2009 to 2011 Tahoe

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wjburken

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I was impressed with the 2011 that I drove last night. Not a ding or a scratch in it anywhere. Interior was perfect. Tried to slide the cover for the moon roof and there is an accordion shaped curtain looking piece on each side that looks like it just fills in the gap there. The one above the driver had come unhooked/unattached and was draping down. It was interfering with the cover slide till I poked it back up. Looks like a very easy fix. The drivers side outside mirror had some of the plastic trim broke away on the very outer edge. About 10" in length. Looks like the driver broke it off when hitting something while backing up. The mirror functioned fine though. By the way, as I would normally do, I did romp on it to put the trans thru it's paces.

One big glaring thing that did not impress me was the driver's seat. I have way more leg room on my 2002 than this 2011 has. I had the seat all the way back, the back seat rest tilted back to my limit of comfort and I had the lower seat tilted up in front to help elevate my thighs so my knees would not touch the center console or the driver's door. I could not drive all over town or on a trip with the seat like this. This was an LTZ model with the second row captain's chairs. Would that have anything to do with the front seat adjustments?

The stock exhaust had been replaced and had a throaty sound to it. It was not obnoxious but when romped on it, it was quite loud.

They wanted $23,995 for the Tahoe. I offered $21k and trade my 2002 for $5k and the difference I would pay in cash and I would fix the moon roof curtain and driver's mirror myself.

They said thanks but no thanks and so did I and we shook hands and parted with hand shakes. I am a capitalist thru and thru. I gotta make money and so do they. No hard feelings.

Gonna look at 3 others this weekend. One tonight and 2 on Monday. If they all have the driver's seat cramp for me, then I will be keeping my 2002 and maybe look for another one no older than the 2006. I am 6'4" tall and weigh in at 320 lbs. Even if I lose weight I am not gonna shrink in length.

Another area I would look at is try and fold up and remove the 3rd row seats. I forgot to check that on our 2008 Yukon XL Denali when we bought it and came to discover that they would not even fold up, let alone release to come out. You have start drilling holes and taking things apart when that happens so you can fix it.

That vehicle must have been assembled on a full blood moon Friday the 13th as it had just stupid things wrong with it.
 
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Multnomah Falls
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Well, either way, my search continues this weekend. I am ok with keeping my 2002 but would like to find a newer one and customize for myself.
 

swathdiver

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I was just on there and I couldn't find any. I also checked cars.com and couldn't find any. How do you find these, because a friend of mine wants one (he tries to get me to sell mine to him, haha). He doesn't want anything else, but I can't find one.

I scan the VIN looking for 332. Let me see if I can pull any of them back up...

https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?listingId=527611907

https://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-sale/vehicledetails.xhtml?listingId=528147489
 

swathdiver

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Well, either way, my search continues this weekend. I am ok with keeping my 2002 but would like to find a newer one and customize for myself.

Don't forget to adjust the pedals on the next test drive! Nationwide that price is about right for those miles, even for a Denali or an Escalade. Those under 100K command a premium and you have to weigh the service life, versus repairs and miles driven, and monthly payment to see if a lower mileage truck makes more sense or not.

Saw some nice 2009 Denalis out west that were RWD and had the trailer brake controller but they are gone now. Tough to find one in a red.
 

Doubeleive

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the 3rd row seats can be a little tricky, it took me a minute to figure out how to get them out but once I did it's pretty simple, basically just yank hard, folding them up can tricky as well, you basically just have to man-handle the 3rd row like you mean it, if they wont fold up, pull the seat out a bit and slam it back in then they will fold up.
 

wjburken

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the 3rd row seats can be a little tricky, it took me a minute to figure out how to get them out but once I did it's pretty simple, basically just yank hard, folding them up can tricky as well, you basically just have to man-handle the 3rd row like you mean it, if they wont fold up, pull the seat out a bit and slam it back in then they will fold up.


Very true. Seats on our ‘07, ‘09 and now ‘13 all worked. The ‘08 was jacked up.
 
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Well, the search is over. I was on my way to Corvallis, Oregon and half way there the seller called and said the 09 Tahoe was sold the day before. Would have been nice to get a call that day instead of when I was already driving there. I turned around and decided while driving back that the 2002 I have is what I am going to keep. The search for a newer Tahoe was a PITA. I went right to the tire store and put 4 new tires on my rig. Decided to reuse the factory alloy wheels. I am going to install a Corvette trans servo and open up the exhaust a bit. I am going to get the clear coat paint problem taken care of. The only place that shows is the top of the driver's side front and rear door. The rest is great. No dings or dents in the body. The front chrome section of the bumper has a dent on the right side at the edge of the license plate. Found a new one at Rock Auto. The leather interior has no rips tears or cracks. Everything works and there is no damage anywhere in the rest of the interior. Another member on this thread said he has heard many times that people got a newer Tahoe, NNBS, and then said they wished they had their NBS Tahoe back. In the 3+ years I have owned this Tahoe I have never had a problem. OOPS, take that back. Water pump leak led to new AC Delco pump, thermostat, tensioners, idlers and new belts. Even the rear heater and a/c works great. I even have the rear barn doors so this rig did not come with the rear 3rd row seats and I have a perfect condition curtain that covers the back. Future progress will be listed at the 2000-2006 section. Thanks for all the input.
 
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avalonandl

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I feel your pain. I spent a month looking and ended up "settling" for a Denali XL. I wanted a 2500 but everyone I looked at in Mich was a complete POS. I realized I can probaby tow my 35 Donzi CC 30 miles with this vehicle 2 x a year so a 2500 was really not needed.

I found this Denali and drove it, liked the way it drove and bought it.
 
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