First time poster here and hopefully not the last as I will likely be buying my first Chevy today. I finally got rid of my Dodge after 250k miles and hopefully this forum will be as helpful as the Dodge forums were in helping make my truck last well over 200k miles.

The truck I'm looking at is a fully loaded 2000 Suburban LT with 152k miles. It's about a 2 hour drive from where I live and I've agreed to pay $5350 for it if everything looks good. Talked to the seller over the phone last night and he said it runs and looks great outside of a few minor things (I believe him).

So here are my questions:

1. What kind of things should I be looking for on this truck outside of the normal used car inspection? Any problems areas on this age of Suburban that I should be aware of? I've heard a lot about issues with the Expeditions(5.4 problems, plugs, cat converter) but haven't heard much about the Suburbans.

2. What maintenance would you do right away on this truck not knowing the service history? Tranny flush, plugs, etc? I plan on taking the wife and 3 kids on a few road trips and want to get a least 100k out of this thing.

3. Am I right choosing the Suburban over the Expedition?

Ok, I know this is a Chevy forum so sell me on the 'burban and take away my last reservations! It seems that Expeditions generally cost less than Suburbans (I can get a 2003 or 2004 Expedition in the same price range) and as near as I can tell it's because the Suburbans are just better trucks.

Thanks in advance.

 

Transmission. fluids, make sure all the hvac controls work. my 01 has been problem free less a cracked radiator tank, and brake pads. oh and the drum parking brakes are useless. mine threw the shoes and was making all kinds of noise til I tore it all apart and got all the chunks out.

:chug:

 

I just bought a 2001 and before they put it on the lot, the blower motor and tie rods were bad. Other than that, most suburbans I saw were rock solid (all over 120k).

 

I'd probably flush the transmission and check the spark plugs for sure, then of course all other fluids or maintenance items. In my opinion expeditions/escapes/explorers are all junk not many of them have I seen be dependable or last much over 100k

 

We are the original owners of a 2000 LT. We only have 95k on it since my little old school teacher of a wife only drives it 1 mile to work. Too bad you don't buy mine. We just had the very expensive air shocks replaced for $1100 but this has been the only major repair in 12 years!!!!!!!! It will soon need a tune-up. Air still works (knock on wood). Brakes only once and still plenty of pad. Ours has been garaged and being in Texas, gets little rust. Best vehicle we have ever had. Good luck with the high mileage one you are getting.

 

Thanks for the replies everyone. Well, we made the drive and bought this thing on Sunday. Overall, this truck is rock solid and I felt like I got a good deal. In the cities, trucks in this condition with this mileage are going in the high $6k to low $7k range and we paid $5350 cash. My only concerns are:

1. Fuel pump - it's making a constant whining noise which from the research I've done appears to be normal with these trucks. There was even a receipt in the service records where the previous owners had taking the truck to a dealership for "fuel pump whining" and the resolution was "noise is normal".

However, the fuel pump does appear to be a weak point on these vehicles and I don't think it's ever been replaced. Being that it's got 152k on it and I plan on taking the family on some 400 miles trips this summer I'm thinking about proactively swapping it out. It's the only thing I have any concern about as far as being left stranded somewhere. Am I wrong in my thinking here?

2. AC Compressor - this one irks me a little. Either the seller didn't know what he was talking about or he flat out lied to me. The AC compressor is making a clicking noise, which is an early indicator that it is failing. I could tell the sound was not coming from the engine and he said it was the air compressor for the autoride suspension. Come to find out the compressor for the autoride is in the back of the vehicle! The AC blows cold and this was my own fault as I could have easily proven him wrong (and talked him down a few hundred bucks). Bottom line is that I still feel like I got a good deal.

Tranny fluid is pink and transparent and she shifts strong so I will probably leave that alone. Will likely put in new plugs and plug wires, change the fuel filter (and possibly the pump), and change the oil with synthetic.

One thing I noticed is that the autoride compressor turns on every time we start the truck. Is this normal or is this an indication of a leak in the system?

Thanks again...

 

Ha, my wife is a teacher too and drives 4 miles to work. This will be her daily driver so the miles put on will be minimal, outside of a couple summer road trips and winter hockey tournaments.

 

yeah fuel pumps on these seem to whine constantly... I put this way, you know something is wrong when you DON'T hear it.

ac compressor... ouch.


:chug:

 

Yeah, I'm going to put a gauge on the fuel rail and see what the pressure looks like. Then I'll decide if I want to swap it out.

As far as the AC goes, it's working now and might work for years to come (living in Minnesota we only use it 3 months out of the year). However, if the compressor seizes up on me it could cause even more damage. From what I've read so far it's likely just a bad clutch. Gonna see if there's a way to change it without pulling the compressor.

 

A/C compressors normally click when they engage or disengage