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Comments
Were you able to find a solution to the problem?
On the 4WD, there was an encoder motor fault. The dealership replaced the sensor and downloaded updates. This is the same thing they did at 38,000 miles. $300.
The left rear door had to have the power lock actuator replaced. $350.
The seats had a wire rubbing in the dash, so they said. They replaced the heater element for the drivers seat, but this did not fix the problem. The fuse still shorted out. After taking it back they discovered the wiring. $350.
tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper
The tire indicator was probably an underinflated tire, which easily can occur in the fall when the temperatures get colder. Thats exactly what the TPMS systems are supposed to do, tell you when the pressure gets low. The power steering leak could have been a loose fitting, or a bad part which was fixed...either way, thats fine. Have had Suburbans for 14 years now and haven't had a gauge problem, don't know anything about that.
If the vehicle is priced to your satisfaction, and you take it to an independent garage to check it over (which you should do with any used vehicle purchase), I'd go for it.
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GM just doesn't build 'em like they used to. Fuel pumps go out at under 75K miles, speedometers are a problem with many Suburbans/Tahoes, transmissions fail regularly at low mileages, electrical problems galore...just check this forum for many more reported parts failures. The reason Toyota is the best selling brand in the world is.....because they build a great car that lasts. I wouldn't worry about the power steering leak, fuel gage problem or tire indicator faults...those are all minor things. If you buy the '08 just make sure you get the warranty with it. I have an '06
Suburban with 41K miles and zero problems....but I also purchased an extended warranty up to 75K miles because I read about too many parts failures on this forum.
I have the same issue. Started after I also started noticing a vibration on cold take offs. I changed the fluid and filter, seems better. But must have bumped the shift solenoid, getting p0745. I can attach the vibration directly with the trans issues. I also have a 99 suburban. Have you found anything different. .
Thanks RUss
tidester, host
SUVs and Smart Shopper
If our shop did not find any leak then they either do not know what they are doing or someone is intentionally letting air our from your tires.
When they checked for the leak did they use soapy water spray or sink the tires in water?
If they just looked at them and did not take them off of the car then take it back to them to do the job right.
Arrie
Thanks
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Your problem could be the computer that controls the ABS system....when the computer fails your brakes will still work but the anti-skid feature will not work. You might test the vehicle in an empty parking lot by getting up to speed then applying full brake pressure. If the ABS system is working you will feel it automatically "pump" your brakes as you come to a stop. If the wheel locks up upon braking your ABS in not working. The computer is not a cheap fix...over $1K at the dealer....you might find one cheaper online.
Your problem could be with the ABS control module but you could also have a problem with a much lower cost part.
For the ABS each wheel has a speed sensor. These sensors tell the ABS control module the speed of each wheel and ABS control is based on these speed readings.
If you are just a little bit of a mechanic you could trouble shoot this yourself. This would require buying one of the speed sensors, which cost I do not know as I have not had problems with my ABS in my Tahoe but I would think the sensor cost less than $100. Rotating the new sensor from wheel to wheel might reveal which sensor, if any, is faulty.
You can also take your car to the dealer to find out what the problem is but just diagnosing it will cost about the same as a new sensor.
You can also have a sensor knocked out of alignment. This actually happened to my old Lincoln that I used to have. The sensor needs to be at certain distance from the notched wheel that it reads for it to work. If sensor distance to the wheel gets too big it cannot sense the rotation of the wheel and the ABS system is disabled.
Arrie
Shop is wanting to replace the A/C compressor- does this sound right? I trust the shop- but geez- I keep soaking more and more into this thing. Air works fine regardless.
Thanks for any help here- I love this vehicle, so I always fix whatever is needed (and its the wife's car)- but I just wanted to shop this diagnosis. (and I work extra at night just to pay my mechanic off!)
Should have bought the Sequoyah....
Personally, I would pop the serpentine belt back off, and manually turn each of the accessories to feel whether there is a bearing going bad in one of those accessories. Turning the A/C switch on energizes the clutch which then turns the compressor....so that 'could' be the source of the bad bearing and noise. But, compressors also place a significant load on the belt and engine, that perhaps the belt load is causing one of the other pulleys to get a load on it and make a grinding noise.
If their diagnosis is just based on the noise going away when you turn the a/c off, I'd have them check it closer before replacing the compressor. If they already checked everything else, and they are okay, then it could very well be the compressor is bad (which you are going to want to replace before it disintegrates and messes up your whole a/c system with metal filings).
