2001 GMC Yukon XL Denali: What I've Done

[jsoltren]

I'm getting ready to sell my beloved 2001 Denali. I moved up to a 2013 Yukon XL 2500! A thread about the purchase is here: https://www.tahoeyukonforum.com/thr...ving-up-from-2001-gmc-yukon-xl-denali.109814/.

I've owned this one since August of 2016 and spent about two months searching for it. I've put in a few thousand dollars of repairs. It drives amazingly well. But it's time to go.

This is a build log to help me remember everything I've done, including the links for some particularly difficult to find parts and my experiences with them. It will be everything I wish I had known when I bought this one.

But this is what I do: buy trucks, love them, keep them for a few years, try to fix everything, and sell them in better condition than I purchased, with maybe 5-10k miles on them. I don't actually drive much! Just a few big road trips a year, and groceries really.

 

[jsoltren]

I got this vehicle from a mechanically inclined individual. He was owner #3. Owner #1 was a doctor and owner #2 was picky but had a large family. The truck has, apart from road trips, spent its entire life in Central Texas. Even at 178k miles it's my benchmark for "rust free truck".

I *think* owner #3 was active on this forum? He mentioned the forum when I purchased the vehicle, but then disappeared off the face of the earth (as the sellers of used cars are often wise to do).

I wish I had spent more time here "stalking" that vehicle. It's always nice to see exactly what's been done to it.

 

[jsoltren]

The most recent upgrade I did to the Denali was new headlights. I'd been debating it for years. Well, they were a quick install, made a world of difference, and can be upgraded to LEDs.

I went with the Depo headlights. 335-1114L-AC and 335-1114R-AC. I ended up paying about $300 for the pair online.

 

[jsoltren]

It's for sale locally.

Some kid tried to lowball me of course. The conversation went something like this?

Will you accept $1000 less than your asking price?
No, I will not. The asking price is set. I'm getting plenty of interest at this price.

But I have that exact amount in cash in my pocket right now!
That's great! You're only $1000 away from buying my truck!

What's your absolute lowest price?
It's what I've posted. If it doesn't sell in two or so weeks I'll reconsider the price.

Okay great! Can you call me back in two weeks when you lower the price?
No. It's your responsibility to call me to see if the vehicle is still available.

Kids these days.

 

[jsoltren]

Sold!

As time and memory permit I'll add more notes on what I've done here.

 

[jsoltren]

I was meaning to repair the running board right by the driver's seat.

One of the running board brackets is bent, and has pulled away from the fiberglass running board.

This is a really simple repair. I was able to find the running board bracket, 15007929, on eBay. I need to find a piece of aluminum plate, epoxy it to the running board using my favorite 3M DP460 epoxy, drill some holes, and replace the bracket. This would make things good as new.

The vehicle is sold, though. Maybe the new owner will complete this repair.

 

[jsoltren]

In October of 2017 I replaced the vent caps. They came from Street Scene. http://www.streetsceneeq.com/mm5/me...eetsceneeq&Screen=PROD&Product_Code=950-70158. The note about how they "do not fit Denali models" is a lie, at least for my 2001. A local body shop helped me with the install and secured them with RTV sealant.



They look really sharp and really modernized the appearance of the rear end. I always hated the "hornet's nest" vent caps on the NBS trucks.

But! I'm nearly certain that these drastically cut through the cabin ventilation. Wondering how GM handles the problem on the NNBS GMT900, it looks like they added holes to the inside face of the vent caps.



If I still had the vehicle, I would cut these holes into the sides of the vent caps to improve airflow.

 

[Rocket Man]

Do you have any pictures of it?

 

[jsoltren]

Do you have any pictures of it?

Sorry, pictures of what, exactly? Not of the running board bracket, or the part that needs repair.

I have a bunch of general photos of the vehicle at https://www.flickr.com/photos/84348724@N07/sets/72157676484539877 . Is there something in particular you wanted to see?

 

[Rocket Man]

Sorry, pictures of what, exactly? Not of the running board bracket, or the part that needs repair.

I have a bunch of general photos of the vehicle at https://www.flickr.com/photos/84348724@N07/sets/72157676484539877 . Is there something in particular you wanted to see?

Just thought you’d post pics of the vehicle in the thread here but those will do fine now that you posted that link. What did you end up selling it for if you don’t mind me asking?

 

[jsoltren]

$4500. A little less than I would have liked but it lead to a quick no haggle sale. The buyer got a good vehicle in exchange, albeit with a minor oil leak.

 

[Rocket Man]

$4500. A little less than I would have liked but it lead to a quick no haggle sale. The buyer got a good vehicle in exchange, albeit with a minor oil leak.

Damn that was a bargain, buyer got a smokin deal! Especially with that mileage on it. I just bought an 05 Tahoe with 250k miles for $3500.

