2017 GMC YUKON XL Power Train Problems

My transmission failed again after being replaced by General Motors certified dealership. The transmission in question has failed again after less than five months being back in service. In 2024 and 2025 my vehicle has been in and out of the service department at other dealerships and they cannot repair the vehicle according to the dealerships they do not have the staff for it. General motors will not stand behind the transmission as they have now labeled it as a part so they will not have to provide transportation. According to dealerships in my area in Michigan, they do not have the staff or the parts to service my vehicle. I contacted General motors customer service multiple times regarding the situation. We truly have a bad transmission again in my vehicle. The transmission in question is a C8 transmission that has failed due to shuttering and downshifting, which the replacement remanufactured transmission for $8000 continues to fail. General motors will not buy back this vehicle or address this ongoing issue. I truly believe I am not the only person with transmission issues as this is a major defect by the manufacturer, which is General Motors. Will you please look into my complaint is this is caused severe hardship to my family. General Motors needs to take responsibility for this failure to the transmission. I’ve had seven other items that have failed also on this vehicle, including the engine. Thank you for your time and consideration looking into this matter. Sincerely [XXX] . INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

In May 2025, my vehicle suddenly started jerking, shaking, and almost stalled out while driving. I was on a busy 3 lane roadway with 6 passengers total. As I would try to accelerate, the power was significantly decreased. I felt it jerk between shifting several times. My check engine light came on. I was so scared that someone would hit my vehicle and injure us. I brought it to a GMC dealership. They said that my transmission failed, metal in the transmission fluid. How is this possible? Upon researching this problem, this is a common issue with the 2017 GMC Yukon Denali. There are class action law suits and lemon law lawsuits against GMC regarding this problem which causes major safety concerns. My vehicle has been well maintained with lots of service records to prove it. I have babied her and I’ve never towed anything. This transmission issue needs to be addressed and recalled. I need a new transmission which will cost between $5,000-$7,000. This is just horrible and disappointing regarding the quality and reported issues that are not being recalled by GMC.

While driving it will jerk into gear shifting is rough.

Transmission shudder lunching hard up and down shift

I purchased a 2017 yukon xl denali. In the short time that I have had the vehicle the transmission has started to make a loud audible popping noise when coming to a complete stop. I have take the vehicle to the GM dealership multiple times to try and get the problem fixed and according to them it is something with the transmission that they don't know exactly how to fix. So I am stuck with this 8l90 transmission that is a piece of junk and can't even get a rebuilt transmission from companies like Jasper due to the issues of these transmissions.

Noting that prior to this we only had one issue with transmission and we did the flush and it did fine for several thousand of miles. Fast forward to a few days ago. As I was driving down the highway I came to a stop at the red light. Once it was green and I pressed on the accelerator with my foot per usual. And it did not move it pushed the gas peddle and nothing at all happened. I was stuck in the highway could not move until I’m assuming the transmission finally shifted jarring my entire car and it allowed me to get to a safe place at 20 miles an hour max. Keep in mind I was in the middle of the highway not knowing what was happening. With my precious babies in the car. Thanking God we were not injured. This problem is so common and notorious among GMC Yukons 2017 year models. It’s saddening that now I have a car note on a car that will not go. Transmissions are back ordered who knows when I can have my car back this economy is horrible trying to stay afloat. And now we have a vehicle that won’t drive and no time forks of when it can drive. This needs to be addressed asap. Other people are dealing with the same things and GMC need to make this safety concern a thing of the past. Make a recall.

Had the torque converter replaced at around 58,000 miles because of shutter in transmission. At around under 100,000 miles I called the dealership back up because the shutter is back again and now my NEW torque converter is bad. They said they only had a 25,000 mile warrantee on the new converter and I was out of my replacement window for warrantee. Everything online says torque converters can last well over 150,000 miles and sometimes even the entire life of a vehicle. I have now had two replaced. By searching online for info about this it is CLEARLY a known problem with these vehicles and gmc isn’t doing anything about it.

