A question of practicality ?

[04 SLT]

Good day my GMTNation brethren.

I'm looking for advice here as I'm on the the fence of what to do with our 04 Envoy SLT.

It's in need of some love and I'm wondering if it's worth it or whether I should sell/trade it.

First some background, We live in northern British Columbia Canada. Winters routinely hit -20C to -40C. We have a 3 month old daughter and I want her to have a safe comfortable vehicle to be carted around in.
The truck is a 2004 Envoy SLT, full load, with 130,000 Km on it.

What it will need: Some body work, front and rear bumpers repainted, passenger side rear door filled and repainted.
Has a mystery engine whine (not the idler pulley) I have a feeling it's either the alt. or the AC compressor.
New shocks/ struts
Cluster is acting up in cold weather (airbag and seatbelt lights lit, ebrake light doesn't work)
A good polish and wax to remove 9 years of swirl marks.
Would like and auto start and rear DVD if possible.

My other option is to trade/sell it but at a minimum it will need a lot of that list done to get it sale worthy.

What are your guys opinions ?

 

[ScarabEpic22]

Me personally?

Id fix it and drive it til the wheels fall off, my 02 has around 140k miles on it now and is chugging along just fine.

Just remember body work is expensive, you might end up spending more on metal/paint than the car is actually work. If you need to paint the front/rear bumpers, Id use bedliner and avoid the issue altogether, my 02 is going to get linered when it gets back to Seattle in May/June.

Shocks are cheap, either an alternator or AC compressor arent too expensive.


Im most worried about the airbag and seatbelt light, wonder if you actually have a problem with your airbag system. That could be very expensive to fix and would pose a safety issue for you and your new daughter. Id look into this first before anything, you wont be able to sell the truck until you know what's wrong with this anyway.

 

[04 SLT]

Im most worried about the airbag and seatbelt light, wonder if you actually have a problem with your airbag system. That could be very expensive to fix and would pose a safety issue for you and your new daughter. Id look into this first before anything, you wont be able to sell the truck until you know what's wrong with this anyway.

I'm pretty sure it's the cluster, the stepper motors are starting to get notchy as well. The lights only come on when it's cold out which screams bad solder joints to me. I would take it in and get it all read, but the only scanner that'll communicate with the abs and airbag modules is a techII, which means dealership and $100+ an hour. Than can I really trust em not to try and sell me an airbag module and ABS module I might not need ?

 

[Sparky]

Easiest way to pinpoint the whine is to take off the belt and spin each pulley by hand. The one that feels like it has gravel in is the one that's shot. Obviously you don't need to try spinning the crank by hand

 

[ScarabEpic22]

I'm pretty sure it's the cluster, the stepper motors are starting to get notchy as well. The lights only come on when it's cold out which screams bad solder joints to me. I would take it in and get it all read, but the only scanner that'll communicate with the abs and airbag modules is a techII, which means dealership and $100+ an hour. Than can I really trust em not to try and sell me an airbag module and ABS module I might not need ?

If they only come on when cold, then there's a good chance it is the cluster. Unfortunately, even if you buy a used one the dealer will need to program it your mileage (unless you dont care, but it will hurt resale down the road if you decide to sell).

Easiest way to pinpoint the whine is to take off the belt and spin each pulley by hand. The one that feels like it has gravel in is the one that's shot. Obviously you don't need to try spinning the crank by hand

Try this, should be pretty quick to tell.

 

[04 SLT]

If they only come on when cold, then there's a good chance it is the cluster. Unfortunately, even if you buy a used one the dealer will need to program it your mileage (unless you dont care, but it will hurt resale down the road if you decide to sell).

At that point I'd swallow paying the dealer to program it. At least I'd know what was wrong then LOL

Try this, should be pretty quick to tell.

Done that, that's what has lead me to the alt. But I'm unsure about going on a multi hundreds of dollar fishing expedition.

 

[Sparky]

Alt is a safe bet. Mine was the cause (the first time).

 

[jimmyjam]

What are your guys opinions ?

someone I know down here sold a tbss with 100k miles on it to car max for $6k. $6K!!?!?! and keep in mind, cars don't rust down here

a trailblazer is like an annoying wife... its cheaper to keep her


as far as the alt goes, if you are frugal you can take it apart and replace the bearings. do some googling for alternator parts. replace the brush in it while you are there and you can get another 100km (whatever those are ) out of it

 

[Matt]

100km (whatever those are )

It's a newer system of measurement that the rest of the world uses...sadly, the US is stuck in the 1800's!

 

[HARDTRAILZ]

If you can do the work yourself, keep it.

If you are going to farm out the work, sell it and get something else.

With the cost of labor these days, you will sink more money than its worrth to fix it up as you want. Pant and body work are not cheap. Chasing unknown noises is time-consuming and expensive if you do not do it yourself.

 

[04 SLT]

the only stuff I'll have to farm out is the paint/body work. I can do all the mechanical stuff myself no problem.

 

[PennTB02]

Skip the body work. Driving a 9 year old truck with some cosmetic issues is OK but a 10 year old vehicle with the same minor issues is where you draw the line?

If you make all the repairs, how long do you plan to keep your Envoy before eventually getting a newer vehicle? Spread the cost of the work over the length of time you expect to keep the Envoy and see if the math makes sense.

What does your wife want to do? Buying a new car so the kid can watch DVD's seams extravent to me but I am sure I make choices you do not think are the greatest either. Or have you all ready made up your mind to trade and are just looking for permission from us? A new(er) AWD mini van might be what you need.


All just my 2 cents worth. I am sure you will make the best choice for you and your recently expanded family.

 

[04 SLT]

Skip the body work. Driving a 9 year old truck with some cosmetic issues is OK but a 10 year old vehicle with the same minor issues is where you draw the line?

If you make all the repairs, how long do you plan to keep your Envoy before eventually getting a newer vehicle? Spread the cost of the work over the length of time you expect to keep the Envoy and see if the math makes sense.

What does your wife want to do? Buying a new car so the kid can watch DVD's seams extravent to me but I am sure I make choices you do not think are the greatest either. Or have you all ready made up your mind to trade and are just looking for permission from us? A new(er) AWD mini van might be what you need.


All just my 2 cents worth. I am sure you will make the best choice for you and your recently expanded family.

Some good food for thought there. As a couple we've decided to keep it. I'll concentrate on the mechanical work first and see where we go from there. I keep telling her to get a minivan ... she keeps threatening my life every time I do LOL.

thanks for all the input guys, it was really helpful.