"New" truck- What to do first?

[PNW_IT_Guy]

I just bought a 2010 Yukon SLT 4x4 with 181k miles. What should my top priorities be for maintenance and even mods? I'm out-voted on getting a lift, and we'd like the best gas mileage possible.

The truck came with a load of service records, so it was well cared for. It had the transmission and gear boxes serviced less than 8,000 miles ago and the oil looks great too.

 

[Miami-Dade]

Welcome from Miami&NYC!

Glad to see you bought a well serviced Yukon! Nice find.

 

[petethepug]

Congrats, welcome from SoCal. You get standard or the XL?

That’s great they serviced the drive mechanicals. The to do list should verify both battery cables have been replaced. That ensures any future codes that come up are not bogus.

Heater hoses are the other thing that disintegrate when bumped. Find GM OEM online. You’ll save 40-50% off the dealers pricing. My Indi tech had to do both with dealer parts and it was $4h for those little suckers, labor & coolant.

 

[97YukonNZ]

Welcome to the Forum from New Zealand
Let's see a couple of pic's of the new Rig!

 

[OR VietVet]

Welcome to the forum from Oregon

Glad that good reasoning won out and you are not lifting. That also would have contributed to poor fuel mileage.

Yes, pics would be nice.

I agree with @petethepug on the cables and hoses. I am a fan of all fluids changed but you have service records but only said the transmission and gear boxes were done recently. How about transfer case, coolant, power steering and brake fluid?

 

[Marky Dissod]

What should my top priorities be for maintenance and even mods? ...
... truck came with a load of service records, so it was well cared for.

Answer this question by looking at the records until you figure out what's been neglected / delayed / missing.

If nothing comes to mind, never a bad idea to address the rear cooling system, especially those quick-connects.
They sure don't disconnect quickly - but they tend to fail all of a sudden though.

 

[PNW_IT_Guy]

Thanks for the responses and the warm welcome everyone! She's a dirty girl right now, so all I've got is a pic from the dealer's listing. I'll get her cleaned up and take my own pics soon.

I didn't notice any mention of the battery cables or hoses. Other than my less than expert visual inspection (which says they look okay) is there any way to tell if they're old/ bad? The alternator was definitely changed recently. It's shiny in a dirty engine bay and puts out >14 volts.

Yes, to the transfer case, coolant, and brake fluid being changed at some point in the past 60k. I'd have to look again about the power steering fluid.

 

[OR VietVet]

"Dirty girl" huh.......hmmmm......

 

[petethepug]

Rich color. GM didn’t do too many of the red & blue trucks. The batt cables rot from inside out. Like a pretty Apple, there’s gremlins inside waiting to ruin your day with bogus DTC codes or a mouth full of worms.

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Welcome to the Forum from NH.

Lots of knowledgeable folks here who freely share their knowledge, experiences, and perspectives. Knowledge is power.

I hope that you will become a participating member in the Forum's discussions.

Nice find!

 

[donjetman]

I just bought a 2010 Yukon SLT 4x4 with 181k miles. What should my top priorities be for maintenance and even mods? I'm out-voted on getting a lift, and we'd like the best gas mileage possible.

The truck came with a load of service records, so it was well cared for. It had the transmission and gear boxes serviced less than 8,000 miles ago and the oil looks great too.

Make certain it has the updated driverside valve cover, or it will consume oil, stick the piston rings, foul spark plugs, etc. Ask me how I know
https://f01.justanswer.com/ebrock63...il+Consumption,+MIL+ON,+Engine+Runs+Rough.pdf

 

[BlackBearPerf]

Welcome to the forum from Northern Idaho!

 

[PNW_IT_Guy]

Make certain it has the updated driverside valve cover, or it will consume oil, stick the piston rings, foul spark plugs, etc. Ask me how I know
https://f01.justanswer.com/ebrock63/cec66346-04c1-48e0-98a6-74c35af2c84e_2014+Engine+-+Oil+Consumption,+MIL+ON,+Engine+Runs+Rough.pd

Thank you for letting me know! That's the exactly the kind of thing I wanted to find out. Well, I mean it's not that I wanted it to be true. Looking at your signature line I see that you have a 6.2L. Does the same issue plague the 5.3? If so, is there an easy way to tell by looking at the valve cover? Maybe a label with a part number?

 

[donjetman]

Thank you for letting me know! That's the exactly the kind of thing I wanted to find out. Well, I mean it's not that I wanted it to be true. Looking at your signature line I see that you have a 6.2L. Does the same issue plague the 5.3? If so, is there an easy way to tell by looking at the valve cover? Maybe a label with a part number?

Read the TSB, yes it effects 5.3s
Here's a pic of my old original vc and my new updated vc. Notice the port on the rightside of each? Old has a roundess port and the new has a square a little future towards the end: