed. Metal shavings were found in the pan and filter and covering magnet in pan. During flush metal shavings were recovered from oil cooler. Transmission continues to display same symptoms and rpms fluctuate during steady acceleration described as evidence of transmission slipping. Vehicle has not been serviced by dealer. No warning lamps or dtc indicated. Approximately 1500 miles after service during follow up inspection, metal shavings/debris were found in fluid on dipstick. All gm recommended parts and fluids used during service.

Our GMC Yukon locked into 4wd while accelerating/driving (approx 15-25mp) the kids to school through the neighbourhood, jerked violently as though braking hard, and steering was extremely impaired. The "service 4wd" message appeared on our dashboard. The Yukon is locked in 4wd, and extremely difficult to steer and maneveur. It jerks violenly when turning. We are unable to drive due to safety concerns.