What did you do to your GMT today?

[Mektek]

Installing wheel hub number five.
That fancy used made in Korea moog hub was a dud. It looks like a lot of people drive with the growling noise in the hubs - if the wheels don't fall off - great! why waste money on new ones?????
Fortunately, the nice Chinese lady that was in charge of customer service for UK bearing decided to send me a new hub from their Amazon warehouse - arrived in two days
On the box it is printed "80 000km mute detection standard" - I hope that means it will be quiet for 80000 kms
The $125 hub at Advance Auto Parts has a lifetime warranty. Maybe it makes sense to buy one of those and replace it on their dime every 2 years........ How many replacements can you do before they refuse any more????

 

[HARDTRAILZ]

Detroit Axle used to have a lifetime warranty but I think they do 10 years now. I know few that got them to warranty multiple times. For 60 a pair, its a heck of a deal

 

[xavierny25]

About a 1/4 way along my trip early this morning to South Carolina and the cel started blinking and noticed the engine was stumbling a bit. Had the code reader already in the port and pulled 2 codes.
I had to push through it till I was able to get off the road to a open auto zone at 7:30am to purchase another coil. I had coil #6 go out just a week or 2 ago. Luckily I had the tools and know how to get me back on the road in under 20 minutes.
Also topped off the oil while I was at it.

I think it's time to pull the trigger and just order up a full set of ac delco coils and be done with them randomly going out. They sure have done there job with this engine having 192k on the original coils.

 

[smt 59]

Gave her a wash and tucked her back in the garage just before it started raining.

 

[Blckshdw]

Put in a new air filter, as the old one had been neglected. Also cleaned out the wiper fluid reservoir where the filter sits, since it was pretty nasty too.

 

[gmcman]

Re-torqued the exhaust manifold bolts, 2 were a good 1/4 turn from snug.

@Boricua SS do you know if the pillar pod works on the Envoy? Do they have the same contour? I’m thinking on fabricating something to go right above the center vents but looking for something else in the time being.

 

[BrianF]

The kids were misbehaving and lost out on a fun evening. They hand washed the trailblazer and did other yard work. The TB now needs a good inside cleaning from all the summer dust and mud.

I used the C1500 rez truck for hauling 7' posts while fencing the other day. Once done, she was loaded with garbage and brought to work. I have noticed that she was having some air bubble issues with the coolant still. I had done the knock sensor twice and the T stat earlier this year. She was still burping the air out until last month. I topped up the recovery tank and rad yesterday. the temp gauge has been nice and steady so I am hoping it is all good now.

 

[gpking]

New shoes. 245/70R16 vs 265/70R16.

 

[Boricua SS]

@Boricua SS do you know if the pillar pod works on the Envoy? Do they have the same contour? I’m thinking on fabricating something to go right above the center vents but looking for something else in the time being.

Just going off of pix that I've seen, they look compatible. I've personally never tried swapping panels and while at the local junk yard, I just went to the TB's to pull the pillar off of one of them

 

[TollKeeper]

I Semi-Retired the XUV. I love that truck, its just so comfy to drive, but its gotten really long in the tooth, I still trust it, and it certainly rides better than the Mercury, and the AC is better than the Mercury. But the fuel mileage... Well the Mercury has the XUV beat in spades. Getting close to 30mpg, nearly double of the XUV. So the XUV has become the backup/towing truck for me and the wife.

Mercury is up and running, it has assumed daily driver status. Time for some tint and subs thou.

I will tell you this.. This forum is a lot more friendly than the guys over on the Ford forum. Those guys can be a bunch of di**S!

 

[HARDTRAILZ]

Ordered some new bracketless monobeam wipers fo it like I just put on the DD and am really liking.

 

[Mooseman]

Gave it a quick wash at the self serve spray wash.

 

[JamesL3]

Just found a used liftmeister 3" setup online and bought it. I was pretty bummed to find out they were discontinued while I was MIA.

 

[xavierny25]

While on the trip to South Carolina my brother-in-law's truck passenger side hub started making some noice. So we swapped them both out at the groom's house the day after the wedding.

 

[BrianF]

Just enjoying the ride with the TB and the C1500. No maintenance scheduled so we are just putting miles on them. We have had one hell of a rainy summer thus far and our 6 miles of grid road have become interesting most of the time.

