UPDATE: I'm more convinced than ever, that this is a kernel bug.
I multi-booted the following 64-bit distros on my Dell 7010 i5-3470:
Ubuntu 16.10 Yakkety Yak, Linux Kernel 4.8.x (as described above)
openSUSE Tumbleweed, Linux Kernel 4.8.x (same problem)
Peppermint 7, Linux Kernel 4.4.x (no problems)
UPDATE: I'm more convinced than ever, that this is a kernel bug.
I multi-booted the following 64-bit distros on my Dell 7010 i5-3470:
Ubuntu 16.10 Yakkety Yak, Linux Kernel 4.8.x (as described above)
openSUSE Tumbleweed, Linux Kernel 4.8.x (same problem)
Peppermint 7, Linux Kernel 4.4.x (no problems)
As an aside:
Windows 10 Pro (no problems)