2021 Cadillac Escalade vs. GMC Yukon Denali: Same bones, different price

GMC Yukon Denali and the Cadillac Escalades two big ol SUVs made for families of eight. Now you've got to be willing to spend a little bit of money on these behemoths, but they are both new for 2021 so let's take a look at these two full size three rose SUVs. [MUSIC] Wait a minute, aren't these this Same vehicle. Well, in a sense, yes, they're both made by General Motors and they ride on the same platform in two or four wheel drive. However, the Yukon Denali starts at $69,695 including $1,295 per destination. It's the top you contract but you can still add some options and get it to max out in the mid 80s. The Cadillac Escalade starts at $77,490 and that includes $1,295 for destination but it can easily climb into 6 figures. So let's look at the power plan, cargo space and towing as well as some interior features. [MUSIC] First up, let's check out what they share namely a 6.2 liter V8 engine, pushing out 420 horsepower and 460 pound feet of torque. A three litre diesel engine with 277 horses, and 460 pound feet of torque, is also available. But GM hasn't released any other specs for that powerplant. So, we'll keep our comparal here just to the V eight. The Yukon Denali does a bit better with fuel economy in two wheel drive, with an APA fuel rating of 15 miles per gallon in the city, compared to the 14 miles per gallon of the Escalade. However, both get 20 miles per gallon on the highway, bumping it up to four wheel drive. Both vehicles should return an EPA efficiency of 14 miles per gallon in the city. 19 miles per gallon on the highway. Look they're big heavy boxes. What did you expect? [MUSIC]. Next, let's look at size. While they may be the same general size and shape, namely giants, I mean they're both over 17 and a half feet long. Surprisingly cargo space is a little bit different. The GMC can hold 122.9 cubic feet of cargo total, the Cadillac 121. Behind the second row, the yukons a little bit smaller 72.6 cubic feet of space compared to 72.9 cubes in the Cadillac. Now GM says that this all boils down to si design. However behind that third row both SUVs have 25.5 cubic feet of space. Now when it comes to towing they can both tow a maximum of 8200 pounds in a two wheel drive trim. So where are these two giants different? Well, it's all in the inside. The Cadillac gets a curved OLED screen that includes a 7.2 inch touch control panel on the left, a center 14.2 inch gauge cluster, And a 16.9 inch infotainment screen on the right. All of that makes the 10.2 inch infotainment screen in the Yukon look pretty sad doesn't it. That's for drivers aides, both get automatic emergency braking forward collision warning safety alert seat and front and rear pedestrian alert standard. But you've got to jump up a trim level and escalate to get Lane Keeping Assist in warning Blind spot monitoring and rear cross traffic alert, all of which are standard on the Yukon Denali. However, there is one super cool feature that you cannot get on the Yukon Denali and that might be a deal breaker for some I'm talking about supercruise. This hands off but attention on system uses LIDAR map data, GPS and camera and radar sensors to take control on over 200,000 miles of highways in the US and Canada. Heck, it can even change lanes for you. Now it's not standard and it will cost you a fair amount of cash depending on your trim but it is far and away the best tech feature of the escalator. I mean the standard adaptive cruise control on the Denali is great and all, but super cruise is just so much more advanced that it might push technical buyers into the escalate [MUSIC] .So how expensive is an escalated with super cruise? Well, you can't get it on the base luxury model. So forget about that. The least expensive way is to jump up to the sport trim. And then add $6,150 worth of options. So the least expensive escalate with supercruise is 93,000 to $40 including destination, still interested? Maybe not. Regardless, the escalate is just much more premium all the way around. There's a standard shifter compared to the cheesy push button selector in the Yukon de escalate. It's full of wood trim and elegantly curved design lines while the Yukon interior just still looks truck like with chunky control knobs and squared off edges. The Yukon does have an ace up his sleeve when it comes to handling with the standard magnetic ride control. The system can read road conditions every millisecond and adjust accordingly, providing a super smooth and highly responsive ride. Now on the escalate this tech is standard on sport trim and above or you can add it to the premium luxury trim and pay $2,700 but that includes some goodies like an electronic limited slip differential, and an integrated trailer brake control. It all boils down to this. Both vehicles have essentially the same bones. And when you throw a magnetic ride control onto the Cadillac, they'll behave the same way out on America's highways and byways. I'm not sure super cruise in the better interior are worth the extra $23,345. But Hey, you got the cash. You're not gonna be disappointed.