Preventative Maintenance on 05 Blazer with 100,000KM
 

Hi,

I have a 2005 Blazer city driven 100k and nothing major has ever gone wrong.

Nothing has been replaced except pads and all brand new tires, minor stuff here and there. Oil changes done every 3k.

Would you advise to change out the following:

1 - Serpentine belt? ( for the sake of $50 bucks and another 100k I'd just do it then wait for break down ) - opinion?
2 - My head light just went out - Do I just buy a bulb or is it a whole head light assembly?
3 - Spark Plugs, can I change all 6 without having to lift engine up on a side ?
4 - Wires?
5- Cabin Air Filter?
6- Check front end ball joints?
7 - Shocks, my rear ones show rust at bottom of shock tower, I think they are gone
8 - Battery, 7 yrs running , probably best to change?

Any advise on keeping my truck going is greatly appreciated.

1. Check if its cracked or shows wear, they have a checker for it but its something like if there is 3 cracks in a two inch space- replace.
2. Just buy bulbs, for both sides at once
3. Yes you can, #3 might require some creative thinking but the rest arn't that hard.
4. Check em for wear or you can spray some mist on the engine at night and look for sparks if you really want to, but Yes change them if your doing a "tune up" type thing
5. Doesn't exist as far as I know
6. Yeah check and grease them at next oil change.
7. I think there is a trick for checking your shocks- I believe your supposed to hop on the bumper and bounce the truck then jump off. The truck shouldn't rebound more than one and a half "bounces" if that makes sense.
8. You can have a place like autozone check it, but if it cranks fine I wouldn't spend the $ on a new one.

On newer engine belts you need know what type of belt you have. New belts are being made of a new material refered to as EPDM and they do not crack like the older neoprene belts. EPDM belts do wear over time simular to how a tire wears, but they valleys between the ribs get deeper and they thin the belt out. At my school, we had belt that had 170,000 miles on it and it did not have a single crack anywhere through the whole belt and looked like a brand new belt; it was very thin though and probably would have failed and any moment.

If you have a EPDM belt you need a special tool to measure the depth of the valleys between the ribs. Looks like an orange toothpick.

Also, check the belt tensioner too, it shouldn't bounce around when the engine is running. Once you take the belt off check the water pump you shouldn't be able to move the pulley side to side.

#5 - No such thing on an S10 truck.
#8 - 7 years :icon_eek: ? That's hard to imagine. I would replace it since on computer controlled vehicles you won't get much warning when it's dying.

The battery on my truck is orignal, 7 and a half years now.

Your title says 100,000KM. That is only 62000 miles, and changing oil every 3000KM would be under 1900 miles. Was that a typo, or is it right?

Either way, change your antifreeze.

Everyone has posted excellent advice. I would add that each of those systems on your vehicle can be checked. Check the ball joints for play. If they're loose then replace them. Have the battery tested. If it passes don't worry about replacing it. Check the belt with a belt gauge. I believe you can get a free gauge from Gates. I got a free one from them.

The other great benefit of checking out all of those systems on your vehicle is that not only will you know about their health, you'll also know a lot about your new truck. The more you know the better you can maintain it. The better you maintain it the longer it will last and these trucks can go a long, long time if well cared for.

Mine was actually probably the exact same age when I changed mine. Factory AC Delco one. It was so swollen up it almost didn't fit out of its slot. :icon_mrgreen:

I recently bought an 05 Blazer and preventative maintenance for me meant scrubbing the frame with brake cleaner, rust remover, scotch brite pads, then painting with Tremclad, undercoating, sanding /filling stone chips, base/clear on rockers, change all fluids, add mud flaps, fix rattles and more and I've only owned it 3 weeks!

Thanks everyone for advice.

I have to get tires rotated for free so I will ask them to check the following:

1 - Ball joints inspect
2 - Test Battery
3 - Inspect serp belt

To answer the questions:

1 - Sorry forgot to mention antifreeze was reversed flushed and new thermostat installed at 100 000km
2 - Yes I change the oil and filter every 3000k - 5000km.
3 - Battery is from factory, yup original.

It's a bouncy truck which could be in part to the make of the tire(goodyear). The tire pressure is set at recommended values.

Q: Are front shocks coil over shocks and are they super expensive to replace or just normal shocks like the rear's?


Thank you everyone. I live in rainy Vancouver,BC,CANADA