2013 GMC Yukon XL: problems, recalls and reliability
4 recalls and 22 owner complaints on record; most reports concern structure; the 2012 and 2014 model years look more trouble-free.
Data updated weekly · latest recall Feb 2021
All counts are reports filed with NHTSA in the United States - US market only, not worldwide totals.
Common problems
Computed from 22 owner complaints filed with NHTSA for this exact model year.
“I have a message on my dash stating to service airbag I'm afraid for my safety or the safety of my passenger due to this message involving the airbag”Owner report · Air Bags · Sep 2018
“Tl* the contact owns a 2013 gmc yukon xl. The contact stated that the dashboard was cracked on the front driver's side. The failure occurred without warning. The contact called and took the vehicle to countryside chevrolet buick gmc (n8167 kellom rd, beaver dam, wi 53916, 920-354-6097) where the technician took pictures of the failure and stated that the dashboard needed to be replaced at the owner's expense. The manufacturer stated that there was no recall and the vehicle was out of warranty. The manufacturer referred the contact to NHTSA. The failure was not repaired. The failure mileage was 82,000.”Owner report · Structure · Apr 2018
“The dashboard around the airbag and steering/instrument cluster has severely cracked and broken. This is a safety hazard in the event of an accident the dashboard pieces become shards of shrapnel propelled by the airbag and/or impact of the crash. There have been no wrecks, modifications, or any other actions that would cause this damage - it is the result of faulty production.”Owner report · Unknown Or Other · Nov 2017
Show 7 more owner reports
“The dash board near the steering column just cracked as well as the interior driverside front door. Both pieces appear to be cheap plastic. I have received a quote for $1600 to fix the door and $1000 to fix the dash when these are both defect from gm.”Owner report · Structure · Sep 2017
“The driver's seatbelt will not lock. The driver is unable to wear a seatbelt while driving. This is a huge safety concern for me.”Owner report · Seat Belts · Aug 2017
“Defect caused dash to crack at the passanger airbag, I am concerned about my children being injured from the cracked dash as well as the shards flying and injuring my child if I were to be in an accident.”Owner report · Structure · Dec 2016
“Dashboard cracked by front passenger airbag. Spontaneous crack with no external cause. It was not a hot day. Stationary vehicle.”Owner report · Air Bags · Nov 2016
“My dash board is cracked around the airbag location on the passenger side of the vehicle. Researching this has shown that it's a reoccurring defect in the yukon, sierra, silverado, tahoe and surburban models. There are numerous reports of the same issue without any corrective action by the manufacturer short of a replacement "case by case" basis.”Owner report · Structure · Oct 2016
“My dashboard from the passenger side to the drivers side including the area over the gauges is cracked and some sections fell in under the dash, leaving a hole. My concern is if the airbag deploys, the dashboard will turn into shrapnel and seriously injure or kill the occupants. *tr”Owner report · Structure · Sep 2016
“Tl* the contact owns a 2013 gmc yukon xl. While driving approximately 35 mph in the rain, the windshield wipers seized. The contact pulled the vehicle over to the side of the road to wait for the rain to stop. The vehicle was taken to a local dealer and the manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 70,000. Updated 10/19/16*lj the consumer was informed there would be no consideration beyond 36,000 miles. Updated 10/25/16.*jb”Owner report · Visibility · Aug 2016
When filing, owners marked a crash in 1 of these complaints and injuries in 0 - self-reported to NHTSA, not verified accident statistics.
Recalls - 4 campaigns
General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013-2014 Cadillac CTS, Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Yukon, and Yukon XL, and 2014 Buick Enclave, Chevrolet Express, Impala, Silverado HD, Traverse, GMC Acadia, Savana, and Sierra HD vehicles. In the affected vehicles, the chassis electronic module may be internally contaminated, resulting in an electrical short.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the chassis electronic module, free of charge. The recall began on December 26, 2014. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1-800-521-7300 (Buick), 1-800-458-006 (Cadillac), 1-800-222-1020 (Chevrolet), and 1-800-462-8782 (GMC). GM's number for this recall is 14515.
General Motors (GM) is recalling certain model year 2013 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT; Chevrolet Avalanche, Express, Silverado HD, Silverado LD, Suburban, and Tahoe; and GMC Savana, Sierra HD, Sierra LD, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles, manufactured between November 7, 2012, through December 18, 2012, for failing to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) No. 102, "Transmission Shift Lever Sequence, Starter Interlock, and Transmission Braking Effect", and FMVSS No. 114, "Theft Protection and Rollaway Prevention." The vehicles may have been built with a fractured park lock cable or a malformed steering column lock actuator gear in the lock module assembly.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will inspect the affected vehicles and replace the steering column as necessary, free of charge. The recall began on January 21, 2013. Chevrolet owners may call 1-800-630-2438. Cadillac owners may call 1-866-982-2339. GMC owners may call 1-866-996-9463.
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2013 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alabama, California, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Texas, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands (Saipan), and the U.S. Virgin Islands or "Zone A." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2010 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered in the states of Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia or "Zone B." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2009 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, and Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, Silverado 2500/3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 1500, Sierra 2500/3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of Alaska, Colorado, Connecticut, Idaho, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, New Hampshire, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Washington, Wisconsin, and Wyoming or "Zone C."
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 24, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on May 11, 2021. Owners may contact Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006; Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020; and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N212328790.
General Motors, LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2014 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 2500, Sierra 3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of AL, CA, FL, GA, HI, LA, MS, SC, TX, PR, AS, GU, the MP, and VI or "Zone A." Additionally GM is recalling certain 2011-2014 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 2500, Sierra 3500, Yukon, Yukon XL and 2011-2013 Cadillac Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of AZ, AR, DE, DC, IL, IN, KS, KY, MD, MO, NE, NV, NJ, NM, NC, OH, OK, PA, TN, VA, and WV or "Zone B." Additionally, GM is recalling certain 2010-2014 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Chevrolet Silverado 2500, Silverado 3500, Suburban, Tahoe, GMC Sierra 2500, Sierra 3500, Yukon, and Yukon XL and 2010-2013 Cadillac Escalade EXT, Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado 1500, and GMC Sierra 1500 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of AK, CO, CT, ID, IA, ME, MA, MI, MN, MT, NH, NY, ND, OR, RI, SD, UT, VT, WA, WI, and WY or "Zone C." These vehicles are equipped with non-desiccated passenger frontal inflators containing phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate (PSAN) propellant. These inflators may explode due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, high temperatures, and high temperature cycling.
Remedy: GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on February 25, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed to 40 VIN owners on May 11, 2021. A second owner notification letter was mailed to all other owners on January 24, 2022. Owners may contact Chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020; Cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006; and GMC customer service at 1-800-462-8782. GM's number for this recall is N212328800.
How other years compare
Check your exact Yukon XL by VIN
Recalls and equipment differ between individual vehicles. Decode your VIN to see what applies to yours.
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Is the 2013 GMC Yukon XL reliable?
NHTSA has 22 owner complaints and 4 recall campaigns on record for the 2013 GMC Yukon XL. The most complained-about area is structure.
Does the 2013 GMC Yukon XL have open recalls?
4 recall campaigns have been issued, the latest concerning electrical system. Check your specific vehicle by VIN - recall repairs are free at franchised dealers.
Source: NHTSA recall campaigns and owner complaints (public domain). Counts reflect reports on file and are not a defect rate.