Kbuskill's 2008 Burb LTZ "MOD" Thread

[Sparksalot]

I ended up getting a warranty replacement for the original and it indeed has been updated and the new one bolted right in without any modifications.

I did notice that the core on the newer version is not quite as thick as the original version as seen in this pic...
View attachment 399652
Original design on top, newer version on the bottom... still thicker than stock though.

The tanks appear to be larger though.

 

[kbuskill]

The tanks appear to be larger though.

I hadn't really noticed it until you mentioned it, but I believe you are correct. Other than more capacity I doubt that really aides in cooling, but what do I know... lol

 

[kbuskill]

It has been quite a while since I have updated this thread.

I tried to get some decent pics of this mod but it is extremely difficult due to LEDs being so bright.

How many of you old timers remember Blue Dot tail lights???

I have always been a sucker for old school stuff, born in the wrong era I guess... lol

Anyway, you can't run a traditional Blue Dot with an LED behind it because it won't give you that purple haze look that a traditional filament style incandescent bulb gives you. I wasn't willing to give up my LED bulbs so I decided to make my version of 21st century Blue Dots and put them in the Burb.

Since I can't leave well enough alone I made them half bright on the parking/running lights and made them full brightness on the brake light mode so it gives it the full effect.

Also tried to get a video, it shows the purple haze look a little better but still hard to capture on camera what you see with the naked eye.

You can also see I redid my 3rd brake light in the video.

 

[89Suburban]

It has been quite a while since I have updated this thread.

I tried to get some decent pics of this mod but it is extremely difficult due to LEDs being so bright.

How many of you old timers remember Blue Dot tail lights???

I have always been a sucker for old school stuff, born in the wrong era I guess... lol

Anyway, you can't run a traditional Blue Dot with an LED behind it because it won't give you that purple haze look that a traditional filament style incandescent bulb gives you. I wasn't willing to give up my LED bulbs so I decided to make my version of 21st century Blue Dots and put them in the Burb.
View attachment 399656
View attachment 399657

Since I can't leave well enough alone I made them half bright on the parking/running lights and made them full brightness on the brake light mode so it gives it the full effect.

Also tried to get a video, it shows the purple haze look a little better but still hard to capture on camera what you see with the naked eye.

You can also see I redid my 3rd brake light in the video.

Damn that 3rd light bar is trick!

 

[kbuskill]

Damn that 3rd light bar is trick!

Thanks

 

[swathdiver]

It has been quite a while since I have updated this thread.

I tried to get some decent pics of this mod but it is extremely difficult due to LEDs being so bright.

How many of you old timers remember Blue Dot tail lights???

I have always been a sucker for old school stuff, born in the wrong era I guess... lol

Anyway, you can't run a traditional Blue Dot with an LED behind it because it won't give you that purple haze look that a traditional filament style incandescent bulb gives you. I wasn't willing to give up my LED bulbs so I decided to make my version of 21st century Blue Dots and put them in the Burb.
View attachment 399666

View attachment 399656
View attachment 399657

Since I can't leave well enough alone I made them half bright on the parking/running lights and made them full brightness on the brake light mode so it gives it the full effect.

Also tried to get a video, it shows the purple haze look a little better but still hard to capture on camera what you see with the naked eye.

You can also see I redid my 3rd brake light in the video.

When we go to Jax in July, I'll be looking for purple tails now! LOL

 

[kbuskill]

When we go to Jax in July, I'll be looking for purple tails now! LOL

I live kind of SW of Jax out in the "country"... swing by if you get a chance.

 

[alpha_omega]

I ended up getting a warranty replacement for the original and it indeed has been updated and the new one bolted right in without any modifications.

I did notice that the core on the newer version is not quite as thick as the original version as seen in this pic...

Original design on top, newer version on the bottom.

Still about twice as thick as the stock one though...

This is comparing stock to original design which was almost three times as thick.

How was the fitment? Any less monkeying around and easier to install?

 

[kbuskill]

How was the fitment? Any less monkeying around and easier to install?

Yes, this one bolted right in without any issues or modifications needed.

They still have not put a restrictor into the small upper port that goes to the surge tank however. I just removed the restrictor I made from the first one and reinstalled it into the replacement.

Easy Peasy.

 

[PG01]

Blue dot……good stuff Ken…. Love it….my 78 sportster tail still had it up until about 5 years ago….

 

[kbuskill]

Blue dot……good stuff Ken…. Love it….my 78 sportster tail still had it up until about 5 years ago….

Thanks Pete, good to see you are still dropping by to check on us once in a while.

 

[kbuskill]

Had Trailblazer SS air bag pop in the passenger rear last Wednesday. Thankfully we weren't too far from home when it happened. Pulled the ALC fuse and had my son jack up the back end to verify our suspicion. Put vice grips on the air line feeding the passenger bag and stuck fuse back in to let compressor build up pressure in drivers side bag to help support passenger side so we could limp it home. Tires were rubbing fenders pretty bad with it all the way down.

My son installed a set of coil springs I had in the shed temporarily until the new Arnott bags arrived. Then on Sunday the alternator decided it didn't want to alternate any more. I guess at 306k miles it served its purpose.

Ordered the 220A alternator that @iamdub put on his truck. Figured I may as well upgrade while I'm at it. Two new Gates "Green" belts on the way as well as two new tensioners for the A/C and regular drive belt and idler pulley as well. I figured if I have to remove the one belt for the alternator swap I may as well just replace everything. I noticed a little cracking in the A/C belt any way, so it is time.

