Heavyweight fight: GMC Yukon Denali vs Nissan Patrol Ti-L

When GMSV recently launched the GMC brand in Australia with the Yukon Denali, it stepped into a niche corner of the local new-vehicle market – the full-size, three-row 4×4 wagon segment.

It’s a segment that was once dominated by the Toyota LandCruiser, Nissan Patrol, Mitsubishi Pajero and, to some extent, the Land Rover Discovery. But vehicles have grown in size and Nissan’s Y62 Patrol has had the segment to itself in recent years. 

Yes, the LandCruiser is still available, but the 300 Series isn’t as large as the current Patrol, and while the Discovery is also on sale, it now sits in a more premium segment than the big Nissan. You could argue the Land Rover Defender belongs here too – it’s a large, three-row petrol wagon – but at the time of testing, Land Rover was phasing out its excellent Ingenium six and moving exclusively to V8 power for its petrol variants.

The GMC Yukon Denali is a premium product with a price tag to match, and we figured the recently refreshed Nissan Patrol is its closest rival – even if it costs nearly half as much. Both are V8-powered 4×4 wagons with seating for eight, but they target very different buyers.

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JUMP AHEAD

• GMC Yukon interior and safety
• Nissan Patrol interior and safety
• V8 powertrains and off-road capability
• Price, warranty, fuel use and verdict
• Specs

GMC Yukon interior and safety features

The all-American GMC is a true luxury wagon, and it’s kitted out to justify its $175K price tag.

The cabin is spacious and plush, with all three rows of seating trimmed in soft leather. The front seats are heated and ventilated, the second row gets heating, and the third-row passengers make do with aircon vents. All seats feature power adjustment or folding, and both the second and third rows fold flat to create a long, level load space. It’s roomy enough to roll out a swag if the weather turns nasty.

Up front, there’s a massive 16.8-inch touchscreen for multimedia, paired with an 11-inch digital instrument display and a 15-inch head-up display projected onto the windscreen.

A pair of 12.6-inch screens mounted to the backs of the front seats provide rear-seat entertainment, and they’re positioned so passengers in the third row can also catch the action. A premium 14-speaker Bose sound system delivers crisp audio throughout the cabin, while the massive full-length panoramic sunroof floods all three rows with natural light. If you think the Y62 Patrol is roomy, wait until you climb inside the GMC — it takes spaciousness to another level.

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The Patrol’s cabin isn’t exactly cramped, but it feels a world away from the sheer scale of the Yukon. We’ve often noted in comparisons with the LandCruiser 200 and 300 Series that, even with the third row upright, the Patrol still offers enough space to fit a car fridge behind the seats — something the Cruiser struggles with. The GMC matches that practicality and then some, offering even more usable luggage space with all three rows in use.

Where the Patrol and Yukon differ most is up front. Nissan positions the driver high and forward in the cabin, which can leave you feeling like you’re perched over the pedals and pressed up against the windscreen. The GMC, by contrast, lets you sit back and sink down into the cabin, creating a far more relaxed, spacious and comfortable driving position.

That forward-driving position in the Patrol does have a payoff — it frees up loads of space in the second row, where even tall adult passengers can stretch out comfortably. In the Yukon, with the front seat adjusted to my preferred position, second-row legroom is only adequate by comparison.

Safety kit in the Yukon includes a tyre pressure monitoring system, stability and traction control, trailer sway control, a 360° HD camera system with up to 11 selectable views, Following Distance Indicator, Forward Collision Alert, Front and Rear Park Assist, Front Pedestrian Braking, Lane Change Alert with Side Blind Zone Alert, Lane Keep Assist with Lane Departure Warning, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, and Rear Pedestrian Alert — all contributing to an impressively comprehensive package.

Nissan Patrol Y62 interior and safety features

The 2025 updates to the Nissan Patrol were centred around the interior, with particular focus on the multimedia system. This has been refreshed several times over the long life of the Y62 in an effort to keep the tech feeling contemporary in a vehicle that’s now more than a decade old.

To that end, Nissan has done well with the new 12.3-inch screen, positioned high on the centre of the dash where it’s easy to see and use. It now offers wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, along with built-in navigation. It’s exactly what Y62 Patrol owners have been crying out for over the past decade and, as is so often the case with long-running vehicle platforms, it means the final iteration of the Y62 will be the best of the breed.

The centre screen is complemented by a new 7.0-inch driver display that’s customisable and provides quick access to essential information like a digital speed readout and turn-by-turn navigation instructions, reducing the need to glance back at the central screen. It also includes an off-road monitor, which gives the driver a live view of the terrain immediately around the vehicle when tackling rough tracks.

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Thankfully, the addition of the new driver’s display hasn’t come at the expense of the large analogue speedometer and tachometer gauges, which remain front and centre in the dash. 

In another welcome throwback, the multimedia screen retains not just a tactile volume dial but also a separate tuning knob for the radio – a feature that’s all but extinct in most modern vehicles. It’s refreshingly intuitive and far easier to use on the move than scan buttons or touch sliders. The sound system in the Ti-L is another Bose set up, this one featuring 13 speakers.

The Ti-L’s leather seats are 10-way power adjustable for the driver and 8-way for the front passenger. As mentioned, the driving position sits you high and forward in the cabin – more than I’d prefer – but it’s something you get used to over time. The benefit of this layout is excellent visibility through the windscreen and ample legroom for second-row passengers.

Safety-wise, the Patrol Ti-L comes well equipped for a vehicle of its age, with front and rear parking sensors, Vehicle Stability Control (VSC), Electronic Traction Control (ETC), and ABS with electronic brake-force distribution. Airbag coverage includes dual front and side airbags for the driver and passenger, along with full-length curtain airbags for all three rows.

