The Most Efficient BIG SUV On the Road? 2021 Chevy Tahoe 3.0L Diesel In-Depth Review & MPG Test

[@duggydo]

Steve probably could have gotten better mpg, but he’s not as smooth and clean shaven as his dad. That beard is a real wind drag. 🤣😂

[@warrenbarnes9653]

Seriously impressive fuel economy! I believe that there is an inherent advantage of an in-line 6 over a V6, both in smoothness and the breadth of the torque curve. This is an excellent vehicle, despite its high price.

[@Thankyou_3]

Nice review on the Tahoe, I really believe this is the direction that auto industry needs to move forward with Diesel if fuel economy is a concern. None of the EV nonsense. This is a very nice review showing what GM is capable and if they sit down in their boardroom and focus on transferring this kinda of technology on their entry level vehicle (mid 25K vehicles), GM will absolutely dominate the entire auto industry knocking off Toyota or Honda.

[@volocty]

Thumb's up! We own one and it's by far the best full size SUV we've ever owned. The real-world mpg is unbelievable (30hwy\24city). We pull a 6500lb camper and it's no problem (averaged 15mpg on a 400 mile trip around the local mtns and deserts of Calif)

[@aharquail]

Rolling resistance obviously makes a huge difference with fuel economy that’s why paved roads are better than dirt. You’ll also notice fuel economy is worse when it’s raining compared to dry.

[@enjoylife7030]

I would say that fuel economy is nearly double what we average in our 2018 Tahoe with the 5.3L V8. That is very impressive. We bought our Tahoe for a family of 5 with 3 teenage boys, not for fuel economy, but it sure would be nice to see some numbers over 25 mpg. This vehicle at 30 mpg would have quite the range.

[@MrJamesLuz]

At low speeds, aerodynamics matter less and windows down is more efficient. At higher speeds, aero matters more and A/C is more efficient.

[@ze3bar]

A/C is negligible unless you're hypermiling

[@berkalper4742]

happy I found this channel along with tfl. good content presented well. keep it up man!

[@aharquail]

If you end up watching older TFL videos you’ll notice Steven used to work for them.

[@berkalper4742]

@@aharquail yup just noticed that as well, thank you. hopefully it was a friendly split

[@pajamatime5750]

@@berkalper4742 It was extremely friendly and his final video was done well with some classy appearances by the TFL guys. All of them are great. Steve and his father do tremendous work on here! Glad ya found them all

[@Slickpete83]

great review , how big is the fuel tank in litres ? i wonder the total driving range city /hwy in km's

[@PETERLINNAH]

I currently have a 2017 Chevy Suburban. If I was buying a new vehicle today this Tahoe would be it. Gobs of room (it's bigger than the previous generation Tahoe which is why I chose the Suburban instead), and it's a beautiful, comfortable and refined SUV.

[@mountainhobo]

@Peter L -- Curious, in that case why would you not buy a new Suburban diesel? What is the reason you would downsize to Tahoe? Sometime down the road I may be facing those decisions, so I am curious about other people's experiences.

[@PETERLINNAH]

@@mountainhobo The new Tahoe is about 4 inches longer than the old one. Just enough to tip the scales for me toward the Tahoe. (The new Suburban is longer too.) Also, I expect the ride will be improved in the new Tahoe, with the IRS and longer wheelbase. I thought the old Tahoe had a bit of a choppy ride -- another reason I went with the Suburban. Also, the diesel seems like a good engine, but it's pricey and I don't tow anything anyway.

[@mountainhobo]

@@PETERLINNAH Thanks!

[@curtissharris8914]

@@mountainhobo I drove both couldn't tell the difference except zipping around the round about and then only marginally.

[@mountainhobo]

@@curtissharris8914 Thanks, John. I've rented a Tahoe and will take it for a cross country trip. That should give me a decent feel for it.

[@giermob11]

Can't wait until someone decides to put a diesel engine with a hybrid system, how many miles would we get.....

[@mikeriv60]

They probably will not do it because then nobody will need those POS electric vehicles that the big companies want people to drive. Man made climate change is BS. All about the cash.