Hoping we don't have any issues with the Arnott Gen 2 bags. They are a tapered design and supposedly ride better than the original design, but they are also a little bigger in diameter and I have read they may try to rub on something. Not super clear, I think the post I read said something about the bump stop bracket. Mine have been removed so we will just make sure there are no sharp edges anywhere near the bags. Hopefully it all goes well.

Still waiting on parts to arrive.

 

[Rocket Man]

Had Trailblazer SS air bag pop in the passenger rear last Wednesday. Thankfully we weren't too far from home when it happened. Pulled the ALC fuse and had my son jack up the back end to verify our suspicion. Put vice grips on the air line feeding the passenger bag and stuck fuse back in to let compressor build up pressure in drivers side bag to help support passenger side so we could limp it home. Tires were rubbing fenders pretty bad with it all the way down.

My son installed a set of coil springs I had in the shed temporarily until the new Arnott bags arrived. Then on Sunday the alternator decided it didn't want to alternate any more. I guess at 306k miles it served its purpose.

Ordered the 220A alternator that @iamdub put on his truck. Figured I may as well upgrade while I'm at it. Two new Gates "Green" belts on the way as well as two new tensioners for the A/C and regular drive belt and idler pulley as well. I figured if I have to remove the one belt for the alternator swap I may as well just replace everything. I noticed a little cracking in the A/C belt any way, so it is time.

Hoping we don't have any issues with the Arnott Gen 2 bags. They are a tapered design and supposedly ride better than the original design, but they are also a little bigger in diameter and I have read they may try to rub on something. Not super clear, I think the post I read said something about the bump stop bracket. Mine have been removed so we will just make sure there are no sharp edges anywhere near the bags. Hopefully it all goes well.

Still waiting on parts to arrive.

How old were those TBSS bags?

 

[kbuskill]

How old were those TBSS bags?

Installed new on 1/30/21. Not sure what caused the failure, they didn't appear to be dry rotted or anything.

The new Arnott bags are bigger in diameter and a tapered design. They are really close to frame rail and when you bounce the truck up and down they do make contact with the inner frame rail, but it is flat and smooth and there is nothing sharp in the area so hopefully it won't be an issue. I guess time will tell.

 

[kbuskill]

Finally broke down and bought the upgraded LED puddle lights I have had my eyes on for a while. I found these after upgrading the tag lights to a similar style replacement.

The camera seems to pick up a lot more light than what is visible to the naked eye so the old LED bulbs I had in the original housings seem way brighter on camera than in real life.

While the upgraded LED 194 bulbs I had in the original puddle lights were an improvement over the factory incandescent bulbs they are no where near as bright as the new ones.

New on left, original on right

Original with single LED 194 bulb

New LED "pod" style

Here are the links to the tag lights...
Gempro LED License Plate Lights Rear Bumper Tag Lamp Assembly for 2007-2014 Chevy Suburban Tahoe GMC Yukon Cadillac Escalade ESV, 6000K White 2PCS https://a.co/d/739rGe8

And the link for the puddle lights...
FetonAuto Mirror Light LED Puddle... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BG2MMLSD?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Also a pic of said tag lights...

In case anyone is interested.

 

[adventurenali92]

Finally broke down and bought the upgraded LED puddle lights I have had my eyes on for a while. I found these after upgrading the tag lights to a similar style replacement.

The camera seems to pick up a lot more light than what is visible to the naked eye so the old LED bulbs I had in the original housings seem way brighter on camera than in real life.

While the upgraded LED 194 bulbs I had in the original puddle lights were an improvement over the factory incandescent bulbs they are no where near as bright as the new ones.

View attachment 408690
New on left, original on right

View attachment 408691
Original with single LED 194 bulb

View attachment 408692
New LED "pod" style

Here are the links to the tag lights...
Gempro LED License Plate Lights Rear Bumper Tag Lamp Assembly for 2007-2014 Chevy Suburban Tahoe GMC Yukon Cadillac Escalade ESV, 6000K White 2PCS https://a.co/d/739rGe8

And the link for the puddle lights...
FetonAuto Mirror Light LED Puddle... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BG2MMLSD?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Also a pic of said tag lights...
View attachment 408693

In case anyone is interested.

That’s a really cool upgrade for the puddle lights! I like em!

 

[07Burb]

Best puddle light upgrade I’ve seen! I like it

 

[Fosscore]

Nice upgrades.

 

[07Burb]

Finally broke down and bought the upgraded LED puddle lights I have had my eyes on for a while. I found these after upgrading the tag lights to a similar style replacement.

The camera seems to pick up a lot more light than what is visible to the naked eye so the old LED bulbs I had in the original housings seem way brighter on camera than in real life.

While the upgraded LED 194 bulbs I had in the original puddle lights were an improvement over the factory incandescent bulbs they are no where near as bright as the new ones.

View attachment 408690
New on left, original on right

View attachment 408691
Original with single LED 194 bulb

View attachment 408692
New LED "pod" style

Here are the links to the tag lights...
Gempro LED License Plate Lights Rear Bumper Tag Lamp Assembly for 2007-2014 Chevy Suburban Tahoe GMC Yukon Cadillac Escalade ESV, 6000K White 2PCS https://a.co/d/739rGe8

And the link for the puddle lights...
FetonAuto Mirror Light LED Puddle... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BG2MMLSD?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Also a pic of said tag lights...
View attachment 408693

In case anyone is interested.

When you bought the puddle lights did they come as a pair? Getting ready to buy but can’t tell if it’s $20 for one or a pair

 

[kbuskill]

When you bought the puddle lights did they come as a pair? Getting ready to buy but can’t tell if it’s $20 for one or a pair

They come as a pair.