I want to relate an incident that thankfully did not result in a serious mishap or injury. It Occurred on Canada’s most busy highway. On Saturday [XXX] We were just coming off [XXX] and traffic started to backup. It was heavy. It is then that I lost all control of the Vehicle’s speed. The transmission gave way and left us unable to accelerate as the traffic began to speed up dramatically. I quickly hit the flashers and coasted to the shoulder avoiding the speeding traffic. I managed to get a bit of forward movement to stay out of the way. The transmission would not work at higher speeds. It was nerve racking and we felt unsafe in our predicament. To avoid towing charges, we slowly and carefully took an exit to get on a less travelled road and shut off the vehicle to let it cool. After restarting it we were able to slowly limp to a GM dealership on Fairview in Burlington Ontario Canada. They could not help us as their Transmission mechanic was off for two weeks. My daughter eventually came and picked us up. I left the vehicle at the GM dealer to pick up later after attending our function in Toronto. Later in the evening we returned and were able to return to our Canadian residence in Niagara Falls Ontario Canada by driving well under the speed limit on the [XXX] highway. We then took the vehicle, again at low speed we took the vehicle to Falls Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick, GMC where their transmission mechanic was out for training. We left the vehicle with them for a week. They advised me that the transmission was basically unrepairable and too costly to rebuild, so we went with a complete replacement. They were very helpful. It was expensive. This happened at 119,000 miles. The Yukon gave no indication of a failure till it happened. We have driven long distances with this vehicle. I understand this is not uncommon with this make and model. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)

Car has 100k miles on it. At 59k the fuel injectors went out and needed to be replaced. Then the transmission went out and needed to be replaced, then the front differential needed to be rebuilt, also had to replace the struts. Now the lifters are going out and that, plus likely the camshaft, need to be fixed. Total costs for all the above is close to $20,000. If not fixed these problems could easily result in catastrophic engine failure while driving leading to personal injury and death. I see that there is a class action lawsuit for the latter.

Truck RPMs were running really high between shifting with normal acceleration. I took the truck to a transmission shop as I purchased an extended warranty. The transmission needed to be rebuilt as many parts were worn. The extended warranty repair was made. After repairs, the truck has started doing the same thing 4 weeks later. It appears the transmission is not properly shifting again, I am not sure if it's a transmission issue as all parts have been replaced, or a computer issue that's causing the malfunction. The vehicle is available for inspection. My safety is put as risk because if the transmission does not shift properly, it is at risk at breaking while in motion which could potentially cause an accident and if the transmission breaks will on the highway, i dont know what type of risk that can entail. The transmission shop has indicated that they are noticing the same issue as before and do not see any reason for the issue to be continuing. There were no warning lamps or indicators that have shown up to indicate an issue. This is noticed by daily driving of the vehicle and noticing normal and not normal RPMs, shifting points and feeling.

The transmission begin to cause the vehicle to shudder and shake. This caused shifting problems that cause the vehicle to be unable to safely drive down the road. We have confirmed with a mechanic that has seen and fixed this same issue multiple times. Causing the transmission to need to be replaced. This is due to the issues that many vehicles like this one that continues to be a problem. This issues has caused my vehicle to be unable to accelerate and has caused it to stop in the road. This is very unsafe and needs to be fixed for all those with this similar vehicle so no one is severely injured.

The contact owns a 2017 GMC Yukon XL. The contact stated that while at a stop, the vehicle hesitated while depressing the accelerator pedal. There was no warning light illuminated. The contact stated that the vehicle was jerking while driving forward at a slow speed. The contact was able to drive the vehicle to the dealer where the vehicle remained. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was approximately 110,000.

Mileage: 110,000

Transmission failed with no symptons. No indications of potential issues prior. All recommended service checks done with vehicle, oil changes etc... 75,026 miles. Pulled up to a red light in heavy traffic and transmission would not engage. No forward, reverse, or in Low 1. Tried 4 wheel and 2 wheel drive. Nothing. Yukon 2017 XL SLT model.

Car is shaking when accelerating. Feels like it will cause more damage.

We were on the freeway with my 4 small children. The freeway speed is 75 mph. The car had been jerking and hard shifting for over a week and I had it scheduled with a mechanic. As we were driving on the freeway, it lost total power as cars were going to the left and right around us. I was barely able to get it to the side of the road without being hit. This could have been tragic! I took it to the mechanic and the transmission is shaving a lot of metal (that was in the bottom of the pan). I have had to pay to have a whole new transmission redone. This is absurd with a car that is only 4 years old.

Driving on city streets at approximately 45-50 MPH the transmission began shifting erratically and made significant squealing noises. After stopping, the transmission could not be shifted to another gear and was stuck in drive (D) for approximately 30 minutes. After evaluation from a professional auto mechanic, these transmissions were equipped with the incorrect fluid type from the factory that has since been taken off the market. The transmission needed to be replaced at ~99,000 miles.

