2019 Yukon Build

[Walkerfever]

Hey Everyone,

I didn't see a section for build threads, so I hope this will do. My name is Matt, and this thread will be about my 2019 Yukon and everything I do to it. I've been lurking around here a bit, but I have a pretty in depth build thread on GPF.com on my old car, a 2000 GTP. My username over there is Booba5185, I think I've seen a few GTP guys over here. My son is now 13, so this is going to be a lot of learning and wrenching for him.

Anyways, on 7\20 of this year we picked up this 2019 Yukon SLT with 113,8XX miles on it. By 7\22, the transmission had developed the dreaded shudder. After a little bit of back and forth, the dealer replaced the transmission for free. Other than this transmission, it's got a fantastic service record. Oil changes every 5k at the same place, and transmission, differential (front and rear), transfer case, coolant, etc. All have records of being flushed two, and in some cases, three times. Here's the day we brought it home!

More pics to come!

 

[Walkerfever]

Since then, I've been going through and doing some maintenance, repairs, and some random upgrades on it. I started out with adding a catchcan, fixing the park assist, and replacing the headlights (condensation) changing the air filter, plugs, wires, and cabin air filter. Unfortunately I didn't get any pictures of this, other than the catch can:

While the headlights were out I upgraded those to LEDs, and swapped out the license plate\reverse lights to LED. I'll snag a picture of the headlights later, but here is the rear even.

 

[Walkerfever]

After that, came the Denali cluster swap:

The problem (in my opinion) with the Denali cluster is that you lose the ability to check the transmission temperature, and oil pressure. I'm a little overly curious on how the Yukon is running, and I want to see that kind of stuff. 8 years ago I was able to set up an Android based head unit running Torque Pro to monitor the 3800, so surely I can do something similar. Turns out it has gotten significantly easier over the year (thank God). I needed an AAwireless adapter, ELM327 BT OBD2 adapter, and Torque Pro. Thanks to the GTP, I had 2 of those things already, and since Android Auto wasn't wireless on these, I had already bought an AAwireless adapter. With a little installing and configuration, I have wireless Android Auto that monitors the Yukon as I drive! Woohoo:

I can run and record logs on my phone, I can even run a short log on the head unit:

Next up, I ordered a Hotchkis 2292 sway bar set!

 

[Joseph Garcia]

There are build threads here, and @Fless ss can assist you in finding them.

 

[Walkerfever]

There are build threads here, and @Fless ss can assist you in finding them.

Looking forward to reading through them! I was referring to a section specifically for build threads. It appears they are all in the General Discussion sub forums.

 

[Fless]

The "Under Construction" section is under the Photo Gallery forum and I've moved this thread to that section. If you use the "Forums" tab (not the dropdown part of that tab) at the top of the page, this section is almost to the bottom of the list.

 

[Walkerfever]

The "Under Construction" section is under the Photo Gallery forum and I've moved this thread to that section. If you use the "Forums" tab (not the dropdown part of that tab) at the top of the page, this section is almost to the bottom of the list.

Thank you sir!

 

[tom3]

That's a sharp vehicle and I really like the dash instruments.

 

[Walkerfever]

Sorry for the late update. 2019+ Silverado front brakes (2021+ Tahoe\Yukon) install was a success! Didn't snap any pictures of the install unfortunately, but I did one side and my son did the other. We changed out the calipers, rotors, pads, went to stainless steel lines, and bled them. We were able to pull it off with no wheel spacers, but it's close...really close. Let me tell you, these are the front brakes these trucks should have come with. They work GREAT. It's not super touchy, so I won't be picking teeth out of the steering wheel; it's just got a lot more stopping power. I'd very highly recommend this upgrade, especially because I'm ~$360 into it.

Also, I heard back about the Hotchkis sway bar set. I ordered them on 9\16, and they are supposed to ship 12\2 through 12\16. Yay. Sure would be nice if their website said something like that. That install is going to be cold. Going to have to make my son do most of that one. It's good for the kid to freeze his ass off, right?

Anyway, here's a few pictures of the brake setup installed.
It's a little close to the wheel...

Stainless brake lines!

They still look small...maybe a little bigger. By the time these wear out I'm hoping the PPV 21+ Tahoe will be more readily available so I can upgrade (again) to the 6 piston\16 inch rotors.

