Getting an 03 tahoe, opinions on mods and ?'s about tune up.

[Gmoney_2010]

Ok so by early june I should have my hoe.
Its a 2003 LT 4x4 Charcoal Black with grey leather and pretty much every option except DVD. and has about 95,000 to 100,000 miles. im still in high school so this will be a pretty nice second car. anyways I have a list of mods and tune up type things that Im going to do and want some opinions/reccomendations.
1. Magnaflow Muffler- Single Center in, single offset out. #12589. Just replace stock muffler with this. Or single in, dual out. #12590 or #12588
2. AEM Brute Force, autoanything.com.
3. AC Delco Spark Plugs and maybe wires.
4. Change transmission fluid
5. Change cooling system fluids
6. Change fuel filter
7. BB cable tune
8. Anzo projector halo headlights, black housing, vvme? 5000k HIDs low and high. Get harness . 4 high mod. Connect halos to parking lights.
9. LED tails
10. Silverado SS Wheels and SS badging
11. SS bumper cover
12. SS roll pan maybe
13. Diff running boards

So how does this sound? also what fluids do I use for the tranny and cooling systme?
Oh and thanks for starting this forum! I love being there for the start of the forum so I can be up on all the topics from the start..

[tast101]

I got my 03 2 years ago and luv it. I'm BS haven't got my rims and other stuff, but I did my stereo.

[3blackchevys]

great choice in ride and color. good luck

[tybardy]

Ok so by early june I should have my hoe.
Its a 2003 LT 4x4 Charcoal Black with grey leather and pretty much every option except DVD. and has about 95,000 to 100,000 miles. im still in high school so this will be a pretty nice second car. anyways I have a list of mods and tune up type things that Im going to do and want some opinions/reccomendations.
1. Magnaflow Muffler- Single Center in, single offset out. #12589. Just replace stock muffler with this. Or single in, dual out. #12590 or #12588
2. AEM Brute Force, autoanything.com.
3. AC Delco Spark Plugs and maybe wires.
4. Change transmission fluid
5. Change cooling system fluids
6. Change fuel filter
7. BB cable tune
8. Anzo projector halo headlights, black housing, vvme? 5000k HIDs low and high. Get harness . 4 high mod. Connect halos to parking lights.

So how does this sound? also what fluids do I use for the tranny and cooling systme?
Oh and thanks for starting this forum! I love being there for the start of the forum so I can be up on all the topics from the start..

You need to hit up a dude on this forum named Max... he should be able to get you that AEM brute force cheaper then anywhere else.

As far as the ATF, are you going to do a full flush? At 100k i would recomend that instead of just the pan. And use DEX VI not DEX III (and if you have the money i would recomend spending the $10 a quart on the royal purple DEX VI)

Check the Dif. fluids as well.

As for the coolant system you have to use Dexcool.

I would also recomend buying two cans of sea foam, running an intire can in the gas tank, running about 1/2 a can through the break booster vacuum line (there are instructions on how to do this as well as several videos of it on youtube) and run the remainder into the transfer case with the oil a week or so before you change it. This will strip a lot of the carbon deposits from the entire system and give you a nice foundation to start with.

[matt14]

As far as running boards, the esky ones are painted and have chrome caps on the ends. Looks good installed on tahoes and yukons.

[Gmoney_2010]

Thanks guys! Are there any downsides to the sea foam? I've read several topics about it over at TF but I can't remember if there were any or not.
Yeah this is currently my cousins tahoe and he is graduating college so he gets a new car for graduation, which is also what this tahoe was for high school, and then I get it, and I've been waiting for this for like a year so I'm stoked!

[Volant1]

Magnaflow Muffler- Single Center in, single offset out. #12589. Just replace stock muffler with this. Or single in, dual out. #12590 or #12588

Stick with the single in single out, duals will kill your low end torque its to much pipe with what your going to be running

[tast101]

As far as running boards, the esky ones are painted and have chrome caps on the ends. Looks good installed on tahoes and yukons.

Man I ned to find some Esky running boards and a Roof Rack.

[blueflamed03]

Magnaflow Muffler- Single Center in, single offset out. #12589. Just replace stock muffler with this. Or single in, dual out. #12590 or #12588

Stick with the single in single out, duals will kill your low end torque its to much pipe with what your going to be running
agree. These have 3" piping, more than enough for these 4.8/5.3's.

[PavementPounder]

I do not recommend a street scene rear bumper cover. My painter looked at right out of the box and his exact quote was, "well we can fix it then paint it". Had I not already shelled the dough I would have found a denali rear bumper

[Gmoney_2010]

I meant the front ss bumper cover and rear roll pan.. And yeah I like the escalade boards and racks on the tahoes, but where would be the best place to get em? Most of the list after the intake, exhaust and tune are wants and can wait till the end of summer when I'll get paid from summer job.

[fatnlowtahoe504]

get the SS wheels and exhaust first IMO, are you going to lower it or lift it??

[Timmy]

don't put ss badges... it's not an ss.

[Gmoney_2010]

fatnlow, I'm just wondering, but why would you do those two first? And it depends on what my parents will pay for.. Cause those first things will help with gas mileage. And I don't plan on raising it or lowering it but it will depend on what it looks like after the wheels get put on.
Timmy, yeah that's true. I'll just be happy if I get most of those mods done at all.

[road1will]

Do the magnaflow muffler. thats the muffler i have on my tahoe and absolutely love it. best mod i've done besides my DNX5120

[tybardy]

you can get your gas milage up considerably by simply replacing that shitty air filter with a high flow filter like a drop in K&N... under $80

Then add the Magnaflo muffler, its a straght through designe and sounds GREAT! should be able to get the part and have it welded up for around $150 if you do the leg work and shopping yourself. (got mine 100% done for $135)

i would also recomend getting the e-fan kit done, this dissconects the clutch driven fan and frees up some power.... I have seen this mod done for around $120 but thats you doing some serious deal hunting and labor yourself... otherwise you are looking at around $300

after all that is done GET A CUSTOM TUNE!!! this is the KEY element here... if you get those top three done up there and get a custom 91 octain tune, you can see a solid 3-4mpg increase.... when i bought my truck i was struggling to get over 14mpgs... i now stay stead around 17.5 and if i baby the shit out of it, i get between 19-20.... (i actually dont have the e-fans yet, but i want them and expect the gas milage to go up at least .5 to 1 mpg)

i also replaced my spark pluggs, fuel filter, plug wires and got a gold top battery... those things probably didnt hurt the truck either

[Gmoney_2010]

Thanks. Yeah I know a guy that owns a big O tire and muffler shop so I will probably have him do it.. And I'll have to look into the fan kits. Where would I start looking?

[tybardy]

Thanks. Yeah I know a guy that owns a big O tire and muffler shop so I will probably have him do it.. And I'll have to look into the fan kits. Where would I start looking?

ebay, online stores is always where i start looking... here is the deal... they make a direct swap setup which comes with all the BS you need... however you can also get the LS1 fans and do some semi-custom fabrication and make them work on your truck, i have seen more then one person do this and it is the cheaper way to go. i will look around for the write up on this, i know its somewhere saved on my computer

[HitandRunDriver]

Looks like you've got your work cut out for you with that list, good luck

[Gmoney_2010]

Looks like you've got your work cut out for you with that list, good luck

Ha yeah! But most of the stuff after the mpg increasers and tuneup things are my wishlist and probably won't happen very soon.. But I've been waiting just to get the tahoe for so long that I have had plenty of time to plan everything I want to do to it.
Oh and another question, is the hitch part of the bumper? So like when I remove the bumper to put a roll pan on will that be removing the hitch too?

[tybardy]

hitch is not mounted to the bumper like the s-10

[fatnlowtahoe504]

fatnlow, I'm just wondering, but why would you do those two first? And it depends on what my parents will pay for.. Cause those first things will help with gas mileage. And I don't plan on raising it or lowering it but it will depend on what it looks like after the wheels get put on.
Timmy, yeah that's true. I'll just be happy if I get most of those mods done at all.

because you would have the wheels on which would be the main look on the truck and then get your rumble with the exhaust, and then u can add all the little other stuff to the engine after, but they are probably my 2 favorite adds on my truck

[Timmy]

because you would have the wheels on which would be the main look on the truck and then get your rumble with the exhaust, and then u can add all the little other stuff to the engine after, but they are probably my 2 favorite adds on my truck

i agree. and actually in think tint and system first

[brndns_hoe]

correct me if i'm wrong someone, but connecting the halos into your parking lights, they're gonna blink with your turn signals(same light as the parking light)...i hoooked mine into the drl's

[Gmoney_2010]

Do you think there is any way to connect them to the drls and parking lights? Or would that not work to well?

[Timmy]

Do you think there is any way to connect them to the drls and parking lights? Or would that not work to well?

i'm sure you can, but don't know why you would. the halos suck for light output, btw.

[Gmoney_2010]

Do you mean the actual halo rings or the projectors?

[MD/AbingdonTahoe]

you can get your gas milage up considerably by simply replacing that shitty air filter with a high flow filter like a drop in K&N... under $80

Then add the Magnaflo muffler, its a straght through designe and sounds GREAT! should be able to get the part and have it welded up for around $150 if you do the leg work and shopping yourself. (got mine 100% done for $135)

i would also recomend getting the e-fan kit done, this dissconects the clutch driven fan and frees up some power.... I have seen this mod done for around $120 but thats you doing some serious deal hunting and labor yourself... otherwise you are looking at around $300

after all that is done GET A CUSTOM TUNE!!! this is the KEY element here... if you get those top three done up there and get a custom 91 octain tune, you can see a solid 3-4mpg increase.... when i bought my truck i was struggling to get over 14mpgs... i now stay stead around 17.5 and if i baby the shit out of it, i get between 19-20.... (i actually dont have the e-fans yet, but i want them and expect the gas milage to go up at least .5 to 1 mpg)

i also replaced my spark pluggs, fuel filter, plug wires and got a gold top battery... those things probably didnt hurt the truck either


I actually lost gas mileage with the k&n

[fatnlowtahoe504]

i agree. and actually in think tint and system first

yea thats my other favorite add on my truck, got my tint on prob 2 days after i got my truck lol

[tybardy]

I actually lost gas mileage with the k&n

i have put a drop in K&N in every car/truck i have owned including a few girlfriends along the way, this has NEVER happened to me... my guess would be there was an issue with the MAF. Physics tells me that adding more air to your truck is going to give you better gas milage.... the MAF was most likely reading wrong at some point and not creating a stable mixture.