ABOUT 500 MILES PAST THE ORIGINAL POWERTRAIN WARRANTY OF 60,000 MILES, THE TRANSMISSION FLUID TEMPERATURE SENSOR FAILED. I KNOW THIS BECAUSE AN ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON DISPLAYING P0700 AND P0711 AND THE GAUGE ON THE DASH IS ERRATIC. I DID RESEARCH, AND THE TRANSMISSION FOR THESE VEHICLES MODEL GEAR 2015 AND 2016 HAVE SEVERAL ISSUES INCLUDING THIS ONE AS OUTLINED IN SPECIAL COVERAGE N192291660 WHICH EXTENDS THE COVERAGE FOR THIS ISSUE TO 120,000 MILES. IF GMC HAS THE SAME ISSUE WITH THE PREVIOUS YEAR TRANSMISSIONS AND KNOWS ABOUT IT ENOUGH TO ISSUE A SPECIAL COVERAGE, THEY SHOULD DO THE SAME FOR THE 2017 MODELS.

Mileage: 60,500

WHILE SITTING AT A STOP ON A 9DEGREE INCLINE BEHIND ANOTHER VEHICLE I STARTED TO ACCELERATE TO MOVE UP TO THE STOP SIGN. AS I PRESSED ON THE ACCELERATOR THE ENGINE RPM'S INCREASED BUT THE VEHICLE DIDN'T MOVE AS IF THE TRANSMISSION WAS NOT ENGAGING, THEN WITHOUT WARNING IT JERKED FORWARD. I HAD TO APPLY THE BRAKES TO KEEP FROM HITTING THE VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME. I HAVE ALSO HAD PROBLEMS WITH THIS VEHICLE TRANSMISSION SUCH AS TRANSMISSION FLUTTER, HARSH SHIFTS IN LOWER GEARS, ETC ETC.

Mileage: 39,400

CAR STRUGGLED TO START WHEN I STARTED IT. IDLE WAS/HAS BEEN REALLY SHAKY. ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON. I GOT A DIAGNOSIS FROM 2 COMPANIES FOR MY ENGINE. BOTH SAID I NEEDED TO REPLACE ALL 8 FUEL INJECTORS. GMC HAS AN EXTENDED WARRANTY TO COVER THESE ISSUES, BUT IT IS NOT AVAILABLE FOR MY STATE OF UTAH. HERE IS THE CODE FOR REFERENCE FOR YUKON #N182198000. MY CAR IS A YUKON XL 2017 THAT NEEDED FUEL INJECTORS AT 85,000 MILES! HOW IS THIS OKAY? THE REPAIR COST $1,990.28. THE POWER TRAIN WARRANTY HAS BEEN CHANGED FOR 2016 AND 2017 GMC VEHICLES SO THAT IT IS NOW 60,000 MILES OR 5 YEARS. MECHANICS HAVE REPORTED THAT GM HAS CHANGED THE WAY THEY ARE BUILDING ENGINES IN ORDER TO REDUCE COSTS, BUT IT APPEARS THAT CONSUMERS SUCH AS MYSELF ARE BEARING THE BRUNT OF THE COSTS. I WOULD APPRECIATE IF THE EXTENDED SERVICE WARRANTY COULD BE EXTENDED TO ALL STATES IN THE U.S. VS. THOSE WHO HAVE MANDATED IT BECAUSE OF LEGISLATION OR LEGAL ENFORCEMENT.

Mileage: 85,000

THE NAVIGATION AND INFOTAINMENT FAILS ON A REGULAR BASIS. CANNOT USE TOUCH SCREEN WHEN IT FAILS. FLORIDA DEALER SAID NOTHING WRONG. THE SCREEN WILL TURN TO A CLOCK WITHOUT TOUCHING IT. CANNOT USE NAVIGATION ON MANY DAYS. HAD TO LOCATE A NEW DOCTOR AND THE NAVIGATION FAILED! HAPPENS WHEN STATIONARY OR IN MOTION. THIS STARTED IN MAY 10, 2018 THROUGH TODAY, FEBRUARY 17, 2021. IT IS ONGOING DAILY.

BRAKE PROBLEMS WHEN STARTING BRAKES LOOSE VACUUM PRESSURE STILL NO FIX AFTER RECALL. 2ND CHECK ENGINE LIGHT CAME ON AT ABOUT 36,500 MILES FUEL INJECTORS DEFECTIVE 3RD TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS VALVE BODY DEFECTIVE PAID OVER 85,000 AND THIS SUV ITS NOT WORTH IT DEFECTIVE ALL DEFECTIVES UNDER 43,000 MILES

8 SPEED TRANSMISSION BUFFETS AT LOW RPM'S BETWEEN THE SPEED OF 40 AND 80. THE VEHICLE'S TRANSMISSION DOES NOT ENGAGE WHEN COLD. THIS HAS BEEN AN ONGOING ISSUE SINCE THE VEHICLE HAD APPROXIMATELY 25,000 MILES ON IT.