Driver assistance tech includes Emergency Braking, Forward Collision Warning, Lane Departure Warning and Intervention, Blind Spot Warning and Intervention, Rear Cross Traffic Alert, and a Tyre Pressure Monitoring System. The 360° camera system has also returned with the 2025 update, bringing a welcome boost to parking visibility.

Interior verdict

While both cabins offer premium features and generous space, the GMC nails the luxury brief with a more opulent fit and finish, while the Patrol feels simpler and more intuitive, especially when it comes to operating controls both on and off the road.

V8 powertrains and off-road capability

Both of these wagons roll on separate ladder chassis and are powered by old-school, naturally aspirated V8 petrol engines.

The engine in the GMC is even a single-camshaft-in-block design, but that’s no bad thing – it simplifies the engine, lowers mass in the engine bay. While these powerplants might seem like dinosaurs in today’s era of turbocharged four-cylinders and hybrids, both benefit from modern design and construction techniques that keep them relevant.

GM’s 6.2-litre Ecotec3 V8 uses Smart Fuel Management, direct injection and variable valve timing to effortlessly produce 313kW and 624Nm. It’s paired with a smooth-shifting 10-speed automatic transmission and a selectable 4WD system that includes an on-demand AWD mode for everyday conditions. 

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The Patrol uses a similar 4×4 system. Its 5.6-litre DOHC, direct-injected V8 makes 298kW and 560Nm, fed through a seven-speed automatic transmission. Both drivetrains deliver strong performance and that unmistakable V8 soundtrack when you bury the throttle, but the Nissan’s engine feels the most willing to rev and is more willing when pushed.

While neither of these wagons could be considered sporty, both use clever tech and solid engineering to improve their dynamics well beyond what you’d expect from such large vehicles. 

The Yukon Denali runs adaptive air suspension with Magnetic Ride Control dampers that read the road every five milliseconds, constantly adjusting to suit conditions. The result is impressive: body movement is exceptionally well controlled, with barely any roll through corners or float over undulations. The system gives the big GMC a level of poise and ride comfort you’d never expect from something this large.

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The only complaint was over small, high-frequency bumps and corrugations, which could be felt through the cabin. That’s likely down to the low-profile tyres wrapped around the massive 24-inch wheels, rather than the suspension itself.

Nissan’s Hydraulic Body Motion Control (HBMC) system also does an impressive job of managing the Patrol’s considerable mass across all road conditions. Paired with its more sensible 265/70 tyres on 18-inch wheels, the Patrol delivers noticeably better ride comfort over rough surfaces.

Interesting for large 4×4 wagons, both of these rigs feature independent suspension front and rear. That’s not something you’d traditionally expect on big, off-road-capable wagons, and while it does limit wheel travel compared to live axles, it certainly doesn’t rule them out for off-road use.

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The Patrol, in particular, still manages a decent amount of wheel travel on uneven terrain. Combined with its more off-road-friendly 265/70 R18 tyres, it’s the better choice when the going gets rough. Both vehicles are equipped with centre and rear locking differentials, but neither offers a front locker

Unfortunately, wet conditions on our test day meant the forest tracks turned super greasy, and the road-oriented tyres fitted to both wagons quickly clogged with mud. As a result, off-road testing was limited – not because of the vehicles’ lack of capability, but because the tyres weren’t up to the task in those conditions.

Price, warranty, fuel use and verdict

After our first drive of the GMC Yukon, we asked if the brash American truck was worth almost twice the price of a Nissan Patrol. It’s not quite twice the price, but even in top-shelf Ti-L trim, the Patrol still comes in around $70K cheaper than the GMC. That kind of saving would buy you a premium camper trailer and a trip around Australia.

If that’s the sort of touring and all-road use you want from your big 4×4 wagon, then the Patrol is the better choice over the Yukon Denali. It’s more rugged and far better suited to off-road driving, especially given the GMC’s 24-inch wheels and low-profile tyres that limit its ability on rough terrain. The Y62 Patrol might be getting on in years, but it’s aged well, and this final iteration is arguably the best yet – making it the pick of the big petrol wagons still available in Australia.

The GMC Yukon is better suited to on-road touring and towing. If you’re looking to haul something bigger and heavier than a camper trailer, its 3628kg towing capacity is unrivalled in the wagon segment. That said, you’ll need to use a specific hitch and weight distribution setup to tow at that maximum weight. If you could fit 18-inch wheels and more appropriate tyres from lower-grade models in the GM range to the Denali, it would open up a lot more gravel and off-road potential for this luxury heavyweight.

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The GMC Yukon is a superb and luxurious tourer, but when you factor in off-road ability and the $70K price difference, the Nissan takes the chocolates home in this test. It really is a horses-for-courses comparison because, as much as these two wagons appear to occupy the same space, they differ significantly in how they get the job done.

GMC’s warranty coverage runs for just three years or 100,000km (whichever comes first), with roadside assistance also limited to three years. In contrast, Nissan claims to offer Australia’s best aftersales support, with a 10-year/300,000km warranty and flat-price servicing – provided the vehicle is serviced through approved Nissan dealers.

On test, fuel consumption for both wagons was predictably high given their size, weight and big-displacement V8 engines. The Nissan Patrol Ti-L used 61.18L of fuel over 335km, averaging 18.5L/100km, while the GMC Yukon Denali returned 19L/100km after using 59.32L over 313km.

Realistically, both vehicles will consume north of 18L/100km in mixed driving, making fuel range and consumption key considerations for buyers planning long-distance touring.

Specs