Yukon Escalade converion

[gringoloco]

looks almost factory

 

[fatnlowtahoe504]

nice man, you should get the escalade running boards, roof rails, and rear bumper cover...

---------- Post added at 02:15 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:15 PM ----------

about how much did the whole conversion cost???

 

[indian mark]

Thanks again for the kind words guys.
I'd like to get the rear vent thingies, new tail lights and rear bumper. Unfortunately I'm a bit tapped at the moment and want a new Harley next spring.

The whole project wasn't to bad. the insurance co. gave me a check for $2300 ($3300 estimated damages minus a $1000 deductible) I spent just over $1000 on the front clip (Ebay) The painter had a buddy with most of the moldings $200. I had to find two of the moldings. $300 (Ebay, bone yard in N.D.) then the body and paint work $2300 ( this included fixing some damage to the drivers side rear door and quarter. He also replaced the radiator, and ac condenser etc. since the Caddy stuff was better. Total out of pocket was only a couple hundred dollars over the $1000 deductible. (The original hood and left fender weren't damaged so I'll Craigslist them and the original moldings unless someone here want's them. I also have a billet grill insert.)

 

[ferr1s]

Looks Sharp

Just cruising and saw your conversion. It looks really good. NO one will likely guess its an almost 10 yr old truck now! It does look like it came from the factory. Good job!

 

[BlackLac]

I don't think it was a good idea to do that conversion. It hurts resale. There is nothing wrong with the look of a yukon. With tastefull modifications, yukons look a ton better than any stock escalade. Also, no 02 up escalade came with the split tailgate. This will always be a dead giveaway.

BTW Have you seen the price of used escalades. You could have repaired it, sold it an bought a real escalade for less out of pocket than it will take to correctly convert a yukon into one.

As for the workmanship, it looks right on.

 

[mason313]

I'm not sure how I feel about the conversion looks real clean tho I think it would look real good with some more escalade parts but deff differernt. Where in mi are you? If you don't mind me asking

 

[indian mark]

I don't think it was a good idea to do that conversion. It hurts resale. There is nothing wrong with the look of a yukon. With tastefull modifications, yukons look a ton better than any stock escalade. Also, no 02 up escalade came with the split tailgate. This will always be a dead giveaway.

BTW Have you seen the price of used escalades. You could have repaired it, sold it an bought a real escalade for less out of pocket than it will take to correctly convert a yukon into one.

As for the workmanship, it looks right on.

Are you kidding? What exactly is the resale value of an (crashed) eleven year old Yukon with 200,000 miles on it?
I understand your point, but the reason for most projects that guys do on their trucks is that they just want to do it.

Rich, I'm near Flint

 

[BlackLac]

Are you kidding? What exactly is the resale value of an (crashed) eleven year old Yukon with 200,000 miles on it?
I understand your point, but the reason for most projects that guys do on their trucks is that they just want to do it.

Rich, I'm near Flint

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/searc...iceDESC&awsp=false&systime=&rdm=1281496195331

http://www.kbb.com/used-cars/gmc/yu...-report?condition=fair&id=4383&mileage=200000

I'm not kidding. Check the links.

 

[Kyleg234]

Dnt even listen to the haters man.. It looks good to me and if it looks good to you and you like it, that's all that really matters anyway... But if people are hating it usually means your doing something right lol

 

[BlackLac]

Dnt even listen to the haters man.. It looks good to me and if it looks good to you and you like it, that's all that really matters anyway... But if people are hating it usually means your doing something right lol

I don't like the idea of misrepresenting a yukon as an escalade. I wouldn't even put an ///M symbol on a 530i or an AMG badge on a cl500. To me, it is an outward expression of the car's owner showing their disappointment with their vehicle. Like they wish it was something else that they could not afford. When I see this, it seems fake and discredits the person who owns the vehicle to me to some extent. This is because their insecurity about the vehicle makes them want to project something false. It is like wearing a fake rolex. When people find out that it isn't real, they will think less of you than if you had no watch at all.

In this case, The car has a Cadillac badge on the front. It is clearly not a Cadillac. Would you put a Porsche/Bentley/Lambo symbol on an audi? A jaguar/aston martin/land rover symbol on a ford? A benz badge on a chrysler? This is the exact same thing as putting a Cadillac badge on a GMC. To me, it is in bad taste. Also, this lowers the value of the vehicle from it's factory condition.

When someone gets into the car and realizes that it's not what it is represented as, what do you think goes through their mind? I know what I would think.

If there was no symbol on the grill, it would be much better.

It's his truck, he can do what he wants to it. He posted on the forum for opinions, both positive and negative. I respect that everyone has different taste. Misrepresentation doesn't agree with mine. This is why I offered constructive criticism in my previous post, not hate.

