Newb Advice needed: Going to pick up auction PPV

[OldSchool73]

Hello all,

I am looking to go pick up a 2012 Tahoe PPV with 91k miles that has not run in months. It has a dead battery and they have already taken off the bracket for easy access. They also told me the tires have flat spots from sitting. I know nothing else about it really but it sounds like the vehicle ran when parked. Ain’t that always typically the way it goes?

My plan is as follows:

1) Get an H6 Battery to take with me and install it. The truck has dual batteries but as I understand it I should only need to replace the one on the passenger side.
2) Bring a Code reader to check for any CEL codes.
3) Bring a tire inflator and pump the tires up to 40 psi to help alleviate the flat spots if possible. Tires are date coded late 2017 so I’ll likely be replacing them anyway.
4) Maybe bring some stabilfuel stabilizer and a few gallons of fresh gas since it has been sitting for so long? I’m guessing around 6 months.

Is all this a good plan or are there any tweaks to it? The fuel sort of worries me. I realize moisture can build up in old gas. Beyond that im hoping they did a good job with the oil changes since these have AFM. I am hoping there are not lifter issues.

I’d love to get some thoughts and opinions on what I should expect and account for from anyone familiar with this platform. I know quite a bit about P71 Crown Vic’s but I’m learning about the Tahoe PPV.

Thanks for any advice!!!

 

[Marky Dissod]

If it has not run in months then both batteries are dead. 40psi minimum. Does your code checker also erase codes?
The sooner the code(s) repopulate(s), the more urgently those codes need addressing/fixing.
Best if the fresh gasoline is 91 / 93, whatever they put in the tank is likely LESS than 87 by now.
Isopropyl alcohol (over 75%, I use 90%) is an excellent moisture absorber, and you won't get overcharged.

If you don't bring an Engine Half@$$ disabling plugin/dongle, you can drive in M5 to TEMPORARILY disable V4 mode.
Good idea to change motor oil ASAP, bonus points for getting the old sitting motor oil analyzed by

Premium Oil Analysis Kit - SPEEDiagnostix

Your Engine Is Talking. We Tell You What It's Saying. Just a 3 oz sample of used motor oil reveals a lot about the health of your engine as well as the condition of the oil itself. Know the health of your engine in just 5 business days. Each SPEEDiagnostix oil analysis report provides easy to...

www.speediagnostix.com

If you find it rides rough during the drive back, before you decide on which shocks you want (Bilstein 5100),
VERY seriously consider GM OE 265/70R17 - as in GM OE tire size for civilian vehicles. These are as responsible for the ride as the shocks.
If you prefer a stiff ride, but not PPV-stiff, LT265/70R17 should still give you plenty of winter-capable tires to choose from.

 

[OldSchool73]

If it has not run in months then both batteries are dead. 40psi minimum. Does your code checker also erase codes?
The sooner the code(s) repopulate(s), the more urgently those codes need addressing/fixing.
Best if the fresh gasoline is 91 / 93, whatever they put in the tank is likely LESS than 87 by now.
Isopropyl alcohol (over 75%, I use 90%) is an excellent moisture absorber, and you won't get overcharged.

If you don't bring an Engine Half@$$ disabling plugin/dongle, you can drive in M5 to TEMPORARILY disable V4 mode.
Good idea to change motor oil ASAP, bonus points for getting the old sitting motor oil analyzed by

Premium Oil Analysis Kit - SPEEDiagnostix

Your Engine Is Talking. We Tell You What It's Saying. Just a 3 oz sample of used motor oil reveals a lot about the health of your engine as well as the condition of the oil itself. Know the health of your engine in just 5 business days. Each SPEEDiagnostix oil analysis report provides easy to...

www.speediagnostix.com

If you find it rides rough during the drive back, before you decide on which shocks you want (Bilstein 5100),
VERY seriously consider GM OE 265/70R17 - as in GM OE tire size for civilian vehicles. These are as responsible for the ride as the shocks.
If you prefer a stiff ride, but not PPV-stiff, LT265/70R17 should still give you plenty of winter-capable tires to choose from.

Funny you mentioned oil diagnosis as I am doing that on my other car. As for the shocks and tires, I’m probably at least doing tires if this ride fires up without crazy lifter noise. If it has bad ticks or knocks I’ll likely be walking away because I’m not trying to fix bad lifters. Thanks for the info!!!

 

[Marky Dissod]

... not trying to fix bad lifters.

Best fix for bad lifters is a 6.0L ...

