As more and more Americans find their way out of body-on-frame SUVs and into crossovers, the already burgeoning market continues to grow with new iterations. Enter the 2011 GMC Acadia Denali, a range-topping General Motors crossover that, on its own, illustrates what is great – and what’s not so hot – about the biggest Detroit automaker.
Let’s take a look.
What is it?
Debuting nearly a year ago at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, the Acadia Denali just hit the market recently. We’re not quite sure what’s up with the hefty time-to-market since the package is mainly an appearance upgrade, but we digress.
Based on a standard GMC Acadia – the mid-level version of GM’s Lambda platform that also spawned the Chevrolet Traverse, the Buick Enclave and, for a period, the Saturn Outlook – the Denali follows in the footsteps of similarly-styled and optioned GMC Sierras and GMC Yukons.
The idea is simple: A body kit, fancy wheels, an chrome honeycomb grille and a full complement of luxuries inside. Unlike the Yukon and Sierra, the Denali name doesn’t bring with it more power on the Acadia.
Despite its premium intentions, the Acadia package really only adds around $1,000 to a loaded Acadia SLT.
What’s it up against?
Loaded up like our tester, the Acadia’s biggest rival is internal: The Buick Enclave. But if we wanted to step out of the GM realm, the nearly $50,000 as-tested price means the Acadia Denali squares off against the likes of the Ford Flex Titanium and Land Rover LR4. Standard Acadias are better positioned against the Toyota Highlander, Mazda CX-9 and Honda Pilot, as well as the upcoming Ford Explorer and Dodge Durango.
The competition is stiff but varied, to say the least.
Any breakthroughs?
It’s hard to call a styling package a breakthrough, but the Acadia’s basic Lambda architecture was pretty groundbreaking when it debuted in 2006 as a 2007 model. As the first truly roomy three-row crossovers, the Lambdas set the bar pretty high for rivals.
Of course, that was more than four years ago.
How does it look?
We like the basic Acadia package with its chisled front fascia, clean lines and even its unpainted lower sections. Unfortunately, the Denali package adds too much glitz for us.
Sill extensions and front and rear fascia changes combine with a cheesy cheese grate-style chrome grille and painted chrome wheels to give the Acadia too much of an aftermarket look reminiscent of conversion vans. All that’s missing is a graphics package and a tailgate-mounted ladder to climb up onto the roof.
Styling is subjective, but we’ll stick with a basic Acadia SLT, which doesn’t take the path to Tacky Town.
And on the inside?
Luckily, the Denali package doesn’t change much here, where things feel positively 2007. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, since there’s plenty of comfort and space in all three rows and useful touches abound. But as new competitors like the Explorer arrive on the scene, the Acadia is starting to feel a little mature.
Black plastic dominates the cabin, although it is broken up by a smattering of fairly convincing black stain-style faux wood. Most of the materials are soft touch, although they’re of the rubbery variety you won’t find in the Enclave.
The seats – ventilated up front and heated in rows one and two – are covered in a rich leather, but the cover on our brand new tester’s driver’s seat didn’t fit correctly. We tried to pull it back on, but it never seemed like it was installed properly. At least those seats are firm and supportive, even if there might be too much lumbar support for some drivers.
GM parts bin switchgear abounds, including a four spoke steering wheel (points if you can name all of the GM vehicles that currently use this wheel), a DVD-based navigation system and dual-zone climate control with digital buttons. Let’s just say that if you’ve been in a Chevrolet Tahoe or a Chevrolet Silverado, you’ll feel right at home. These aren’t inherently bad parts – they do their function and generally operate with precision. The navigation is a bit dated, but it works well and its menu system is much easier than most rivals.
The second row offers stretch-out room and our tester’s two captain’s chairs easily fold forward to allow for access to the third row. Room back there is above class average and the seats tumble away into the load floor at the touch of a button.
Two sunroofs let the sun shine down on rows one and two, although neither is particularly large and both feature flimsy perforated shades that don’t really keep harsh sun out.
But does it go?
Pop open the Acadia Denali’s giant hood and you’ll find GM’s now-ubiquitious 3.6-liter V6 nestled up against the firewall.
Offered in nearly every every GM product under the sun aside from full-size ‘utes and small cars, the direct-injected mull puts out 288 horsepower and 270 lb-ft. of torque. It breathes through a dual exhaust setup and puts power to either the front or (as tested) all four wheels via a six-speed automatic transmission.
It’s the same powertrain you’ll find in the Enclave and the Traverse and, for the most part, it moves the nearly 5,000 lbs. Acadia Denali along reasonably well. At city speeds and under moderate acceleration, the big crossover has no difficulty keeping up with traffic. It’s only when you go to merge onto a highway or pass slow moving vehicles on a busy two-lane road that the vehicle’s power-to-weight ratio begins to seem rather weak. A little more oomph would do this vehicle well, especially when the Denali badge is along for the ride.
