2004 blazer (4.3L V6 Vortec) 180k mi.

How do I know when to move on from this vehicle, if ever? I have tried to exercise a high level of care for this vehicle, always changing the oil on time, trying to use good parts, etc.

I don't like spending money on cars, and if I have to spend then I want a reliable vehicle. I can do very minor repairs myself, but stuff like control arm replacement or intake manifold gasket are beyond my ability.

I don't want to overreact to the need for some repairs.

The vehicle has a very slight rust patina on the bottom but it is not rusted by any sensible use of the term. It has never been driven on salted roads. As far as I can tell the engine and transmission are in good shape. There is no blue smoke from the tailpipe. I have used this vehicle very gently and lightly--never towed, never off-roaded, and have carried a bunch of stuff in the back only on a few occasions. I don't push, redline, or even make demands of the engine, most of the time it just goes for either a stroll or a very long stroll.

I am facing:

(a) Control arm replacement (probably only one lower is necessary but need to do this symmetrically and then it is only a moderate additional cost to also do the upper control arms, and I can't make a ball joint-only or bushing-only replacement cost effective). Sourcing parts has been hell -- if someone knows how to source OEM GM control arms please let me know. I am having great difficulty making judgments about aftermarket parts, not uncommonly they cut corners like not having zerk fittings which I find concerning. I am reading conflicting reports on the quality of aftermarket parts and it is rather distressing. This repair is above what I can do myself. I can only find Moog RK and I can't find Mevotech TTX for the replacement control arms. I have found AC Delco lower control arms but I'm slightly worried about the quality of AC Delco.

(a.1) The sway bar linkage has rubbery components which have some significant cracks and these will probably need to be replaced.

(b) A weeping intake manifold gasket (not urgent, but this will need to get fixed in the next few years). If I understand correctly, a steel core Felpro is the way to go here, and I am not too worried about that component.

(c) Oxygen sensor replacement (not a big deal, I can do this myself). This alone isn't much of an issue but I am thinking that other parts may start to need replacement.

(d) Horn sometimes doesn't work. Something about pressing it in seems to fix it but then it stops working again.

(e) The instrument cluster blinked off for a long while. Somehow it started working again--I think going over a bump (??).

(f) The windshield wipers sometimes remain stuck on and I have to fiddle with things. This is not yet properly fully broken, but unfortunately I think I need to say that windshield wipers are a necessity and I imagine that I will need.

(g) Undiagnosed oil leak -- an oil pan which is wet everywhere with oil. This isn't such a bad leak that it is dripping. I am not totally sure what the problem is, maybe a busted oil pan gasket? Or could it be a rear master

(h) An AC which does not work, probably a minor leak somewhere.

(i) The center console gets rather hot near the HVAC controls--maybe a heater core issue (?) I am not sure of this one. I am tempted to say also that the cabin is constantly being heated.

(j) I don't want to demand luxury but there is no air recirculation, no cabin air filter, and air from the outside enters the cabin not instantly but it does get in quickly. I tried to investigate the seals but this seems difficult and costly to sort out. I considered renting a fog machine and putting it in the cabin to see where smoke comes out.

I have already done these repairs:

1. Oil coolant line replacement. It was extremely difficult to source the OEM GM part for this, but I was successful.

2. Automatic transmission pan gasket. When this was replaced there were very few shavings in the transmission pan and the mechanic said that the transmission is in good shape.

3. Fuel pump (replaced twice). The first fuel pump replacement failed because the mechanic used a low quality part against my wishes. I wasn't able to source the OEM GM part for this repair despite my best efforts, I am crossing my fingers that Napa auto is correct that the Delphi fuel pump I chose is equivalent to OEM.

4. Idler arm replacement.

5. Rear rotors, rear brake calipers. The brake calipers had to be aftermarket remanufactured. This wasn't too big of a deal.

I don't like nearly all newer vehicles.

I would only drive a naturally aspirated or electric vehicle, or possibly a toyota hybrid. There are very few V6 vehicles which can be purchased, and the ones which can be purchased are extremely expensive. Quite often there are turbochargers which shred the oil, and the cylinder count has been pushed down which pushes engine wear and temperatures up. I hate to seek luxury but 4cyl vibration is no fun. I am terrified of repairs of newer vehicles. I looked at the Chevy Trax but 3 cyl turbocharged with a wet belt seems like a vehicle which needs to be sold within 50k mi.

I am also faced with the fuel costs of this vehicle, which I have measured at 12mpg in city-intensive driving and 19mpg for highway-intensive driving.

I am not sure what other repairs are coming down the line for this vehicle.

 

For your specific questions, a longer reply would be appropriate.

However, as a reply to the larger question one way to look at it is that you should keep it as long as it's costs per month are less than the payments would be for a replacement vehicle. This likely only works if you have a backup vehicle since you will need to do the repairs yourself or hire someone to do them.

The good news is that mechanical parts are still available and the repairs are not hard to do. The most expensive repairs would be to replace the engine or transmission which likely won't apply to you.

That you are not up for work such as replacing the intake manifold gaskets indicates to me that to keep your Blazer would require taking it to a repair shop which will be more expensive.