 

[Walkerfever]

Still waiting on the sway bars. I did get a Volant CAI...multiple times. I originally ordered one from Amazon, and they sent the wrong (oiled) filter as well as an obsolete version of the intake. The fender cross brace wouldn't fit. I returned that one and had to buy it from a different vendor, and this one actually came with the Powercore filter, and the most recent revision of the intake. Thanks to this, my son became very good at change the intakes. He actually installed the entire thing this time, minus the MAF sensor (Due to the angle\location) and the negative battery terminal. This is the older revision:


Here's a pic of the current intake:

There is definitely a different in sound and power between the old version\oiled filter and the new version\power core filter. It was a nice difference after going through all this repeated work. Next up is probably going to be a 220a alternator from the 6.6L, We have already done the Big 3 with 1\0 AWG wire, so it should be a direct swap at this point...as long as I add in the bigger fuse. Only 6 weeks until the sway bars get here...

 

[MrMonte]

After that, came the Denali cluster swap:
View attachment 438285

The problem (in my opinion) with the Denali cluster is that you lose the ability to check the transmission temperature, and oil pressure.

Looks like you are making quick progress on a fun project.

If you change your display to the 4 mini gauges then press the trailer/tow button it replaces the voltage gauge with trans temp so you can see both oil pressure & trans temp. Pics are from my 2018 Yukon Denali.

I installed a BellTech 2/3 drop & Hellwig swaybars on my 2018 and the improvement in handle was incredible. Changing to 305/45/22 General UHP tires improved it even more. Both my son & I had AFM lifter failures. I did the AFM delete via a cam swap 25K miles ago so now I have peace of mind that I won't be stranded far from home with a lifter failure.

My next upgrade is 16.25" rotors in front with 6 piston Brembos & 4 piston Brembos in the rear. Just received all my parts this week.

 

[Walkerfever]

Looks like you are making quick progress on a fun project.

If you change your display to the 4 mini gauges then press the trailer/tow button it replaces the voltage gauge with trans temp so you can see both oil pressure & trans temp. Pics are from my 2018 Yukon Denali.

I installed a BellTech 2/3 drop & Hellwig swaybars on my 2018 and the improvement in handle was incredible. Changing to 305/40/22 General UHP tires improved it even more. Both my son & I had AFM lifter failures. I did the AFM delete via a cam swap 25K miles ago so now I have peace of mind that I won't be stranded far from home with a lifter failure.

My next upgrade is 16.25" rotors in front with 6 piston Brembos & 4 piston Brembos in the rear. Just received all my parts this week.


View attachment 441668View attachment 441669View attachment 441670

I saw the 4 smaller gauges, but I like the technology theme better...or it could be that I don't want it to look like the stock cluster at all, haha. AFM delete (as opposed to disable, like I have now) will be in the future, for sure. It'll most likely be next summer...and knowing me it'll be a head upgrade and cam swap. I'd hate to do all that work twice (is how I justify the heads to the wife). Over the winter my son and I will be building out a 4R70W I have for my 1989 F150 that is an ongoing project (86k original miles, built 351w, all that fun stuff). Once that is installed and running good, I'll feel comfortable taking the Yukon down for the DOD delete.

You mentioned 4 piston rear brakes...Do those come on the 21+ PPV Tahoes, too?

 

[MrMonte]

You mentioned 4 piston rear brakes...Do those come on the 21+ PPV Tahoes, too?

I'm going to use Gen 6 Camaro rear Brembo Calipers on my Yukon.

I did the cam/lifter swap last year and was able to walk off then back on the timing chain with very little effort so didn't have to drop the oil pan. 1st swap I did took 20hrs, 2nd time I did it in 15hrs. Time consuming but not hard.

