Looking to buy

[Fir_Na_Tine]

My first post. yay

I been looking online at 2007 and newer Tahoes and was wondering if $15k for Tahoes with 100K+ miles on them is the norm. I found a couple I like with 121K miles and one with just under 100K for $15K.

Now I am from the old school of car buying in that once it gets over 100K your looking at major problems. Is that still true today? Or are newer cars and trucks better at lasting longer. I know it depends a lot on how well its maintained and driven.

I sometimes have trouble thinking about shelling out $15K for something with more miles than my two current vehicles. A 99 Infiniti with 104K and my baby, a 1987 Chevy K5 Blazer with 103K original miles. Although a 2007 or newer is not as old.

I've seen some decent 2005's that I like for cheaper and a few with low miles even, one had 80K and was in great shape but sold quickly. And I can't get a car loan for one because my bank said the truck has to be 07 or newer.

I tend to keep vehicles for a long time as I had my Blazer for 20 years now and the Infiniti for 15 years. So whatever I buy will be with me for awhile. My budget is $15K I know not a lot.

 

[NathanJax]

$15-$16 would be normal around here

 

[byrds6]

I know around here in Florida and where I lived in GA they would go for more if it was just barely over 100k miles. The ones Ive seen around that price rage was 130ish-140ish in miles. I got my 07 last year with 91k miles for $21k.

 

[Fir_Na_Tine]

The price is up and down from what I have been seeing.


I went and looked at two Tahoes today.

The first one I really liked the looks and drive/feel. A 2007 Tahoe LT with 105k on the OD. It had its problems such as missing the spare tire, a blemish spot on the paint on the tailgate. Front of hood has some small scratches and dings. One small ding in driver side rear door. Also the interior was in great shape except for two small cracks in the dash which is common from what I've read online. Oil pressure gauge didn't work and check engine light was on, salesmen said its a O2 sensor and that the gauge will be fixed as well, along with the spare tire. Its loaded with everything except a nav and they are asking $14,800. Carfax the dealer showed me had it as 3 owners and had some accidents but all small fender benders and all repaired, this scared me off a bit. Everything else worked though and it comes with a 2yr/24k warranty that covers drive train and pretty much everything else. It drove pretty good as well, no unusual noises or rattles, tight steering and good acceleration.

Second truck was a 2007 Tahoe with 104k on the clock at another dealer. They were asking $15,600 . I opened the door and immediately saw the headlight switch was pushed into the dash, a clip or something was missing they said. Also the truck stunk of stale cigarette smoke. It had leather seats but not heated. Tailgate was also hard to open as the auto lift wasn't working. Some buttons and trim pieces in the door handles were missing and the heater/radio display I couldn't get to come on, I think they were busted. We didn't take it for a test drive because the snow was coming down real good at that point and I don't think I could stand the smell, I am surprised they didn't do anything about it. Plus I knew more about the truck than the salesman in my limited research of the Tahoes online

Oh well going to check a few more out this week, maybe I have to bump my limit up but can't go past 20k. I hate car shopping.

 

[JochenWoern]

I personally would not consider either one of the two Tahoes you described.
First off, I would not buy from a dealer who did not put the vehicle back in top notch condition PRIOR to putting it on the sales lot. Appears to me they were trying to get away with the flaws and were hoping no one would point them out.

If a truck has a spare tire missing, what does that tell you about the previous owner (s)? Does not sound like it has been well taken care off, nor would I buy anything that shows it was in an accident.
My NBS Yukon has 145K miles on the clock, looks and runs flawless.

I personally would shop for an NBS GMC DENALI, you can find some in the lower mileage range and they pretty much come fully loaded with the 6.0L engine. I think you will find plenty good ones in the 15K range.

Just my two cents.

 

[Fir_Na_Tine]

Well the Tahoe with the missing spare tire they just got in 3 days prior he said. But I remember seeing it on the lot for about a week maybe two, not in the for sale line up but parked in the back. He said the spare tire must have gotten stolen, which I can't see someone taking the trouble to do so, might as well steal the whole truck.

