My 2006 TrailBlazer LS 4.2L I6 4X4 - Sexay!

[RayGumm]

Here she is, ladies and gentlemen!

POLL: I am on a tight budget - but really want to get the mod bug. What should be my first mod? Remember - CHEAP. (read: INEXPENSIVE)

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here's where the precious cargo sits.. all 47 of them:
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And here is the ONE and ONLY mod that my truck currently has - smoker friendly window rain guards - so you can smoke in the rain with the windows down without getting wet! yaaayyy... (I think my first mod might be taking these damn things OFF)
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So there she is! What do y'all think?

 

[dmanns67]

Nice looking TB and plenty of room for modding

I actually use to smoke as well and that was the exact reason I bought my Weather Tech deflectors except they are the in channel style versus stick on. I just took mine off a couple days ago.

First mod, cut off the resonator on the exhaust. Other cheap mods includes color matching the mirror covers and front cross bar. You can remove your side molding and roof rack, unless you plan to use the roof rack.

You could use some VHT Night Shade on the rear reflectors, tail lights, and 3rd brake light.

Replacing headlights with HIDs and incandescent bulbs with LEDs can be inexpensive depending on where you buy them.

Forgot to mention plasti-dip. It is cheap and you can use it on anything. It also comes in a variety of colors.

 

[freddyboy61]

Here is my comment, but unrelated to mods. I hope you're not smoking with the kids in the back seat. Just sayin'.

 

[RayGumm]

Here is my comment, but unrelated to mods. I hope you're not smoking with the kids in the back seat. Just sayin'.

I don't smoke, quit about 3 years ago before my son was born. Every now and then a cigar, but never in the car. The wind/rain deflectors were on it when I bought it.

 

[RayGumm]

Nice looking TB and plenty of room for modding

First mod, cut off the resonator on the exhaust.

Why? Sounds better? Will I need to weld in a piece of pipe in its absence?

 

[The_Roadie]

Why? Sounds better? Will I need to weld in a piece of pipe in its absence?

It sounds a little bit louder, but not obnoxiously. A pipe with a bend in it and a nice tip coming out higher up behind the wheel doesn't look bad, and it prevents the resonator from getting bashed in when you back into things.

We typically call the resonator the "trash can" or an "anal wart". It's the #1 mod I look for on a truck to see if its owned by a soccer mom or an enthusiast.

 

[Bill05EnvoySLT]

It sounds a little bit louder, but not obnoxiously. A pipe with a bend in it and a nice tip coming out higher up behind the wheel doesn't look bad, and it prevents the resonator from getting bashed in when you back into things.

We typically call the resonator the "trash can" or an "anal wart". It's the #1 mod I look for on a truck to see if its owned by a soccer mom or an enthusiast.

Oh Great now I get told this information!! LMAO
"Honey get my sawzall out I've got to mod the Truck again!! " :wootwoot:

 

[RayGumm]

It sounds a little bit louder, but not obnoxiously. A pipe with a bend in it and a nice tip coming out higher up behind the wheel doesn't look bad, and it prevents the resonator from getting bashed in when you back into things.

We typically call the resonator the "trash can" or an "anal wart". It's the #1 mod I look for on a truck to see if its owned by a soccer mom or an enthusiast.

So I am about to show my naivete' here, but the resonator is the muffler lookin doohickey that the tailpipe comes out of? Please remember before laughing (as I am sure I deserve it) that all of the cars I have owned and worked on that muffler lookin doohickey was the actual muffler.

You're saying I can hack that muffler lookin doohickey off with a sawzall and weld on a tailpipe that just sits up further under the truck?

If so, I know what I'm doing this Saturday. MUST BUY SAWZALL BLADES!! (and find someone to weld on a tailpipe)

Can I steal the tail pipe from the end of the resonator and just weld it back on the now truncated exhaust for now until I can afford a sexy chrome tip?

 

[Bill05EnvoySLT]

Here she is, ladies and gentlemen!

POLL: I am on a tight budget - but really want to get the mod bug. What should be my first mod? Remember - CHEAP. (read: INEXPENSIVE)
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PLEASE CLEAN YOUR ENGINE BAY Im just picky that way

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Whats with all the wires in the center console?

here's where the precious cargo sits.. all 47 of them:
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And here is the ONE and ONLY mod that my truck currently has - smoker friendly window rain guards - so you can smoke in the rain with the windows down without getting wet! yaaayyy... (I think my first mod might be taking these damn things OFF)
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So there she is! What do y'all think?

I like your TB, I personally like Running boards it helps with the little ones getting in and out of it and a place for me to stand to clean off the roof when washing it! But then again im not going rock crawling with my DD.. and im in an Envoy at that!...

I think the rain guards are nice too for 1 simple reason besides me being a smoker, it lets you vent the windows without having to worry about rain destroying the door switches which I currently seem to find water on mine when it rains and i crack the windows... my truck already had a shorted memory seat switch, i was able to repair. but still the water is a killer for them.

Welcome and good luck for your ride. these folks are serious and helpful to those who need it.

-Bill

 

[RayGumm]

I like your TB, I personally like Running boards it helps with the little ones getting in and out of it and a place for me to stand to clean off the roof when washing it! But then again im not going rock crawling with my DD.. and im in an Envoy at that!...

