Prospective buyer from GA

[papilgeephd]

Hello all, first post here.

I found GMTNation when searching around for info on the GMT360s (and found trailvoy before registering here). Right now I'm looking to make a move on one this month, and I have an '03 TB EXT (133k, 5.3, 4WD) on my immediate radar. From the little bit of poking around I've done here, I figure you guys can help me out as to what sorts of specific things to look out for before buying and how to repair certain things once I do buy (if I do).

Thanks, and I look forward to my time here.

 

[The_Roadie]

Welcome! 2003 is certainly more robust than the first model year 2002.

For a pre-purchase inspection, see if you can get a Trailblazer-experienced mechanic. If you don't get a maintenance history to prove the transfer case fluid was changed religiously every 50K as required, be VERY thorough with checking every mode of the 4WD system. Check all switches and lamps and HVAC functions (airflow modes, temperature, recirculate, windshield vent and all blower speeds). Check the OBDII (diagnostic port) for codes that they might have JUST cleared to try to fool you into buying a lemon that the previous owner failed to fix. Check front and rear wipers and washer sprayers. Every switch on each of the four doors. Check the rear liftgate AND the glass alone for being locked when they're supposed to be unlocked, and unlocked when they're supposed to be. Check the REAR heater for good airflow AND temp - hot AND cold. All power seat functions, if it has them. Seat heaters, too.

Over 100K, and the plugs and all fluids should have been changed. Checking the air filter is a simple way to find out of the previous owner was neglectful or not.

Did you find nobody home at trailvoy? That's where we ALL were until two years ago, when the site was bought out and the new owners turned out to be profit-hungry corporate goofs who cared nothing for the community.

 

[xtitan1]

That's actually pretty damn good info even for a current owner lol.

Trailblazers often have their throttle body's get dirty after a while, which results in a rough idle. A simple cleaning will fix that but maybe you can work it into your negotiation.

Definitely agree with Roadie on checking the switches on the doors. The drivers side also had an issue where water was shorting the switches although I can't remember if that applied to 2003 models. Regardless, make sure to put the windows up and down several times to ensure the regulators are working. Some regulator motors were defective in this line.

Also want to reiterate his HVAC advice. Anytime the battery was disconnected or died for whatever reasons it may potentially have broken an HVAC actuator, so you need to check every mode and both hot and cold. It's not a huge deal but you want to be informed and you can either knock down the price or spare yourself the trouble of doing it yourself.

Also unless this guy is a member on this forum he probably was not greasing his spare tire winch which means it will be difficult to retract it back up if you ever use it.

All of my stuff is fixable and not necessarily a deal breaker. Roadies stuff you need to watch out for.

 

[papilgeephd]

Thanks for the advice, folks.

I drove to see the TB today (an hour through the country in unpleasant rain, mind you) -- and it wasn't there. The manager said it was at the dealership getting the ignition switch replaced. That was another occasional problem I had seen for this model year (autos.msn.com).

Also, they said that the fuel level sending unit was also bad, making the gas gauge almost useless. That's a problem I have with my current Bonneville, and I'm not sure if I want to deal with it with another vehicle.

I was also going to ask about other problems I had heard about with the vehicle, namely the axle seals. I've seen threads on them here, but how often do those actually fail?

(Sidenote: when I went to trailvoy, the site just seemed dead. And it was rather cumbersome to navigate, especially when searching. So I never registered there... just here.)

 

[Wooluf1952]

Welcome


In case you haven't heard:
http://gmtnation.com/forums/topic/218-welcome-to-gmtnationcom-heres-the-story/

 

[The_Roadie]

Fuel level sender was a huge issue, and GM had a recall on some years and will pay for the work to be done on other years. The dealer will be able to look up the VIN and see, but if it's not on your dime, then fine.

Rear axle seal failures are very rare. Front hub bearings go bad much more often.

 

[papilgeephd]

Fuel level sender was a huge issue, and GM had a recall on some years and will pay for the work to be done on other years. The dealer will be able to look up the VIN and see, but if it's not on your dime, then fine.

Rear axle seal failures are very rare. Front hub bearings go bad much more often.

I looked up the fuel level sender, and the recall only went back as far as '05. I could see if a Chevy dealer would take care of it, but since the truck in question is being sold from a Mopar pre-owned lot...

Also, front hub bearings are one reason why I'm getting rid of the Bonneville. It just ate its third set in four years.

 

[BoldAdventure]

My front hubs are the originals, I just removed them and I'll be putting them back on until they wear out, I'm at 110K with an 03 Trailblazer with 35inch tires. So it's luck of the draw, some folks are replacing theirs once a year, others never have a single problem. I'm also on my original CV's shafts.

