New member to forum -- searching for my 07-14 Tahoe/Yukon

[Bill 1960]

Okay -- tell me why I shouldn't buy this 2009 Escalade 6.2 . Cali car the entire life, 4 owners per the carfax (but the last owner was BMW of Valencia had it for a few months before sending it to auction...I wish my friend who had Manheim dealer access was still alive, Mark would have given me the auction price). Now it is at a small used car dealer in Long Beach who wants $17,995 for it. It is the only 6.2 Escalade around that meets my "color" (not black, not white) requirements. Hate to buy from a used car lot...but...maybe it needs a test drive.

It’s worth a look IMO. I’d be looking for repairs or repainted and all the usual indicators of crash damage or incipient mechanical failure.

There’s a question in my mind as to why it’s been unsold for so long.

 

[Geotrash]

Okay -- tell me why I shouldn't buy this 2009 Escalade 6.2 . Cali car the entire life, 4 owners per the carfax (but the last owner was BMW of Valencia had it for a few months before sending it to auction...I wish my friend who had Manheim dealer access was still alive, Mark would have given me the auction price). Now it is at a small used car dealer in Long Beach who wants $17,995 for it. It is the only 6.2 Escalade around that meets my "color" (not black, not white) requirements. Hate to buy from a used car lot...but...maybe it needs a test drive.

I've had good luck buying from small used car lots like that. Knowing that it's a lifetime California car is huge. No AFM - another plus. Be prepared to deal with some deferred maintenance items (e.g. rear air shocks, compressor, motor mounts). Parts are inexpensive relative to other luxury brands, and they're easy to work on.

I bought my '07 from a lot like that in Colorado - unbeknownst to me about 2 weeks before they went out of business. It was an Arizona car all of its life, and was clearly garage-kept and meticulously maintained - probably by an elderly person. I know this because the GPS history was full of clinics in the Phoenix area for various aging-related needs. Anyway, it needed motor mounts and a few odds and ends like new struts for the liftgate but was otherwise tip top. Since then I've done a handful of things, but for a car with 220K on it, it's beautiful. My neighbor works for Carmax and comments all the time about how clean it is.

Go get it!

 

[swathdiver]

I was getting ichty to spend some money and was looking at this 2007 Yukon, but it has a bunch of owners and is from the era of the dreaded AFM. The seller is asking way above blue book, but in LA most of the cars are thrashed and being sold by sketchy dealers and kids who think they are dealers.

But some of the research I've been doing on the AFM issues and features makes me want to start seriously looking for the unicorn 09 Escalade or 09 Denali or 09 Tahoe with the 6.2 L9H. Somebody find me one of those on the West Coast. I promise that if I buy the car I will send you something cool in the mail.

Can someone tell me which digit in the Vin identify the 6.2 and the AWD? I can figure it out with a vin decoder (https://www.truecar.com/used-cars-for-sale/listing/1GYFK23249R260546/ THIS IS A 6.2 AWD -- but only because https://www.gmforum.com/vindecoder.php?vin=1GYFK23249R260546). But I can't find the digit by digit decoder.

You have to memorize the VIN sequences for each year or group of years as they changed during the production of the GMT900s. Eighth digit 2 is for the L9H motor.

The 5th digit tells you the drive type, C for RWD and K for AWD or 4WD from 2007-2010. After that it is 1 for RWD and 2 for 4WD and AWD.

If you care looking for the coveted 2009 6.2 Tahoe, the VIN sequence you scan for is 1GNFC332 or 1GNFK332 RWD and 4WD respectively.

There are 2008 6.2 Tahoes and all are RWD with the L92 engine, VIN 8.

GMC also had some Yukon XL SLTs with the L9H in 2010.

GM has VIN Cards for every year that you can study to memorize. This is how I find the oddities to share and buy, like our 6.2 NHT Sierra.