Rivals, like the Flex EcoBoost and LR4 don’t make excuses about their power and neither should the Acadia Denali. In fact, the body-on-frame GMC Yukon might be heavier and only marginally more powerful, but its V8 puts out 335 lb-ft. of torque, which helps it feel more usable and fleet-of-foot in most driving situations.
The benefit to the Acadia Denali, at least on paper, is that all-wheel-drive models click in at 23 mpg on the highway and 16 mpg in the city compared to the Yukon’s 15/21 figures. In real world driving, however, we struggled to see above 20 mpg on the highway and saw just 14-15 mpg in urban driving. We’ve seen similar mileage in Yukons.
The Acadia does deliver an especially smooth ride over even the most undulating pavement. We didn’t venture off road beyond driving over some wet grass, but the all-wheel-drive system offered commendable grip. Steering is precise but overboosted, making it about par for the class. Parking is a piece of cake at low speeds despite the big dimensions, but we wish the system firmed up a bit for curvy roads.
Its unibody structure is tight, forgoing the body drumming you’ll find in SUV-type rivals. A fully independent suspension is plush, but it combines with the unibody to limit towing to a reasonable 5,200 lbs.
Why you would buy it:
You want the best of the best – by “professional grade†standards.
Â
Why you wouldn’t:
That boxy Yukon across the showroom can tow more without really guzzling more.
Leftlane’s bottom line
We can’t help but think that Acadia Denali answers a question that GM shouldn’t have been asking. Its premium positioning puts it at odds with the more luxurious-feeling Buick Enclave, while its thirsty and hard-working V6 isn’t going to convert full-size SUV buyers.
Even though it’s a pretty darn good vehicle, the Acadia Denali fulfills a need GM’s lineup doesn’t have.
2011 GMC Acadia Denali base price, $45,220. As tested, $49,460.
Cargo Convenience Package, $130; Navigation, $1,890; Rear seat entertainment, $1,445; Destination, $775.
Words and photos by Andrew Ganz.
Review: 2011 GMC Acadia Denali
Reviewed by
Andrew Ganz on
December 9
.
GMC has applied its tried-and-true Denali luxury recipe to the Acadia crossover. Does it transform this family hauler into a premium machine?
As more and more Americans find their way out of body-on-frame SUVs and into crossovers, the already burgeoning market continues to grow with new iterations. Enter the 2011 GMC Acadia Denali, a range-topping General Motors crossover that, on its own, illustrates what is great – and what’s not so hot – about the biggest Detroit automaker.
Let’s take a look.
What is it?
Debuting nearly a year ago at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, the Acadia Denali just hit the market recently. We’re not quite sure what’s up with the hefty time-to-market since the package is mainly an appearance upgrade, but we digress.
Based on a standard GMC Acadia – the mid-level version of GM’s Lambda platform that also spawned the Chevrolet Traverse, the Buick Enclave and, for a period, the Saturn Outlook – the Denali follows in the footsteps of similarly-styled and optioned GMC Sierras and GMC Yukons.
The idea is simple: A body kit, fancy wheels, an chrome honeycomb grille and a full complement of luxuries inside. Unlike the Yukon and Sierra, the Denali name doesn’t bring with it more power on the Acadia.
Despite its premium intentions, the Acadia package really only adds around $1,000 to a loaded Acadia SLT.
What’s it up against?
Loaded up like our tester, the Acadia’s biggest rival is internal: The Buick Enclave. But if we wanted to step out of the GM realm, the nearly $50,000 as-tested price means the Acadia Denali squares off against the likes of the Ford Flex Titanium and Land Rover LR4. Standard Acadias are better positioned against the Toyota Highlander, Mazda CX-9 and Honda Pilot, as well as the upcoming Ford Explorer and Dodge Durango.
The competition is stiff but varied, to say the least.
Any breakthroughs?
It’s hard to call a styling package a breakthrough, but the Acadia’s basic Lambda architecture was pretty groundbreaking when it debuted in 2006 as a 2007 model. As the first truly roomy three-row crossovers, the Lambdas set the bar pretty high for rivals.
Of course, that was more than four years ago.
How does it look?
We like the basic Acadia package with its chisled front fascia, clean lines and even its unpainted lower sections. Unfortunately, the Denali package adds too much glitz for us.
Sill extensions and front and rear fascia changes combine with a cheesy cheese grate-style chrome grille and painted chrome wheels to give the Acadia too much of an aftermarket look reminiscent of conversion vans. All that’s missing is a graphics package and a tailgate-mounted ladder to climb up onto the roof.