I'm sure you know the basics, get a mechanic to go over it, or go over it very very well yourself. Look at it as an investment, is this going to be worth the return? Check fluid levels, look for anything milky white in the oil. How does the transmission feel when you drive it? How does the steering feel, is it sloppy or tight. Does the wheel pull to either side when braking. You can visually spot a number of things with a flash light and slowly looking at most things. Most folks usually just walk around a car and never really look close.

Good luck, hope it works out for you, eventually I think when my family grows to 3 children an EXT is what I'm upgrading too.

BTW, welcome to the site.

 

[Robbabob]

Also, they said that the fuel level sending unit was also bad, making the gas gauge almost useless. That's a problem I have with my current Bonneville, and I'm not sure if I want to deal with it with another vehicle.

(Sidenote: when I went to trailvoy, the site just seemed dead. And it was rather cumbersome to navigate, especially when searching. So I never registered there... just here.)

WELCOME ABOARD!!!!!

I've been here about a year. After registering there and not having much of a feeling of support, I found a thread directing me here :wootwoot:

If they know the sending unit is bad, make them replace it. The ball joints and other front end rubber items will likely be in need of TLC. Buy it knowing you'll have to change them "within a few years". We bought an '03 LS a year ago, worn items still working fine. Might as well have the Stealership give an overall inspection while it's there...

I assume there won't be a "tune", so expect the acceleration to be quite soft if you're babying it, then floor it and find the HP come to life. It's one of the things I like about the TB, drives like a family car, but has the guts to GO when you want it.

Another observation is going to 4LO. Our truck gives a feel of hunkering down from HI to LO, then a release back to HI. In case you're not familiar, be in neutral and stopped when going into and out of LO. From 2 to 4HI, you can be in gear and moving, just don't do it going too fast; I don't know the max speed - some do it as fast as 55, others won't until under 40.

Something you'll already be doing, but check for rust along the bottom of the doors and rear gate; common to some depending on the day of painting, but not all.

Let us know your level of auto mechanic skill. That will help us help you, too. There are DIY videos here, along with a TON of input from the members.

Good luck!!

 

[papilgeephd]

You guys have been a big help so far. I'll try to answer everything...

The salesman said that when they get the TB back from the shop, they'd call me. I'll be back down there when they do and will keep all this in mind. If the wear items are bad enough, I'll have them change them; if I can wait some months, I will. Another question: how would I tell if it was the fuel level sending unit of the gauge stepper motor? I've heard that both can go out. And how hard would the stepper motor fix be?

I'm pretty handy with a wrench and ratchet set, just haven't had the time or the space to really get in there like I'd want to with my current cars.

@Robbabob - I had a '96 Pathfinder 4x4 as my first car, and there I learned the intricacies of how to shift to 4LO and all that. Never had to use 4LO though, and I think the 4HI threshold was 55 mph. Depends on the system, I think. Also, unrelated: GO PACK GO!

 

[The_Roadie]

A decent scan tool that can look at the data stream can look at the data from the fuel level sender and see if it's lying or the gauge. We *do* have flaky gauge steppers, but the fuel gauge doesn't move up and down as much as the tach or the speedo, and those two have the biggest needles, and so they usually behave badly first. Statistically, I think it's 9 times out of 10 the sender.

We have a wonderful articles section with goodies like this:

GMTNation - How to change a stepper motor

 

[IllogicTC]

A decent scan tool that can look at the data stream can look at the data from the fuel level sender and see if it's lying or the gauge. We *do* have flaky gauge steppers, but the fuel gauge doesn't move up and down as much as the tach or the speedo, and those two have the biggest needles, and so they usually behave badly first. Statistically, I think it's 9 times out of 10 the sender.

We have a wonderful articles section with goodies like this:

GMTNation - How to change a stepper motor

Here's a quick question on this - is the yellow lamp on the fuel gauge tied into the signal being received from the tank's sender (which I would expect), or somehow daisy-chained off the fuel gauge's current position?

If it's how I would expect, having the dummy lamp come on would probably point you toward the sender unit first. If that's replaced and gauge is still down, that would be next on the fix-it list.

 

[papilgeephd]

Here's a quick question on this - is the yellow lamp on the fuel gauge tied into the signal being received from the tank's sender (which I would expect), or somehow daisy-chained off the fuel gauge's current position?

If it's how I would expect, having the dummy lamp come on would probably point you toward the sender unit first. If that's replaced and gauge is still down, that would be next on the fix-it list.

