2003 GMC Yukon XL EX Sedan 4D

Need a luxury car that can hold seven or eight people, tow 8,200 , , lbs, and has all-weather, all-wheel drive capability? That sounds like , , a tough order to fill. Think you're out of luck? Think again. Think , , GMC Denali., , , , The Denali is the premium version of the GMC Yukon, which is , , already a luxuriously-equipped sport-utility vehicle. Add in nearly , , every conceivable option and custom bodywork, and you have a , , cross between an American-style luxury car and an All-American , , truck. Power, 320 horses worth, is available from a 6.0-liter V8, and , , Denalis are offered in regular 116-inch wheelbase or XL 130-inch , , form. Denalis are aimed a little more upmarket than other Yukons, , , and so are equipped with a full-time all-wheel drive system that , , requires no driver intervention instead of the 4WD Yukon's dual-, , range, part-time four-wheel drive. Denali owners are suspected of , , being more interested in getting to the ski slopes on some sort of , , improved road or towing a boat or horse trailer than in navigating , , washed-out Conestoga wagon trails, and the vehicle should serve , , them well., , , , For, as I discovered during my week with a ``regular'' Denali, it is , , as much luxury car as it is truck. Sure, it's a body-on-frame truck, , , but trucks aren't what they used to be. A rigid ladder frame and , , well-matched, rigid body structure combined with very good , , suspension settings and soundproofing make it as quiet as a unibody , , luxury car. Many new features for 2003 add to comfort and safety. , , The ``StabiliTrak'' electronic stability control system helps the , , driver maintain control in tricky or slippery situations, and the brakes , , have been upgraded as well. There are a number of enhancements , , under the hood, and a new instrument panel, new seats, a redesigned , , driver information system, power-adjustable pedals, tri-zone , , automatic climate control, and more new features are found inside. , , A Bose(tm) AM/FM/cassette/in-dash CD changer audio system with XM , , satellite radio is standard, with a rear-seat DVD system available. , , The standard equipment list is long, the option list is short, and quiet , , comfort is at a premium., , , , APPEARANCE: There is no denying that the Denali is a sport-, , utility vehicle, and a large one at that. It shares its basic styling with , , the plain Yukon, with gently rounded corners and edges on its two-, , box shape, but has exclusive lower cladding, with integral running , , boards and mudflaps, car-like multi-element headlights and a unique , , bright chrome grille. A roof rack is standard, and the shark-fin XM , , radio and small whip OnStar antennas at the front of the roof give it , , an undercover look., , , , COMFORT: There is no shortage of space and comfort inside of the , , Denali. A third row seat is standard even in the regular-wheelbase , , model, which means seating for up to seven people with a second-, , row bench. My test vehicle had the optional second-row captain's , , chairs, which meant seating for six, but with much better access to , , the rear seat thanks to the Denali's flat floor and the space between , , the captain's chairs. The third row is best for shorter people, but the , , second has plenty of room for full-sized adults. Back angle is , , adjustable for both second and third-row seats, and either or both , , may be folded flat when large items need to be moved. The , , supportive, redesigned front buckets are, of course, power-, , adjustable, with memory on the driver's side. The optimum driving , , position is more easily attainable with standard power-adjustable , , pedals and a new tilt-adjustable steering wheel. Three-zone climate , , control keeps everyone cool or warm, as desired, with plenty of , , vents and a high airflow rate. The standard Bose AM-FM-XM-, , cassette-CD changer sound system sounds great, and offers plenty of , , choice. ``Comfort'' and ``versatility