2005 GMC Yukon XL 1500 problems
Owners have filed 33 complaints with NHTSA about the 2005 GMC Yukon XL 1500. Electrical system is the most reported problem area, at 30% of complaints. After that come stability control (12%) and tires (9%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 33 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Electrical system 30% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 1 and 1
- Injuries and deaths
- 2 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 108,000 miles 32 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 2 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 4 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 3 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 5 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 2 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 1 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 10 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 4 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 1 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Among the 32 complaints that report mileage, the typical (median) problem appeared at about 108,000 miles. For electrical system specifically, the median reported mileage is about 62,000 miles (10 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 1 complaint mentions a crash; 1 complaint mentions a fire; 2 injuries reported.
Looking only at complaints filed within five years of the model year (so older and newer years are comparable), the 2005 ranks 5th most-complained-about out of 7 model years of the GMC Yukon XL 1500 with enough data (14 complaints in that window).
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
2005 GMC yukon xl 1500. Consumer writes in regards to air bag malfunction during accident. *smd the consumer stated he and his wife were involved in an accident on december 6, 2013. The vehicle went a prolonged skid on black ice, spun around several times, and struck a guardrail head-on. The support posts broke, and the vehicle went airborne, clearing over the top of the guardrail and traveled a distance of 40 feet through the air, landing about 30 feet below the level of the roadway in a muddy pasture, in trees…
Left quarter glass exploded for unknown reason. Had just finished washing vehicle, parked vehicle, walked around side of vehicle and the glass exploded.
Incident date: front cabin / in dash fire 11/25/2011 at 5:20pm vehicle: 2005 GMC yukon xl slt with approximately 120k miles vehicle was parked in driveway; had just been driven however the engine was off; 15-30 minutes later heard loud bang and glass breaking; front cabin of the vehicle was engulfed in flames; opened doors and sprayed water on until fire department got there. Insurance company has requested that the vehicle remain at place of incident until adjuster can investigate.
2005 GMC yukon xl speedometer reading erratic, now doesn't work at all - needle hangs down past 120 MPH. Appears that the stepper motor that drives the speedometer gauge has failed. I believe this has been recalled for model years before 2005, but not for this model year. Dealer says that the entire instrument cluster needs to be replaced.
Automatic transmission mode (4x4, 4x2, AWD) shifting problems and changing from selection by itself; recurring in nature; vehicle dragging; abrupt jerking - multiple incidents and multiple repairs; only constant is that the problem always comes back and continues to this day; only service provider to have worked on this issue is swope GMC in louisville, ky. .