 

[Doubeleive]

6 month old gas is not a big deal at all and you could probably just jump start it then fully charge the batterys later. I just went to my sisters for Thanksgiving and my 03 I sold her has been sitting for a year I jumped it and it fired right up, let it idle for 20 minutes or so and it started again on it's own, it has over 250k on it runs like a champ still

 

[Doubeleive]

The tires on it are from at least 2016 and there perfect still

 

[OldSchool73]

The tires on it are from at least 2016 and there perfect still

These are flat spotted and I think they are the softer compound according to the contact person. He was saying they sometimes go back to normal but sometimes the flat spots will not go away. I’m pretty OCD about tires so for 8 year old tires I’m probably going to replace them no matter what. Guess I could inspect them for cracks etc and take a chance if I don’t see any. I like to play it safe though.

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Welcome to the Forum from NH.

Lots of knowledgeable folks here who freely share their knowledge, experiences, and perspectives. Knowledge is power.

I hope that you will become a participating member in the Forum's discussions.

You are already receiving sage advice from the knowledgeable folks on this Forum.

Pics of the truck, please, if you end up purchasing it.

 

[OldSchool73]

Welcome to the Forum from NH.

Lots of knowledgeable folks here who freely share their knowledge, experiences, and perspectives. Knowledge is power.

I hope that you will become a participating member in the Forum's discussions.

You are already receiving sage advice from the knowledgeable folks on this Forum.

Pics of the truck, please, if you end up purchasing it.

Thanks Joseph. I knew a Joseph Garcia back in the day! He was a cool guy. I’ll try and post up some pics. If things go to plan, I’ll be doing a lot of detailing DIYs and basically chronicle the things I’m doing to make this truck nice.

 

[OldSchool73]

If it has not run in months then both batteries are dead. 40psi minimum. Does your code checker also erase codes?
The sooner the code(s) repopulate(s), the more urgently those codes need addressing/fixing.
Best if the fresh gasoline is 91 / 93, whatever they put in the tank is likely LESS than 87 by now.
Isopropyl alcohol (over 75%, I use 90%) is an excellent moisture absorber, and you won't get overcharged.

If you don't bring an Engine Half@$$ disabling plugin/dongle, you can drive in M5 to TEMPORARILY disable V4 mode.
Good idea to change motor oil ASAP, bonus points for getting the old sitting motor oil analyzed by

Premium Oil Analysis Kit - SPEEDiagnostix

Your Engine Is Talking. We Tell You What It's Saying. Just a 3 oz sample of used motor oil reveals a lot about the health of your engine as well as the condition of the oil itself. Know the health of your engine in just 5 business days. Each SPEEDiagnostix oil analysis report provides easy to...

www.speediagnostix.com

If you find it rides rough during the drive back, before you decide on which shocks you want (Bilstein 5100),
VERY seriously consider GM OE 265/70R17 - as in GM OE tire size for civilian vehicles. These are as responsible for the ride as the shocks.
If you prefer a stiff ride, but not PPV-stiff, LT265/70R17 should still give you plenty of winter-capable tires to choose from.

Marky, I’m a pretty big fan of keeping stock sized tires on all my cars. Would it be a compelling enough reason to move up to a 70 series vs the current 60 series tires? Isn’t 265 60 R16 what comes on these stock? Won’t that also throw the speedo off? I’m not sure I want to mess with it, but I guess comfort is the main reason people would. I guess I have some pondering to do.

 

[OldSchool73]

Here it is in all its dirty dusty glory!

 

[Joseph Garcia]

Here it is in all its dirty dusty glory!

Let's see it again in 6 months.

 

[OldSchool73]

Let's see it again in 6 months.

Yep, I might even have some DIY stuff to share for those who like detailing their rigs!

 

[RichardCranium]

Marky, I’m a pretty big fan of keeping stock sized tires on all my cars. Would it be a compelling enough reason to move up to a 70 series vs the current 60 series tires? Isn’t 265 60 R16 what comes on these stock? Won’t that also throw the speedo off? I’m not sure I want to mess with it, but I guess comfort is the main reason people would. I guess I have some pondering to do.

You are really limited with the actual stock PPV tire size. The literal best thing you'll ever do to that PPV is forgot the original tires and any speed rating, and go for comfort. Definitely shop for 70 series, don't worry as much about the width.

 

[Marky Dissod]

Marky, I’m a pretty big fan of keeping stock sized tires on all my cars.

You were also a fan of P71s? How 'stock' did you keep it? By which I mean, how much did you try to improve it by stretching your definition of 'stock'?
I'm a Caprice-9C1 enthusiast (and OBD1-LT1 tuner); thanks to those cars, my definition of 'stock' is considerably expanded compared to most people's.
I'm no Kuato, but I'll suggest very strongly that you ... open your mind to a more freeing definition of GM OE.