They pre approved me for a loan at 8% but I thought I could do better with my bank and today got pre-approved for anywhere between 2% for 2013 and newer. And 4.9% for a 2007 at max loan amount. Only other stipulation is the truck has to have 80k miles or less. So I am reworking my numbers and might increase my budget to $20k since a lot of what I see with 80k miles or less is more $.

I'll look into the Denali, I like the idea of a 6.0, never worried much about gas mileage lol as my job is only 3 miles away and I don't put many miles on my vehicles. But I do prefer the look of the 2007 and up Tahoes.

 

[Jonah52]

I've had an 05 and 07 denali. If you want or can afford the 07 and up go for it, it is a huge improvement. The nbs are nice but I feel the fit and finish is better on the 07+ trucks.

I got my 07 with 130k for $15k 7% interest but hey it's 7 years old and high mileage. I was in the same boat as you, but didn't wanna up my budget. Take your time you'll find a good one for the right price

 

[Fir_Na_Tine]

What is NBS?

 

[JML07denali]

What is NBS?

NBS = New Body Style 01-06
NNBS = New New Body Style 07-14

 

[Fir_Na_Tine]

NBS = New Body Style 01-06
NNBS = New New Body Style 07-14

Ah ok thanks.

 

[sennister]

Around here in MN we were seeing 07-08s in the 20-25K range with mileage in the 80-105K range. Granted we were more focused on the LTZ. We wanted the Nav not so much for the Nav but for the full size screen for the backup camera and DVD for the kids. We have a camper so the ease of hooking up a trailer is worth it. Many times my wife will hitch up the trailer and I meet them at the campground. Sure you don't have to get a LTZ to get these items but they were more common in them. In the end we ended up with a 2011 Denali with 96K that was equipped like I would have ordered it for $27. Every option but 22 rims and power running boards. Though Denalis have a pretty short list of options.

Some issues to watch for. A buddy of mine had a 07 Z71 Tahoe and had the oil consumption issues. This will be hard to spot in a test drive but he was burning 1 qt per 1000 miles. I have seen some talk of new valve covers which address this. I thought he said they replaced the heads in his but he isn't really technical when it comes to cars so he wasn't sure. I want to say that it was around 2010 that they made some changes to address this.

In the 6.2 found in the Denali and Escalade (also some Tahoes 09 I think) there were some issues with cam bearings. 09 addressed that also adding flex fuel compatibility. 10 they added active fuel management. While the Denali and Escalade will get get worse mileage because the bigger engine and AWD, it isn't much. 1MPG or so if you take it easy but that isn't easy. I have noticed that it gets better mileage than the 03 Avalanche that it replaced.

The dash cracking is pretty common as you noted. Mine isn't cracked at all. Another common issue is the door handle on the inside of the truck. The chrome plating (wrap) peels off leaving the edges sharp. A Tahoe Z71 I drove was like this. They are not too expensive to replace. I want to say I looked them up and they were $15-20. A common issue with used vehicles is keys. My Denali came with 1 key and 1 fob. I negotiated a second fob and key in the sale. I asked about additional keys but they said the fobs were really expensive. They also would only let me have 2 keys as part of the deal. I went to another dealer closer one day and had 2 more keys cut ($30 a pop). In 2007-2010 you can program fobs and keys yourself. You can get them cheaper on ebay or other places. In 2011+ you have to go to a dealer or someone with a Tech2 programmer to add fobs. Keys can be programmed though in all of them.

The 15K budget may make it hard. You can probably find them out there in that range but it will take more time. Of course if you are fine with the lesser equipped LT range then that will make it a bit easier.

 

[Tahoemonster]

Well I have a 2008 Black Z71 Tahoe with 177K miles and it drives like a champ. It's a Chevy and Tahoes can last 400-500K miles, with no problem. I am the original owner and I've taken meticulous care of it. Even had a $600 paint correction done to it (which is basically a very intense detail that removes all swirl marks from the paint)...I'd put my Tahoe's paint up against any 2013 or 2014 Tahoe...it looks that good!! It's actually for sale on cars.com. If anything else, look at the pics so you can see how clean it looks for 177K miles and feel confident if your on a budget and in the market to to buy a high mileage Tahoe.