Not sure about the GMTs, but in my Bonneville everything is tied to the needle -- from the "low fuel" warning chime to the "miles to empty" display by the computer.

 

[Porkins]

Welcome to the Nation, and I hope everything works out with the TB. It sure would be nice to see more locals around.

 

[papilgeephd]

Need you guys' help...

I didn't mention this, but when I went to the dealer and the TB wasn't there for me to look at, somehow I ended up test-driving a used Town & Country. And now my wife wants me to get it.

You can call me a dummy for even testing it. I won't take offense. I'll probably agree with you.

 

[Playsinsnow]

Need you guys' help...

I didn't mention this, but when I went to the dealer and the TB wasn't there for me to look at, somehow I ended up test-driving a used Town & Country. And now my wife wants me to get it.

You can call me a dummy for even testing it. I won't take offense. I'll probably agree with you.

Tell her to sleep on it like you did the Trailblazer. Then come morning say you want to do more "research" because jumping at the first one is irresponsible. "That's what they want us to do, I drove it to feel out the model not that specific ripoff."
good luck. TC isn't too bad. Could have been an import van

 

[Porkins]

Make a pros and cons list. Are you gonna get support from a group of knowledgeable people on a awesome forum? Those freak snow & ice storms that shut down ATL, you can keep on trucking by others. Do you tow or need to tow? I wouldn't use a T&C for that.

 

[papilgeephd]

Tell her to sleep on it like you did the Trailblazer. Then come morning say you want to do more "research" because jumping at the first one is irresponsible. "That's what they want us to do, I drove it to feel out the model not that specific ripoff."
good luck. TC isn't too bad. Could have been an import van

Oh, that was never gonna happen, lol. Odyssey worries me due to tranny issues, Quest is hard to find without a CVT, and on a Toyota. Ever. EVER.

Make a pros and cons list. Are you gonna get support from a group of knowledgeable people on a awesome forum? Those freak snow & ice storms that shut down ATL, you can keep on trucking by others. Do you tow or need to tow? I wouldn't use a T&C for that.

And depending on how my job search goes, we may be moving further north in a couple of months, possibly as far up as Pittsburgh.
I towed a little bit with my old Pathfinder but did a lot more hauling.

 

[papilgeephd]

Sorry to resurrect my own thread... but hey, it's my own thread.

The TrailBlazer never seemed to leave the shop, per a voicemail from the salesman... and now it's no longer listed on Autotrader. I take that to mean that someone bought it or they dropped it into the Savannah River.

That said, I'm looking at an '05 Rainier CXL AWD V8 nearby. If I can get this loan I just applied for, I think I'll be moving in on it. It drives quite solidly (for as much as I was able to drive it), and I would want to fix the center console armrest that doesn't quite latch, but that's about all I found. Anything else I should look at, like with the later V8 or the AWD system?

 

[Porkins]

Sorry to resurrect my own thread... but hey, it's my own thread.

The TrailBlazer never seemed to leave the shop, per a voicemail from the salesman... and now it's no longer listed on Autotrader. I take that to mean that someone bought it or they dropped it into the Savannah River.

That said, I'm looking at an '05 Rainier CXL AWD V8 nearby. If I can get this loan I just applied for, I think I'll be moving in on it. It drives quite solidly (for as much as I was able to drive it), and I would want to fix the center console armrest that doesn't quite latch, but that's about all I found. Anything else I should look at, like with the later V8 or the AWD system?

Center console is a easy fix, there is even a tutorial.

 

[TollKeeper]

With the AWD Rainier, you should make the dealer perform a full AWD system fluid replacement. They can even be more temperamental than the 4wd TB/Envoy's. The key part is to make sure that the Transfer Case has had its fluid changed. Also to make sure the front diff is in working condition. Its an easy test to make sure it is. Lift up the front end, you should be able to spin one of the front wheels one direction, and the wheel on the other side should spin the other direction.

Are there service records? What are the miles? an 05 with high miles would have me kinda worried.

 

[papilgeephd]

With the AWD Rainier, you should make the dealer perform a full AWD system fluid replacement. They can even be more temperamental than the 4wd TB/Envoy's. The key part is to make sure that the Transfer Case has had its fluid changed. Also to make sure the front diff is in working condition. Its an easy test to make sure it is. Lift up the front end, you should be able to spin one of the front wheels one direction, and the wheel on the other side should spin the other direction.

Are there service records? What are the miles? an 05 with high miles would have me kinda worried.

I actually erred in saying that the truck was AWD. It's RWD.
It's got 104k miles. Service records (the ones I have, anyway) show that all fluids were changed at 65k.