So stay on top of this issue and invest whatever time you need to, to make sure you have the right diagnosis. "Wait and see" while often good advice, is not the best course in this case, IMO.
If your A/C compressor is making dry grinding noise then you need to lubricate it. A lot of A/C compressors are lost due to inadequate lubrication. This is internal lubrication, i.e. mixed in A/C refrigerant.
This is a very easy fix to do. Go to auto part store and buy an A/C system service kit that includes fill hose and pressure gauge. Some kits also include a bottle of refrigerant and some come with lubricant also. You can buy all these separate too.
If your A/C system works, i.e. you get cold air from it when needed then the system has enough refrigerant charge but what you can be missing is lubrication.
If your A/C system has never been serviced the lubricant oil in the system can be broken down, i.e. the oil that was added in the system at factory has lost its lubrication properties and your compressor now could be running with marginal lubrication. This can generate grinding noise, which precedes the moment when the compressor locks up and is completely ruined (= high $).
So, go buy a fill hose, pressure gauge and a bottle of A/C oil lubricant. First run the A/C on full cooling for 5 minutes with engine on idle and then add the oil charge in the system but if compressor really makes noise don't wait 5 minutes and start adding oil immediately. After this measure the pressure in the system. If pressure is too high after adding oil, which it should not be, let some refrigerant out using the fill hose, i.e. shut off the needle valve at the end of the hose and connect it to the service port. Then open needle valve and let refrigerant out. Make sure you don't spray it on painted surfaces as it could corrode paint.
If the noise you are hearing does not come from the compressor itself but disappears when A/C is turned off it can be coming from the belt tensioner. You had it and the belt replaced. Was this noise present before these parts were replaced or did you have them replaced just because they were old?
Belt tensioner can make the kind of "rattling" noise but it also is caused by the compressor. This noise is generated by the moving tensioner arm that can in bad case even bottom out its travel. Arm movement is caused by changing belt tension. Changing belt tension comes from the A/C compressor from its piston strikes, i.e. every piston strike causes more load to compressor shaft, which translates to more tension in the belt.
Apparently belt tensioner should have been designed to be able to handle normal belt tension changes from A/C compressor. This is why rattling belt tensioner is an indication of abnormal condition, which translates to compressor problems.
Compressor problem can be the above explained lubrication issue, i.e. marginal lubrication increases friction in the pistons.
Another way compressor can cause higher than normal belt tension pulsing is if A/C system refrigerant charge is too high. Too high charge can cause refrigerant to enter in the compressor in liquid form. Liquid cannot be compressed so it could cause very high load on the belt each time liquid is pressed in the compressor cylinder. This condition is not very likely as over charge would need to be quite big but that is why you need that pressure gauge. With that you can verify that the system is not over charged. A good gauge comes with instructions and chart for pressure reading as the correct reading depends on the ambient temperature.
If you have a compressor issue it could be a very simple "lack of lubrication" issue and I highly recommend adding a small bottle of oil lubricant in the system in any case. If your A/C system has never been serviced that oil from car's manufacturing 6 years ago is worn down and new lubricant is needed. A/C oil breaks down just as any lubrication oil. That is why we change engine oil too, correct?
Arrie
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Base the money you may have to spend on repairs on how much the vehicle is worth now with the problem, and how much will it be worth if you fix it. You may find it is not worth it to spend more money. Might be time for something newer.
Re-built is as good as new as what comes to rear axle.
What wears out is wearing parts, i.e. bearings and gears. All these will be new with re-built axle.
Almost sounds you mechanic wants to make more money with repairs that what you really need to spend.
Who recommended bearing change in the first place and if bearings are good then what the heck is wrong?
Arrie
If you mean that the axles are bad, these are straight axles on a bearing, not CV types, so the only way they wear out is by being cut by bad bearings usually---or they can break.
You really can't rebuild a solid steel shaft, so I don't know quite what your mechanic is referring to.
Sounds the same response from the dealer that I got with my '04 Tahoe. Because there was no trouble codes the dealer said there was nothing wrong with it. Well, I knew there was something wrong because my highway gas mileage went down to 13 mpg when for the first 1500 miles it was 17+ mpg.
I fixed my truck while it was under warranty. It is fine now and I really like it. It just is that in 2 years I must get a new vehicle and it will not be from GM regardless how good it is when it works. I just can't take the risk of fixing a brand new $40000+ vehicle by myself under warranty because the dealer chooses not to.
I am absolutely sure you have some sensor reading wrong or a bad wire connection (very likely). Sensor sends enough signal for the computer so that it does not know sensor actually is bad.