I think the rain guards are nice too for 1 simple reason besides me being a smoker, it lets you vent the windows without having to worry about rain destroying the door switches which I currently seem to find water on mine when it rains and i crack the windows... my truck already had a shorted memory seat switch, i was able to repair. but still the water is a killer for them.

Welcome and good luck for your ride. these folks are serious and helpful to those who need it.

-Bill

Thank you sir. I hadn't thought of the rain guards actually being useful beyond venting smoke. I did notice in the rain yesterday that the windows - even though up - had like no rain on them. And it was pouring. Running boards are something the wife already suggested. I was thinking more rock sliders - they double as running boards! win-win!

EDIT: I will indeed clean the engine compartment. It was cleaner before but the idiots at the dealer who changed the oil for me when I bought it spilled oil everywhere. I need to get back in there with a rag and do it justice.
The wires on the center console are my phone charger cord and a radio transmitter cord thingie that I can plug into my phone and tune the radio to a set frequency and listen to Pandora, make calls, etc. One of the first mods I need to do is a stero head unit. But that might wait a while until I can splurge on a really top dollar one. We shall see how annoyed I get with the transmitter thing in the interim.

 

[The_Roadie]

Go underneath and look. The real muffler is the size of a coffin or a photon torpedo!

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[RayGumm]

Go underneath and look. The real muffler is the size of a coffin or a photon torpedo!

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I saw that monstrosity when I was battling with my spare the other day! it DID look like a photon torpedo.. I even thought that to myself. I honestly didn't think twice about it as I was too busy cursing the engineer who designed the safety latch thingamabob on the spare tire.

Well now I know. Thanks Roadie.

 

[Midnyteryder196]

Replacing all your interior dome lights with LEDs, either plug and play 194 bulbs (except the cargo area which is a 212-2) or smd panels. I currently have 15 smd panel in each spot behind the front seats, and 5 smd 194 bulbs up front.

Then if your handy at soldering.. possibly changing all your instrument lighting to led.. have a look at the led mod thread in the appearance section
As far as exterior.. removing badging, and door molding is always cheap and easy..

 

[Mooseman]

Plasti Dip the chrome grill black. You could try with the bow tie masked off or black it out too. If you don't like it, take it off.

 

[Envoy_04]

In answer to an earlier question, you absolutely CAN just hack the tailpipe off the resonator, and then the resonator off the exhaust system, and weld the tailpipe back on. I've seen it done many times and before I found the side exit tip I wanted it was what I had planned to do.

Unless you plan to actually use the roof rack, I say lose it! You can use the side door molding (2 for one mod, demolding and deracking!!) to cover the small insert holes that are left after removal. Blends in really well and looks just like another rib on the roof.

For around, maybe slightly more than $50 you can upgrade to the sleeker 07+ style rear wiper arm and blade. With a few bucks worth of carriage bolts and misc. hardware and a little black spray paint, you can shave the rear window glass handle to complement the new wiper arm for an ultra sleek look, and to finish it off lose the tailgate badging.

On the subject of the grille crossbar, I personally prefer to body match it rather than black it out, but if you like the chrome you can just leave it alone. That's the beauty of modding, taking a ride and making it exactly what YOU want it to be.

 

[gmcman]

Congrats, I'm going to take a different angle to this. New ride, kids, budget......

What's the maintenance history? I would change all the fluids, flush the trans, add a vette servo and Sonnax super hold servo, new separator plate and change the pulse width modulated torque converter lockup to an off/on style with a TCC PWM eliminator kit. All this will almost positively extend the life of the trans by no small margin.

Change the plugs, upstream O2 sensor and wait to see if and when the thermostat / temp sensor takes a dive or change them now.

Bilstein HD shocks/ struts all the way around.


There, after that you should a solid peace of mind...also throw in an ignition switch and low beam solid state relay stashed somewhere just in case.

These are just things that are normal wear items and shouldn't scare you off in any way. Not knowing the history..if that were mine knowing what I have learned about these platforms, I wouldn't think twice.

 

[Mark20]

I regularly kick the trashcan hoping to hear it rattling from rusting out inside. Then it will be gone. Current thought is to just run replacement tailpipe straight back.

 

[MAY03LT]

It's the #1 mod I look for on a truck to see if its owned by a soccer mom or an enthusiast.

Wait a second....how long has this been going on?

.....cord thingie....

Finally someone else who says thingy!:wootwoot:

Here be two cheap mods that can be done at the same time, depending on how you do it:

1 - Modify the daytime running lights by killing them or making them run at full 12v power. The low beams don't run on full 12v power when in DRL mode, and although I can't prove it, I believe that the normal DRL operation (pwm signal) is what cooks the low beam headlight sockets.

2 - Enable quad headlights. This keeps the low beams on when the hi beams are on. In one version of the DRL kill mod, quads are a good side effect of the mod.

There are several versions of each mod listed, and none of them are the "right" way of doing them.

And here's a quick tip - get into the habit of keeping the interior light dimmer switch all the way down when you don't need them. The interior bulbs aren't plug and play to replace. Every dimmable bulb is soldered to the component that they are lighting.



This is what happened to my cluster. While having a single cluster light out might not seem like a big deal, it will become a big deal when the others go out as well. This is also what led me to do a full interior light conversion to red - courtesy of that darned mod bug..

 

[Bill05EnvoySLT]

Me NEXT may03lt.