 

[indian mark]

Dnt even listen to the haters man.. It looks good to me and if it looks good to you and you like it, that's all that really matters anyway... But if people are hating it usually means your doing something right lol

Thanks Kyle, I'm looking for Prius emblems for it. Trying to piss off everyone, especially the tree-huggers (and of course Drew) I'll post a couple pics when I get 'em on. haha

 

[indian mark]

Just scored some Christmas goodies for my truck. It's becoming more Escalakon than Yukalade. Got the dash bezel, instrument cluster (02), rear bumper with cover and brackets, and of course the desired rear vent cap thingies. This should clean up the back end quite a bit.

WooHoo for me.

I'll probably do the dash stuff next week, but wait on the exterior until spring.

 

[Ced]

good score.... keep the pics coming.

 

[nytahoe]

cant wait to c them on the truck

 

[indian mark]

Thanks guys. I'll post some pics when I get the dash done. Might be a few months for the body parts.

 

[Huck]

I don't like the idea of misrepresenting a yukon as an escalade. I wouldn't even put an ///M symbol on a 530i or an AMG badge on a cl500. To me, it is an outward expression of the car's owner showing their disappointment with their vehicle. Like they wish it was something else that they could not afford. When I see this, it seems fake and discredits the person who owns the vehicle to me to some extent. This is because their insecurity about the vehicle makes them want to project something false. It is like wearing a fake rolex. When people find out that it isn't real, they will think less of you than if you had no watch at all.

In this case, The car has a Cadillac badge on the front. It is clearly not a Cadillac. Would you put a Porsche/Bentley/Lambo symbol on an audi? A jaguar/aston martin/land rover symbol on a ford? A benz badge on a chrysler? This is the exact same thing as putting a Cadillac badge on a GMC. To me, it is in bad taste. Also, this lowers the value of the vehicle from it's factory condition.

When someone gets into the car and realizes that it's not what it is represented as, what do you think goes through their mind? I know what I would think.

If there was no symbol on the grill, it would be much better.

It's his truck, he can do what he wants to it. He posted on the forum for opinions, both positive and negative. I respect that everyone has different taste. Misrepresentation doesn't agree with mine. This is why I offered constructive criticism in my previous post, not hate.

I see what you're saying, but I think you've missed the point. He's not misrepresenting his car. He's putting his touches on it. What's the difference between this and an SS bumper, HIDs, custom wheels, etc. Yeah, not EVERYONE will like it, but if he does, who cares? Plus, if he does decide to sell it, he might find someone with similar taste.

There's an entire replica market, by the way. If you go to an auto auction you'll see Nova SS (replicas) and the like...

 

[LuSe4]

I don't like the idea of misrepresenting a yukon as an escalade. I wouldn't even put an ///M symbol on a 530i or an AMG badge on a cl500. To me, it is an outward expression of the car's owner showing their disappointment with their vehicle. Like they wish it was something else that they could not afford. When I see this, it seems fake and discredits the person who owns the vehicle to me to some extent. This is because their insecurity about the vehicle makes them want to project something false. It is like wearing a fake rolex. When people find out that it isn't real, they will think less of you than if you had no watch at all.

In this case, The car has a Cadillac badge on the front. It is clearly not a Cadillac. Would you put a Porsche/Bentley/Lambo symbol on an audi? A jaguar/aston martin/land rover symbol on a ford? A benz badge on a chrysler? This is the exact same thing as putting a Cadillac badge on a GMC. To me, it is in bad taste. Also, this lowers the value of the vehicle from it's factory condition.

When someone gets into the car and realizes that it's not what it is represented as, what do you think goes through their mind? I know what I would think.

If there was no symbol on the grill, it would be much better.

It's his truck, he can do what he wants to it. He posted on the forum for opinions, both positive and negative. I respect that everyone has different taste. Misrepresentation doesn't agree with mine. This is why I offered constructive criticism in my previous post, not hate.

What do you think an Escalade is? It is a Tahoe (or Yukon) with some added options. I don't think the o.p. was trying to pass it off as an Escalade, but it wouldn't be hard to do. Just switch out the instrument cluster and the airbag and 8/10 people wouldn't know the difference. It isn't like he stuck the Escalade clip on the front of a Civic and covered it in Cadillac badges. You sound like a snob because he didn't buy an Escalade.

O.P., the truck looks great. You did a nice job!

 

[Timmy]

not to bust your bubble, but you're gonna need the top dash pad and grab handle for the bezel to go on.

 

[indian mark]

Thanks Nathan.
Timmy, I'll have to look into that. It looks like it'll fit, but I'll check that out. I can still get the other pieces if needed.

 

[indian mark]

not to bust your bubble, but you're gonna need the top dash pad and grab handle for the bezel to go on.

Dude, you really harshed my mellow today. I can't even look at it until Wednesday eve at the earliest.