2009 GMC Yukon Hybrid
Over the River and Through the Woods…
by
Charity
Boozier
 The week that I test drove
the 2009 Yukon Hybrid was the week of Christmas 2008.
And yes, we did go to grandma’s house.
So what does every family need when traveling to grandma’s house?
Storage, power, comfort and control.
The 2009 Yukon Hybrid delivers all of these.
Storage:
We loaded up
with presents galore and filled the back to overflowing.
As there are only 3 people currently in our family, we did not have an
immediate need for the third row of seating.
Thankfully, it is easily removed and stored for future use, providing
lots of extra room for Christmas surprises.
Many times I have seen vehicles that require the use of the owner’s
manual to change the configuration, yet the Yukon was very user
friendly. Removing the seats does
require some muscle and I would have a husband or other muscled male remove the
seats as they are somewhat bulky and on the heavier side.
There is not
much room behind the third row, so if a family or group is utilizing all three
rows, the storage is more limited than removing the extra seating.
Of course, there are two seats, so just one could be removed to still
provide seating and storage.
Need all the
seats? No problem, the towing
capacity for the 4WD model is 6000 lbs or for the 2WD, 6200 lbs.
Just hook up the trailer and off we go to grandma’s house.
Power:
We all know
that Santa’s sleigh is powered by 8 reindeer, but the Yukon Hybrid has something
much better: hybrid drive. This
drive is powered by three unique systems:
EVT –
electrically variable transmission
ESS – energy
storage system
Vortec 6.0 L
V-8 engine
These
systems work together to provide clean emissions, improved fuel economy and
necessary power. The transmission
has two modes that are designed to give maximum power while ensuring needed
torque, power, and improved performance.
The energy storage system is stored under the second row seat and to my
surprise is under warrant for 8 years or 100,000 miles.
That shows a company that believes in its product.
The V-8 engine is equipped with Active Fuel management to determine when
additional power is needed and provide it or when less power is necessary and
run on fewer cylinders. I enjoyed
watching the hybrid drive status screen and seeing power shift on the screen
without experiencing it in the driving sensation.
The information screen is much easier to understand and for visual
learners, much more helpful than a list of technical terms.
You can actually see what is happening and when power is transferred or
reduced.
Personal
Comfort:
Any person
or “figure” needs a comfortable ride for those long trips.
Our family trip was only about 2 hours, but the seats in the
Yukon
are very roomy and comfortable. The
front row is also heated! Great for
those cold fronts that move in quick here in East Texas.
The console
between the two front seats is very roomy and great for small items.
I especially liked that my purse fit inside there.
There, I can ensure that it is safely tucked away and not tipping over
spilling everything on the floorboard or other seats around the vehicle.
This center area is also a great place to store the headphones for the
integrated DVD player or any other paraphernalia that families and mothers have
on a daily basis.
My daughter
especially liked the DVD player and so did mom and dad, because it gave us a
peaceful ride for 2 hours.
Some other
comfort features that are included in the Hybrid model include: rear camera, all
leather seats, Bose stereo system with navigation, and of course the OnStar
system.
Control:
During our
Christmas drive, the winter weather began moving in with strong winds and gusts.
Thankfully, the Yukon performed beautifully and never did it
feel out of control or buffeted around by the winds.
As I researched the Yukon, I discovered that some of this control
is due to the new exterior design and aerodynamic exterior.
I really like running boards on SUVs, because I am a small person and
they really help me to get in and out of a larger vehicle.
The running boards on the Yukon have been
redesigned with tapering to decrease the wind resistance.
This along with other grill and fascia engineering has improved the
Yukon
for the 2009 year.
Another
control feature that I am always aware of is the turning radius of larger SUVs.
The Yukon was impressive.
It easily maneuvered the curves and corners of the back roads in the
country and was easy to park her in the city.
All around,
the Yukon is a
great family vehicle that will provide storage, power, comfort and control to
grandma’s house or any other destination.
Starting price is around $50,000 for 2WD and $53,000 for 4WD.
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