[@forol09]

That thing exist but in Europe 🌍

[@forol09]

It would be over 100 miles per gallon, huhh ... That's is the issue 😉

[@darkrain2493]

Last time GM made Hybrid versions for the Tahoe and Yukon and it was terrible. It only saved 1 gallon of fuel.

[@steveknight9254]

One question I’d like to ask, did you do the TFL trick and top off the tank to check the ACTUAL mileage by calculating it? Some of the trip computers can have errors. Past GM’s I’ve had have been fairly accurate but I’m curious about this one? Also One reason to get the SUV over a truck is it can be parked in a 20 foot garage where a truck really doesn’t fit, we get lots of snow up here in the great white North and I don’t like having to dust off my Vehicle in the morning and I’m not a truck guy anyways. I’d buy the Tahoe over the Silverado for that reason alone, that and the ride is better with independent rear suspension. Nice comprehensive review showing actual L per 100km a number I need as a fellow canadian to compare, thanks keep up the good work , I like the channel.

[@nooddles12]

great review sir and you have a wonderful family.

[@hope6571]

Don't know about the US, but here in Europe Chevy have 1.7 diesel engines in their Cruze model. My dad owns one with manual and on the highway it easily does around 4.5-5l/100. The fact that such a behemoth like the Tahoe can do 6.6-6.7l/100 even with careful driving is amazing.

[@sohailashraf3232]

wonderful trip...wonderful Tahoe.

[@RobertKohut]

That's a US conversion using smaller gallons. In Canada it's an impressive 42.8 miles/gallon.... :-) Wow!! (US gallon 3.8L, CA gallon 4.5L) @11:37

[@TruckKing]

When we talk about gallons its always the US gallon. Fuel is not sold in gallons here - only liters. There is still a Canadian gallon around - but its not used.

[@RobertKohut]

Ya, but us old fellas still relate to Canadian MPG.... :-)

[@theblindredneck747]

I can’t see the start stop feature being very healthy for the turbo.

[@mikefoehr235]

The fuel economy of this SUV is Toyota Corolla and Honda Civic territory. This SUV looks pretty stylish. If I had more confidence in GM, I would consider one.

[@cnoyes72]

I love the Tahoe (I had an 04 I drove until 2018), though I think I would go with a gas engine since I don't tow (also not a fan of the cost of the duramax plus the increased cost of maint.)

[@erniearruda8861]

I also have a04 Tahoe Lt ,bought it a couple years ago and like it.it does have its quirks, but for $6 grand couldn’t beat it . New ones are way too high these days.

[@amatureskater15]

yea.... btu at 80K the Diesel pays for itself, plus the range is insane

[@greenwichtahoe]

I wish it still came with the duel exhaust tips

[@stevenpeterson7234]

Awesome video!! Still 32-36 mpg is amazing!! I'm stuck between either a Ram 2500 cummins or a Chevy 1500 duramax or Chevy Colorado duramax!! 🤷‍♂️

[@Robert8455]

Impressive fuel economy for a big tank. You did not mention or maybe I missed about your tire inflation. I think you might be able to gain a little more with some additional PSI at the expense of some ride quality but... a challenge is a challenge right? I think this is a great vacation rig but I wonder the effects on the catalyst if its also used for very short daily commutes... like 3 miles one way... not really enough time to let it fully warm up. Any thoughts on that?

[@eriktabor6478]

Add air pressure to the tires. 5-10 psi helps a lot in fuel mileage.

[@robertduklus6555]

also helps buying new tires sooner and he rides deteriorates so why bother. You cant afford the fuel buy the Prius .

[@eriktabor6478]

This was a competition, I run what the manufacturer recommends, but he is trying to win a gas mileage comp. no reason not to bend the rules a bit. I know the air inflation truck because many dealers/shops, when you get an oil change will toss in an extra 5+ psi. They say it’s for air loss, over your 5k, but it does help with mileage early in an oil change cycle.