Mileage: 25,000

TRANSMISSION IS ACTING SPORADIC AND CAUSING DELAY IN RESPONSE TO ACCELERATION. CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS WHEN ENTERING CROWDED INTERSECTIONS/ ROADWAYS.

Mileage: 75,000

TRANSMISSION ISSUE THAT MAKES THE VEHICLE TO NOT ACCELERATE AND THEN SURGE WHEN YOU PULL UP TO AT A STOP LIGHT, STOP SIGN, ON HIGHWAY, OR IN TRAFFIC. NOT SAFE GOING TO END UP HITTING SOMEBODY OR SOMETHING. GMC DEALERSHIPS SAY 'IT IS A KNOWN ISSUE' WITH NO REPAIR.

Mileage: 11,000

DRIVING MY VEHICLE IN WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS, IN AUTOMATIC 4 WHEEL DRIVE OPTION. I TURNED THE CORNER BY MY HOUSE ON A CITY STREET GOING NO MORE THAN 7 MPH. I WAS TAPPING THE BRAKE AS I TURNED. I'M NOT SURE WHAT REALLY HAPPENED AS I WAS BRAKING (THE BRAKES SEEMED WEIRD; KIND OF LIKE ABS), BUT MY VEHICLE SLID AND HIT THE CURB ON THE STREET I WAS TURNING IN. THIS IS KITTY CORNER FROM MY HOUSE. MY RIGHT REAR TIRE DROVE UP ONTO THE CURB AND HALF WAY ONTO THE SIDEWALK, BEFORE GOING BACK OFF. I DROVE RIGHT INTO MY GARAGE FROM THERE AND THE VEHICLE WAS MAKING A WEIRD NOISE. MY WHOLE TIRE/WHEEL WAS BENT AT AN ANGLE WITH THE BOTTOM GOING INWARD. THE TIRE AND WHEEL DID NOT HAVE ANY DAMAGE. THERE WERE SCRAPES ON THE HUB CAP. WE TOOK THE TIRE OFF AND SAW THAT THE HALF SHAFT HAD SNAPPED RIGHT IN HALF. AFTER LOOKING AT THIS, THERE WAS BUBBLING AROUND IT. IT SEEMS THAT THE WAY THIS WAS MANUFACTURED IS NOT IN ANYWAY SAFE. THANKFULLY, I WAS RIGHT BY MY HOUSE. IF I HAD BEEN GOING ANY FASTER IN WINTER WEATHER CONDITIONS, WHO KNOWS WHAT COULD HAVE HAPPENED IF I SLID INTO SOMETHING ELSE GOING FASTER. I AM GLAD MY WIFE AND KIDS WERE NOT IN THE VEHICLE. I WOULD THINK THIS WOULD BE COVERED IN THE POWERTRAIN WARRANTY; 5-YEAR/60,000. ONE PERSON WITH GM STATED IT WAS INCLUDED WITH THE 3-YEAR/36,000 OPTION. OUR MILEAGE IS BARELY OVER AT 36,352. THE DEALERSHIP I TOOK IT TO, STATED THEY WILL NOT BUDGE OVER 36,000 MILES. I BELIEVE THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY ISSUE AND THAT IT SHOULD BE COVERED NO MATTER WHAT! THIS SHOULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED WHEN THERE WAS NO DAMAGE AT ALL TO THE TIRE. HOW COULD SOMETHING LIKE THIS JUST SNAP IN HALF? IT JUST DOESN'T SEEM RIGHT! THIS VEHICLE WAS EXPENSIVE AND APPARENTLY BUILT VERY CHEAP!!! WE JUST HAD A RECALL FIXED TOO! WE HAVE ONLY PAID TO GET IT TOWED TO THE NEAREST DEALERSHIP, WHICH IS IN THE NEXT TOWN OVER ABOUT 15 MILES AWAY. MY PICS ARE MORE THAN 5MB. THEY ARE 7+MB.

Mileage: 36,352

TRANSMISSION WENT OUT AT 88K MILES. MY SISTER IN LAW ALSO HAS A 2017 BOUGHT FROM ANOTHER STATE AND IT WENT OUT AT 79K MILES A WEEK AFTER MINE. PASSENGER SIDE TAIL LIGHT WORKS IF YOU PUSH ON IT THEN RANDOMLY GOES OUT (WIRING/ELECTRICAL ISSUE). OF COURSE THE DRIVERS SIDE TAIL LIGHT IS THE ONLY ONE ON RECALL. CRUISE CONTROL SET ITSELF AT OVER 100MPH AND RAPIDLY ACCELERATED UNTIL I HIT THE BRAKES. I RECEIVED A RECALL FOR THE BREAKING SYSTEM SPECIFICALLY FOR MY VIN NUMBER THAT NEEDS TO BE FIXED NOW THAT MY TRANSMISSION IS COMPLETE.