 

[vinbart]

The saga continues. I took the 09 Escalade (link above) on a test drive. Coolant was clean. Oil was clean (although it seemed filled very high -- or the dipstick was covered in spray). The interior of the car is very nice (except a cracked dash) and some minor wear issues. Took it for a test drive -- it rides and drives nicely, accelerates appropriately fast, doesn't pull in either direction, stops quickly and straight (i've bought sold and driven many cars over the years, so I pretty good at assessing vehicle condition, but this is a new car to me). Everything seems to function inside the car - switches, gauges, lights, heater, parking sensors, AC, seat auto fall down thingy. No evidence of any body work on any of the panels, no overspray that I could detect by pulling back seal, but the front valence is showing some rock and curb rash. Bottom of the car shows some signs of leaking oil/ATF. The only thing that didn't work is the TPMS -- it showed -- psi on all four tires. Not sure what is going on there. Warmed up-- Oil shows 30psi at idle, 24psi against the torque convertor and it had a slight vibration from the steering wheel that I didn't like. The engine was also idling around 500rpm when in gear and at stop. MMmmm. Then I noticed a check-engine-light. The CEL amber light would stay lit up after your key-on and no start -- so the seller (a small used car dealer) pulled out his scan tool and scanned it as P0172 Fuel Trim Rich Bank 1 (I think there might have been a second code, but it was either another instance of P0172 on his scanner or P0173). We started and stopped the engine a number of times and eventually the code persisted as a solid-on CEL. The dealer is taking it to his mechanic who will diagnose the code and fix it. Few thoughts -- this is a California car that means it did not have a CEL and it cleared all 100% of its OBDII readiness checks to pass emissions 3 or 4 times this calendar year (according to the carfax) on 4/02/2021, 7/15/2021 (in Palmdale when it was offered for sale at a dealer in Valencia), and then on 9/27/2021 and 9/28/2021. I could easily believe that one of those smog checks were a "wink-wink-nudge-nudge" smog tech who could get a pass by using another car's OBDII port, but I can't believe that all of them were fake smogs.

Obviously, this fault code needs to be fixed and then it needs to run a full cycle of readiness before I will accept that it is good to go. But...what should I be looking at? I've got a handfull of pics I could share.

Pics follow:

 

[OR VietVet]

Sway bar frame bushings look to be splitting out. Vibration from steering wheel, when? Trace leaks still, of course.

 

[iamdub]

The saga continues. I took the 09 Escalade (link above) on a test drive. Coolant was clean. Oil was clean (although it seemed filled very high -- or the dipstick was covered in spray). The interior of the car is very nice (except a cracked dash) and some minor wear issues. Took it for a test drive -- it rides and drives nicely, accelerates appropriately fast, doesn't pull in either direction, stops quickly and straight (i've bought sold and driven many cars over the years, so I pretty good at assessing vehicle condition, but this is a new car to me). Everything seems to function inside the car - switches, gauges, lights, heater, parking sensors, AC, seat auto fall down thingy. No evidence of any body work on any of the panels, no overspray that I could detect by pulling back seal, but the front valence is showing some rock and curb rash. Bottom of the car shows some signs of leaking oil/ATF. The only thing that didn't work is the TPMS -- it showed -- psi on all four tires. Not sure what is going on there. Warmed up-- Oil shows 30psi at idle, 24psi against the torque convertor and it had a slight vibration from the steering wheel that I didn't like. The engine was also idling around 500rpm when in gear and at stop. MMmmm. Then I noticed a check-engine-light. The CEL amber light would stay lit up after your key-on and no start -- so the seller (a small used car dealer) pulled out his scan tool and scanned it as P0172 Fuel Trim Rich Bank 1 (I think there might have been a second code, but it was either another instance of P0172 on his scanner or P0173). We started and stopped the engine a number of times and eventually the code persisted as a solid-on CEL. The dealer is taking it to his mechanic who will diagnose the code and fix it. Few thoughts -- this is a California car that means it did not have a CEL and it cleared all 100% of its OBDII readiness checks to pass emissions 3 or 4 times this calendar year (according to the carfax) on 4/02/2021, 7/15/2021 (in Palmdale when it was offered for sale at a dealer in Valencia), and then on 9/27/2021 and 9/28/2021. I could easily believe that one of those smog checks were a "wink-wink-nudge-nudge" smog tech who could get a pass by using another car's OBDII port, but I can't believe that all of them were fake smogs.