[@gloriamaletta8667]

My buddy had this engine in a crew cab Silverado 1500 it blew up before 9000 miles chevy took the truck back lemon law they replaced it with the same truck but with the gas 5.3 the diesel that blew up was going through DEF fluid like crazy before it stopped running

[@R.Nelson]

I'm jus teasing about the 74' Howard...jus my way of saying Hello... didn't see you on this one.. Enjoy the Afternoon 😃!!

[@TruckKing]

I was off - see you in the next one. H.

[@abdulelahalansari6485]

Elegant.. . Love new look.....

[@stormbreaker3027]

Unfortunately you maybe saving mpg with the engine shutting off an on during stops, but engine startup is the absolute worst at wearing an tearing the engine too. So if theirs an option to turn it off, or not have it period id opt out of it since money save on mpg shutting on an off won't compare to the cost of repairing the vehicle.

[@jflowers090]

Why didn't the stop start kick in?

[@ParsianTV]

this is nuts, these are Subaru Forester numbers.

[@JDGillis]

Yep, and you don't have to lower your standards of comfort, convenience or style to Subaru levels.

[@davidmackenzie6767]

Time is the problem I want to get to my destination today not Tommorow Gramps

[@plattet6094]

a beautiful car, maybe you will see it more often in Europe now ?!

[@xlthumper]

Not gonna lie. Dinosaur train is an awesome show!!!

[@mikefoehr235]

I watched Blaze and the Monster Machines with my grandson. We also loved Booba

[@RR-vf2bd]

Please make toddler carseat test on all future cars/trucks

[@R.Nelson]

Morning Steve!! Much better truck in front of the house😃!!..ol green..but don't see my 74' F100??😆😅🤣jus kidding Howard😆😅 Enjoy the day!!

[@visualizncustomiz2150]

Iam about to buy a diesel tahoe. I was wondering. Whats the difference between LS and LT and all the trims. I want the cheapest possible but without any compromises. Is (LS) a good enough?

[@TruckKing]

You'll have to go look - I just can't know if you'd think it was good enough. Sorry.

[@bradbaraniuk4085]

start stop fuell savings very negligable.

[@paulm6481]

These are nice rides regardless of engine. But in my corner of world, Atlanta, Georgia they are unobtanium. You can not find the, on dealer lots. They sell off delivery trucks. Chevy has hit a gold mine with these, I bet they can sell twice what they can make.

[@golf18mike]

I'm torn between a Tahoe and a Yukon Denali do you know what the difference is are? I definitely want a diesel.

[@gulshanzahoor]

Rent each for a week. Problem solved. Then decide.

[@spracker8]

Awesome Ride, prefer the look of the RST Model Personally.. $88K is way too much money in my opinion, an RST with the Duramax are around $80K which is also too Much.... I guess our Money becoming more and more worthless.... in Nov 2016 I bought a 2017 Sierra Denali for $63K... that same truck now is around $80K, crazy... (All prices listed in Canadian Pesos) Fuel Economy is amazing though!!

[@erniearruda8861]

I have an 04 Tahoe that I bought a couple years ago, it has 185 thousand kilometres on the clock. Gas kills me on it at almost $100 a tank fill up. Pretty much getting 16 litres per 100 kilometres on average mostly city nowadays.Can’t really go anywhere out of region due to lock down. Diesel is cheaper for running and great for towing, but high maintenance cost and finding a licence diesel mechanic is hard to find. Most mechanics are heavy duty large trucks that they work on, small passenger they would decline on service. You are basically stuck going to the dealership for that service and hopefully they have a couple of diesel mechanics just working on dura max engines only. I think GMC should’ve gone the better hybrid route and use mostly city driving on electric only and gas on 80 km on up for highway speeds and towing. Like other brands do.

[@mikefoehr235]

That is what i get with my Tundra...16 to 18 range.

[@innovativeintelligence4172]

They have made hybrids since 08 the Suburban Hybrid gets 20 in town

[@pechmichaelchristina2640]

Would you take the diesel over the 6.2???????

[@sandshark5584]

I sell GM vehicles and I absolutely love that engine. Super efficient and INSANELY quiet and powerful. Go buy it!!!

[@bt4b4]

Any issues or recalls ?