 

[$ Khalid ! 9130]

Been really busy the past week. Had a minor accident on my toe which left me grounded for 3 days! Anyways got a new battery in the Yukon so both the trucks are back in business. Today finally got around to fixing my tire. Turns out there was a big nail near the back which was causing it to go flat. Also wrapped the steering wheel today. Looks like an SS wheel



Had them sew the cover on to give it a leather steering wheel feel. Also get to retain the grooves at the back. I love those grooves!



Finally convinced the old man to pull the trigger for his Denali and ordered this



Thanks to @Mooseman for helping me make the right choice

 

[Boricua SS]

Had some fun Wednesday and went to install my cutout at my parents garage but ran into a snag and will have to take it somewhere for them to weld it up for me. I dont have a welder and I'm not comfortable with having to remove the hanger. I did get to change my oil at least lol

 

[HARDTRAILZ]

Well yesterday it got a new cv for the one that exploded, but on driving home I found the diff still sounds like rocks in it so I guess it time for a new front diff. On the search for that today and likely pull CVs for now to allow it to be driven until I can get it fixed up properly.

 

[2001ZR2]

I am working thru the frond end on the 2005 Trailblazer for my son to take to college.

Broke the tie rods loose and replaced them including the bellows. The passenger side had about 1/2" of in and out play. The boot on that side was not for the truck and didn't seal at all. I found a boot at Auto Zone for less $100 which is all Advance had. O'Reillys has nothing at all.

Gonna finish the tear down on the passenger side but the upper ball joint is changed now.


Still to do the front strut, lower control bracket. lower ball joint and reassemble. I will clean up the lower control arm and paint as it is covered with Rust bloom,

Tomorrow will do the driver side and if there is time change the front differential oil and flush the brakes.

 

[HARDTRAILZ]

Was going to pull pass CV and found the disco housing in two pieces and not from being unbolted. Have to see if I have enough good parts with my three spares to build one or if I got to order some seals/bearings.

Good news is I think my diff is ok.

 

[Sparky]

Just gassed it up. Noted that lately I sometimes have some idle bog/surge going on, but seems to run fine otherwise, and it isn't consistent. Guess I need to look into that.

 

[Mooseman]

Today, taking the Saab out of pasture (literally, it was sitting in my yard) and doing the brakes since they were all rusted up and it needs a hub. Took all four apart, all the rotors are too pitted to be reused. Fronts I was OK since I had a whole set of pads and rotors I was going to use on the TB for the bigger brakes mod (or so I thought, read on).

It was getting hot out so time to get the hubs and rear brakes at the parts store as well as some lunch with Mrs. Moose. Stopped at a Mexican food truck, terrific enchiladas and chili.

Go back home with parts in hand, still too hot and sun is beating down on the driveway so had a nap. After dinner, went out to finish the job. Hub was uneventful. Then start on the brakes, put on the rotors, they're the smaller rotors! I ordered the wrong ones for a 4.2 SWB. Thank goodness for Amazon Prime! However, now I'm looking at possibly having to get a pair from Canadian Tire because that's the only thing open tomorrow. There's also Part Source but they're basically a sub of CT but may have a different selection. If I don't feel like getting raped for mediocre parts, I'll have to wait until Monday, which will delay our camping trip.

At least I did the rears and got the pads and brackets ready to be installed on the fronts.

 

[TollKeeper]

I Semi-Retired the XUV. I love that truck, its just so comfy to drive, but its gotten really long in the tooth, I still trust it, and it certainly rides better than the Mercury, and the AC is better than the Mercury. But the fuel mileage... Well the Mercury has the XUV beat in spades. Getting close to 30mpg, nearly double of the XUV. So the XUV has become the backup/towing truck for me and the wife.

Mercury is up and running, it has assumed daily driver status. Time for some tint and subs thou.

I will tell you this.. This forum is a lot more friendly than the guys over on the Ford forum. Those guys can be a bunch of di**S!

Well that didnt last long. I realized I hated that Mercury. It drove nice and all. But was to low to the ground for my back with 5 blown discs, and the center console was just digging into my knee. A guy I work with offered to buy it, and I told him my price.. He tried to haggle, but I wasnt budging. I know what the car was worth, and I was asking well below that already. So he plopped 4000 dollars cash down in my hand...

So the XUV is now out of retirement. I didnt miss the gas mileage, but I sure missed the XUV's AC.

