After owning a 2009 that I bought a few years back with 195k on odometer (242 now) I can tell you that this is a very complex machine and very few shops can service it properly. I bought mine as what i call a beater ride to simply drive to work out on construction job sites. I would NEVER buy one as my primary vehicle as it is going to have some problems that pop up. Nost frustrating issue was the ABS system went out and that took a couple of weeks and a bunch of dollars to resolve. If you buy it with enough price reduction built in to allow for expensive issues to be resolved it is a nice ride. The kids love the rear entertainment they were watching Ribbit the frog this morning on the way to day care LOL. average mileage over the last almost 50k miles is 18,9 mpg and it is lifted with oversize Nitto grappler tires. $6,600.00 is what my initial investemnt was but I have swapped in a new hybrid battery and done the brakes so i probably have close to 10k in the silly thing at this point. I would rcommend a std Tahoe rather than a hybrid so that you can pick up cheap parts easily to repair if it breaks. If you lose a major hybrid part (transmission/inverter/AC compressor/electric steering rack etc) you are not going to be able to justify a repair on an older high mileage Hybrid unit. I am retiring from work in October of this year and I plan to sell this one for what I originally paid a few yaers back $6,600.00 I think a purchase can be justified at the right price on a well maintained unit though I guess tha is the same for a lot of vehicles.
Advantages of a Beater Ride
1. Can park anywhere/anytime and not worry about door dings or dents.
2. Very low chance of anyone being interested in stealing it LOL
3. Can just carry liability auto insurance on it since it is just a beater ride, saves a lot of money!
4. Allows you to keep your brand new Denali vehicle safely in the garage.
5. Extra points if the beater ride is Cool looking and young people still comment on how cool it is that to me is hilarious
6. If the silly thing breaks it is a second vehicle and not a panic situation to get it fixed.
