Experienced by Adrian McQueen
Photography by Adrenaline Lifestyles
The 2024 Acadia Denali is a crossover SUV manufactured by General Motors for its GMC division. The Acadia went on sale in 2006 as a 2007 model in the United States, Canada and Mexico. A Denali version of the Acadia debuted for 2011. The 2024 Acadia was revealed at the 2023 North American International Auto Show and with an increased size seating up to 7 people now. This week is our chance to be able to review this beautiful vehicle.
General Motors Truck Company, or GMC, is owned by General Motors. General Motors is an American automaker known for pickup trucks and SUV’s. GMC is one of GM’s subsidiaries, along with Chevrolet, Buick and Cadillac. The GMC Denali nameplate was introduced with the GMC Yukon for the 1999 model and is now used by GMC for the “top of the line” trucks and SUVs. Vehicles with the Denali trim option are priced a bit higher than the other packaged models. There are a few notables about the “Denali” name. It was derived from the native Alaskan Athabaskans / Koyukon people’s name for the tallest mountain in North America. In addition to that, it is the name of the Denali National Park and Preserve that surrounds the mountain, along with the Denali State Park. This mountain was formerly named Mt. McKinley and officially renamed Denali in 2015 by President Obama’s administration.
Upon first look you notice the prominent GMC emblem on the chrome grill. The Acadia that we reviewed came in an Ebony Twilight Metallic hue. The Acadia now has a more a truck-like front fascia with a larger body. The Denali has LED headlamps and sleek black applique on the rear of the vehicle. The Denali sits on 22” pearl nickel aluminum wheels. The Acadia definitely has grown in the redesign and can be likened to the Yukon.
The interior comes in a plush leather sheer and more spacious cabin. The Acadia has a heated steering wheel, heated and ventilated 8-way driver and front passenger seats, one-touch folding second-row seats, a panoramic sunroof with a power sunshade, third row 60/40 split bench power fold and more. The Acadia has a seating capacity of seven passengers with dual second-row captain’s chairs that I really loved. I always find that the captain chairs provide more comfort for the passengers.
I enjoyed the tech that came in the Acadia Denali. It came equipped with the 15-inch tablet-style infotainment system and an 11-inch reconfigurable instrument cluster display. The infotainment system is complete with Navigation, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a 16 speaker Bose performance audio system, SiriusXM satellite radio and additional charging ports. The Acadia has all the features that most of the luxury vehicles that I receive to review have in them.
The Acadia Denali is powered by a 2.5-liter, turbocharged inline-four gasoline engine kicking out 328 hp and 326 lb⋅ft of torque. This is an increase of 18 horsepower and 55 lb. ft. of torque over the previous-generation Acadia’s naturally-aspirated 3.6-liter V6 engine. This model also came with the “Super Cruise” semi-autonomous driving system. Fuel economy with the Acadia Denalia comes in at 19 mpg in the city, 24 mpg on the highway and 21mpg combined. Considering the large size of this SUV, it is not that bad. I really enjoyed the handling of the Acadia. There was minimal body roll as I went through turns and corners. Acceleration was more than adequate if you felt the need to put some pep in your step.
The safety features added to the Acadia are much needed with features such as blind-spot monitoring, rear cross-traffic alert, lane-departure warning, trailer tire pressure monitor sensors, front and rear parking sensors, forward-collision warning and automated emergency braking. The Advanced Driver-Assistance Systems (ADAS) in the Acadia also includes Pedestrian and bicyclist detection, Intersection turn assistance, Lane-keeping assistance, Lane-centering assistance, Adaptive cruise control and a side bicyclist alert.
The GMC Acadia Denali is in a highly competitive class going up against the Ford Explorer, Ford Edge and the Jeep Grand Cherokee. GMC provides a competitive warranty plan for the Acadia with a Bumper-to-Bumper limited warranty that covers three years or 36,000 miles, a powertrain warranty covers five years or 60,000 miles and complimentary maintenance that is covered for the first visit. There is also Corrosion Protection in which all body and sheet metal components are warranted against corrosion for 3 years or 36,000 miles or whichever comes first. There is also Roadside Assistance and Courtesy Transportation included for 6 years/70,000 miles.
The model that we tested is priced at $64,810.00. Luckily for consumers the assembly of the 2024 Acadia is performed in America at the Lansing Delta Township Assembly Plant in Michigan so there should not be much of a price increase due to the tariffs. Overall, I really enjoyed the Acadia Denali AWD. Please enjoy my photo gallery.
