GMC first launched the Denali luxury trim in 1999, and has sold millions of examples.
If you’re shopping for a “luxury” truck or SUV these days, the lines have blurred thanks to virtually every brand offering a high-end trim, and even a trim above that — like your Platinum and your Limited, or your Limited, your Limited Longhorn then your Tungsten. It’s all gotten a bit crazy as automakers (and especially the big three) chase more and more of your dollars. That trend really got rolling in the late 1990s and early 2000s, though, as Ford introduced the “King Ranch” trim on its F-Series trucks and GMC introduced “Denali” on the Yukon SUV. Fast-forward 25 years, and GMC is celebrating the Denali sub-brand’s success with a limited edition package for the revamped 2025 Yukon Denali and Denali Ultimate.
Even without a special package, the latest GMC Yukon Denali is a proper luxury SUV in its own right, to the point where you really don’t need to step up to a Cadillac Escalade. General Motors has spent the last two decades cultivating Denali as its own brand, and has sold more than 2 million examples of Denali-branded trucks and SUVs since 1999, on the first-generation Yukon GMT400. This year, the automaker says the highest trim accounted for 30% of its retail sales.
Per GMC: “The Denali brand, named for the tallest peak in North America, has become so widely recognized that is commonplace for customers to simply refer to their vehicle as a ‘Denali’.” (For reference, the native Koyukon people have referred to the mountain as Denali for centuries, while the U.S. officially recognized the peak as Mount McKinley between 1917 and 2015.)
This specific 2025 GMC Yukon Denali 25th Anniversary is a limited-run package, restricted to 3,000 examples globally. As we’ve come to expect from these special options, it’s essentially an appearance package that adds gloss black 24-inch wheels and center caps, a black mesh grille and illuminated GMC front emblem, black nameplates and badging and black mirror caps. GMC showed what the package looks like on a Summit White Yukon to show what all you get, but the package does not seem to include any bespoke “25th Anniversary” badging.
It’s also worth noting that much of the package content is already available on the $1,495 Denali Ultimate Appearance Package, while the 24-inch wheels are a $3,398 standalone option. This limited edition does, however, bring all these goodies to the standard Yukon Denali. GMC did not mention specific pricing for the 25th Anniversary Package, but it will probably add a few thousand dollars to the Yukon Denali or Denali Ultimate’s MSRP based on prices for the existing appearance options.
Driven by “overwhelming consumer interest”, Ram announced Wednesday that it would launch the Ramcharger pickup first next year, ahead of the fully electric REV.
Automakers across the board are reading the room on the public’s interest toward electric vehicles — and changing their plans. In Ram’s case, the agenda reflects prospective buyers’ interest in the range-extended Ramcharger truck over the Ram 1500 REV, its fully electric option. Citing “slowing industry demand”, today’s announcement stresses the impending Ramcharger’s advantages over the rest of the half-ton segment, while casually mentioning the REV launch will now happen in 2026.
The 2025 Ram 1500 Ramcharger marries a 92-kWh battery pack to Stellantis’ existing 3.6-liter Pentastar V6, which will act as a 130-kW generator to extend the truck’s range to what the company claims is a “class-shattering” figure: 690 miles. For its actual propulsion, the Ramcharger gets a 250 kW front motor as well as a 238 kW rear motor, for a combined output of 663 horsepower and 615 lb-ft of torque.
Ram claims the new Ramcharger is capable of towing up to 14,000 pounds with a Class V hitch installed, and delivers a payload capacity of 2,625 pounds, even with the substantial battery pack on board. The company also says the truck will sprint from 0-60 in 4.4 seconds, so I think you get the theme of Ram’s pitch here: This is supposedly going to be one of the most capable, best all-around trucks in its class. That said, we don’t yet have a full view of the Ramcharger’s technical specs nor have we had the opportunity to actually test its capabilities yet, so it’s reasonable to approach all the “targeted” figures with a grain of salt until next year’s launch.
Like the gas-powered trucks, Ram will build the electrified truck at its Sterling Heights, Michigan plant.
There’s no official word on pricing yet, but the automaker says consumer orders will open up in the first half of 2025. So, we should see more details — including a full trim walk, as Ram plans a similar structure of Tradesman -> Big Horn -> Laramie -> Limited -> Tungsten to the gas trucks — sometime in the next couple months.
