What did you do to your NNBS GMT900 Tahoe/Yukon Today?

[Fless]

I am really glad DOT doesn't use salt around here.
Sure does help to keep the rust down.

So am I. My Hoe came from Wyoming and it's clean.

 

[guy from norcal]

swapped out the z55 front coils for some, non air ride coils. Paid $98 including shipping on a pair of mevotech from rockauto. With the strut flip and these springs, sure does ride really good. Also got a bath.

 

[Charlie207]

swapped out the z55 front coils for some, non air ride coils. Paid $98 including shipping on a pair of mevotech from rockauto. With the strut flip and these springs, sure does ride really good. Also got a bath.
View attachment 474142

Looks great. What did you have to do to get the rear-end to sit at that height?

 

[guy from norcal]

Looks great. What did you have to do to get the rear-end to sit at that height?

I got 6" drop springs from norcalss

 

[89Suburban]

I got 6" drop springs from norcalss

Any issues bottoming out in the back? I am at 5" right now and am afraid to go lower but really want that other inch.

 

[j91z28d1]

5lb wouldn't do it!

Started again in the morning when I could see, Good thing the bushing material softens the blow, or you could really damage the hole.
I hammered the bolt with a nut on the end, it didn't do much.. But I eventually got the arms in.
If ever I struggle with it again, I will make a spreader. I don't like hammering on it, and it takes a bit to move it.

Both lower front mounts were tight, possibly moog was a little narrower and the hole really deforms. Bolts still fit tight, thank god!

On another note, the SKF xtracker hubs lasted less than 20k miles before one developed some play. Was pretty minimal, and both hubs still relatively smooth.
Though they didn't feel as smooth as the Timken, even when they were new. Both were made in iljin korea.
Here's a cutaway of the SKF xtracker... Looks like the ball bearings can be loaded in a couple directions.. might cause some scrubbing or something..
I can't say I noticed any improvement using the SKF xtracker vs OEM, and they seemed to groan when cornering from the beginning. Not a fan.

View attachment 474058

kinda crazy how hard these trucks arw on the hub bearings.

did you go oem or timken?

we almost need a dedicated sticky thread for hub bearings like we have for motor mounts

 

[kbuskill]

kinda crazy how hard these trucks arw on the hub bearings.

did you go oem or timken?

we almost need a dedicated sticky thread for hub bearings like we have for motor mounts

I'm not certain how hard these trucks are on the hub bearings. I think the SKF hubs just aren't that good, at least on these heavy trucks.

The Corvette guys that do road course racing seem to love the SKF X-Tracker hubs which is why I decided to install them as preventative maintenance back in 2020 at 261k miles on what I can only assume was the factory original hubs. I can't be certain because I purchased the truck with 150k miles on it and only replaced the hubs because I figured with at least 110k miles that I put on them, and possibly 261k miles on them it was a good idea to replace them.

The first set of SKF hubs started making noise and got replaced under warranty just before it ran out at the 5 year mark at 317k miles OR 56k miles on the SKF hubs. These hubs have a 5yr/60k mile warranty so with 56k miles on them I would say SKF pretty much has it figured out.

I think the next set I replace will be with OEM, unless these leave the chat before the warranty is up, then I guess it is cheaper to just replace them every 4-5 years as preventative maintenance for the cost of shipping.

 

[Doubeleive]

normal expected lifespan for oem hubs is 160k (average)
I proactively changed mine at 140k with oem one's, I found them "order only" on orielly's for $170 each but that was before inflation hit
there probably twice as much now. Coming up on 50k on them no problems.... I believe they are skf anyway iljin korea

 

[mikez71]

kinda crazy how hard these trucks arw on the hub bearings.

did you go oem or timken?

I went with Timken, which I thought was an original supplier.
The photo on Rockauto shows the GM Genuine hub also made in iljin Korea.

Not saying they are necessarily supplying GM now, but I trust Timken more than GM I suppose...

 

[91RS]

I put Timken hubs on our SRX years ago and they did not last. I only buy the OEM now, they’re the only ones that last.

 

[Sir_Hiro]

I wish these had 6spd manual options, like the best V6 SUV ever made... yeah you heard me, the Nissan Xterra.

You mispelled the 1983–2005 Chevy Blazer, GMC Jimmy, Oldsmoblie Bravada. Dont worry I'll correct you

 

[Charlie207]

You mispelled the 1983–2005 Chevy Blazer, GMC Jimmy, Oldsmoblie Bravada. Dont worry I'll correct you

Agree to disagree.

I had a 1991 Blazer Tahoe w/4.3 and open rear-diff. It would incinerate that one back tire, but was pretty much a dog everywhere else, and needed a lot of help in the woods. I also had a 2004 Xterra Gen1 w/5-speed, and even though it had probably less power and also open diffs, it only got stuck one time on an impossible hill.

My buddy heavily upgraded an old S-10 Blazer to clobber the woods trails out here, but he had to swap in 1-ton solid-axles with lockers so it wouldn't get stuck.

That being said, this is the only Blazer that counts.

 

[j91z28d1]

I'm not certain how hard these trucks are on the hub bearings. I think the SKF hubs just aren't that good, at least on these heavy trucks.

The Corvette guys that do road course racing seem to love the SKF X-Tracker hubs which is why I decided to install them as preventative maintenance back in 2020 at 261k miles on what I can only assume was the factory original hubs. I can't be certain because I purchased the truck with 150k miles on it and only replaced the hubs because I figured with at least 110k miles that I put on them, and possibly 261k miles on them it was a good idea to replace them.

The first set of SKF hubs started making noise and got replaced under warranty just before it ran out at the 5 year mark at 317k miles OR 56k miles on the SKF hubs. These hubs have a 5yr/60k mile warranty so with 56k miles on them I would say SKF pretty much has it figured out.

I think the next set I replace will be with OEM, unless these leave the chat before the warranty is up, then I guess it is cheaper to just replace them every 4-5 years as preventative maintenance for the cost of shipping.

corvette guys are a different breed. they lole. very. expensive parts with good advertisement and don't drive their cars much if any. I've learned if you need good correct info from their boards. search, throw out they 50 pages if the same thing over and over, especially from high post count guys. if you see one obscure post doing something different from someone that was on the board less than 6 months. got frustrated and left, that might be your correct answer for a normal person.

it's a really bad crowd of owners for diy guys to learn from.

 

[j91z28d1]

I went with Timken, which I thought was an original supplier.
The photo on Rockauto shows the GM Genuine hub also made in iljin Korea.

Not saying they are necessarily supplying GM now, but I trust Timken more than GM I suppose...

let us know how they go. I had that one go out, never did have any play and could only feel the sound. took a bit to figure out it was the bearing. but I went with what rock auto said oem is. when I removed the old one, it was a timken. no clue how long it had been in there. but truck at 130ish when I got it and was bad by 160ish. the new one did throw some grease once, but so far still seems OK once cleaned up.


at this point I think Marky Dissod is onto something when he said even oem probably isn't the same level as the one sold to gm in 2011. we might never find solid bearings haha. but I definitely don't recommend replaying the original till they fail. or at least keep them on a shelf to put back on. probably the best one you'll ever touch. I'm not touching the left one till it fails in hopes it's the original

 

[Charlie207]

corvette guys are a different breed. they lole. very. expensive parts with good advertisement and don't drive their cars much if any. I've learned if you need good correct info from their boards. search, throw out they 50 pages if the same thing over and over, especially from high post count guys. if you see one obscure post doing something different from someone that was on the board less than 6 months. got frustrated and left, that might be your correct answer for a normal person.

it's a really bad crowd of owners for diy guys to learn from.

Echo chambers are the worst, and every forum has their issues. If you think Corvette forums are bad, try the handful of established BMW forums... they are a global cabal of slope-headed mouth-breathers. The amount of consternation for trying to fix something yourself instead of "bring it to an OEM-approved shop" was mind-boggling. My favorite were the handful of LS-swap posts that started popping up ~10 years ago by folks that knew a thing or two, before the hot-swap kits made it onto the market like they are today. Orville Redenbacher would have creamed himself to death with the amount of popcorn consumed during those threads.