 

[jsoltren]

Damn that was a bargain, buyer got a smokin deal! Especially with that mileage on it. I just bought an 05 Tahoe with 250k miles for $3500.

Well, that's what I thought when I picked it up 2.5 years ago with ~170k miles for $5000. But then I've looked at the repair bills for the past two years and maybe it wasn't such a bargain after all.

Maybe the new owner will fix an oil leak and get 10 years and 100k miles of completely maintenance free operation. Maybe he'll need to put a bunch more money into it. I don't know. It's very difficult to know. This is why I decided it was time to cut my losses and double down on the newer 3/4 ton.

For example, a month and a half ago it threw a code for a crankshaft position sensor. Completely out of the blue. No warning. I got that fixed right away, because if it gets bad, it won't start. Not something I want to deal with on a hot summer day in Texas with the family in tow.

My problem is shipwright's disease. I don't like leaks, odors, or peeling paint.

Vehicle expenses follow a bathtub curve over time: you pay depreciation on a new one and maintenance on an old one. I caught this one on the tail end of the curve. Hopefully the one that replaced it, I caught right in the middle.

 

[Rocket Man]

That may be but the NBS are the most dependable platform out there. They don’t generally require much in the way of repairs if maintained well, unlike most of the newer ones. If you can do some minor repair work they’re a bargain and 300-500k mileages are common.

 

[jsoltren]

I guess. I don't have the time to do much repair work myself with young children. I wouldn't consider broken exhaust manifold bolts a minor repair by any means. Anything that involves welding near the engine block is major by my standards. Minor to me is a drive belt, an air filter, maybe an oil change.

The reason I was careful to select a 3/4 ton NNBS was because it carries over some of the most reliable parts of the NBS (engine block, much of the frame), fixes a number of defects (electric cooling fans, better transmission), and loses many of the other NNBS reliability regressions (Z55, DOD/AFM).

I'm sure my newer 3/4 ton will have issues as well. I'm expecting it will need a new AC soon, they don't last long out here. Hopefully by the time the really bad stuff hits I can start fixing more of it myself.

 

[Rocket Man]

Broken exhaust manifold bolts on these can be fixed without welding or bolt removal; there’s at least 2 companies including Kral that make clamps that work great and only take a few minutes to install. That crank position sensor is one bolt that is accessible by just moving the starter out of the way. Air filter, oil change, belt is maintenance not repair but I understand you not having time to do repair with young kids. I find it too expensive to not do it myself, plus I trust no one to do it. Shops just try to rip you off. I just ended up buying tools instead of paying labor every time, learned how to do it by using this forum and YouTube, and now I do nearly everything myself. Even learned how to things like swap cams, install a supercharger, etc.

 

[jsoltren]

I've had the best luck going direct to mechanics. The guy I used to go to was the head mechanic at a local big garage before he had a falling out with the idiot manager and did his own thing. He's too busy to help me out these days, and it's a bit far. One of the neighbor's sons is my age and is a full time mobile mechanic so I have him help me out sometimes. He's not the cheapest but he has kids too so I don't mind paying for his time.

Now where I do save money is in parts.

I'm hoping that by the time I need to start doing any real repairs, that the kids are old enough to help and I can involve them. Hard to do that with a three year old.

 

[Konrad]

The most recent upgrade I did to the Denali was new headlights. I'd been debating it for years. Well, they were a quick install, made a world of difference, and can be upgraded to LEDs.

I went with the Depo headlights. 335-1114L-AC and 335-1114R-AC. I ended up paying about $300 for the pair online.

Hi. I've got one offtop question (I know the thread is old ) - do these light have beams with the cut-off line? Like in the sample pic attached.

Thanks

 

[jsoltren]

@Konrad I'd love to give you an answer but I sold the vehicle within two months of that final post. There was a burning oil odor that I was unable to run down and I moved to a 2013 GMC Yukon XL 2500 SLT 4WD (a Unicorn of a vehicle - I've not seen another except for here).

What I do recall is that the lights I purchased were not *quite* a perfect replacement. The fit was spot on but the lenses were slightly tweaked. They worked fine but I'm not sure I ever turned on the beams, and if I did, it wasn't at a wall.

Good luck.

 

[Konrad]

@Konrad I'd love to give you an answer but I sold the vehicle within two months of that final post. There was a burning oil odor that I was unable to run down and I moved to a 2013 GMC Yukon XL 2500 SLT 4WD (a Unicorn of a vehicle - I've not seen another except for here).

What I do recall is that the lights I purchased were not *quite* a perfect replacement. The fit was spot on but the lenses were slightly tweaked. They worked fine but I'm not sure I ever turned on the beams, and if I did, it wasn't at a wall.

Good luck.

Thanks. Right now I've got some chinese lights with halo LEDs etc and I was thinking to replace them with sth more standard like these Depo ones. The only problem is that they must have this cutoff line in my country (Poland). Otherwise there will be problems during the annual technical inspection

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