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Thinking about purchasing 04 Tahoe EDIT: purchased!!

cheavyk10

cheavyk10

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Looking at this 04 Tahoe LT with 123,000 MI.
Screenshot_20220727-210342-824.png The dealers asking 10K. 5.3 LS, Auto with auto track. Any thoughts about these rigs? The Good, the bad, the ugly?
The Carfax said it went to dealer auction a year and a half ago and hasn't sold since with only a few miles added on.
I'd probably go in at 7500 to 8K cash on this, assuming everything was in good shape.
I'm going to give it the once over on Friday.
Thanks!
 
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The gmt800 Tahoe only got the 4L60e. The 6 speed didn’t hit until the gmt900 trucks came out after a year or two.

Don’t be surprised if the instrument cluster has some gauges that flake out. It’s a known problem with the stepper motors that drive the needles. They will hang at random spots, even outside the range of the gauge. Many options for the fox from diy kits or sending it off to have somebody fix it.

Other than that, it’s almost 20 years old so it probably needs some attention to the items on the accessory drive.
 
My daily is a 2005 Suburban Z71, it has 230K miles and has needed a trans build at 128K when I bought it. Other than that, a couple of knock sensors, a blend door motor and an air bag sensor she has been golden. I wish I could find a nice low miles replacement for it, it has been such a great truck, well built and surprisingly capable in mild off road driving.
 
Check to see if it has the auto-ride suspension package. Those can get really expensive to fix if it has problems, but you can also swap to standard shocks and buy a module to turn off the error code. We parted one that had bad front shocks, one that had bad rear sensors and compressor failure. Both had over 200K, though.
I have seen several 4L60E transmissions go well past 150K, even 200K if they don't get ignored when something acts up. It's just hard to tell what it is like until you drive it through all temperatures and conditions.
The tie rod end don't worry me for street use, but like everything, check them and don't ignore issues. Offroad they would need to be upgraded.
 
6872xtc said:
Check to see if it has the auto-ride suspension package. Those can get really expensive to fix if it has problems, but you can also swap to standard shocks and buy a module to turn off the error code. We parted one that had bad front shocks, one that had bad rear sensors and compressor failure. Both had over 200K, though.
I have seen several 4L60E transmissions go well past 150K, even 200K if they don't get ignored when something acts up. It's just hard to tell what it is like until you drive it through all temperatures and conditions.
The tie rod end don't worry me for street use, but like everything, check them and don't ignore issues. Offroad they would need to be upgraded.
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I don't believe this truck has the auto-ride, as I have seen it called out before under the "LT" on the badge behind the back door, and it's absent on this one. For all I know that could have changed year to year though.
 
I have 290K on my 05 tahoe, original trans and the engine was replaced 30k ago because I didn't feel like band aiding it again with a rear main seal and head gasket or cracked heads. For $500 more I put a crate engine in it.
 
Oh, and check the operation of the rear A/C. Those can have blend door issues and they aren't cheap to hire someone to fix it if you don't. Saw one stuck on cold , compressor running regardless of what the control was set to.
 
6872xtc said:
Oh, and check the operation of the rear A/C. Those can have blend door issues and they aren't cheap to hire someone to fix it if you don't. Saw one stuck on cold , compressor running regardless of what the control was set to.
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Blend door? The glaring issue with the rear A/C is the really long aluminum lines to the back that are hung with steel holders. They will all eventually corrode through at every hanger. Swapping actuators for the flappers is cake. The line sets CAN be patched with hardware store compression fittings (standard sizes), bit the dissimilar metals make it all temporary.
 
Oh yeah, my opinion is to skip Tahoe/Yukon with tiny cargo area unless you will never have more than 2 kids and get the whole truck for the same money and same MPG.
 
Blue85 said:
Oh yeah, my opinion is to skip Tahoe/Yukon with tiny cargo area unless you will never have more than 2 kids and get the whole truck for the same money and same MPG.
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I hear you there about the small cargo area. We have owned three squarebody suburbans before and I loved every one of them. If I were to purchase this Tahoe I would take out the third row seat and never use it.
No kids for us but we have three dogs.
Also for comparisons sake our main ride has been a 93 S10 Blazer 4-door for the past 12 years.
 