Styling is subjective, but we’ll stick with a basic Acadia SLT, which doesn’t take the path to Tacky Town.
And on the inside?
Luckily, the Denali package doesn’t change much here, where things feel positively 2007. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, since there’s plenty of comfort and space in all three rows and useful touches abound. But as new competitors like the Explorer arrive on the scene, the Acadia is starting to feel a little mature.
Black plastic dominates the cabin, although it is broken up by a smattering of fairly convincing black stain-style faux wood. Most of the materials are soft touch, although they’re of the rubbery variety you won’t find in the Enclave.
The seats – ventilated up front and heated in rows one and two – are covered in a rich leather, but the cover on our brand new tester’s driver’s seat didn’t fit correctly. We tried to pull it back on, but it never seemed like it was installed properly. At least those seats are firm and supportive, even if there might be too much lumbar support for some drivers.
GM parts bin switchgear abounds, including a four spoke steering wheel (points if you can name all of the GM vehicles that currently use this wheel), a DVD-based navigation system and dual-zone climate control with digital buttons. Let’s just say that if you’ve been in a Chevrolet Tahoe or a Chevrolet Silverado, you’ll feel right at home. These aren’t inherently bad parts – they do their function and generally operate with precision. The navigation is a bit dated, but it works well and its menu system is much easier than most rivals.
The second row offers stretch-out room and our tester’s two captain’s chairs easily fold forward to allow for access to the third row. Room back there is above class average and the seats tumble away into the load floor at the touch of a button.
Two sunroofs let the sun shine down on rows one and two, although neither is particularly large and both feature flimsy perforated shades that don’t really keep harsh sun out.
But does it go?
Pop open the Acadia Denali’s giant hood and you’ll find GM’s now-ubiquitious 3.6-liter V6 nestled up against the firewall.
Offered in nearly every every GM product under the sun aside from full-size ‘utes and small cars, the direct-injected mull puts out 288 horsepower and 270 lb-ft. of torque. It breathes through a dual exhaust setup and puts power to either the front or (as tested) all four wheels via a six-speed automatic transmission.
It’s the same powertrain you’ll find in the Enclave and the Traverse and, for the most part, it moves the nearly 5,000 lbs. Acadia Denali along reasonably well. At city speeds and under moderate acceleration, the big crossover has no difficulty keeping up with traffic. It’s only when you go to merge onto a highway or pass slow moving vehicles on a busy two-lane road that the vehicle’s power-to-weight ratio begins to seem rather weak. A little more oomph would do this vehicle well, especially when the Denali badge is along for the ride.
Rivals, like the Flex EcoBoost and LR4 don’t make excuses about their power and neither should the Acadia Denali. In fact, the body-on-frame GMC Yukon might be heavier and only marginally more powerful, but its V8 puts out 335 lb-ft. of torque, which helps it feel more usable and fleet-of-foot in most driving situations.
The benefit to the Acadia Denali, at least on paper, is that all-wheel-drive models click in at 23 mpg on the highway and 16 mpg in the city compared to the Yukon’s 15/21 figures. In real world driving, however, we struggled to see above 20 mpg on the highway and saw just 14-15 mpg in urban driving. We’ve seen similar mileage in Yukons.
The Acadia does deliver an especially smooth ride over even the most undulating pavement. We didn’t venture off road beyond driving over some wet grass, but the all-wheel-drive system offered commendable grip. Steering is precise but overboosted, making it about par for the class. Parking is a piece of cake at low speeds despite the big dimensions, but we wish the system firmed up a bit for curvy roads.
Its unibody structure is tight, forgoing the body drumming you’ll find in SUV-type rivals. A fully independent suspension is plush, but it combines with the unibody to limit towing to a reasonable 5,200 lbs.
Why you would buy it:
You want the best of the best – by “professional grade†standards.
Â
Why you wouldn’t:
That boxy Yukon across the showroom can tow more without really guzzling more.
Leftlane’s bottom line
We can’t help but think that Acadia Denali answers a question that GM shouldn’t have been asking. Its premium positioning puts it at odds with the more luxurious-feeling Buick Enclave, while its thirsty and hard-working V6 isn’t going to convert full-size SUV buyers.
Even though it’s a pretty darn good vehicle, the Acadia Denali fulfills a need GM’s lineup doesn’t have.
2011 GMC Acadia Denali base price, $45,220. As tested, $49,460.
Cargo Convenience Package, $130; Navigation, $1,890; Rear seat entertainment, $1,445; Destination, $775.
Words and photos by Andrew Ganz.
Rating:
