Edmunds dealer partner, Bayway Leasing, is now offering transparent lease deals via these forums. Click here to see the latest vehicles!

Chevy Suburban Maintenance and Repair

145791012

Comments

  • kiawahkiawah Member Posts: 3,666
    Check all of electrical connections at the battery, to ensure tight and no corrosion. If it persists, I would replace the battery at you are pretty much at end of life on that being 4 - 5 years old (depending on actual manufacturing date.
  • marymac1marymac1 Member Posts: 1
    Bought the car thinking that I would find peace of mind and security about last June 2006. 3-months after purchasing and every 3 months afterwards, something has been giong wrong with it. Thank God for the warranty on it. The 1st 3 times I had been driving the vehicle for awhile. On all 3 occassions, I would park the car, do my errands, get back in, start it up and push on the gas. To my surprise, I could only go about 20 miles per hour and each time had to get towed to the nearest dealership. The 1st time this happened, the wiring harness burnt out, the 2nd time it was a gradual thing that at first I didn't notice until much later. By then the damage was done; my left front rotor, pad and brake had to be replaced. Nothing happened on the 3rd time. This last time (3 months after the previous) both my rear door locks fail to lock and unlock. Frustrating and a sense of what now....has anyone experienced anything remotely close to this?
  • rubikscuberrubikscuber Member Posts: 1
    Recent: replaced a/c compressor and nearly all a/c parts. That seemed to be working fine but serpentine squeeled, it seemed. I though it was due to not have a/c for a year, and added load to belt.

    Not the case. I have the a/c clutch wires pulled out at the moment.

    My real problem: Truck was running fine, until I went out to eat and it sat in garage. I used a battery charger overnight to charge the battery and it about 12.4 now. Truck wouldn't start. Fuel pump relay not coming in, so I pulled the relay and jumped the pump. Truck starts but ALTERNATOR squeels. I removed the wire from alternator, and started truck. From chassis to the Alternator I get nada, zero volts and no squeel.

    Touching the alternator wire to the battery caused the alternator to squeel and the battery to chatter. I replace the alternator. New one same thing. Chatters but only when the charge wire is touching the positive battery terminal, and only when the alternator indicator wire is plugged in. Otherwise the truck runs fine even if I plug in the a/c clutch and load it.

    I am confused. At the same time my fuel pump relay comes ON for two seconds then shuts off. This is weird because the relay comes on, NOT THE PRIME wire for 2 seconds. I have studied the schematics I have and have not found a logical solution for either of these.

    Prime never comes on. Fuel pump on for 2 seconds then off. Alternator does not squeel unless the charge wire is on AND the alternator display plug is connected.

    Thanks for any help, Ken
  • warpdrive207warpdrive207 Member Posts: 1
    Hello,
    I am having a problem with my driver's side electric window. It comes off the track and becomes tilted in the door. I disassembled the door and found a roller out of a track. After reassembling the door I was testing the window and it seemed to retract too far into the door. Upon raising it again it was out of the track again.My question is: is there a stop the prevents the window from retracting too far or are there limit switches in the assembly or motor that does this? I appreciate any and all help with this problem.
    Thank you,Paul
  • jrphillipsjrphillips Member Posts: 5
    Has anybody had this problem? I would guess bad sensor at back hatch. Any suggestions?
  • kiawahkiawah Member Posts: 3,666
    12.4 would be low voltage and suspicious of a bad cell...have you checked your battery? Take it to AutoZone or one of the local autoparts stores for a free electrical load test of your alternator and battery.
  • 70ss454_man70ss454_man Member Posts: 107
    Starting a few weeks ago, every time i would have the AC on or the heater on, i can hear a loud chirp that eventually morphs into an all out screaming. Its an 88 Suburban with 150000 miles on it. I just put on new belts, and this started. There is also a deep grind when the AC is on, but not the heater. I had the belts checked after i did them, and they said it all looked fine. Any ideas...?
    Also, a whine has come back to the transmission. But now its anytime, when first starting it up ad driving for about 2 min. 40 degrees or 80 degrees, no difference. The tranny fluid is full, no leaks either. I got a reply a long time ago saying it was the transmission, but i'm not soo sure. it whines when its first started, in park when nothing should be moving.
    =/
    The rear passenger's door trim piece (the metal strip) came all off, all the tabs on it are warped or gone. I've tried different glues, but nothing will seem to hold it. is there anything anyone suggests to get that stuck back on there?
    thanks for any advice!
  • dieselonedieselone Member Posts: 5,729
    I'd guess your A/C compressor is about ready to bite the farm. On my 2000 Suburban, my A/C compressor started sounding like a garbage disposal, ended up having to replace the compressor.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Do NOT let your AC compressor seize...if you do, it will send debris throughout the entire system and yes, you'll have to replace every single AC component because you'll never get those pieces of metal out of the system.

    Better to just remove the belt or deactivate the clutch than let it seize.
  • dieselonedieselone Member Posts: 5,729
    Good advice, you don't want to replace the all of the other components. The A/C compressor is expensive enough.
  • reg8reg8 Member Posts: 7
    I have a 99 suburban 1500 that ever since I purchase it, if I go into the mountains and spend the night, it won't start in the morning until about two hours after I initially try to start it. It cranks, starts, then dies... you can do this over and over again, but it won't start unless you let it sit for two hours after you have tried to start it. Fuel pump is good, no service lights come on. Dealer just scratches his head because it is always running when I take it in. I want to Keep it, but am growing very tired of the two hour wait. Has anyone had this problem?

    Thanks
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Sounds like maybe the fuel pressure regulator is shot, so you lose all fuel pressure in the injection rail? I think you can open the regulator and see if the rubber diaphragm is leaking from one side to the other.

    Having said that I don't know why it would take two hours to start unless your fuel pump is functional but too weak to fill up an empty rail system.

    I wonder if you could put a shot of starting ether in there and see if it kicks off immediately. That would tell you something.
  • reg8reg8 Member Posts: 7
    I tried the starting fluid, and it does the exact same thing... starts dies.... about 2 seconds of running each try. The fuel pump is new last year and is very evident that it is running by the noise. So fuel doesnt seem to be the problem since the starter fluid does the exact thing. Any other ideas?

    Thanks again.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Oh I misread your post...it actually DOES start, but won't stay running, is that what you are saying?

    So your dealer found no error codes? He didn't hook up meters to the ignition circuit after leaving the car overnight? Did he swap out another fuel pump? (being "new" is no basis for presuming it is good). Has he checked the fuel pump relay?

    I don't see why a good tech can't solve this. Maybe fuel pump relay, that cuts out as you release the key?

    Dunno, these intermittent problems need a very systematic approach---the diagnostic "tree"...which is to test for one thing, then if not THAT, then go to THIS, if not THIS than go to THAT....if THAT works, proceed to THERE....

    I mean, if the truck is doing the bad thing for two hours, that gives the tech two hours to find out why an engine won't start....you know, fuel, ignition, compression---one of those three....

    All we really know at this point is that when your key is on "crank" the fuel pump is running and the ignition works...that's about all we know for sure...but what happens when the key is released would be very interesting to know....
  • reg8reg8 Member Posts: 7
    Thanks for answering back... sorry I had to run to a wedding. Now I am back... Yes, it turns over, starts, and dies. Two years ago I took it to the dealer - he instantly said "I know exactly what it is".. The ignition! He had a service memo that said he had to re-solder the ignition. Paid $250... went to the mountains 4 months later... same problem, wouldn't keep running in the morning. Waited two hours ran perfect for another 3-4 months when I stayed overnight in the mountains again. So... the problem is.. the car is always running perfectly by the time I get it back to the dealer. I was actually at the Lake last summer when it happened, a mechanic was available to tow it to his station, by the time he unloaded it, it started again, so there was nothing for him to track down. Apparently this problem isn't showing up on the computer, and the car is always running perfectly when I get to the dealer... I wish the dumb thing wouldn't start again so we could actually work on it.

    Where is the fuel pump relay? Are there any sensors that would perform quirky and do this? The mechanic told me today that it could possibly be an oil pressure sensor, and when he looked it up, he said this year of suburban didn't have one.

    You know any incredible mechanics in Utah?

    I really appreciate your help. Everyone I have talked to says they can't do anything unless they have the car when it is broken. I can't plan when that will happen

    Thanks
  • reg8reg8 Member Posts: 7
    I just dug into my manual and found the fuel pump relay, and realized I have already tried replacing that and it didn't make any difference. I actually had bought a new one to have on hand when the trouble began..... it didn't help it start..

    So now what is the most logical next step?

    Thanks
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Someone has to have test equipment on the car when it doesn't start, that's the bottom line here. You did say the ignition was re-soldered and the problem went away for 4 months? That's pretty incriminating.
  • reg8reg8 Member Posts: 7
    No, the problem didn't go away after it was soldered, I just didn't go to a higher altitude for 4 months. When I went into the mountains after 4 months, the problem was still there. You hit the solution on the head about having it tested when it doesn't start, however, there are not many mechanics in the mountains with test equipment when it doesn't start.... therefore, it can never get tested when it is not running.

    I have been going through all of the comments, and it sounds like since the thing seems to be altitude maybe barametric related, could it be my map or maf sensors?

    I have not replaced those.

    Thanks
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    You mean an ECU problem of some kind? Well that's always possible. Ah, every time I read your posts I see something new here. I'm not paying very good attention :P I didn't realize this problem was solely altitude related.
  • reg8reg8 Member Posts: 7
    Yes, this has been 99% altitude related. It has only happened twice when altitude had not been related, and that seemed to have been when a storm front went through.

    Thanks for your feedback
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    Yeah I don't know how your particular system calculates air pressure. There used to be barometric compensator modules in older fuel injection systems that used frequency changes rather than voltage changes but I think they figured out how to calculate air pressure from the MAF nowadays. So if you could figure out how your system senses air pressure that would give you a start on diagnostics.
  • 70ss454_man70ss454_man Member Posts: 107
    thanks for the heads up. What about the heat issue?
  • 70ss454_man70ss454_man Member Posts: 107
    Replace the battery! I also got a 99 Tahoe that did the EXACT same thing. It was a shorting out cell in the battery.
  • gotfivebucksgotfivebucks Member Posts: 1
    I just became the owner of an old suburban. I am looking for the best online resources and groups for folks talking about parts, repair and maintenance for this old thing. It is a 1978 C-15 series Fulltime 4WD 1/2 ton Suburban (V8 , 400-4). I am most immediately trying to figure out the exact specs for it -- the body has been stamped with "GMC C15 Sierra", but the VIN indicates that it is a Chevy Suburban. I know its possible for it to be both, but I need to know if I have a Light duty truck or a heavy duty emission truck in order to get the right spark plugs and fuel filter and such. There are some numbers on the crankcase/manifold, but I'm not sure how to use them. Also, I'd like to tow a decent sized trailer for 2,000 miles, and I'm wondering if it will make it. I have the original owner's manual, but it is not clear on the towing capacity, and says a couple of different things. I have many other questions. This rig used to be an ambulance (has a modified hi-top)and it has two alternators, two batteries, a kill switch, and some other strange modifications. Is this the right place to look for help?
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    There is an engine # on a pad in front of the right side (passenger side) cylinder head. Copy this # down and then Google for Chevrolet Engine Numbers, or get a copy of "Chevy by the Numbers" from amazon.com and find out which engine you have exactly. There are many lists on the Internet for Chevy engine #s that should pinpoint your block.

    Or better yet, go to eBay and pick up a Chilton's Truck Manual for the year 1978
  • momof6momof6 Member Posts: 2
    For the last month or so our 1999 Chevy Suburban has been having intermittent steering loss on curves and if you hit a groove or any imperfection in the road. We had some friends that had a problem with this same issue a few years ago and when he overcorrected after a curve they had a tragic accident that killed their 10 yr. old daughter. Has anyone else had this problem or know of a solution. The other family told me that Chevy knew of the problem, but it wasn't widespread enough for a recall. Any help would be appreciated. I have found information on the internet about a similar problem with the '99 Tahoe, but not Suburban.
  • gangluffgangluff Member Posts: 1
    There are three of us in my town with identical '99 Suburbans....all having the same problem. Over about 68 mph, there is a vibration. Cannot feel in steering wheel, just in seat and entire vehicle vibrates. Seems to be coming from the rear. There are times when you get to about 75 that for a few seconds, it calms down and runs so smoothly, then 30 seconds later, here it comes again. We all have over 100,000 (mine is 135,000 and others are 105,000 and 112,000. (Mine started at about 130,000.)We have compared notes and have tried all the same repairs. Namely, tires, brake drums and shoes. Front hubs, rotors, calipers, pads. Alignments too many to mention including road force balance. I had my driveline rebalanced and new u-joints (Mine was the guineau pig for that repair). I had the rear axles pulled and saw some bearing wear, so replaced with axle saver bearings. NOTHING and I mean NOTHING has changed the vibration an iota. There have been three dealers involved and they can't find a thing. Among us, we've been to about another 15 shops. Now, if there's three of us with the same vehicle having the problem.........someone out there has the answer because they've been there and done that.
  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    has anyone tried putting the car on a lift, then running it until the vibration occurs, then disconnecting the driveshaft and running it to see if the vibration is still there or not?

    (what I'm driving at here is a vibration issue emanating from the engine, flywheel, clutch, motor mounts, gearbox, etc.)
  • afarmeloafarmelo Member Posts: 1
    I have that same problem. Have you found out what it is? I have a 2000 Suburban.
  • momof6momof6 Member Posts: 2
    We had the gear box replaced and a serpentine belt. We live in Texas and just made a trip to Iowa, 12 hours up and back and lots of driving while there, and had absolutely no problems.
  • rlhommedieurlhommedieu Member Posts: 1
    You could have a faulty ground. A high resistance connection heats up the opens up then cools off, reconnects and so on. Check the ground connection for the Fuel Pump Wiring Harness. There is a pigtail wire and ground lug bolted to the top of the rear frame crossmember (just ahead of the fuel tank) Clean the lug and the frame. Just because the pump runs doesn't mean it's getting enough juice to do the job.
  • btheodorebtheodore Member Posts: 1
    its a 1993 w/170k miles - 1/2 ton - automastic - 4x4
    on acceleration it backfires at the carb (tbi), new map and egr, anyone have any ideas as to the cause - repair shop gave me a diagnosis of camshaft/valve springs/innition coil/etc, i dont think he is very knowledgeable in his trade, anyway anyone have any ideas???
  • kiawahkiawah Member Posts: 3,666
    If it is backfiring up thru the carb/tbi, then that is an indication that the intake valves (or at least one valve) is open when the spark plug ignites. When the piston compresses the fuel mixture (in what should be a closed chamber), it forces the mixture back up into the intake manifold which then ignites when the plug fires. Now WHY that is occuring, could be caused by a couple things.

    You could have a valve(s) that is sticking open and/or weak spring, or have a valve guide with wear and isn't allowing the valve to seal correctly, or multiple valve problems, etc.

    You could have slop in your timing chain, where the timing is varying all over the place. This would cause the timing between the crankshaft (pistons), and the camshaft (valves and distributor) to be off.

    You could have wear in your distributor, which would effect the timing between the camshaft and the distributor.

    You've got 170K miles on the engine, so any of these problems could be possible.

