Hennessey Tunes the GMC Yukon Denali, and Insanity Follows

2015 GMC Yukon Denali HPE650 (Credit: © Hennessey)

Hennessey is no stranger to making insane tuning kits for many different types of vehicles. It has also shown that it is not afraid to turn its sights on the large-and-in-charge SUVs of the world. Today, it has once again taken a full-size SUV and created something that defies basic physics with the introduction of the HPE650 Supercharger upgrade for the 2015 GMC Yukon Denali.

Being designed for the Yukon Denali means that this kit is set up to work only with the SUV’s 6.2-liter V-8. In its base form, this engine pounds out 420 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque. Hennessey saw it fit to equip this powerhouse with a 2.9-liter Whipple supercharger, a high-flow intercooling system, a stainless-steel catback exhaust, and an in-house engine-management tune to push the output to a whopping 650 horsepower and 658 pound-feet of torque.

The end result is one hell of a family hauler, as the standard-wheelbase model clips 60 mph in just 4.5 seconds, while the long-wheelbase XL model hits 60 in just 4.7 seconds. Not even Mercedes-AMG’s big-bad GL63 can keep pace with this American muscle-SUV, as the German heavy-hitter takes 4.8 seconds to crest 60 mph. The quarter-mile comes in just over 13 seconds at 110 to 112 mph in the XL model – they gave no info on the standard model’s quarter-mile time.

As is typical with Hennessey tunes, you don’t just get the horsepower and go on your merry way. The tuner also includes serial-numbered dash and engine plaques, Hennessey badging, “HPE650” badges, “Supercharged” badges, and embroidered headrests.

You can rest assured that this isn’t a hack job either, as this is far from the first rodeo for the engineers at Hennessey. They back this up by offering a three-year or 36,000-mile limited warranty.