At the moment, the general consensus is for the 2025 Ram 1500 Ramcharger Tradesman to start around $60,000 MSRP, with higher-end trucks possibly touching the $100,000 mark. I want to be clear that is speculative at this point, but expect it to cost a fair bit more than the gas-powered Ram 1500 lineup, which runs between $42,270 on the Tradesman end and $89,070 when you work your way up to the Tungsten.
There may not be a new sheriff in town, but they might be driving a new Ford Expedition SSV.
Ford’s been in the game of building law enforcement vehicles for 75 years now, and the company isn’t ceding any ground to the likes of GM or Stellantis. To that end, the automaker has a brand-new version of its largest police SUV, or “Special Service Vehicle” — the 2025 Ford Expedition SSV.
As you’d expect, the biggest change afoot with this update is the new look, as it’s obviously styled after the fifth-generation Expedition. It’s a bigger brother to the ubiquitous Explorer-based Police Interceptor Utility, though this Expedition SSV brings most of the changes to the civilian-spec model to the party, including a lot of its technology. Under the hood, this updated model still rocks Ford’s 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged EcoBoost V6, putting out 400 horsepower and 480 lb-ft of torque through a 10-speed automatic transmission and standard four-wheel drive with a two-speed transfer case, Touch on Demand functionality to change between 4WD modes and a 4-Auto setting.
With a weight-distributing bar installed, the 2025 Ford Expedition SSV can tow up to 9,600 pounds (or 9,000 pounds with the Expedition Max SSV).
On the styling front, much of the 2025 Ford Expedition SSV mirrors its civilian counterpart, save the police-spec light bar and push bar. The SSV also gets a set of 18×8.5-inch aluminum wheels with P265/70-R18E all-terrain tires (Ford shows Pirelli Scorpion ATRs in its promo materials). At the back, the Expedition SSV still gets the new model’s split-folding tailgate setup which supports 500 pounds when the bottom part is folded down.
The Expedition’s new displays and driver assistance tech still make their way over to the SSV model.
Move inside the 2025 Ford Expedition SSV, and you’ll see an interior that still features the 24-inch panoramic display atop the instrument panel, as well as the 13.2-inch center infotainment display. There’s also the same steering wheel arrangement with context-sensitive controls, and Ford retained the standard SUV’s suite of driver-assist features like a 360-degree camera system, adaptive cruise control, blind-spot monitoring with trailer coverage, Pre-Collision Assist with Emergency Braking and Intersection Assist, Lane-Keeping System, Reverse Brake Assist and even Pro-Trailer Backup Assist.
There are a few features the 2025 Ford Expedition SSV gets that the standard-issue civilian models don’t, of course. Like the Explorer PIU, there’s a Police Accessory Independent Timed-Release Output (PAITRO), that cuts off cargo area access only to those who need it. The vehicle also gets a “Dark Car” mode to black out all the lights on a stakeout. The SSV’s electrical system is also capable of handling the extra police-specific gear, while it can also receive over-the-air updates to minimize time at the dealership.
Two versions of the Expedition SSV are available to government agencies. A two-row configuration offers up cloth seats and vinyl floors for the harder use they’ll see against your run-of-the-mill family hauler, for a start. Then, a three-row Max version is also on the menu, offering a 60/40 power folding feature and power recline to better accommodate personnel or equipment, depending on the situation.
Like the civilian-spec 2025 Ford Expedition, the automaker will build this SSV version at its Kentucky Truck Plant. With Ford’s official announcement this week, local law enforcement agencies should be able to order these rigs right now, so expect to see them on the local beat in your area soon.
The 2025 Nissan Armada rounds out a slate of full-size SUV overhauls, but did the best come last?
Across the board, automakers building huge, body-on-frame family SUVs have been revamping their respective models for a new generation. That includes Nissan, which reimagined the aging Infiniti QX80 into a handsome and far better luxury contender, and now we’re getting our first hands-on with the 2025 Nissan Armada, which brings its own host of updates to the table. There’s a brand-new and far bolder design inside and out, as well as a brand-new twin-turbocharged engine cranking out more power than past-gen Armadas were able to manage. But how well does it all actually come together? In the video below, Andre takes a comprehensive look at Nissan’s new halo SUV by taking it off-road, hitching up a trailer, the whole shebang.
