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The long hard winter caused a good deal of havoc on the roads so it was always a relief to clamber into the cab of the Yukon and be confident that it would not get stuck in the snow and ice.
If the going did get particularly tough it was simple to switch the drive into 4x4 mode via a dial positioned within easy reach on the centre console, but on the whole, the Yukon coped better than most in harsh conditions even when left in two-wheel drive.
The biggest inconvenience caused by the relentlessly foul weather was an impromptu visit to the car wash, necessitated by our D-max becoming liberally coated in the salt that was spread on the roads to stop them from being clogged up with stricken vehicles.
The frozen conditions caused many a meteorologist to hark back to previous ice ages such as the one that gripped the nation in the early 1960s. Many vehicles in those days would be grounded for the duration, giving up the will to start with barely a splutter. Nowadays, most can be relied upon to get going, and our D-max is no exception, reliably firing up with the first turn of the key in the ignition, leaving the engine to chug away contentedly while we swept the snow off the windscreen.
Getting in and out of the cabin in slippery conditions is made easier by a non-slip side step, which both the Yukon and the top-of-the range Utah model get. This also offers some protection to the lower body paintwork from grit and stone chips.
Somewhat less impressive in the sub-zero temperatures was the in-cab heater, which took an age to warm up the interior and meant most trips of less than an hour were undertaken wearing a coat and winter woollies.
Also, if you want the comfort of heated front seats to take the edge off the cold then you’ll have to plump for the flagship Utah.