Offroad Trailblazers and Envoys

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by DappleRhino » Tue Sep 27, 2016 11:56 pm

FNG here. Gifted father-in-law's 2005 GMC Envoy XUV. Only 46k on the clock but no 4WD, mid and rear glass and roof section inop. Gonna lurk for a bit and scour the threads to find relevant info. Gonna search CUV's and see if anyone has issues with or advice on mid and rear window units... sucks not being able to have full use of rig. Also... 2WD is a bummer but maybe I can get out of the mall parking lot a little. Grad student and soon to be first time dad... with crazy mother-in-law having no just moved in so in my "free"/yard time I can get out. Thanks for the site.


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by NC_IslandRunner » Wed Sep 28, 2016 9:13 am

We've had members with 2wd do most of the trails in GWNF without too much issue, rear locker is a must. Harrisonburg, you have great trails right at you back door! Welcome to the site and soak it up!
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by HARDTRAILZ » Wed Sep 28, 2016 10:12 am

Welcome to the fray
I hate to advocate weird chemicals, alcohol, violence or insanity to anyone...but
they've always worked for me.
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by Anthony Hernandez » Wed Sep 28, 2016 10:24 am

Welcome.
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by DappleRhino » Wed Sep 28, 2016 12:37 pm

Thanks... been searching the forums and not finding a thread on my issue with the rear window/gate... where would I start a thread to talk it out? General... lounge or other?


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by HARDTRAILZ » Wed Sep 28, 2016 12:42 pm

Honestly I dont know if there is another one of those around this forum anymore. Plus its not really offroad related so you would likely do better to post on GMTNation.com
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by DappleRhino » Wed Sep 28, 2016 12:54 pm

Hardtrailz thanks. I got that feeling after a while. IMO off-roaders tend to be more handy and willing to share knowledge. I was lurking at trailvoy and found a useful thread but the way they manage threads and posts etc was maddening. Any who, I'll check out GMTNation.com and see what I find there. I like what you guys do... I'm gonna hang around a bit for inspiration and day dream about 4WD Trailblazers and Envoys... I saw an MDB non-lift bumper that would fit my rig! But I don't think I could pose... thanks!


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by HARDTRAILZ » Wed Sep 28, 2016 1:01 pm

You may get some good info from here, but not likely first-hand XUV owners like may be lurking around GMT.

GMT is slow for some reason right now but we are working on it.

That bumper is sweet and be good if you need a bit of protection
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by DappleRhino » Wed Sep 28, 2016 3:48 pm

NC_IslandRunner wrote:We've had members with 2wd do most of the trails in GWNF without too much issue, rear locker is a must. Harrisonburg, you have great trails right at you back door! Welcome to the site and soak it up!


Hey NC_IslandRunner yeah we just moved down to VA from FL and I am LOVING being in the mountains. I would like to hit the trails and that's one reason I jumped on here. Not many XUVs here but certainly enough people here that like to go off-road and so it'll help me get our a bit. I'm not looking to rock crawl or attempt half the stuff some of ya'll are up to in a 2WD rig but as you say, there are some nice opportunities here. I'd live to take advantage of the ones I can.
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by DappleRhino » Thu Sep 29, 2016 12:12 pm

OK time for one of those weird FNG questions... Is there a way to search the forum by vehicle type? Mostly I type XUV into the search and scroll through the threads to find ORTBers with like vehicles, using that data to then refine searches in the maintenance section, build section, etc. I say this because when I go to the Build Thread and type in "XUV" in the search bar for that particular thread I get ZERO (0) results.
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by Anthony Hernandez » Fri Sep 30, 2016 10:12 pm

They are basically the same vehicle. One has lwb that about it man. What are you lookin for?
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by DappleRhino » Fri Sep 30, 2016 10:32 pm

Anthony Hernandez wrote:They are basically the same vehicle. One has lwb that about it man. What are you lookin for?


yeah I'm tracking that. Trailblazer/Envoy same, LWB and SWB got it. I saw there's a chart that tracks builds and a thread subdivided by types of builds... I was just asking about the search feature. Using my rig as an example I type in XUV and even with filters I can't find just users with XUVs. Or, I'm curious about G80, or GT4, whatever there's some work in finding users with that.

No search algorithm can be perfect and that chart is AMAZING! But what I was asking specifically was I have an XUV that has a midgate and dual rear gate. I'm curious to see if any other XUV owners here have problems with theirs or use there rear area (pun not intended) for whatever... I can't go on the user list or the build lists and search XUV and find the XUV owners. I know there are 4WD XUV's and they have the same awkward gates and I'm curious how it effects them.

I do feel however it's a moot point. After all I have a 2WD rig that doesn't even have a locker so I'm limited in that area because this site is dedicated to 4WD rigs. I know I can still get out and off road but not without backup and I'm smart enough to stay in my lane.

I'm torn because I like this site. I like the idea, the camaraderie, and I'm really impressed at the organization/layout but it doesn't make sense to me to lift or modify a 2WD vehicle.


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by navigator » Tue Oct 04, 2016 10:07 am

You are limited as a 2wd but you could install a locker in yours and possibly add a front bumper/hitch with a winch. Going with a buddy is always best when possible.
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by DappleRhino » Tue Oct 04, 2016 10:54 am

Yes. This one of the things that intrigues me. I was hoping to have the G80 but when I submitted my VIN to HawkeyeC25 it came back no G80 but I have the 3.73... my main concern right now is restoring functionality to the rear gate which I have been planning that. I'll do a write up with some pics as I don't see anything for that specific issue here. I still need to cross reference with GMTNation. Thanks Navigator


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by TBYODA » Wed Oct 05, 2016 7:52 pm

Since you have XUV which is basically a variation of a EXT your should have a 8.6" rear diff so throw in a lunch box locker in. 3.73 aren't bad. Throw on marks 3" lift, spacers and some 32" and call it good. Might have fab up some of your own armor but take some detailed pictures and get with Mr Barton to see his kits fit. Your got 4 members not far from you that I can think of off the top my head that could help.
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by TBYODA » Wed Oct 05, 2016 8:00 pm

Heck since your 2wd you can get any outside the strut lift and put it on.
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by Anthony Hernandez » Thu Oct 06, 2016 12:23 pm

I would be willing to help out
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by KingBird » Thu Oct 06, 2016 4:47 pm

I guess I'll be the crazy guy here.

If you want 4wd, you could add it. You'd need to find a junked 4wd TB in a yard to jerk the parts and wiring harness off of. It really isn't that hard, I think a total of 6 wires go through the firewall. Time consuming, yes, but certainly not too hard to do. Just a thought.
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by DappleRhino » Thu Oct 06, 2016 7:14 pm

KingBird wrote:I guess I'll be the crazy guy here.

If you want 4wd, you could add it. You'd need to find a junked 4wd TB in a yard to jerk the parts and wiring harness off of. It really isn't that hard, I think a total of 6 wires go through the firewall. Time consuming, yes, but certainly not too hard to do. Just a thought.


Yeah I'm not that mechanical but I don't think it'd be that easy. One thing aside from the mechanical bits that worries me is the CPU. Wouldn't the computer know that the VIN isn't 4WD and throw errors codes?


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by Anthony Hernandez » Thu Oct 06, 2016 7:45 pm

King, didn't you swap yours out? It doesn't seem that bad, but like Robert said, - a lift and locker should be great
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