Looking at a 2010-2016 Suburban, advice needed.

I was wrong above, the 2500HD/3500HD use the old GMT900 body. Their purpose is pretty much just to be armored vehicles though.

The 2500 variants have slowly become extinct, and I believe 2014 was their last year in production. That being said, it is possible to order a 2500, and even a 3500 variant, of the K2XX. There just aren't that many of them around. The Secret Service uses them, and I believe we got a handful at the State Department for use overseas. We're still running some 2014 2500s, I'm curious to see what the replacements will be.
 
. 2500 Suburban's never sold well new
After 2006 I understand why. They dropped the tow rating by about 2500 lbs +- a little. Solid platform but a sub-10K tow rating after 2006 really didn't help. A 20 MPG Expedition could pull 9,200, even though a 2500 burb was more stable.
 
A topic on Burbans heck ya !! :cool:(y)(y)

I love my $1500 SCORE !! '01 1500 LT 5.3 burban work beater with 329K miles, GT4 3:73 G80 limited slip factory tow pkg and still kickin a$$ on Texas grass !!!

I have owned 6 burbans last 10 years :cool: (y) 🤪


Avoid First year models

Yes, 2004 last year for barn doors. Per GM dealer I worked for. One of the sales guys sold them new back those days.

2005/2006 best built with electric fans VS belt driven

GMT900: 2007 had the most AFM and electrical issues. Have heard myths to avoid the 2008-2010 years cause those were the GM bankrupt years during recession an quality went DOWN !! Been told 2012-2014 were much better quality ?? I had a 2007 LTZ burban TONS of little issues that added up, replace outer door handles, oil pressure sensor, had to rebuild trans (4L60E) twice and it did have the driver motor mount issue also.

2015/2016 had the $$$$ A/C condenser issues(Have to pull out the complete dash and I hear its a $2000-3000K job ??) and read the info screen having glitches also

Here is a pic of the INSANE rare K2XX 3500 Suburban with LT3 option !! !! MSRP was Escalade level !! Around $80K for a LS model 😳😳😳 LT's like in picture below were in the $100K's !!!

Personally, I would avoid the cop car dealers( I bought a "Certified" 9C1 impala from Chicagomotors and needed $500 in repairs :mad::mad:)
Try GSA(Goverment) auctions


I advise to join the Tahoe/Yukon boards !! Tons of nice helpful folks and info

Dave

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As a more serious reply:

There are some 2500 suburbans out there, mostly from ex govt uses, they used to be a lot cheaper but may still fit into your desired price range. They will be reliable, durable, thirsty, and great at towing. Chicagomotors usually has a few.

Plus 1000

I would not even consider 5.3L for towing, unless it's something relatively light, a few thousand, under 5K. The vehicle itself is heavy and struggles even when empty. Okay, it's an exaggeration, but. I tuned my 5.3L in Tahoe to run only on 93 Octane and it made a world of difference. Still, towing with 1500/5.3L you are severely limited, 2500 series is much better. You get 8-lug heavy duty axle versus light truck axle with 6 lugs.
 
Was looking hard at the 2012 LTZ 5.3 but my options are open. Some are avail with lower mileage and in good condition.

Pricewise, trying to stay under $20K, $15K is more realistic if possible.

Doubt I will find a 2016 for $20K but never know. Honestly looking for reliable factory options such as motor/trans combo.
In my area, prices are insane, much like elsewhere I suppose.

2016 runs for 30K. 10-12k puts you in the 2007-2009 years. And that's with the vehicles having 150-200K miles. 200K miles is the range where you need to start thinking about a rebuild, especially tranny is on its last legs.
 
GMT900: 2007 had the most AFM and electrical issues. Have heard myths to avoid the 2008-2010 years cause those were the GM bankrupt years during recession an quality went DOWN !! Been told 2012-2014 were much better quality ?? I had a 2007 LTZ burban TONS of little issues that added up, replace outer door handles, oil pressure sensor, had to rebuild trans (4L60E) twice and it did have the driver motor mount issue also.

That's right on the money. Have a 2008 Tahoe and the quality is questionable all over. The drivetrain seems to be solid (other than I had to turn off AFM as it was drinking 1 quart / 1000 miles, completely unacceptable, what a shock from major corporation, sounds like something college students would cook up in their garage)

I think my 1993 Caprice was of much higher quality than 08 Tahoe.
 
Plus 1000

I would not even consider 5.3L for towing, unless it's something relatively light, a few thousand, under 5K. The vehicle itself is heavy and struggles even when empty. Okay, it's an exaggeration, but. I tuned my 5.3L in Tahoe to run only on 93 Octane and it made a world of difference. Still, towing with 1500/5.3L you are severely limited, 2500 series is much better. You get 8-lug heavy duty axle versus light truck axle with 6 lugs.
Seeing how I'm in "The Great West" and see 6,000 to 9,000 foot mountain passes with my 2018 Silverado w/the 5.3-yea your post is an exaggeration. I tow a 29 foot -5,000 pound travel trailer. Unless one has a big gas motor-a half-ton should only tow more than around 5,000 pounds-so your correct on that. Payload concerns come in to play (unless max tow pkg.) at much over 5,000 pounds anyway.
 
That's right on the money. Have a 2008 Tahoe and the quality is questionable all over. The drivetrain seems to be solid (other than I had to turn off AFM as it was drinking 1 quart / 1000 miles, completely unacceptable, what a shock from major corporation, sounds like something college students would cook up in their garage)

I think my 1993 Caprice was of much higher quality than 08 Tahoe.

I would agree that GM's trucks and SUVs quality is all over the place and what they consider "acceptable" in a $50,000 pickup (in my case) amazes me.
 
Didn’t have the best of luck with my 2018 5.3 Silverado, just never seemed to want to run right after 30,000 miles...random misfire, torque converter shudder, oil consumption...traded it in with 50,000 miles on it. Two years old. I had a starter leave me stranded at 34,000 miles.

They are known for their AC condenser failures, transmission failures/converters too. But I’ll tell yeah, I know maybe 10 people personally that own these things...half of them had the starters and condenser failures, the other half have had nothing but good luck with them. Some have oil consumption, some not really. Some have over 120,000 thousand on them, some more. Some are hammered every single day, others are babied. Overall I’d place them into the average category for reliability. Probably right there with Ford.
 
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