Arrie
Thanks,
1. Make sure your intake manifold gasket is not leaking. Mine was leaking badly and was perhaps the biggest problem I had. Gasket bolts (10 pcs) have a special riser with thick rubber washer under them. When you tighten the bolts they tighten against the riser and are supposed to set the gap where the rubber washer is. My intake manifold obviously have manufacturing defect as on some of the holes where the bolt goes thru it never gets tight against rubber washer. It seems the plastic at some of the holes is too thin.
My fix for this was that I cut the risers and removed the rubber washers so that I can tighten the bolts directly against the manifold. I also cut rubber gasket material to fit on both sides of the GM plastic "lip seal" gasket as it did not work well alone.
My intake manifold gasket holds now. Leaking gasket causes manifold pressure to raise (vacuum is lower) and this will mess up with ignition timing. Leaking gasket can be also felt as jerking idle.
First thing to do is to re-tighten the manifold gasket bolts. This is very easy job to do. You need 8 mm socket and "clicking" torque wrench.
Haynes repair manual tells bolt tightening order and torque, which I used. Tightening is in two steps. First you tighten bolts to 44 in-lb and after that to 89 in-lb.
2. I purchased a set of racing spark plug wires that allowed me to remove the heat shields from around spark plug boots. This also is a very easy thing to do and I highly recommend doing this. Spark easily leaks around the boot to the heat shield and goes to ground as the shields are grounded with a small spring at the end of it. Any leak of spark means less spark at the point where it is needed, i.e. at the end of the spark plug inside the cylinder.
3. I changed the crank shaft position sensor. Sensor is located behind starter motor, which must be removed before you can get to the sensor. This sensor going bad can really mess thing up.
4. I found bad crimp connections on MAP sensor wire harness. This made me to solder almost all wires at harnesses. Crank shaft position sensor wire harness is the only one I have not done as that starter motor must come down even to get to the harness connector at the sensor.
5. I added oil charge in the A/C system. You would not believe how much fuel A/C system takes to run. You can test for this while driving just by turning A/C off while driving at constant speed on highway and looking at the instant fuel consumption display that these trucks still have. It sometimes looks like 15-20% better MPG when A/C is off. Making sure the compressor has good oil fill minimizes compressor friction.
My MPG is 17+ at 78 MPH speed. And as I have Good Year Fortera tires I think it makes it even better as I have read under tire topics that Fortera tires cause loss in MPG by about 10%.
This is what I remember right now.
Arrie
The "snorting" sound can be coming from A/C system but it can also be from engine cooling system.
I would definitely add oil charge in the A/C system especially if you have not done that yet at all. Get a good pressure gauge so that you do not over fill the system and just one can of oil charge should be enough.
I have seen oil charge cans come with two viscosities. I use the higher one as the compressor has turned around quite a lot. I live in southern Louisiana and here the compressor runs pretty much every day.
Arrie
I traded an '05 Suburban with only 11,000 miles for the '07 partially because I expected better gas mileage with the new engine that would run on four cylinders while cruising on the highway. I actually got 2-3 miles per gallon better on the '05 that ran on eight cylinders all the time. Now I wonder if it is because I'm constantly dragging the brakes. I'm tempted to grind down the ends of the pads so they won't fit so tightly in the abutment clips, but I'm nervous about tampering with brake parts. Has anyone heard of this problem and/or a fix? Thanks, Ron
I have an '07 as well, haven't seen any problems like you reference, but don't have that many miles as we only rarely use it, mostly for long trips and a few short trip major hauling..
To compare with my '04 Tahoe I have 117 500 miles on it and the factory installed original brake pads look almost like new. They are not even close to half worn yet. I drive almost all (85%) highway and so don't use brakes a lot but 15% of 117 500 miles as city driving of the total mileage equals over 17 000 miles and as I said my brake pads are less than half worn. Rotors also look almost new.
Arrie
So I went home and reinstalled the original brakes exactly the way they were originally installed. Then I took my Suburban to a different Chevrolet dealer. I was told the problem was caused by excess rust and was asked if I go to the shore a lot. No, I have never taken my Suburban to the shore. Then do you park your car on a gravel driveway? Yes, I do. Then there's the answer to the problem! Are you kidding me??? I have have lived at my house for more than twenty years and have always had at least three cars at a time. I have never had any "rust" problems with any of my other cars, in fact, the Suburban has been parked there the least amount of time since it's my newest vehicle.
