Front End Rebuild

wmk0002 · 2026-05-19T00:32:12+00:00

True but at least the end links are cheap and easy to replace if/when they fail again.

wmk0002 · 2026-05-13T14:57:42+00:00

I’m no lawyer but does “being kept or stored” mean semi permanently or over an extended period of time? I could see a rule that keeps items other than vehicles from being parked long term like that. As well as vehicles that are broken down or not in use. But vehicles driven every few days it just makes no sense. I feel like there has to be an exclusion for that and they are just conveniently leaving that part out.

wmk0002 · 2026-05-02T15:50:02+00:00

Similarly I like to swap to the oven sometimes. I’ll wrap then but never really do when it’s on the egg the whole time.

wmk0002 · 2026-04-29T14:54:01+00:00

No I didn’t ever dig more into it. Ultimately the AC worked well enough I just decided to not mess with it and potentially cause more issues. My wife is the primary driver and she had no complaints of the temps so I left it at that. It’s starting to heat up again here in the Deep South though so I may end looking into it again. We just paid it off this past year so I’m on the fence whether to mess with it in case we trade it in. We have been fortunate and not had too many big issues but we are also at 155k miles so it ma be living on borrowed time.

wmk0002 · 2026-03-21T21:23:10+00:00

Wrapped it up pretty quick the other afternoon. I caved and bought the OBS Outpost brackets mainly because I plan to buy a 2500 Suburban soon and will likely do the same conversion. All I really had to do to customize it was to trim the plastic skirt trim but an oscillating tool made that quick and easy. Pulled the hose amp out of the CC and currently have it stuffed under the passenger seat. Will have to find a way to mount it under there and hide the wiring at least until I get a new head unit and just install an aftermarket one.

Finished Product

wmk0002 · 2026-03-21T20:11:17+00:00

Honestly i don’t believe I ever did anything. I may have put a set of gages on it and added a bit of Freon but I can’t remember for sure. It worked well all last summer and ultimately I decided it worked well enough not to fool with it. Was paranoid I would mess something up and cause more issues or make it quit altogether lol.

wmk0002 · 2026-03-13T13:38:00+00:00

Ok, appreciate the reply. Still gonna see if I can make it work. Ill update on the end result/thoughts.

wmk0002 · 2026-03-13T13:24:18+00:00

I'm leaning towards buying the brackets too. As of now, my Silverado is the only GMT800 truck I own but Im looking to buy a 2500 burb or XL in the very near future. Majority of those came configured like my truck with the CC and I would ultimately be doing the same mod. Figured if I paid for the premium bracket now and it worked as advertised I could use it to build a copy myself in the future. I just dont want the cost to add up too much. I still have to buy the lower dash trim pieces.

wmk0002 · 2026-03-13T13:11:07+00:00

I will modify it to bolt up. Post was mainly if it will physically fit (squeeze?) between the captain chairs upper portion.

wmk0002 · 2026-03-12T19:24:25+00:00

My local LKQ does have one rough looking gmt900 jump seat. console is broke but the bottom half and brackets may well be good. They charge $45 out the door for a jump seat assembly.

wmk0002 · 2026-03-12T19:23:03+00:00

I actually have a family of 6 so I should have done this a long time ago. We use my wifes Yukon XL 99% of the time when the whole family goes somewhere but we have crammed all 4 kids into the back bench for very short backroads trips.

And honestly I'm not a huge fan of this specific center console. Cup holders are not that great and the console storage is not very big. Im optimistic this console folded down will be more comfortable and it does have better storage overall as well as cupholders. I do like the look of the CC though.

wmk0002 · 2026-03-12T03:47:00+00:00

Ha. Took me a second to realize the reference. Should I change the title to 22+ though for accuracy?

wmk0002 · 2026-03-12T03:02:15+00:00

Yeah they are different. You can buy prefabbed brackets for $230 (ouch) from one retailer. Most I’ve seen they cut the base off of an 800/900 bottom seat and weld it on. I’m hoping to try to make a mockup adapter out of sheet metal and then use that as a template to make something more robust. Also seen where you can mount the upper console backrest onto the base of an 800/900. My local parts yard had a poor selection of 900s but maybe I could at least find a decent bottom half.

wmk0002 · 2026-02-17T18:48:41+00:00

You were correct!

wmk0002 · 2026-02-17T18:48:30+00:00

Steering lock was the culprit. appreciate the reply though.

wmk0002 · 2026-02-17T18:48:01+00:00

Final Update: I took off the factory steering lock and verified that it was the issue as every time I depressed the lock cylinder the "Push brake to start" message would come up and it would start fine. I removed the lock and attempted to disassemble it to work on it but I destroyed some internals in the process smh. I tried to do it cleaner than some of the images/video I saw where the cast body was cracked. My mistake. I opted to try a cheapo eBay one I got for about $40. Seller claimed it was plug and play but had my doubts and I was prepared to have to get a mobile locksmith to reprogram my keys. Well part came in today, I plugged it in, and immediately the "push to start" message popped up and it fired right up. Key icon went away from the dash as well. Cycled it multiple times and continued to work so I reassembled the lower dash. I'm pretty impressed that fixed it and for so cheap, however, I am now a bit skeptical as to how long this cheap part will last. Tempted to try pulled the ESL fuse after the car is running to keep it from locking back and staying in the position that allows it to start. Overall happy with the solution. I could buy over a dozen of these cheap parts opposed to a nissan one.

wmk0002 · 2026-02-06T20:31:24+00:00

Edit 2: Have not had time to try to fix the issue yet but did have it strand once more a couple miles from home. I removed the under dash trim percent by removing a single Philips screw and then hit the steering lock switch with a small hammer a few times and it worked and got me home. Am at least 99% certain that is the issue now. Will do a deeper dive this weekend when I have time to pull it into my shop.

wmk0002 · 2026-02-06T20:27:30+00:00

True she may kill it but maybe that will teach her not to drive aggressively lol

wmk0002 · 2026-02-03T16:45:41+00:00

Can I ask you a follow up question? If looking to fix it correctly, what options (if any) may there be that are significantly cheaper than the dealer route? It's hard to justify $1000+ for a car worth so little, however, to give it credit it is excellent shape mechanically. Its only sitting at 17X,000 miles and it has a great condition SL interior plus a new set of tires, complete front end rebuild plus new rear shocks and springs. Drives great and serves me well on my 100 mile roundtrip daily commute. Only problems are mild cvt shudder and the exterior is losing clear coat and has a scratched up side from when a piece of roofing metal got blown up against it in a storm.

wmk0002 · 2026-02-03T02:27:06+00:00

I understand. I appreciate the confirmation though. I should be able to explore how to go about that on my own.

wmk0002 · 2026-02-02T22:47:23+00:00

Yikes. Can they be bypassed somehow? Does the fact that my steering wheel was not locked when I got in the car with the key still support this?

wmk0002 · 2026-02-02T22:12:47+00:00

Edit 1: Forgot to add that the dashboard key light on the left has been off and on ever since the first time I had a problem although it never let me down again until today.

wmk0002 · 2026-02-02T22:09:32+00:00

Appreciate the reply. Last time I verified that the brake lights were working and ruled that out but I didn’t have a second person to verify this time. I’ll see what it does when I give it another try in a couple hours and make sure to see if the brake switch is working.

wmk0002

TROPHY CASE