Mileage: 88,000

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2017 GMC YUKON XL. WHEN ATTEMPTING TO ENGAGE IN REVERSE OR DRIVE, THE VEHICLE HESITATED. THERE WAS ALSO A VIBRATION UNDERNEATH THE VEHICLE. THERE WERE NO WARNING INDICATORS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO DETERMINED THAT THE TRANSMISSION NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED BY THE INDEPENDENT MECHANIC. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT TAKEN TO THE DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 121,000. *BF*JB

Mileage: 121,000

SYMPTOMS - VEHICLE SHUDDERS DURING GEAR CHANGE. -BETWEEN 20 TO 75 MPH -HAS BEEN HAPPENING RANDOMLY

Mileage: 32,000

EVERYBODY WAS TELLING ME NOT TO BUY A 15 OR 16 GMC DENALI SO I BECAUSE THEY KNOWN TO HAVE TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS SO FOR MY THANKSGIVING GIFT I BROUGHT A BRANDO 2017 YUKON 8 PASSENGER LESS IN 2 YEARS NOW THE TRANSMISSION HAS GONE BADD TOOK A TO THE SHOP I NEED A BRAND NEW TRANSMISSION I DO NOT HAVE $3800 TO REPLACE THE TRANSMISSION I FEEL IT SHOULD BE A RECALL ON THIS VEHICLE YOU CAN FEEL FREE TO REACH ME [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TT

Mileage: 12,100

VEHICLE WAS STOPPED, PLACED IN PARK ON A HILL, CHILD IN THE CAR, VEHICLE ENGINE RUNNING AND EMERGENCY BRAKE APPLIED. THE VEHICLE BECAME UNRESPONSIVE. UNABLE TO TURN VEHICLE OFF, UNABLE TO SHIFT INTO ANY GEAR, UNABLE TO DRIVE, UNABLE TO OPEN WINDOWS, UNABLE TO OPEN REAR HATCH. ONSTAR WAS CONTACTED AND ADVISED THE VEHICLE HAD A COMPLETE ONBOARD SYSTEM FAILURE. ONSTAR WAS UNABLE TO OFFER ANY ASSISTANCE. ADVISED DRIVER TO CALL A TOW TRUCK. TOW DRIVER ADVISED TO ALLOW VEHICLE TO BE TOWED RUNNING AND IT WOULD RUN OUT OF GAS. DEALER CONFIRMED A MANUFACTURING DEFECT CAUSED THE COMPLETE ONBOARD SYSTEM FAILURE.

Mileage: 2,714

WHILE DRIVING, THE CHECK ENGINE LIGHT INTERMITTENTLY FLASHES. VEHICLE RUNS EXTREMELY ROUGH, SLUGGISH AT TIMES. DEALER CHECKED VEHICLE OVER A PERIOD OF TIME AND EVENTUALLY CONFIRMED RANDOM MISFIRES. UNABLE TO FIX ISSUE. UNABLE TO DETERMINE CAUSE. VEHICLE WAS LATER CONFIRMED TO HAVE A FAULTY TRANSMISSION TRANSMISSION REPLACED BY DEALER.

Mileage: 14,171

DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY THE VEHICLE WOULD NOT SHIFT GEARS CAUSING THE DRIVER TO PROCEED WELL UNDER THE POSTED SPEED LIMIT. THE DRIVER ATTEMPTED TO INCREASE SPEED SLOWLY AND THE VEHICLE HESITATED, THE ENGINE REVER BUT THE SPEED WOULD NOT INCREASE. THIS CAUSED CARS AT THE CORRECT SPEED TO VEER OUT OF THE LANE TO AVOID A CRASH. ONCE OFF THE HIGHWAY THE VEHICLE WAS HESITANT TO SHIFT GEARS AND EMITTED LOUD REVVING SOUNDS FROM THE ENGINE. PROCEEDING FROM A STOP AT A RED LIGHT THE VEHICLE HESITATED MOVEMENT CAUSING THE WHEELS TO SPIN ON THE PAVEMENT AND AGAIN CARS TO VEER QUICKLY OUT OF THE PATH.

Mileage: 35,000