    Do a compression test on each cylinder, and see what that shows. That will tell you whether you have one cylinder with a problem (one lower than all the others), or across the board normal, or across the board low.
  • franksdfranksd Member Posts: 2
    While driving at 25 mph my 99 Suburban's (110K miles):
    - RPM gage went to zero
    - Speedometer went to zero
    - Gear Position Indicator (red vertical bar) disappeared
    - SES & Check Gages lights came on
    Accelerator was less responsive at slower speeds. I was able to drive at normal speeds up a steep hill. It lasted about 2 miles. Will it happen again? :confuse:
  • kiawahkiawah Member Posts: 3,666
    "Will it happen again?" ...... Since you don't know what caused it, and you haven't fixed or changed anything.....it is reasonable to assume that something will happen again sometime. Don't know when, and you don't know if it will cause the same symptoms.

    With not a whole lot to go on, this could be a basic electrical problem (battery voltage, corrosion, fuse, electrical switch), or could be a problem with the instrument panel. I'd personally be leaning to a basic electrical problem, since if it was an instrument panel problem I don't believe it would also have effected your accelerator.

    If it was me, a start with a free test of the battery and alternator at autoparts chain (Pep Boys, Autozone, etc) to make sure that your main power was able to supply the correct voltage. Make sure the battery connections are clean with no corrosion. I'd then also pull and check with a meter any fuses associated with the instrument panel, or switched power that the keyswitch controls.

    If you find something fix it. If you find nothing, I would then pay particular attention for the next couple months to all electrical items, and make sure everything is working the way it is supposed to and there are no other 'symptoms' or problems that might give you another clue as to the cause of the first gauge problem.
  • franksdfranksd Member Posts: 2
    Thanks for the advice!

    I failed to mention:

    - Battery & electrical system checked OK.

    - SES & check gages light led to these codes:
    -- P0740 TCC circuit malfunction
    -- 753 Shift Solenoid
    -- 758 Shift Solenoid
    -- 785 Shift Timing Solenoid

    - Transmission checked OK by a transmission shop.

    I'm planning on taking your advice and my Suburban to an electrical shop next week. Thanks! :)
  • sonlxsonlx Member Posts: 21
    Hello Everyone,
    I'm looking for a replacement air intake filter for my parent's Suburban. I'm not trying to put in anything like a cold air intake, or K&N. I'm just looking for a regular intake filter. Before purchasing a filter, I wanted to see if anyone out there has any recommendations regarding the available brands of air filter being sold in the market. I've heard the air filter for suburban is important and didn't want to purchase a bad product. If anyone has some good information, please let me know.
    Thank You :)
  • unvkyfanunvkyfan Member Posts: 1
    We're looking at the '01 and '02 models and would just like to know avg upkeep and maintenance costs. Would also love to hear how y'all like your Suburbans and if they're dependable vehicles. Thanks!
  • angelareyangelarey Member Posts: 2
    I replace the EGR valve when my truck failed inspection. After installation the truck runs rough and stalls. Why? It worked fine before replacing part. any ideas what to do next? thanks, Angela
  • kiawahkiawah Member Posts: 3,666
    Just recently traded in my 97 for a 07, it's been great for us, but it's not a daily driver. We use it mainly for trips (6-10 a year), pulling a couple small trailers when needed (6 x yr), and hauling up to 7 teenagers (couple times a month). You just can't beat it's space, either for people, for cargo, or both. We like the 2nd row bench seat configuration, each kid gets their own row to lay down across when travelling, and when hauling the kids friends it's an extra seats worth of capacity.

    The 07+ design rides significantly better, having moved to coil springs.

    Mechanically it's been quite reasonable, with very good availability of reasonably priced parts if needed. I do any work myself, so I can't comment about dealer charges. The one general weakness is it's transmission, since it is a heavy vehicle. I got 25% of it's original price when I traded it in after 10 years.

    I would think the used market on large SUV's is very soft, given price of gas and all the soccer mom's dumping them. I always thought the MPG reasonable for what we're using it for, and the mileage on the 07+ with it's valve management getting 20+mpg is just fabulous.

