Saying Good Bye to all the good folks here

[Dearmosd]

After 5+ years of trying to love my 2018 Suburban I have decided to trade her in. I love tooling on her but there are some issues that I can no longer ignore or fix so I have decided to cut my losses and move on. Kids are growing up and not wanting to do traveling family functions, towing the boat is gaining more time then long hauls with people/cargo.

-Suspension never pleased me and I can no longer try different things to make it more comfortable/quiet
-Transmission is not giving me the warm fuzzy feeling with needing to tow, the sluggish hesitation can only get worse from here
-Cabin noise seems to continue to get worse
-Overall ride quality is not pleasing and I cannot make it better

Maintenance tasks are coming die:
-Tires
-Front wheel bearing
-Getting a buzz/humming from either front axle or rear

Before I invest any more money I am cutting my losses and trading her in for a truck.

Just wanted to say thank you for years of help from the forums but I have lost confidence in my Suburban. I wish everyone luck and happiness with their GM's

 

[B-train]

Too bad, but there are always problem childs out there, sounds like you got one. I had a similar experience with a 2009 denali xl I bought from TX. Too many issues that kept creating up, I wanted to like it.......luckily it started DRINKING oil on a trip to FL and I traded it for a 2017 which has been a really good truck for us. It had some growing pains, but warranty covered them.

Since you are looking for a truck, my $0.02 would be to get a 2500. Anything in the 1500 line will have all the same motor / CAFE garbage issues that the suvs have unfortunately. Your fuel economy with a 6.0 or 6.6 gas motor won't be too far off with way less headaches in the long run.

 

[Dearmosd]

I battles the 2500 vs 1500, I figured 70% daily driver 30% towing for the year I would be safe with a 1500. I ended up with a Ram....well picking it up at the end of the day

 

[Geotrash]

I battles the 2500 vs 1500, I figured 70% daily driver 30% towing for the year I would be safe with a 1500. I ended up with a Ram....well picking it up at the end of the day

I hope you have better luck with your Ram than my buddy has had with his. Here we are a couple winters ago after it broke down 50 miles from the nearest town in Colorado. Turned out to be an electronic component in the ignition but it took the dealer 3 weeks to get it sorted. Moral of the story: no brands are safe from problems.

 

[OR VietVet]

Sorry to see you go. If going to tow 30% of the time, I would go with the 2500 but sounds like you have already chosen the 1500. That 30% towing with a 1/2 ton, depending on the size and weight of what you are towing, can do over 50% of the wear and tear on that truck.

 

[Dearmosd]

Moral of the story: no brands are safe from problems

100% agree but I have a handful of concerns with GM and it isn't getting easier or cheaper to put the smile on my face. I have to try something different before I loose more equity from the Suburban. I towed a 1300# trailer and the vibration were ungodly.....

 

[Dearmosd]

If going to tow 30% of the time

Well, my numbers might not be accurate. I tow a 6000# boat about 2-3 hrs away about 4-6 times a year if I am lucky. My priority was ride quality since my ass has not been happy sitting in the bumpy Suburban

 

[blackelky]

I battles the 2500 vs 1500, I figured 70% daily driver 30% towing for the year I would be safe with a 1500. I ended up with a Ram....well picking it up at the end of the day

I loved my hemi honestly. Tows likes a 2500 if you got the factory tow package. Mine unfortunately had electrical issues and I offed it on the dealer for close to what I bought it for.

 

[blackelky]

100% agree but I have a handful of concerns with GM and it isn't getting easier or cheaper to put the smile on my face. I have to try something different before I loose more equity from the Suburban. I towed a 1300# trailer and the vibration were ungodly.....

Ram ride quality is great and the 5.7 hemi has more than enough power. If you live in the northeast just do a fluid film application and keep on eye on the exhaust manifolds

 

[Tonyv__]

Well if you stick with a GM truck. No need to leave for good.. I get more help here with my express van than my Yukon.

 

[Joseph Garcia]

So long. But, who knows, we might see you again down the road. Happy motoring.

 

[Bigkevschopshop]

The MRC suspension on these rigs leaves something to be desired for ride quality for sure. I had many rams before going GM products, every one of them had a major issue before 100k miles, transmissions, rear axles blowing up, complete brake failure, lifter failure... The plush ride and interior is nice but I say dump it before 100k miles for sure.

Trailering in the ram 1500, rear suspension is too soft and you will be looking like them Carolina squat boys. MAKE damn sure it has the factory tow package, brake controller and deeper gears cause the 3.08 is worthless to try to tow with. Plus the Rams are not moving so you probably got a good deal for sure. Best of luck on your endeavors man.

If you try GM again, Id suggest driving the 21 and up before you rule out GM completely, the ride in the IRS suspension is quite nice.

 

[Rocket Man]

Doesn’t look like you were here much but too bad you’re leaving. You have a truck with a couple problems so you dump the entire platform, I don’t get it. Hope you find your happy place because 5 years of trying to love your truck and failing doesn’t sound right to me.

 

[swathdiver]

I hope you have better luck with your Ram...

Not likely. They sure do look nice but once you pull back the covers...

 

[EddieC]

I battles the 2500 vs 1500, I figured 70% daily driver 30% towing for the year I would be safe with a 1500. I ended up with a Ram....well picking it up at the end of the day

My neighbor strutted around when he got his RAM diesel pickup, always boasting about the mileage.
It wasn't long before the electronics started acting up. The stuff in the dash was replaced twice while under warranty but unfortunately he wasn't quick enough to get rid of it because the next time it happened (inevitable with my Chrysler experience) it cost him $10,000.

He came back to GM trucks and upped his game from Chevy to GMC.

My LAST experience with Chrysler (Jeep) was having to put rear differentials in every 10,000 miles since new. They paid for 3 and I paid for the last one before trading it back to them. The learning experience/disappointment was that they just collected the failed units and sent them back for rebuilding rather than design an actual solution to the problem so it never went away, at least not in my ownership period.

Good luck.

 

[k_arnold72]

I drove a 15 Durango RT for 4 years in the northeast, about 30k each year, same motor and 8 speed as the 1500. Only thing I ever needed to replace was the water pump, and it never gave me any issues after that. It was a solid platform in my experience.

 

[Rocket Man]

I owned a Dakota RT and I’ll never own another Dodge er Ram or whatever they want to call them now. The GM platforms of the same year have always been way ahead of Dodge or Fird imo. The Dodge Brothers wouldn't approve of what’s going on either since they won’t even use their name anymore.

 

[Mollys70]

Why did Jesus walk the earth? Because he owned a Dodge.