If you need a mid-sized proper SUV, you might look at a 10 y.o. 4Runner. You'd want to check the purchase and repair costs to see if it is worth it.

 

What other repairs am I looking at to get this vehicle to 300k mi?

 

Sorry to hear this, but it sounds like you're burnt out with this vehicle. If you have to ask when I should get rid of a car its probably time. No point in keeping a car you don't want to or look forward to repairing. In my experience the S10 line of trucks is just problem-prone. From mechanical to electrical. We're not dealing with a Toyota here. But if your willing to roll up your sleeves and wrench, then it's not all bad. The best thing a Blazer owner can do is stay on top of problems as they appear; otherwise, they will pile up and become overwhelming projects. That's not always realistic; life happens and things get neglected. But these problems tend to have a ripple effect and add up in cost. Especially nowadays with the increased cost of parts. Not to mention the obsolescence of parts and the downgrade in quality for currently manufactured parts. Just my two cents. If you ask me when I will move on it would probably come down to one of the following. Major mechanical failure of engine or transmission, body rust overtaking the vehicle, or major collision damage. Otherwise I'll keep the Blazer rolling. Best of luck my friend.

 

Thanks for the thoughts.

Body rust won't take over this vehicle, engine failure seems really unlikely for this vehicle. Transmission on this vehicle I am less sure of but there were just a few small shavings from the ATP gasket replacement.

Cost of parts isn't as much of a concern as quality. Additionally I feel blind--how much am I going to need to spend to repair this vehicle over the next 5 or 10 years to keep it on the road?

I was horrified to learn that some of the aftermarket control arms don't have zerk fittings--if this is the case, what other corners are they cutting? It's unclear to me what fraction of the parts market is shipping low quality junk intended to last 10k miles just to get a car out of a shop or so somebody can flip a run-down used vehicle. I am also finding forum posts where aftermarket suppliers which had a strong reputation (for instance Moog) may have had a steep decline in the quality of the goods they ship. I am finding myself putting hours into qualifying parts when a repair comes up.

If I do a repair and I'm rather confident that it will last 10 or 15 years, that's worth the $. But I just did a fuel pump replacement which failed within 2 yr/10k mi and got stiffed by the mechanic. If I put in new control arms and it fails in 2 years, I just wasted my $. I can do a few of these repairs myself but anything big I can't do like intake gasket manifold, control arms,... if the small oil leak is the valve covers, oil pan gasket, or the rear main seal then that's another one I can't do. I can probably fix the distributor when that breaks.

So I think it is a question of repair depreciation vs new vehicle depreciation, and then also error bar on repair costs vs the near zero (???) error bar on new over 5yr to 10yr.

If new makes sense which I am extremely reluctant to yield to, then I want to bring Chevy my business again in theory but they aren't quite meeting my needs. I looked at a Chevy Volt but they abandoned the product line and folks are saying that it eats parts. The Chevy EV product line is buggy, charges slowly, and uses lithium ion batteries (EDIT: this was incorrect, the new Chevy Bolt EV is LFP). I like the "reliability" brand image of Toyotas but matching that with the actual vehicles is stressful, and it is unclear whether they are sticking to their historical reputation. I partially want to go electric but that is its own headache (is an LFP battery going to last? can I actually charge my vehicle? what are the actual repair costs over 20 years going to be? and I don't want to make a statement...). New cars are all too expensive so the mfgrs are trying to push debt onto people it seems, and the cars don't last. Behemoth trucks don't make sense for almost everybody. I don't know what the industry is doing, a new car should be about $15k and last for 200k mi.

 

I hear you; these are all legitimate questions to ask in regard to any car ownership. But let's keep a few things in perspective. We're talking about a 22+ year old car with current issues. You're at a crossroads. If you choose the path of repair, then it's a leap of faith, in all honesty. Doing the repairs yourself or by a trustworthy mechanic helps ensure the integrity of the work. As far as parts, all the cars of that era are in the same boat, so selling to buy another 20+ year old car doesn't change anything. Newer cars might be less impacted by the parts issue, but they are more costly, and the repairs can get very involved with special equipment or bad engineering that makes them not DIY friendly. Just look up why mechanics are quitting the industry. No one wants to work on new cars. Now if you choose the other path, then you would have to buy a car with a good reliability track record. Yes, these cars exist and are usually hard to find for that very reason; also, they come with a price tag to reflect it. An example is the 4Runner. If I had to choose, what vehicle is a better financial decision? I would hands down choose the 4Runner. I don't own one because I don't like the interior and prefer the look and style of a blazer. It's a personal choice. That's really the point; you have to ask what do you really want? Because ultimately that's the question that matters the most.

 

yours doesnt sound to bad...but when you drive junk. Its always good to have a back up(two junks)....as far as parts,,,i just ordered two front wheel bearing for a 98 4x4...fifty buck for two...i,ll let you know how long they last....lol.. doesnt seem to me that they could be junk right out of the box?

 

Hmm, I would be reluctant to say that this is junk, but it needs some work, and I can't predict what additional work it is going to need.