This new Armada can be a luxury SUV in its own right, or a more capable off-road rig
One thing’s clear right from the outset: The 2025 Nissan Armada is certainly the larger-than-life SUV it always was. In fact, it’s actually slightly larger than before (go figure). Its overall length measures out to 209.6 inches, up from 208.9 before, while the width increases to 83.3 inches (up from 79.9 inches) and the height also goes up to between 78 and 78.6 inches, depending on the model (up from 75.8 inches). Add to that the new grille and headlight profile, the broad shoulder lines and the rear-end design with new LED taillights and a light bar connecting the two, and this new Armada has some serious presence on the road.
Under the hood, the 2025 Nissan Armada ditches the long-lived 5.6-liter Endurance V8 for a smaller, twin-turbocharged powerplant. Here, you get a twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6, but despite the downsizing you still get 425 horsepower and 516 lb-ft of torque. The overall output is down 25 horsepower from the QX80, but the up side is that you can get that sort of power on regular pump gas, rather than having to fill it up with premium fuel. And even still, that’s 25 more horsepower and 103 lb-ft more torque than the old V8, even if we will definitely miss the old-school sound. Rather than a 7-speed automatic transmission, the third-generation Armada also finally gets with the program and gets a 9-speed automatic instead. Four-wheel drive is available across most of the range, except the Pro-4X where it’s obviously mandatory.
Towing capacity remains the same as before at 8,500 pounds, though the new Armada will arguably be able to handle that capacity more smoothly than the previous SUV (check that out in the video below!).
On the mechanical side, Nissan also stiffened the Armada considerably (25% more torsional rigidity and 57% better lateral stiffness) over the previous model, while engineers have also refined the suspension and changed the steering setup over to an electric system rather than hydraulic assist. The Platinum Reserve and the Pro-4X also ride on height-adjustable air springs, while the rest of the lineup gets a standard coil setup.
The new Armada’s interior rivals bona fide luxury SUVs…like the QX80.
Look inside the 2025 Nissan Armada — especially on the higher trims — and you’ll still get swaths of stitched and diamond-quilted leather that would be right at home in the QX80, and other luxury SUVs to boot. Every 2025 Nissan Armada gets a dual-display setup, ranging between 12.3 inches on the SV and SL, and 14.3 inches on the higher-end trims. Technology starts to come into the picture when you get into the SL and higher trims, with items like a 12-speaker Klipsch audio system, Google built-in infotainment capability, wireless smartphone charging and heated front seats. The Platinum and Platinum Reserve (as well as the Pro-4X) get even more goodies, including a surround-view camera system.
On the whole, there’s a bit of extra room to go around with the larger dimensions. The 2025 Nissan Armada accommodates third-row passengers better than before with an additional 4.5 inches of legroom, while you get three more cubic feet of cargo volume behind the rear seat (20.4 cubic feet), as well as 4.5 extra cubic feet (97.1 cubic feet) with the two passenger rows folded.
What about the Pro-4X?
One of the biggest changes to the 2025 Nissan Armada is the ever-so-fashionable Pro-4X off-road trim. Nissan needs something to compete with the Ford Expedition Tremors, Chevy Tahoe/Suburban Z71s, GMC Yukon AT4s and Toyota Sequoia TRD Pros of the world, so you get some more dirt-worthy kit if you opt for this trim.
The air suspension allows up to 2.1 inches of lift from stock ride height, while you also get a unique front fascia to improve the approach angle to 33 degrees. Breakover and departure stand at 25.5 degrees and 24.5 degrees, respectively, which are pretty respectable numbers for such a massive SUV. Spec’ing a Pro-4X also gets you chunkier tires, an electronic locking rear differential and recovery hooks, so while it may not be as indomitable off-road as an all-out off-road truck, it should handle itself more capably than your run-of-the-mill mall crawler (and there’s always the other trims, if the pavement is what you’re sticking to).
If you’re interested, the 2025 Nissan Armada comes in at the same $58,530 as the outgoing model, and is actually pretty good value against the competition. Now, you do quickly climb up the price band as you move into the SL, Platinum, Pro-4X and Platinum Reserve, with the two highest trims running you anywhere from $75,750 to $79,000.
