autumnrstarr

LONG POST warning:

Purchased from dealership almost 6 years ago around 89K miles. Love it. We travel nationwide, often so it is very important to have it reliable. Current mileage is 188K.
Current issues: * Need to replace rear end (differential was leaking and I believe my husband took the cover off and said something like the gears looked a little worn). Ended up buying a used '04 tahoe z71 rear end and that is also bad.
* Transfer case leaking
*4WD service indicator on
*4WD/2WD buttons sometimes are illuminated, sometimes it switches in and out of 4WD (we ALWAYS try to keep it in 2WD now that transfer case is messed up)
*instrument cluster is pretty much out. The only thing that works properly is the actual window that the notices pop up on
*tire monitor indicator on-i've tried resetting it but havent figured out how to do it properly
* Possible tranny slip-after some research it could be caused by a few easier fixes rather than an actual tranny swap
*driver seat heat will turn on for a few seconds but passenger side will cut it off
*driver side door lock needs to be replaced (the button broke off and im sure rain water has gotten in it over the past year causing it to work slow or function improperly
*possible ac leak-front ac only gets cold while driving. rear ac is fine. Husband just put some freon in but says it needs more so we can determine if anything else could be wrong with ac
*ABS light stays on

Past issues repaired: *replaced intake manifold gasket and something else because it was open (sorry i cannot remember exactly what it was but I'm sure you can figure it out)
*replaced all spark plugs at that same time
*replaced all O2 sensors
*replaced thermostat


Other than that, I think nothing else has gone wrong with the truck. We change oil every 3 months/3K miles. Once or twice it has been around 5k miles because I got the purple oil. Tranny has never been flushed, don't intend on doing it. all the typical tune up stuff has been done pretty much regularly.

We are not made of money, but I really love this truck. Would it be worth it to spend $$ to repair/replace the rear end, get a new transfer case, and lastly tranny if needed? Engine seems to be in great condition. We have been trying to do research online, call shops and yard nearby for pricing. We only used 4WD probably 5 times a year before the transfer case became an issue last year. Since then, we have not used it at all. Pretty much just asking for opinions here.

falconbrother

Those differentials need an overhaul from time to time. Very, very common. Depends on who does it as to what the cost will be. Mine went 219,000. Just had it rebuilt.

The transfer case is a bigger job than most people would want to tackle in their driveway.

Tranny slip is scary. Sounds like an overhaul.

The other issues are probably things that a good shade tree mechanic could fix.

I think that if you want a shop to fix all of these things you're going deep financially speaking.

autumnrstarr

well i know for a fact that we can replace the rear end ourselves with no issue. It's just a matter of finding a used rear end that isn't broken! That is exactly what happened, was we got a used one from a pick n pull place. That would be our first major repair and most important because we don't absolutely need 4WD. At least, not anytime soon. I've read that as long as we don't engage 4WD, we can go a little longer before having to replace the transfer case. It's been a year since we found that it was also leaking. Since then, we have just filled it up with more fluid in hopes that it doesn't get damaged any further until we can replace/repair it. That may be a shop repair or, possibly home repair if we find a used one to do it ourselves. everything else isn't priority because it isn't giving us too much of a problem. We are currently using WAZE as a speedometer and using the dashboard notification for how many miles of gas we have left. Although the actual gauge doesnt work, the fuel light will come on when it is low. The battery, oil, and gas gauges no longer work, the speedometer is off by 5mph when it does work, the rpm seems to be fine as well as the temperature gauge. so, for now, I think we can deal with that. and i'm not even 100% of the tranny slip so that issue isn't high on the list as of yet. Occasionally, I'll put it in reverse but it doesn't engage so I'll have to put it back in Park, and then back in Reverse and it works. There's another symptom but I cannot remember what it is so I'm not worried about it at this time.

autumnrstarr

Husband called and said a shop ended up calling him back. They just got an '04 tahoe and would charge $460 or something for the transfer case. Husband also told him of all the other issues and the shop told him $85 for a diagnosis and if we get any work done, that fee would be waived. I'm hoping that it's not just a basic diagnosis but one that would at least tell us WHY the ABS and 4x4 alert is on, and possibly any other issues including tranny. I cant imagine all of that would be included but crossing fingers. It is a possibility the tahoe may have most of the stuff we need. We plan on dropping it off tonight so the shop can look at it tomorrow.

tech2

if the cost to repair the vehicle is more than the value of the truck...it may be time to put that money into another vehicle. just don't buy another old vehicle as it probably will need work also.

falconbrother

Well, if you can get it back on the road for a couple of grand I'd say do it. A newer version of what you have will be considerably more. As you have seen Suburbans in great shape have a good resale. It's only the seriously worn out ones that go cheap. It's better to know exactly what you have than to buy a used Burb and not be sure for a while.

autumnrstarr

Dropped it off at the shop last night so it could get diagnosed today. The owner was still there so my husband was talking to him. Owner's opinion is not to buy a newer burban because they aren't made like they used to be. i couldnt agree anymore. We've had a rental 2015 tahoe and it had a lot of new and cool features but to be honest, i wasn't really impressed. I can see the three major repairs being somewhere around $3-4k. Which is basically the kbb. Isn't there exceptions where you feel like your vehicle is worth more than kbb? I'm not saying it looks immaculate, but for the use its had, it looks pretty darn good. And we just finished paying the car note this past december.

anyway, the tahoe the shop got is coincidentally black with gray interior...just like my burban. So hopefully everything matches and we can afford to fix it this way. We would probably get the shop to replace the transfer case and get the fee waived, and then purchase every other part we need off of the tahoe and fix the rest ourselves. But, I could be getting my hopes up. Won't know until he calls us tonight with results.

falconbrother

You still see a whole bunch or Suburbans from 1999.5 - 2007 on the road. I totally think it's worth saving. A new Suburban cost around $75,000.00 with the options that are on mine (LT). If you junked it a used car dealer would buy it, fix all the broken stuff and make a profit on it. That happens all the time. They only part out the one's that have been crashed. If one comes in with a "straight body" it almost always gets sold, repaired and put on a car lot some place. So, it's worth spending a few thousand on. Look at the "fair market value" of your burb. I think you'll see a bunch of Suburbans that are selling for more than KBB because people want them. Heck, around here a nice, clean Suburban of that era is going for around ten grand, especially an LTZ.

oldchevy

Sounds like you are very happy with it and want to keep it. This being the case then it is worth it to you to repair it. The main thing is that you are happy with it and think it is worth it.

autumnrstarr

Funny you say this because that is EXACTLY what the owner of the shop told my husband last night. Almost verbatum. Said 2007 and under was made a hell of a lot better than newer models. He says he sees a lot of newer ones only making it around 160k or so before having to replace engine and/or tranny. And from what i can FEEL and hear, my engine is solid. not one complaint. To be completely honest, although fairly iffy travelling long distance, we've been doing it and it's been fine. But I'd rather be 100% okay travelling than about 75-80%. My husband stays on craigslist 24/7 it seems and he sees older burbans still selling, and for more than what kbb says. He said he just seen one that got a new tranny and 160k miles that looks EXACTLY like mine sell for almost $15k. I think it had 2015 wheels on it but still. I'm just really hoping this works out because I've never had a vehicle this nice and really love it.