[@sandshark5584]

None that I know of. I’ve actually had 2 coworkers buy Silverado’s with the diesel this year who never considered it before because it was so surprising to drive (in a good way). If you’re considering it, I’d definitely just go drive one. You’ll understand the hype way faster than any comment!

[@Thankyou_3]

@@sandshark5584 Thanks for the encouragement to buy the Tahoe, can you talk with your GM head office that if they transfer some of these technology onto their smaller cars/SUV price point of 25K they can blow Toyota and Hondas. Why is it GM have such great technology but failed miserably in the last 3 decades to implement right across all their line up?

[@sandshark5584]

@@Thankyou_3 I’m not sure what GM has planned for their smaller vehicles. All we know is there will obviously be a strong push towards full electric models and my guess is they’re picking their battles and focusing on the higher selling models (trucks and large SUV’s) for new fueled engines and just moving to electric moving forward. Makes more sense then wasting developmental energy making a hybrid or some other gas system that inevitably is going away in the near future.

[@Thankyou_3]

@@sandshark5584 That is a lie Biden is feeding that EV is taking over. GM needs to look out for their long term future instead just 4 year term that this clueless Biden government is seeing. The infrastructure for EV is no where close to implementation. I don’t see any charging stations at local gas stations, do you? So let’s get realistic…what about electricity, do you think it’s free? It comes from coal and natural gas, this is dirtier than gasoline.

[@ktpinnacle]

When it converts to mpg in Canada, does it convert using imperial gallons?

[@TruckKing]

Imperial gallons have been retired. We use liters exclusively. However, If we talk about MPG its always based on US gallon.

[@ktpinnacle]

@@TruckKing Then that mileage is phenomenal. Would you regard your driving style during that time as hypermilling?

[@gulshanzahoor]

I want to think that when GM lines up a few Ultium flat blade batteries underneath the rear seats, the new full hybrid with synchronous motor 2. L TURBO DURAMAX (My idea) will kick the economy down to 2L/100 km. I HOPE they do. A sliding door And camper mode to spend a travel night in it.

[@james2042]

The high country is 1 higher and really the only difference is the lack of available air suspension, but it still has the mag ride dampers. The fuel economy gained from this kind of driving is not that much, I did my 37 mile commute each way with these kinds of saving tricks and it netted me like .3mpg over my usual 13mpg I am a single guy and I wanna buy one because these things make better cruisers than anything else Edit: you had the sunroof open which adds a LOT of heat, Also tinting the shit out of your back windows also helps with that (I'd say front too but they're dicks about front tint)

[@jamiecraswell9368]

The cost of today’s vehicles is just crazy 80k for a Tahoe!!

[@james2042]

you can get a tahoe for 50k, and you can get an 8 seater people mover for 30k called the traverse.

[@rustypliers74]

@@james2042 or even better you can buy used and save a ton

[@AkioWasRight]

@@rustypliers74 Saving =/= value. Also, even before the chip shortage, used vehicle prices were crazy.

[@paulh3973]

Yeah, when you spend 80k for a Tahoe, are you really concerned about fuel mileage?

[@james2042]

@@paulh3973 More the range than anything, 700 miles to a tank in a 6000lb suv

[@0scar3378]

CaseOh??

[@604parkour]

You have to like the way diesels drive, if that’s the worth the mileage to you then go for it.

[@wyattearp1418]

Tahoe looks better, but it’s to small, had one, stick to Suburbans

[@alanmay7929]

6 litres/100 cest excellent pour un ci gros véhicule

[@northerntoyota7584]

1-2L/100km with the windows down?? You mean 0.1-0.2? Or did I hear that wrong? If 1-2L/100km id say other factors were at play during that section! Diesel is the way to go for fuel economy

[@111TheFox111]

Sorry, but that's not how you calculate fuel usage... Trip computer can be extremely off...

