jonathon
Active member
Border Patrol bumper mod for extreme clearance. I figure if these trucks survive these guys they must be solid.
GMT900 Suburban/Yukon XLs today
- Thread starter MarcusBrody
- Start date
Border Patrol bumper mod for extreme clearance. I figure if these trucks survive these guys they must be solid.
You are correct that a used suv will be less expensive than an equivalent year/mileage/option truck. And many are rarely taken offroad or hammered on. A very mild lift ( think maybe an inch from torsion bars) and a slight tire size upgrade allow me to use mine for many hunting trips and family explorations both in the southeast and in the western states. The slight tire size increase ( more sidewall) combined with airing down a bit will help as much as anything on washboard roads. Nothing can eliminate all the discomfort. As the suspension needs work you can upgrade components.
I have three suvs ( Tahoe, Yukon, Suburban) set up this way and we thoroughly enjoy them all. usually have one in Colorado, one hooked to a hunting trailer and one ready for whatever today brings.
Keeping the family happy will pay big benefits. Good luck and update us on what you get!
I have three suvs ( Tahoe, Yukon, Suburban) set up this way and we thoroughly enjoy them all. usually have one in Colorado, one hooked to a hunting trailer and one ready for whatever today brings.
Keeping the family happy will pay big benefits. Good luck and update us on what you get!
JeepinPenguin
Member
@MarcusBrody I have had my 2007 Suburban now for 1 yr. It has about 135k miles on it. I have changed all the front end suspension components, new rear HD coils, new wheels and tires, removed front valance and running boards and I'd take this on any service road/washboard road/etc. without question. Reliability wise its been good. Only issues I've had is currently a slow transmission fluid leak but its getting looked at this week actually.
It is true that aftermarket is a bit tough for these. Need to do a bit of research but it is fun to see that there is something out there you want but cant just plug and play and need to come up with your own solution. So far mods I've made for mine include custom interior drawer system/sleeping platform and a custom rear tire carrier for a full size spare.
It is true that aftermarket is a bit tough for these. Need to do a bit of research but it is fun to see that there is something out there you want but cant just plug and play and need to come up with your own solution. So far mods I've made for mine include custom interior drawer system/sleeping platform and a custom rear tire carrier for a full size spare.
02TahoeMD
Explorer
I know that I am a bit late to this party, as others have noted already, definitely, by all means, if you get any GM SUV that is cursed with AFM do a delete of some kind. There are electronic ones that shut it off, and there are also complete overhauls that replace the top end of the engine. My prior employer we used Tahoes for my unit. We had a 2007, two 2011s, two 2013s. So far the 2007 and a 2013 have had complete replacement engines, the 2007 at about 110K, the 2013 at 68K miles due to AFM damage, my 2011 had to have the entire top end rebuilt after the AFM decided to eat the camshaft at 70K. The other 2011 and 2013 have all had major repairs done to the A/C systems but somehow have avoided the curse of AFM destruction.
So proceed with caution when shopping for that body style. If you are lucky to find one with a complete service history and have had the AFM curse dealt with, you should be good to go. The LS engine is a great design, it is a tragedy that AFM was allowed to be put in it.
So proceed with caution when shopping for that body style. If you are lucky to find one with a complete service history and have had the AFM curse dealt with, you should be good to go. The LS engine is a great design, it is a tragedy that AFM was allowed to be put in it.
Bob Boyer
Member
Hi Marcus,
Just a data point for you: a quick photo of the Burb with the Bilsteins and HD rear springs as described in my first comment to you. The new tires are 275/65-18s (32.1" diameter) on some 18" takeoffs from a Silverado. Interestingly, the tires on the truck when I bought it were 265/60-20s (32.5" diameter), which were 1.6" larger than GM's specified 20" offering: 275/55 (31.9" diameter). They did not rub at the lower ride height. These rub slightly at full lock, even with the increased ride height. I'm guessing the difference in offset - +31 on the 20" wheels vs. +24 on the 18" wheels - may have something to do with that as I purposely decided to opt for tires closer to the 32" size to avoid that situation. All that said, the ride is excellent, it's well controlled, and I'm happy to have the increased sidewalls of the 18s.
Hope your hunt will be successful. Knock on wood, this one feels very strong after upgrading the known issues. I have more to do, but I'm gonna take a break until January or so to let the bank account heal. Plus, fall's approaching. It's time to hit the road and do some camping.
Just a data point for you: a quick photo of the Burb with the Bilsteins and HD rear springs as described in my first comment to you. The new tires are 275/65-18s (32.1" diameter) on some 18" takeoffs from a Silverado. Interestingly, the tires on the truck when I bought it were 265/60-20s (32.5" diameter), which were 1.6" larger than GM's specified 20" offering: 275/55 (31.9" diameter). They did not rub at the lower ride height. These rub slightly at full lock, even with the increased ride height. I'm guessing the difference in offset - +31 on the 20" wheels vs. +24 on the 18" wheels - may have something to do with that as I purposely decided to opt for tires closer to the 32" size to avoid that situation. All that said, the ride is excellent, it's well controlled, and I'm happy to have the increased sidewalls of the 18s.
Hope your hunt will be successful. Knock on wood, this one feels very strong after upgrading the known issues. I have more to do, but I'm gonna take a break until January or so to let the bank account heal. Plus, fall's approaching. It's time to hit the road and do some camping.
Grassland
Well-known member
I think you need to show your work here on that math
Bob Boyer
Member
Your right. Tires that I bought the truck with should have been 0.6" difference over the stock 275/55-20 size. The tires I put on the truck were actually 0.4 less than what i took off of it. Thanks!
Just FYI, here's the actual specs on all tire sizes.
From Tire Rack's website, General Grabber A/TX listing (Diameter in bold) for GM specified size:
None | 2,679 lbs | 65 psi | 15/32" | 57 lbs | 7.5-9.5" | 8.5" | 11.2" | 9.5" | 31.9" | 651 |
From Tire Rack's website, General Grabber A/TX listing (Diameter in bold) for the size tires which came on the truck when I bought it (they were actually Goodyear SRAs or some such but diameters match):
None | 3,197 lbs | 80 psi | 16/32" | 61 lbs | 7.5-9.5" | 8" | 10.7" | 8.9" | 32.5" | 639 |
From Tire Rack's website, General Grabber A/TX listing (Diameter in bold) for the tires I installed:
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