When I originally purchased the Suburban, I asked to have it undercoated before I took delivery. I was told no one does that anymore. Cars are way more corrosion resistant then they used to be and it is no longer necessary. It's no wonder to me that GM now stands for Government Motors and they had to beg the government for billions of $ to continue operating and still declared bankruptcy. I have been buying GM cars for more than 40 years and they don't care if they lose yet another loyal customer. I'm happy to see Roger Penske came to his senses and backed away from buying out the Saturn brand. With the loss of Oldsmobile, Pontiac, Hummer, Saab, and Saturn, It's only a matter of time before GM is no more.
The actual problem with my brakes is that both the original AND the after market brakes fit too tightly into the caliper support brackets preventing them from sliding away from the rotors when the brake is released. But, unfortunately, GM got their $47,000 and couldn't care less. And I don't care to buy another vehicle from them.
Not that I'm suggesting one necessarily should be doing this on any vehicle design, but if you know that the problem is what you indicate, why don't you take a grinding wheel to the backing edge of the brake pad, and grind off enough so that you have enough clearance. I don't suspect it would take much, and would get you around this problem whether it is GM's problem, the mfg of the caliper, or the the mfg of the pad.
I have an 08 Sub, but have not experienced this problem. It may be that I don't have enough miles yet to notice experience the wear, but I'll be sure to be on the lookout for it the first time I need to do the brakes.
Thanks for the heads up.
Thanks for the suggestion. I thought about that, but since both the original AND the aftermarket brakes were too tight, I would have to do that everytime I put new brake pads on the car. So I spent a couple of hours and carefully filed a couple thousands of an inch off the caliper support brackets and they now work beautifully. I don't know if these parts slipped through inspection by the manufacturer of the parts or if it's a design flaw. But I shouldn't have any problems from now on. I think it's outrageous that I should have to do this to a new $47K vehicle.
The brakes on the left front had gotten so hot from dragging that they cooked the rubber seals on the dual piston caliper. Neither of the GM Mr. Goodwrench mechanics noticed that even after I asked them to check it.
I have to thank the local Chevy dealer service guy who told me that the salt belt rusted wheel speed sensor environment problem did not apply to my year (1999) Suburban. He suggested that I first jack the front end off the ground and wiggle the tires. The passenger side tire had no give when shaken in the 12 and 6 o'clock positions. It had some give in the 9 and 3 o'clock positions, which could be attributed to steering linkage. But when I shook the driver's side tire, it did this; clunk-clunk, clunk-clunk in the 12 and 6 o'clock positions. Obviously a bad spindle bearing.
It cost me about $175 to fix, but it was relatively easy. Loosen the hub nut and lugnuts, then jack the front end off the ground, remove wheel, depress brake caliper and disconnect caliper bolts, move caliper out of the way, remove the three hub bolts with an impact wrench, disconnect the wheel speed sensor electrical connector, install new hub with the three bolts, wheel speed connector, caliper, etc....The three hub bolts did not want to come out. I hit all three with an impact wrench and 100psi, but only one came loose. I had my daughter pray while I torqued the two remaining with a breaker bar. Thankfully they backed out without stripping or snapping.
I am about to purhcase a used Sub. 07/08. Because I am looking at ones with a lot of options I am having to look at one with higher miles say in the 40-50K range.
If these vehicles have been maintained is there any call for concern with reliability? The units that I have driven with those miles seem very solid compared to like competition.
Thanks for any input
A day later after towing to another location, by buddy unplugged the regulator and plugged back in and he put the fuel pressure gauge and while he started it he noticed the fuel pressure getting stronger after each turn of the key, when the pressure got back up, everything started working. 2 days later all is well, runs normal.
I replace the fuel filter also.
Now the fuel psi is great while running, but when I turn it off it looses about 10 psi in about 10 minutes but starts back up.
I did not want to replace the fuel pump just yet, 77000 miles.
Also, when it stopped it was showing 51 miles to go on the digital gas gauge, so it was almost empty, I did about a gallon in and it did not help.
But now it's fine, any thoughts?
About $100 bucks in parts an .5 of an hour labor.
Our Chevy Suburban 2001, 1500 (4) wheel drive has 92,000 miles. Our last preventive maintenance (major) was at 5/5/2006, (66,500 miles) which included Transmission and Differential major preventative service. The scheduled service manual state the service for this preventive maintenance is every 50,000. The truck is currently consumed 50% of that time for these services.
Question: Is it your recommendation to wait another 2.5 years assuming we are driving the truck 10,000 miles per year?
Thank you for your help,
Glen05