Obviously, this fault code needs to be fixed and then it needs to run a full cycle of readiness before I will accept that it is good to go. But...what should I be looking at? I've got a handfull of pics I could share.

Pics follow:
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I see new sway bar end links and new Arnott struts in the front. Did you notice if the rear Auto Level Control aired up when you first started it? The suspension is kinda pricey, so if it's been repaired, that's something to consider.

I believe the CEL should be on with key on/engine off and goes off after startup if no DTCs are present. Chances are that the P0172 is a minor offense. If there aren't any other options that you feel better about and this one checks out otherwise, I wouldn't let that be a deal-breaker as long as it's priced accordingly. It could be a slightly sticky injector or O2 sensor that needs to have moisture burned off- problems that could've arisen from it sitting on the lot for a while that weren't there before. It could just be an old O2 sensor issue that, coincidentally, sprung up while in their possession. What you'd need to confirm is if the problem is actually repaired and they didn't just clear the code(s). Such a code would take a few drive cycles to resurface if the problem was still present. So, they could clear it before you get there and it might not come on until a few days after you buy it. A simple scan tool that shows status of readiness monitor would tell you if it has completed all drive cycles required to satisfy the readiness monitors.

 

[vinbart]

Sway bar frame bushings look to be splitting out. Vibration from steering wheel, when? Trace leaks still, of course.

Vibration when sitting at idle. Seems to be more NVH that I'd expect from a well running GM V8. Maybe it is related to the CEL. Or it could just be in need of new engine and trans mounts.

 

[OR VietVet]

I would guess the CEL light. Needs diagnosed and addressed.

 

[iamdub]

Vibration when sitting at idle. Seems to be more NVH that I'd expect from a well running GM V8. Maybe it is related to the CEL. Or it could just be in need of new engine and trans mounts.

These LS engines are hit-and-miss (pun intended) with having a smooth idle or not. But, with it having that code, I'd have to consider that they may be related. It's a rich code, so, either an injector stuck open or a weak spark on Bank 1 (driver side).

As for the weak spark, maybe it has original spark plugs? Or, maybe they were recently replaced but with crappy plugs or even the crappy counterfeits of good OEM plugs. Taking it to the extreme: It could have the old style rocker cover, allowing it to get oil in the PCV system and, ultimately, the rearmost combustion chambers, carbonizing them and fouling the plugs. The plugs should be inspected and a compression test ran on the engine, if even just the rearmost cylinders. If compression is good, scope the cylinders for carbon. If carbon is present, perform the cleaning outlined in this TSB: https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2014/SB-10065822-9133.pdf . Instead of GM's upper engine cleaner, I think member @donjetman used Motor Medic or some other much cheaper stuff with great results.

Of course, I don't see the car lot going anywhere nearly this far in diagnostics or repair.

 

[vinbart]

These LS engines are hit-and-miss (pun intended) with having a smooth idle or not. But, with it having that code, I'd have to consider that they may be related. It's a rich code, so, either an injector stuck open or a weak spark on Bank 1 (driver side).

As for the weak spark, maybe it has original spark plugs? Or, maybe they were recently replaced but with crappy plugs or even the crappy counterfeits of good OEM plugs. Taking it to the extreme: It could have the old style rocker cover, allowing it to get oil in the PCV system and, ultimately, the rearmost combustion chambers, carbonizing them and fouling the plugs. The plugs should be inspected and a compression test ran on the engine, if even just the rearmost cylinders. If compression is good, scope the cylinders for carbon. If carbon is present, perform the cleaning outlined in this TSB: https://static.nhtsa.gov/odi/tsbs/2014/SB-10065822-9133.pdf . Instead of GM's upper engine cleaner, I think member @donjetman used Motor Medic or some other much cheaper stuff with great results.

Of course, I don't see the car lot going anywhere nearly this far in diagnostics or repair.

Yeah, I'm thinking they just want to get rid of the car at this point. Which is fine by me -- I don't mind some elbow grease and a good time with sketchy cleaning solvents (24 Hrs of LeMons racers raise your hands!). The lot says they've got a mechanic who will diagnose and fix the CEL.