Many of us take pickup truck names for granted, but there is history behind every name. In this case, the Chevrolet Silverado vehicle brand is turning 25 years old, and the Silverado trim level name turns 50 years old. To mark this occasion, Kase and Zach flew out to Michigan to drive one of the first 1999 Chevy Silverado 1500 GMT800 truck and see how it compares to the newest 2025 Chevy Silverado 1500 and the Silverado EV.
1999 Chevy Silverado 1500
Before the Silverado was the name of the truck lineup, it was a trim on older square-body pickup trucks. This video focuses on a 1999 Chevy Silverado 1500 regular cab. This generation of the Chevrolet truck lineup is referred to as the GMT800. It’s a 4×4 with a longer bed, a Z71 off-road package, and a 5.3L V8 engine. This was a very typical configuration for a light-duty half-ton pickup truck in 1999. Believe it or not, a Silverado 1500 four door crew cab was not even an option back then. Heavy-duty pickup trucks were available with four doors and seating for up to six, but it was not so for smaller trucks.
In 1999, this V8 pickup truck was rated at 270 hp and 315 lb-ft of torque. The engine was backed up by a 4-speed automatic transmission (4L60E). It was rated to tow up to 8,200 lbs. However, the relatively short wheelbase and lighter weight of these older trucks did not inspire ultimate trailer towing confidence when approaching the limits.
Nonetheless, these older trucks were fairly comfortable to drive and provides good fuel efficiency when compared to new trucks.
2025 Chevy Silverado 1500
Things a wildly different now. The most popular pickup configuration is a four door crew cab with a shorter bed. The pickup truck became more refined, comfortable, powerful, and capable. It also became much more than a work tool. It became a family vehicle and an everyday commuter.
Kase takes a new 2025 Chevy Silverado 1500 for a drive as well. This generation is referred to as the T1, T1XX, or GMT T1XX. This generation made its debut as a 2019 model year. The T1 has been updated a couple of times since its introduction, but the powertrains remain mostly the same. The T1 is powered by a selection of gasoline or Diesel engines: 2.7L TurboMax I4, 5.3L Ecotec3 V8, 6.2L Ecotec3 V8, or a 3.0L LZ0 Duramax I6.
Kase drives a Silverado 1500 High Country with a 6.2L V8 that is equipped with a performance intake and exhaust systems. This 420 horsepower engine is backed up by a 10-speed automatic transmission (not a 4-speed that was available in the 1999 models). The new truck is rated to tow heavier loads (up to 13,300 lbs), it’s comfortable, and it can be equipped with a hands-free SuperCruise driver-assistance technology.
Silverado EV
The Silverado lineup has an all-new electric version – the Silverado EV. It’s based on a different platform and shares very little with its internal combustion siblings. The truck you see in this video is a Silverado EV RST. It is currently at the top of the electrified Silverado range. It boasts 760 horsepower. It offers AWD/4WD capability and very quick acceleration times despite its heavy curb weight.
The large battery in this truck allows it to drive up to 460 miles on a full charge (according to Chevrolet). We tested a Silverado EV work truck in Colorado, and we can confirm that it has a very long driving range, even when pulling a trailer. The Silverado EV has a class exclusive mid gate that expands its cargo-carrying capability and utility.
It has a couple of negatives as well. The Silverado EV costs more than most of its internal combustion counterparts. The new Silverado EV is priced between $57,095 and $97,895. Most of the Silverado EV trucks that we have seen or tested were prices above $75,000.
While an electric pickup may be a great around town vehicle, it’s still challenging to road trip an electric truck. Although, the Silverado EV offers very fast level3 charging – the charging network has reliability issues. It’s also difficult to find a level3 electric charging station that accommodates trucks with trailers.
What will the next 25 year bring? Will there be a flying 2050 Chevy Silverado? Will there be a Chevy Silverado driving on the moon? It’s not out of the question. What do you think?
Ford set up a full-scale Raptor-palooza event in Utah called the 'Raptor Rally' to celebrate its full lineup of off-road juggernauts, as well as their owners. Here's what the experience was like!