[@marcusj4467]

5L - 6.6L that is as good my my Prado 2.8L diesel, I need more gears :)

[@jimmyr1683]

I wanna see 0-60

[@michaelharrisson1683]

It looks like it's Ford counterpart from the back

[@mikemissouri5152]

Yeah you’re way better off taking the major highways and just running 60 miles an hour versus two lane back roads

[@brightymcbrightface]

Great mpg, but 15 years late to the market, diesel is now the most expensive fuel at the pump, SUV drivers don't want to deal with diesel (refueling, maintenance, DEF emissions additive, cold weather driving, or the lack of acceleration.) Real world 30 mpg vs say 20 mpg real world in the F-150 Hybrid, the advantages go to the Hybrid for purchase price, operating costs and with 12,000lb towing, not 8000. You'd have to go tens of thousands of miles to breakeven on the fuel costs, and the purchase price and depreciation are the real cost. Not a smart purchase for the dollar, but if you want a big SUV, tow frequently but not heav, you have a suitably sized budget and will keep this vehicle for 100-200K miles … and you like the appearance …

[@4673962]

Not where we live. During the Trump diesel was the cheapest fuel. Now it is about the same or a little more than 87 octane. 85 is the cheapest.

[@stbentoak5047]

@@4673962 Correct and most big V8 vehicles need premium which is a solid .60 higher than Diesel in my area. I get 25 MPG min in my Dmax Denali, And go 40% further on the same gallon of fuel as a 5.3 or 6.2.... and my lifters aren't failing at a sadly frequent rate like the V8 counterparts...

[@fastedz09]

Sorry brighty but if you drove 50000km per year your would save roughly $6000, keep it for 4 years, fuel savings of $20k!

[@brightymcbrightface]

@@fastedz09 your math is a bit wonky … if diesel is more expensive than 87 then paying more for the diesel engine will save $6000 per year … Anyway, what I wrote was in favor of the diesel if you like driving a small diesel in a big vehicle and expect to tow a lot of the miles you drive … and keep the vehicle for a lot of miles. I don't think 50K (kms or miles) will break even on the purchase price, let alone save more than the total cost of fuel for that distance (ya twit.) Look at the math: 30,000 miles at 30 mpg is 1000 gallons (Diesel) or $4000 at $4/gallon 30,000 miles at 20 mpg is 1500 gallons (Hybrid) or $6000 at $4/gallon So that's a plausible 500 gallon advantage, but 500 gallons at even $4 is only $2000 … how can you save $6000? $6000 is the total cost, not the saving? And in parts of the US, gas/diesel is $2 … I think the diesel costs more to purchase, costs more to maintain, costs more per gallon of fuel (in some regions) and in return has lower towing capacity, slower acceleration and doesn't have really useful things like the 7.2kW generator option of the Hybrid … no wonder Ford dropped the diesel from the F-150 … no wonder people don't buy it … that's not to say it's bad … for the right owner, who wants a tow vehicle with those specs, it's fine and looks a million times better than the GM products (which are quicker acceleration) … if you wanted a diesel, I'd shop around and look for dealers wanting to sell near invoice and not expect to save money on mpg.

[@barbiesandlol3018]

Do you really think that people that spend 88 k plus tax will drive 50 mph to save money...... try 80mph , single person 95% of the time

[@gloriamaletta8667]

Really I'd prefer the new gas 6.6 liter as a option why because if l need more power than the 6.6 gas engine just get the duramax V8 diesel something proven not to crazy about experimenting with engine options on a 60+ thousand dollar SUV just me because I'm expecting it to last a very very very long time for 60 thousand + without any drama or aggravation

[@edgart49]

First!!!!! Do I get a prize?

[@TruckKing]

Isn't being first enough?

[@edgart49]

@@TruckKing it is now!!! Thanks

[@Georgejoseph74]

Kilometre,Litre and pounds???It’s confusing!!!I always gets lost in POUNDS!!!!

[@culinarycaravan]

Tahoe has FIVE child seat tethers? #giddyup

[@sswayyyy124]

That’s not normal driving because you trying hard not push the truck

[@matthewm3912]

The main reason I’d never buy this is the idiotic timing chain.

[@trevorhowell6575]

All Chev trucks are ugly compared to GM...and it used to be the other way around

[@mohmad6901]

Tanks for Traduire🤍🤍🇸🇦