Blue85 said:
Blend door? The glaring issue with the rear A/C is the really long aluminum lines to the back that are hung with steel holders. They will all eventually corrode through at every hanger. Swapping actuators for the flappers is cake. The line sets CAN be patched with hardware store compression fittings (standard sizes), bit the dissimilar metals make it all temporary.
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Never dug into that one or others personally. I just know that Yukon had 238K on it and was stuck on cold with the compressor running. A local shop told me that he had worked on a couple of them.
The front actuators are easy, yes. Even pulling the dash out isn't terrible, especially once you do it more than twice, once for research, once to sell stuff, 2 more times to get and then swap a main harness.
We don't have the corrosion problems here. That's why I am driving a rust free '01 GMC with 280K on it. :D
 
A Tahoe would work for us like 80% of the time, but since I don't own a pickup, being able to drop the seats and load 8x4 sheets is mandatory. Then again, pickup trucks today can't fit 8x4 sheets either. Sometimes it just seems weird, all the "pickups" leaving Home Depot with 2x4s sticking off into space, red flags on them or plywood hanging out of the back. Great to start a project with wet drywall. Meanwhile the 'ol "station wagon" has everything neatly inside.
 
Sorry for the diversion. Is there a way to verify that mileage - Even 10 years ago that was hard to find. People buy these SUVs and never take them out of Drive. Look for oil in the air intake - they like to plug the "PCV" (rocker cover baffle) and sip oil. Also expect to find broken exhaust manifold bolts. Not really that hard to fix with a welder (usually), but possibly a good negotiating point. Have a look at all of the steering linkages, and front suspension joints and look at the tires for signs of something being off. Some of these get issues with traction control triggering at a take off, but the solution is sometimes as simple as removing some of the factory shims from the front wheel speed sensors (wish I'd realized that a year or two earlier :cool: )

Also, these trucks are (in)famous for a few brake issues. #1 - the vacuum booster sometimes sucks on cold startup. I think the class action suit on that was a big part of them all getting hydroboost after '04 or somewhere. #2 - the brake lines rust off of them. Maybe not a big issue where you're at, but definitely look at where they are poking between the frame and the body behind drivers front tire and along the frame rail in the engine bay. Stainless replacement sets are very inexpensive, but the job really sucks (unless you lift the body), almost making "pre-bent" useless. #3 - the parking brake design is stupid. It's the same on DS and PS, so one is essentially upside down, letting the shoe slide down and slowly wear away, even though you never use the parking brake. In general, I think the 1/2-ton brakes are just adequate, but won't hold up to aggressive driving.

I didn't think the airbags were offered on the short wheelbase, especially in '01, but I could be wrong. There are multiple setups that share the name "Autoride", but some are just the shocks with adjustable damping. Others have that plus the auto-leveling.
 
Blue85 said:
Sorry for the diversion. Is there a way to verify that mileage - Even 10 years ago that was hard to find. People buy these SUVs and never take them out of Drive. Look for oil in the air intake - they like to plug the "PCV" (rocker cover baffle) and sip oil. Also expect to find broken exhaust manifold bolts. Not really that hard to fix with a welder (usually), but possibly a good negotiating point. Have a look at all of the steering linkages, and front suspension joints and look at the tires for signs of something being off. Some of these get issues with traction control triggering at a take off, but the solution is sometimes as simple as removing some of the factory shims from the front wheel speed sensors (wish I'd realized that a year or two earlier :cool: )

Also, these trucks are (in)famous for a few brake issues. #1 - the vacuum booster sometimes sucks on cold startup. I think the class action suit on that was a big part of them all getting hydroboost after '04 or somewhere. #2 - the brake lines rust off of them. Maybe not a big issue where you're at, but definitely look at where they are poking between the frame and the body behind drivers front tire and along the frame rail in the engine bay. Stainless replacement sets are very inexpensive, but the job really sucks (unless you lift the body), almost making "pre-bent" useless. #3 - the parking brake design is stupid. It's the same on DS and PS, so one is essentially upside down, letting the shoe slide down and slowly wear away, even though you never use the parking brake. In general, I think the 1/2-ton brakes are just adequate, but won't hold up to aggressive driving.

I didn't think the airbags were offered on the short wheelbase, especially in '01, but I could be wrong. There are multiple setups that share the name "Autoride", but some are just the shocks with adjustable damping. Others have that plus the auto-leveling.
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The milage was verified by Carfax. Is there any reason not to trust that?
 
I'm no Carfax expert. If it has a factory original driver's seat cover/cushion/armrest that's in good shape, I would probably believe it. I mean somewhere, someone must have left one parked a lot, right?
 
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