    We've had one since the kids were in diapers, and I'll probably always have one for it's all around flexibility which it provides.
  • crandallcrandall Member Posts: 1
    Vehicle resists starting when fuel level is 1/4 or lower and the vehicle sits overnight or longer. The engine turns over but behaves like there's no gas (no prime). Adding fuel to the tank eliminates the problem. Fuel pressure reads fine; the pressure regulator was replaced but no improvement. Has anyone else encountered and solved this problem? (Replacing the fuel pump is expensive and I want that to be the last resort.) Thanks.
  • dee23dee23 Member Posts: 4
    WHat did you do? Did you get rid of car, or did dealer/GM eventually fix it??
  • dee23dee23 Member Posts: 4
    did you ever resolve this?
  • mparker34mparker34 Member Posts: 5
    It's a 94 Chevy suburban 1/2 ton. Ok, so I've replaced the brake light and stop light fuse, I took it in to get an oil change and told the guy to check the brake lights. He paid little attention to me, replaced the bulbs, and then didn't bother to test them to see if they worked. So my brake lights are STILL not coming on.

    I've been told to check the stop light switch which is "Down by the brake peddle" I *think* I found it, but if I have, what do I do with it? I don't think I have found it, but I don't know what it's supposed to look like. Is it an actual on/off switch or just a thing to plug the wires into?

    All three lights are out (the right, left and the one above the door). I do have tail lights, blinkers and back-up lights. So what's the deal, and how do I fix it?
  • cbear5cbear5 Member Posts: 2
    We have a 2006 Suburban and more and more frequently the computer will display "System Stability Disabled". There's nothihng I know of that we did to turn this off, I can't find information in the owners manual, and I can't find a similiar issue on-line. I called the local dealer and they were unable to answer my questions and of course it wouldn't display when I took it over.

    Any insight?
  • kiawahkiawah Member Posts: 3,666
    This will need to be a dealer fixed item. There are a couple of yaw sensors which determine whether the vehicle is beginning to spin, which will then command braking of particular wheels to occur. Obviously the best thing to do would be to get the vehicle to the dealer while the vehicle has the failure, which might be hard to do.

    I think if it was me, I'd begin documenting exactly when it occurs (date, time, mileage) and take a video or photo. If you get enough of these intermittent failures, the dealership will have to replace something to try and narrow down where the problem is.
  • mparker34mparker34 Member Posts: 5
    OK, so now here's what I've done/had done to try to solve this problem, and the lights STILL are not on.

    Replaced fuses
    Replaced Bulbs
    Replaced the Stop Light Switch

    BEFORE I had the Stop Light Switch replaced they did come on once, but when I tried again they wouldn't turn on, so could it be a loose connection somewhere?

    Any ideas? I have to drive it about 5 hours in Thanksgiving traffic, I'd REALLY love to have working brake lights for the drive.
  • rockrdrrockrdr Member Posts: 2
    First of all this is my first Big Block Chevy, the guy I got it from did a bunch of work but has conveniently lost the receipts.
    What I have a 1994 7.4 454 V8 K2500 Suburban, Jeggs bottom end, edlebrock multi-port injection, edlebrock aluminum heads, shorty headers, MSD blaster coil, thats basically all I know.

    My problem:
    first: The oil pressure is low, just above the red lines, but never goes any lower (at idle) driving around town it's about 1 notch under 40, and cold it's just under 60.
    second: driving around town it runs great... no step hills, If I get on the highway and start going up a hill it starts ticking on the drivers side, if I give it more throttle it sounds almost like a knock, but no more power.

    is the oil pressure normal?
    whats that tick?

    -Jason
  • obyoneobyone Member Posts: 7,841
    Lack of oil pressure could be due to worn camshaft bearings.
  • rockrdrrockrdr Member Posts: 2
    the guy I purchased it from said it had 15,000 miles, I run mobil 1 extended life 10/30,
    also it sounds like its coming from the drivers side not really the center, but I could be wrong... wouldnt be the first time :)
Sign In or Register to comment.