Would it be a compelling enough reason to move up to a 70 series vs the current 60 series tires? Isn’t 265/60R16 what comes on these stock?
Won’t that also throw the speedo off? I’m not sure I want to mess with it, but I guess comfort is the main reason people would. I guess I have some pondering to do.

More to ponder:
GM OE tire size for every GMT921 that is NOT a PPV, as well as every other GMT900 suv, and many GMT900 pickups, is 265/70R17.
GM OE for Tahoes PPV is 265/60R17 (not 16"). Yes, it may throw the speedo off. So what? - how badly do you REALLY need the speedo?
Don't worry about the ABS & Traction Control, so long as all 4 tires (not wheels) are the same diameter/circumference, they still work.

Have you shopped & compared 265/60R17 vs 265/70R17? Go to TireRack, few 265/60R17 to choose from (NONE I'd use on my Tahoe).
If keeping the speedo accurate is priority (?), 245/65R17 has 10x as many tires to choose from as 265/60R17, nearly all of which are better tires.
If you merely want to minimize speedo error, 255/65R17 (30.05") also has many tires to choose from, many of which are better than what 265/60R17 offers.
Quite a few other 17" tire sizes between 265/60R17 & 265/70R17, by the way:
265/60R17 - 29.51"
245/65R17 - 29.53"
255/65R17 - 30.05"
245/70R17 - 30.50"
265/65R17 - 30.56"
255/70R17 - 31.05"
245/75R17 - 31.46"
265/70R17 - 31.60"
GoodYear DuraTrac RT, Falken WildPeak A/T4W, Pirelli Scorpion WeatherActive, Cooper Discoverer Road&Trail AT, Nitto Nomad Grappler, Yokohama GeoLandar CV4S
GoodYear Assurance WeatherReady2, and more if you want to pay more, like the Michelin Defender LTX M/S 2 (beware, there are lesser Michelin Defenders)

Did I mention tuning? Disable Engine Half@$$, improve TCC behavior for better longevity and durability, make engine & transmission more responsive & fun ...

 

[OldSchool73]

You were also a fan of P71s? How 'stock' did you keep it? By which I mean, how much did you try to improve it by stretching your definition of 'stock'?
I'm a Caprice-9C1 enthusiast (and OBD1-LT1 tuner); thanks to those cars, my definition of 'stock' is considerably expanded compared to most people's.
I'm no Kuato, but I'll suggest very strongly that you ... open your mind to a more freeing definition of GM OE.

More to ponder:
GM OE tire size for every GMT921 that is NOT a PPV, as well as every other GMT900 suv, and many GMT900 pickups, is 265/70R17.
GM OE for Tahoes PPV is 265/60R17 (not 16"). Yes, it may throw the speedo off. So what? - how badly do you REALLY need the speedo?
Don't worry about the ABS & Traction Control, so long as all 4 tires (not wheels) are the same diameter/circumference, they still work.

Have you shopped & compared 265/60R17 vs 265/70R17? Go to TireRack, few 265/60R17 to choose from (NONE I'd use on my Tahoe).
If keeping the speedo accurate is priority (?), 245/65R17 has 10x as many tires to choose from as 265/60R17, nearly all of which are better tires.
If you merely want to minimize speedo error, 255/65R17 (30.05") also has many tires to choose from, many of which are better than what 265/60R17 offers.
Quite a few other 17" tire sizes between 265/60R17 & 265/70R17, by the way:
265/60R17 - 29.51"
245/65R17 - 29.53"
255/65R17 - 30.05"
245/70R17 - 30.50"
265/65R17 - 30.56"
255/70R17 - 31.05"
245/75R17 - 31.46"
265/70R17 - 31.60"
GoodYear DuraTrac RT, Falken WildPeak A/T4W, Pirelli Scorpion WeatherActive, Cooper Discoverer Road&Trail AT, Nitto Nomad Grappler, Yokohama GeoLandar CV4S
GoodYear Assurance WeatherReady2, and more if you want to pay more, like the Michelin Defender LTX M/S 2 (beware, there are lesser Michelin Defenders)

Did I mention tuning? Disable Engine Half@$$, improve TCC behavior for better longevity and durability, make engine & transmission more responsive & fun ...

Apparently I have a lot to consider. I’m out of the country at the moment. I’ll be looking into your suggestions. When it came to my P71s I kept them 100% stock but they rode and handled well for my needs. Just got the Tahoe and know VERY little about the PPV. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and advice. I promise it is much appreciated!

 

[Marky Dissod]

Interior pics? Front & center console, a 3rd front seat with storage nooks, or a blank space?

 

[OldSchool73]

Interior pics? Front & center console, a 3rd front seat with storage nooks, or a blank space?

I’ll get some pics posted up when I get back from travel. I’m thinking about doing a video as well going over the vehicle. Can share that here also.