I went car shopping yesterday... I only found 3 vehicles that I liked well enough to consider, but the price tag... Not so much. Toyota Highlander Hybrid, Toyota Venza, Mercury Mariner (was cheap, but sold before I could get back to him).

I did look at the new Chevy Blazer, but will save that for that thread.

 

[Mooseman]

Picked up some SS rotors at Canadian Tire in Gatineau, which was the only one that had them in stock. It's their cheap line and I paid a semi-premium price but I wanted to finish this to be done and ready for tomorrow. And with the ACDelco Professional pads, these beefy rotors should be fine. At the same time, dropped off the other rotors at the Post Office (Yay Prime!). Got back, finished the brakes. Then went to check the diff fluid, seems to be leaking from the fill plug, it was low. While filling it, notice that the transfer case fill plug is missing . I don't have a spare but it seems to be the same size as the diff fill, which I do have a spare. I do have smurf blood on hand. Then it started pouring rain. Just in case it doesn't fit, went to the hardware store and picked up a couple of different sized rubber expanding plugs. Now just waiting for the driveway to dry out.

 

[TollKeeper]

I do have smurf blood on hand.

I laughed so hard at this... My wifes nickname is Smurf, and using her blood might make it die a slow and painful death.. Never heard it referred to as smurf blood before. That reminds me, I do need to service my TC.

 

[Mooseman]

Update. The TC was basically empty as it took almost 2 litres. None of the plugs I got fit, which is the same size as a diff plug. However, as luck would have it, I remembered that there was this plug that was kicking around on the ground for the longest time. I thought it was my son's for some reason as he has a tendency of not picking up after himself. Yep, it was the original plug! I must have taken it out to fill last year it but never did because I was dealing with all sorts of issues with drivetrain noises. Good thing I didn't drive it much.

Other things, put some Gatorade caps in the front diff holes, took it for a drive to fill it with gas and the spray wash as it was dirty and full of leaves. Noticed the passenger side mirror was loose. The internal spring was disintegrated. Replaced it with a spare I had. Then transferred the Prodigy brake controller from the TB to the Saab instead of the cheap time based one it had. Used connectors and velcro so I can easily transfer it between the two trucks. Then did a quick (really quick) 50 foot paint job with rust paint on the rust spots so at least it's one colour. Replaced the wipers, cleaned the windows and called it a night.

Driving it, I did miss it. The TB is nice since it's low mileage and better condition but the Saab is just more refined and the 5.3 with the 3.73 gears just moves way better. Suspension is also much stiffer than I remembered. Could be the run-flats it's currently running.

 

[$ Khalid ! 9130]

Been quite busy the past couple of days, however was able to put some work on both vehicles. Look what showed up at my house!!





Time to go HU shopping, but the old man is out of the country on some business or else I'd have installed a HU in by now

Had to replace a brake light on the Yukon as well as the license plate lights. Swapped those out for LEDs, however the clips on one of the sides have broken, so need to find a way to hold it in place. Also replaced the high beams with LEDs as I had a spare pair lying around. And I have to say I though the TB engine bay was cramped. But the Denali man!! Its like it was built exactly to the dimensions or the 8.1 is wayyy bigger than the 6.2 they usually have







I've been putting lots of KMs on the TB ever since I got back. It's just such a reliable and functional beast. Airport trips, TB. Hauling stuff, TB.



Did the yearly clean up yesterday, hauled it all in the TB. Finally was able to find some 3157 reverse leds. Needed a bit of trimming to fit. Nothing the dremel couldnt handle, one of the most useful tools in the my arsenal! One of them fit in one go and works perfectly. The other one however . Took me 5 trims to get it to fit in the socket and then one of the legs broke. Soldered on some new leads. Went down tested it worked! Put everything back together, went for a drive. Stopped working again . Will have to look into it today hopefully









Sadly my time here is coming to an end again . It's almost that time when I have to leave my baby . Have about a week left hopefully will be giving it a nice cleaning inside out, before saying goodbye.

The Yukon however will be getting its stereo installed before I leave, any suggestions?? Bluetooth and a reverse camera are the main features required. Wanted to fix my door card however the loss of the 10mm has left me stranded

 

[Mooseman]

Android HU. Can't beat functionality and price. Look at Aliexpress.

 

[$ Khalid ! 9130]

Android HU. Can't beat functionality and price. Look at Aliexpress.

