AI Damage2001 GMC Yukon Denali: common problems
Owners of the 2001 GMC Yukon Denali filed 35 complaints with NHTSA, most often about service brakes and fuel system. Details by component below, with sources.
Key figures
- Owner complaints
- 35
- involving a crash
- 2
What fails most often
- 1 Service brakes 40% of all complaints
- 2 Fuel system 14% of all complaints
- 3 Engine and cooling 9% of all complaints
- 4 Tires 9% of all complaints
- 5 Electrical system 6% of all complaints
- 6 Parking brake 6% of all complaints
- 7 Suspension 6% of all complaints
- 8 Electronic stability control 3% of all complaints
- Service brakes: 14 complaints (40% of all), 1 of them with a crash reported by the owner.
- Fuel system: 5 complaints (14% of all).
- Engine and cooling: 3 complaints (9% of all).
- Tires: 3 complaints (9% of all).
- Electrical system: 2 complaints (6% of all).
Symptoms owners describe
How many of the 35 NHTSA complaints mention each symptom (automatic count from complaint text; one complaint can mention several).
Components owners complain about
| Component | Owner complaints | involving a crash | Technical service bulletins (TSB) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Service brakes | 14 | 1 | 0 |
| Fuel system | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Engine and cooling | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Tires | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Electrical system | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Parking brake | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Suspension | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Electronic stability control | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Powertrain | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Seat belts | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Steering | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Structure | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Vehicle speed control | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Other | 1 | 0 | 0 |
What owners report
Short excerpts of NHTSA complaints in the original wording. These are owner statements not verified by NHTSA; personal data removed.
On april 9, 2003 the consumer was backing out of the driveway when the vehicle accelerated up to 28 mph without applying pressure to the accelerator pedal. The vehicle crashed into several objects before it stopped. Gmc sent an engineer to assess the problem which could not be determined at that time.
No brakes! Was able to avoid an incident by veering into the oncoming lane that was luckily vacant. Turned onto a side street to safely roll to a stop. Too scared to drive it the remaining 1.5 miles home, I have it towed to a shop.
The brake lines have rusted and at least 1 has ruptured leaving vehicle without any brakes. Brake petal goes directly to the floor and no brake fluid was found in the master cylinder reservoir. I have read that many other similar vehicles have had the same issue.
Tires were purchased sept. 25, 2009 and now have extensive weather cracking. Costco refused to replace the tires when I reported the quality defect in august, 2014, just 59 months after purchase. I have appealed that decision and expect to find out tomorrow if they will make good on the defective tires.
While sitting at a traffic light the brake pedal went to the floor and my truck rolled into the intersection. I was able to stop it after I was halfway in the intersection. I found out that the rear brake line above the fuel tank rotted away.
Tank was filled up & the fuel gauge read @ 'e'. The low fuel light came on & the sound came on. It has occured all the time now & then it re-reads the correct amt of fuel in the tank.
The carpet, seats, and seat belts were damaged with mildew. A report was filed with the manufacturer and they stated that there was no recall available. He was advised to take the vehicle to the dealer to determine the cause of the failure.
Was driving on I-10 back to phoenix had past marana outside of tucson when my suv started to tremble a little bit wondering what that was but before I can pull over the tire blew out and lost control for a second but was able to control it and get pull off to the right of the freeway.
When owners complained
NHTSA complaints by filing year. The peak shows at what age the problems show up most.
Comparison
By complaint count this model year ranks 6,335 of 36,656 model years in the NHTSA data (top 17% most complained about).
On average one model year of the Yukon Denali has 45 complaints (20 years in the data). This year has 35, below average.
What to check before buying
- Service brakes. Pedal feel, ABS operation, leaks, discs and hoses.
- Fuel system. Fuel smell, leaks, rough running, fuel-system codes.
- Engine and cooling. Radiator and fan after a frontal hit, coolant level and condition, overheating.
- Tires. Tire age by DOT code, bulges, wear pattern.
Other years of this model
- Yukon Denali 199927 sources
- Yukon Denali 200018 sources
- Yukon Denali 200229 sources
- Yukon Denali 200372 sources
- Yukon Denali 2004109 sources
- Yukon Denali 200549 sources
- Yukon Denali 200621 sources
- Yukon Denali 2007120 sources
- Yukon Denali 200858 sources
- Yukon Denali 200946 sources
- Yukon Denali 201053 sources
- Yukon Denali 201196 sources
- Yukon Denali 201228 sources
- Yukon Denali 201329 sources
- Yukon Denali 201573 sources
- Yukon Denali 2016472 sources
- Yukon Denali 2017471 sources
- Yukon Denali 2018404 sources
- Yukon Denali 2019414 sources
Questions and answers
What are the most common problems with the 2001 GMC Yukon Denali?
Owner complaints to NHTSA most often mention: service brakes, fuel system, engine and cooling. Total complaints: 35. The most frequent symptoms in complaint texts: brake failure (11%), fuel system, fuel smell (9%), rust, corrosion (9%).
How many service bulletins (TSB) were issued for the 2001 GMC Yukon Denali?
NHTSA lists 0 manufacturer service bulletins for this year. A bulletin tells dealers how to diagnose or fix a known issue; it is not a recall.
Should I buy a 2001 GMC Yukon Denali from a US auction?
Owner complaints describe defects, not crash damage. Before bidding, check the components listed above and review the lot photos: VinWind builds a report of visible and hidden damage by VIN.
Other 2001 models
Read also
Sources: public NHTSA data (USA): service bulletins and owner complaints; YouTube: links to videos credited to their authors. Complaints are owner statements not verified by NHTSA, and describe defects rather than crash damage. Data updated 2026-11-05.