So in essence, it's all relative. A good Tahoe can be had for 15K if it's been well taken care of.

 

[Fir_Na_Tine]

Well my search has ended. My wife found this Tahoe online over the weekend and after checking it out we bought it. Its a one owner 2007 LT with only 50k miles on it. It was just traded in on Saturday and just put up on their site. They didn't even detail it yet and fix a few a few things it needed, which they are going to do before I pick it up in a few days. Drives and feels like new too.

It doesn't have all the bells and whistles like the others I looked at Saturday and have seen online. Cloth seats which is fine with me, not a huge fan of leather as its cold in winter and hot in summer, plus they need more maintenance. No DVD TV entertainment system which nowadays most would use a tablet with movies loaded on it. The only thing I wasn't crazy about was the rims and tires, I liked the look of 20 inch factory rims and low profile tires. This has 17 inch rims and more thicker sidewall. But still ok. If I want I can add bigger ones later. My main concern was that it has low miles and taken care of maintenance wise. Also got a 4 year warranty with it. And the piece of mind of buying from a reputable 50+ year Ford dealer (of all things) instead of a used car lot that may or may not be there in a year

Hopefully it will last me for quite a few years.

 

[sennister]

Congrats on the new ride. If it weren't for heated and cooled seats I would agree with preferring cloth. While I have the 20s and like the looks, many times it is better to have the thicker sidewall. Less likely to jack up a rim if you slide into a curb in the winter. Not that I am willing to give up my factory 20s but I am actually considering another set of rims in the 17-18" size range for winter. Winter is about over here now so I am not going to mess with it right now but I am going to look around.

 

[GalaxyBlackEsky]

Seems about right as well. I sold my 07 Tahoe with 131k for 19k. But also it had some mods on it.

 

[Fir_Na_Tine]

Congrats on the new ride. If it weren't for heated and cooled seats I would agree with preferring cloth. While I have the 20s and like the looks, many times it is better to have the thicker sidewall. Less likely to jack up a rim if you slide into a curb in the winter. Not that I am willing to give up my factory 20s but I am actually considering another set of rims in the 17-18" size range for winter. Winter is about over here now so I am not going to mess with it right now but I am going to look around.

I was wondering what the exact size, offset or part number the stock 20"s are. Where would be the best place to get them? Junkyard maybe? I figure the dealer would be most expensive. I saw replica ones on Ebay but unsure of them. Or would it better to just get similar aftermarket ones?

 

[sennister]

I was wondering what the exact size, offset or part number the stock 20"s are. Where would be the best place to get them? Junkyard maybe? I figure the dealer would be most expensive. I saw replica ones on Ebay but unsure of them. Or would it better to just get similar aftermarket ones?

Not sure off the top of my head. I know the 20s on mine are OEM because it is the Denali which comes with the Chromed Aluminum 20s stock or 22 as an option. Junk yard is a possibility. Try checking Craigslist. You may find someone upgrading OEM rims and want to offload them. eBay may be another source but shipping may be expensive. I have a cousin that works at a junk yard so I have him keep an eye out for some and I can get them pretty cheap.

For instance here is a set in Minneapolis not far from me.

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/hnp/pts/4877744410.html

 

[Fir_Na_Tine]

Not sure off the top of my head. I know the 20s on mine are OEM because it is the Denali which comes with the Chromed Aluminum 20s stock or 22 as an option. Junk yard is a possibility. Try checking Craigslist. You may find someone upgrading OEM rims and want to offload them. eBay may be another source but shipping may be expensive. I have a cousin that works at a junk yard so I have him keep an eye out for some and I can get them pretty cheap.

For instance here is a set in Minneapolis not far from me.

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/hnp/pts/4877744410.html

Thats a pretty good deal. But yeah buying online shipping would be a killer.