 

[Charlie207]

let us know how they go. I had that one go out, never did have any play and could only feel the sound. took a bit to figure out it was the bearing. but I went with what rock auto said oem is. when I removed the old one, it was a timken. no clue how long it had been in there. but truck at 130ish when I got it and was bad by 160ish. the new one did throw some grease once, but so far still seems OK once cleaned up.


at this point I think Marky Dissod is onto something when he said even oem probably isn't the same level as the one sold to gm in 2011. we might never find solid bearings haha. but I definitely don't recommend replaying the original till they fail. or at least keep them on a shelf to put back on. probably the best one you'll ever touch. I'm not touching the left one till it fails in hopes it's the original

A lot of Timken is made overseas now. There's a Timken factory up the road from me, and they land/park Blackhawks there once in a while during product highlights for govt. contract stuff. Anyways, I know a handful of folks that work there, and they'll ***** about how much of their old work is being outsourced. I hope the place stays open, because jobs, but it's definitely cheaper to pay a highly skilled Mexican or Korean than it is to pay an equivalent American, even after factoring in logistics costs.

 

[Scrappycrow]

If you think Corvette forums are bad, try the handful of established BMW forums... they are a global cabal of slope-headed mouth-breathers. The amount of consternation for trying to fix something yourself instead of "bring it to an OEM-approved shop" was mind-boggling.

As someone who has been heavily involved in the BMW enthusiast world for over three decades, I have to give you a friendly "I call BS." Exactly what body/model were you on the boards for? Outside of Z8s or brand-new 7-Series, I cannot see that. The only real opposition I see on BMW boards is against "stance" mods.

Now, if you were to talk about classic Mercedes forums, they actually do have the "Mercedes did it, so a lowly peon like you shouldn't change it" attitude.

 

[j91z28d1]

I recently learned about prosche spec approved tires and how if you don't use them, it hurts the resale much more than just the cost of replacement tires. because that's a sign the owner was not up to the class of the car.

of course I learn this from a buddy that picked up a gt4 (something something great handling 100k on the used market version) to play with while his c7z is being built. same Great handling version with Porsche spec tires I was able to run with in the mountains cruising in 4th gear in my beater base c6 when I'd have been in 2nd for a fast pace.

I will do my best to avoid the German based car world. I'm not very impressed by car or owner base.

 

[Sir_Hiro]

Think its time I do a coolant flush on mine. Having to have the Rig set at 90 just to get heat out the rear vents. Thinking theres a restriction/clog somewhere in the system.

I recently learned about prosche spec approved tires and how if you don't use them, it hurts the resale much more than just the cost of replacement tires. because that's a sign the owner was not up to the class of the car.

of course I learn this from a buddy that picked up a gt4 (something something great handling 100k on the used market version) to play with while his c7z is being built. same Great handling version with Porsche spec tires I was able to run with in the mountains cruising in 4th gear in my beater base c6 when I'd have been in 2nd for a fast pace.

I will do my best to avoid the German based car world. I'm not very impressed by car or owner base.

MY DD is a VW Passat TDI and its been a decent car. I just hate that EVERYTHING is vin locked to the car and you need a 14 Billion dollar scan tool to redo lots of things on it.
I've had a broken clock spring for about 3 years because I have to get it programmed and I'm not spending the 600 bucks to program a 80 dollar clock spring lol

 

[Sparksalot]

I recently learned about prosche spec approved tires and how if you don't use them, it hurts the resale much more than just the cost of replacement tires. because that's a sign the owner was not up to the class of the car.

of course I learn this from a buddy that picked up a gt4 (something something great handling 100k on the used market version) to play with while his c7z is being built. same Great handling version with Porsche spec tires I was able to run with in the mountains cruising in 4th gear in my beater base c6 when I'd have been in 2nd for a fast pace.

I will do my best to avoid the German based car world. I'm not very impressed by car or owner base.

Cliff’s notes version: German car owners are snobs.