I agree but the old man's got an iPhone and is very Anti-Androidy

I sas asking more on what would be best compatible with the Rp5 harness, cause we have lots of "other" brands to choose from

 

[2001ZR2]

I am continuing to get my butt kicked by this front end. Both Lower ball joints fought a valiant fight but I broke out the torch for OEM one on the drivers side.

The drivers side upper control mount a welded or pressed in nut came free from the shock tower. Not sure what to do with that so suggestions or voices of experience are welcome.

Not to be out done the drivers side strut fought tooth and nail with needing a large pry bar to let go of the lower mount. The strut mount wouldn't let go until I had rounded out the internal hex and go the impact and vise grips. Yes I held the shaft with vise grip while the rattle gun removed the nut. Yes, I hit with penetrating oil and knocked the crud off with a wire brush.

Good times

 

[xavierny25]

Last night throttle body cleaning.
I think it's time to replace the hose from the valve cover to the resinator, seems the oil is getting by and making a mess.

 

[Mooseman]

Investigated drive belt noise a little more on the Saab. Could be either the A/C clutch or the belt tensioner as it would diminish when I activated the compressor.

Also reinstalled Torque on the Android HU. The old version didn't give the tranny temps as it didn't have the newer pids.

 

[$ Khalid ! 9130]

Cleaned the interior and replaced the reverse lights back to normal until I can get them perfect. One for fried and the other didn't fit properly, came loose and wasn't working. I'd rather have working reverse lights than a crash on my hands!

 

[Beacon]

Replaced front washer fluid pump, changed oil. I took some pics while I was under there. From the view point of just in front of the drivers side front wheel. The Saab runs fine, as is, but i'm wondering if i should try to undo what the previous owner or his mechanic did here.

 

[Blckshdw]

Replaced front washer fluid pump, changed oil. I took some pics while I was under there. From the view point of just in front of the drivers side front wheel. The Saab runs fine, as is, but i'm wondering if i should try to undo what the previous owner or his mechanic did here.

Is that an aux tranny cooler?

 

[Beacon]

Is that an aux tranny cooler?

I think it's a power steering cooler

 

[xavierny25]

It's been a slow process to get these wheels polished up 2 are done 1 is 3/4 of the way there and I haven't touch the last one.


Walk through of the stages for this one.

 

[Mounce]

Truck is killing me with squeaks.... Thought I found it while doing ball joints, upper shock bushings squeaked when touching lower control arm by hand. Cool! That last nasty squeak was bushings easy peasy, replaced them and it's gotten worse.

Turns out the lower control arm bushings are yelling whilst loaded, shock bushings didn't help. The control arm bushings have flattened so far that there's front - rear slop on the bolts and they're rubbing the frame mounts and squeaking.

I would just slap a set of control arms in it but I JUST DONE THE BALL JOINTS PRIOR TO noticing where this squeak was at. They still needed done but I wish I would've known before hand.

Not to mention that month old inner tie rods are bad again. One is an old design which I already had warrantied for not taking grease out of the box (ran the original set for a year with factory grease) and the other warranty replacement is a different style which took grease beautifully but is sloppy within a month.

Not to mention a failing idler arm AND idler arm bracket a year and a half later.

F driveworks. Advance will be refunding me for all of the front end parts I've bought from them and I'll be buying moog next to see what the hype is about.

This truck is wearing me out in the front end. This will be my third time digging into it within 15 months. I like working on vehicles and all but dang.

 

[Mooseman]

Yesterday, the A/C wasn't working. 10A fuse was blown. Replace it and it blew within .5 sec as the clutch engaged. At first was just looking at just replacing the clutch bearing because of the noise but now will have to replace the whole compressor since clutches aren't available separately. It will be a long hot drive home pulling the trailer.

 

[TollKeeper]

Went to pull it out of the garage so I could work on the wifes Aztek (needed new wheel bearings). And I noticed that my headlights/DRL didnt come on. Hmm thats odd. Turned on the light switch, nothing. Rolled down the window to see if I could hear the relay click for the HID's, turned off/on the headlight switch, nothing. Well WTF..

Opened the hood, and found where I had hidden the relay, pulled it out, and unplugged it. Terminals and plug were just covered in corrosion. GRR! Grabbed my wire brush, some electric terminal paint, and diaelectric grease, and went to town. Have headlights now, but not sure why its getting covered in corrosion like that.