2023 Toyota Sequoia vs Ford Expedition vs GMC Yukon Drag Race Is a Slow Quarter-Mile Burn

The first one to make its entrance at the Dunnville Autodrome in Canada is a long-wheelbase Ford Expedition produced for the 2023 model year. Twinned with the F-150 pickup, this vehicle uses a 3.5-liter V6 of the twin-turbo variety and a 10-speed automatic tranny.

Tipping the scales at an estimated 5,962 pounds (2,704 kilograms) in this configuration, the Expedition also flaunts four-wheel drive. With 440 horsepower and 510 pound-feet (691 Nm) of torque on deck, it’s the second most powerful and second torquiest vehicle of the trio.

Next up, the Sequoia enters the fray with less power, but more torque from a 3.4-liter sixer assisted by a transmission-integrated electric motor. Only available as a hybrid, the redesigned ‘Yota is a chonker, at 6,179 pounds (2,803 kilograms). Despite being a hybrid, fuel economy isn’t its forte either, at 20 miles per gallon (11.8 liters per 100 kilometers) on the combined test cycle.

Still a marked improvement over the naturally-aspirated V8 of the previous generation, the Sequoia belts out 437 horsepower and 583 pound-feet (790 Nm) on full song. The final entry comes in the form of a General Motors product with a good ol’ V8 engine under the hood, namely a small block that makes 420 ponies and 460 pound-feet (624 Nm) from a displacement of 6.2 liters.

Even though it features the most archaic engine of the bunch, the GMC Yukon is genuinely luxurious in Denali Ultimate specification. Blurring the line between GMC and the Cadillac brand, this particular trim level is the most expensive available for the 2023 model year, at $96,450 with V8 muscle and the standard wheelbase.

Closer in curb weight to the Expedition rather than the Sequoia, the Yukon launches better than its V6-powered competitors off the line. The Expedition makes easy work of the Sequoia before the halfway mark of the quarter-mile sprint, then passes the Yukon for the win.

The victor clocked 13.9 seconds in the quarter mile, besting the 14.6 seconds of the Yukon and 14.9 seconds of the Sequoia. Can either of them redeem themselves from a rolling start? Sam CarLegion is much obliged to answer that question with another slow burn that sees the Expedition finish in a shocking third place out of three.

In second place, GMC’s luxed-up Yukon Denali Ultimate deserves a round of applause for this result despite its naturally-aspirated engine with two valves per cylinder instead of two turbos and four valves per cylinder. Even more shocking, the Sequoia wins this roll despite the disappointing result from a standing start.