2007 Tahoe LT 4x4 5.3L gas 158k miles, how long do the engine's last?

Our onsite emissions testing requires plugging in to the OBD port, so it would have to be open for the test..

It would be interesting to have someone who uses the Range device to see what the readiness monitors look like right after removing it.

 

I hear what you are saying and I appreciate the work on the link.

$50 is a good price, but I don’t think removing the PCM of my daily driver and sending it somewhere is in the cards.

I still may buy one of those Diablo units and give it a try. I can recoup some of my investment in the Range by selling it, if it works out. The other advantage of having the Diablo unit is if it doesn’t work out and the flash delete somehow trips something in the local emissions test, I can return the car to stock, get tested and go right back to delete mode (no different than what I have now), sans, say a net $400 out of pocket.

Frankly I don’t mind this learning curve (and expense here and there) as I consider that I get to keep a car I really like and miss the $5K in depreciation each year that marches on with most other alternatives I might like.

 

I can do that. I will have to figure out how to do screen capture on my iPhone and then upload it (Luddite alert), but I think I can figure it out. The last time I looked at it, there were like four things not ready.

 

Yes, they’re a terrific convenience. I was lucky enough to avoid needing an emission test on my Acura once that way.


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I understand that.

The Diablo shouldn't mess with emissions readiness, so you should be able to flash it and leave it. You mentioned having AFM disabled for a year then enabling it for a while to get tested and how that could be worse than keeping it cycling as normal. I agree and would be concerned as well. I'd aim to disable it and leave it off. At least with the Diablo, you can get a custom tune for better drivability and more power, if you wanted. Look into a "DiabLew"tune. If you wanna stick to the cheapest, you can get a spare PCM and send it to that guy to have AFM disabled. There's a little extra charge in addition to what a spare PCM would cost. But, all said and done, it'd still be half the cost of a Diablo (or less) and you wouldn't have any downtime with your daily. On the flip, you'd just have a (boring) stock tune. These things, especially the transmissions, benefit from a good tune. Not just more power to the wheels, but improved shift and throttle tables that reduce slip/wear in the trans to extend its life. The better responsiveness and power put to the wheels is really more of a fringe benefit.

 

With the spare PCM approach, do you have to go through the on/wait 30 secs, 10 minutes, 30 seconds, 10 minutes, rigamarole each time you swap it out?

The improved shift points sounds good as well, as my poor tranny is not all that happy around town, at certain speeds, in the lower gears.

I may give the Diablo unit a try. It seems to provide the most flexibility for me as I move down the road. My confidence to do the full AFM delete on the next motor would be greatly boosted if I knew for certain emissions were not going to have me slapping my head. Doing it all in SW ahead of time would be nice.

 

I was planning on trying to figure out exactly what trip criteria I needed to accomplish to get my unit in full ready status after I pull the Range. If I stick with the Range device, I really don’t want to be running in AFM mode much, as it seems like the switching back and forth, especially with long layoffs from full AFM mode is asking for trouble.

I will figure out how to do screen capture and uploading of pictures, seems I have to relearn that process each time I do it and I know there are better ways than the way I do it.

I will try and capture the I/M pages of my scanner after I pull the Range dongle and then do a drive cycle to clear them. I will see if I can find the GM drive cycle guidance and perform it once to see if it will clear all the readiness flags left by my Range removal.

It will be good to know anyway, so if I go down the flash route, and have to go back and forth, I can minimize AFM mode time.

 

I've got an 07 with 365,000 on it. It does some towing, not a lot. I change the oil and filter every 3000 miles or 3 months with 5w30 Mobil One. It uses about a quart or so between changes. I've only had to replace the intake gaskets once because of a vacuum leak.

 

So here are the screen shots of my Cheapie ODB scanner’s results of the emissions readiness test after removing the Range dongle.



I warmed it up because they mostly looked like temp related items, but didn’t do the trip test yet. Same result.

I have a generic GM Trip criteria and will try that to see if it is met a single time, they will reset.

 

From what I've learned about emissions readiness from the other vehicles I've worked on over the years.... if your I/M emissions readiness lights are not green "complete", you will not pass (at least here in CA).

The only one that will not matter is the EVAP test. It can be "incomplete" red. This is straight from a smog tech I talked to. EVAP test takes a long time to actually set under certain conditions (less than half a tank of gas, etc).

I need to figure out if the valve covers have been replaced with the update. Is there a way to tell from looking at them? BTW the RPO codes have "LMG".

I guess from the other posts, I should be looking around the engine for leaks. Cleaning it and looking to see where the leaks are coming from. Another project.

Its actually my Dad's that I've been taking care of for him to save him money. Its also had the transfer case fluid pump problem rubbing a hole on the case and the housing was replaced and an updated pump fix.

What I've done recently:

-Brake fluid flush Valvoline synthetic DOT3/DOT4
-Sea Foam Trans Tune in PS fluid to clean it
-PS fluid DFs with Redline D4
-Sea Foam motor treatment in oil before oil changes
-Rear diff fluid (already had a Mag-Hytek diff cap) w/ Royal Purple MAX synthetic 75w-90 gear oil
-Transfer case fluid DF (Redline 75w-80 GL-4 synthetic MTL)
-Front Diff Fluid DF (Redline 75w-90 GL-5 synthetic)
-Sea Foam Trans Tune in trans fluid before DFs
-Trans fluid DFs with new Mag-Hytek pan (Valvoline Dex VI synthetic ATF, and Lubegard Red)
-Tie Rod ends
-Coolant flush cleaner and Dex-Cool coolant DF
-Drive belt kit with belts, tensioner and pulleys
-New Alternator
-Cleaned throttle body, mass air flow sensor and K&N air filter
-all 4 new O2 sensors

The front lower ball joints are bad, and I have MOOG replacements, but I have not done them yet.

I'm trying to see what else I can do to get it in good shape. He is looking to upgrade to a 2017-2020 Tahoe though. Quite pricey at $40-60k. Even after trade in and a good down payment, its still going to be $500 a month. This 2007 is a beast with a lift kit and tires. Runs great.

I would want to do the $50 PCM tune as long as it passes smog.

I have heard of the AFM plug-in modules. And after removing it, you would probably have to do some drive cycles to get all the emissions readiness green (except EVAP) and then you would pass smog. A cheap scanner will tell you that info. I have 2 BAFX OBDII scanners $21 (with the Torque Pro App $5), one I keep in my car, and also a more expensive bidirectional Foxwell NT530 scanner with various car makes software for the cars I work on.

https://www.amazon.com/BAFX-Products-Wireless-Bluetooth-Diagnostic/dp/B005NLQAHS

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.prowl.torque

https://www.foxwelltool.com/wholesale/foxwell-nt530-with-2-free-vehicle-makes-software.html

Thanks for the help.