GM Truck/SUV 4 Piston C7 Rear Big Brake Bracket Kit

This big brake bracket kit allows you to upgrade the rear brakes on your 99-18 Silverado, Tahoe, Escalade, Suburban, Tahoe, Sierra, etc. to C7 Corvette or 6th Gen Camaro rear 4 piston Brembo calipers.

ctsvbrakeswap.com

 

[Walkerfever]

My son and I went for a bit of a road trip to buy a GPI ported 6.2L intake and TB today, just over 400 miles round trip. Turns out the guy works at GPI, and was telling me about their ported heads, tuning, etc. I might go their route whenever I end up swapping the cam, I'll need to look into them a bit more. I'm very impressed with the gas mileage I got, the 400 mile average is 21.1 MPG. The roads are very hilly and curvy between AR and MO, and it was foggy\raining the entire time so road conditions were far from ideal. Either way, it was a great trip, and the Yukon did great. Intake install might be tomorrow, might be next weekend. Pics will be taken, but here's the intake as we bought it:

 

[Walkerfever]

My son and I installed the intake today. We were not the first people in there, the harness was already disconnected from the back of the plenum cover, and the foam is not placed under the plenum cover correctly. The install went very smooth, and the Yukon adapted to the larger TB and intake nicely. The biggest difference I've noticed is the sound, but there is a power difference, as well. Before, the CAI's throaty sound was abruptly ramped up around 1,800-2K RPM whereas now, it's a more gradual change starting around 1,300RPM. There was a power gain, mainly in the low and mid-range...about on par with what the CAI did. Intake runners were a bit on the dirty side, but we were limited on daylight so that'll be another day's project. The catch can should prevent them from getting any worse. Here's some install and comparison pics:

 

[Walkerfever]

Noticed a little clattering sound from the engine when it's under load\going up hill. Basically when the intake starts growling the noise happens, just to make it easier to listen to. I ran some Seafoam through the crankcase for about 30 miles, then changed the oil last night. There was no forbidden glitter, so that is a good sign and the catchcan caught about 1.8 ounces of fluid. Catchcan has been installed for 2915 miles, so that's ab out 1 ounce per 1600 miles, not too bad. I haven't measured the amount of oil that was in the pan, but that'll happen at some point. Not sure if the clatter is gone or not, I haven't driven it since the change. Here's hoping it's gone! Pics!
No forbidden glitter, 3,253 miles on the oil:

Catchcan's catchings:

Also, I used a Mobil 1 M1-212A oil filter last time, and opt'd for the Fram Synthetic Endurance this time. I didn't compared them side by side, but the Fram is much larger than the Mobil 1:


In other news, HUD stuff got here today. Harness is scheduled to be here Saturday, Sunday is the last "nice" day and my only day off this week, so I'm hoping the install will happen then. Once it's all installed and working properly, I'll get the ball rolling on a new windshield.


You guessed it, still no sway bars.

 

[B-train]

Your clattering under load is probably a small amount of detonation. You've changed the way the engine breathes relative to the calibration. Maybe run the next level fuel, or blend some E85 into the mix for higher octane.

 

[Walkerfever]

Your clattering under load is probably a small amount of detonation. You've changed the way the engine breathes relative to the calibration. Maybe run the next level fuel, or blend some E85 into the mix for higher octane.

Originally I was running a 91 Octane tune. When I began chasing this noise, I started out by dropping it back to an 87 Octane tune. The tank is still full of 91.

 

[Walkerfever]

Heads Up Display is installed! Everything went smoothly, a little trimming on the defrost cover, but nothing major. The doubled vision from the improper windshield is highly annoying, but that will be replaced at some point. Also, the eBay seller sent the wrong color dash vent. They sent a bronze\champagne cover instead of the silver. I went to return it and they just refunded me. I ordered the proper part from GM parts today (84506946), should be here sometime next week.
Here's the doubled vision:

And the not silver trim piece:


You guessed it, still no sway bars, either.

 

[Walkerfever]

Another project down. My son and I walnut blasted the intake valves. I had never done this before, but it was fun. Picked up a 50 pound media blaster, 25 pounds of walnut shells, towels, picks, and redesigned\3D printed a vacuum adapter for the L83's intake ports to minimize mess:
Here's how the adapter worked:


It went rather well. I would recommend something different than that silicon tube, something more rigid would work better. I followed up with brake cleaner, soaked that up with rags, then walnut blasted it again. Here's some before and after pics:


I have plenty of progress pics, but I think that is the only after. Here's everything ready for reassembly:

I have only idled it for a bit, but it seems quite a bit smoother. Hoping to hear about sway bars soon!