Johnhav430

Agreed...why can't GM do something about the cable that hangs on the rear left, just do something so it's not visibly dangling? If I were in this segment I'd like to try the Ford product, just seems more modern. The GM product has traces back to the early 90's even on a 2018.

I wonder if the rear suspension is like FWD/RWD, many drivers couldn't tell someone else if their vehicles have struts, shocks, FWD, RWD....

geko29

GM has done a good job of hiding the negatives of the rear axle in the Tahoe and its ilk. I've rented a Tahoe/Yukon/Suburban many times over the past few years (probably close to 2 months total), and already know that it has a live rear axle. But in typical driving, it doesn't make itself that apparent. Maybe occasionally on a rough road. If I wasn't an enthusiast, there is no way I would know there was a solid axle back there.

4TehNguyen

iTrader: (1)

another main complaint about the GM SUVs is the cargo height is noticeably taller than other vehicles making it harder to lift stuff into and reducing the overall volume. This is because of the SRA taking up more space

Johnhav430

Another thing to consider is if there are options such as cooling and brakes, take them on an American SUV, just to get things up to snuff, is my suggestion. Otherwise the standard brakes are often small given the size of the vehicle (nothing like 22" rims and 12" rotors lol)

mmarshall

It may be outdated thinking today to at least some extent, but solid live axles were also traditionally more durable and suited to vehicles carrying heavy loads and/or that have a lot of torque applied to them. That's why they stuck around so long in trucks and in the Ford Mustang (which, except for Cobra models, kept a standard live axle until just a couple of years ago). Ford knew that Mustangs, particularly with the V8s, get a lot of burnouts from young aggressive drivers, and having a durable live axle probably saved the company a lot of warranty-repairs.

SW17LS

Oh the Minivan is definitely the most practical, I just don't enjoy owning one.

Te MDX is a great vehicle but too small.

So the Suburban has a TON of room. Seriously, nobody would ever need more room. With the third row up there is still TONS of room, moreso than in the Expedition Max (expedition has more passenger room though). Issue is the Tahoe doesn't have enough room behind the third row, neither does the Expedition, and the Suburban and Expedition Max are just too huge to expect my wife to drive around all the time.

Having driven both the current Tahoe/Suburban and now the Expedition, I would choose the Expedition every time.

rominl

iTrader: (4)

i also agree minivan is very practical but we also refuse to own one (the ones in US market). been driving SUV ever since we had kids and never any issues

tex2670

I think the Chevy comparison is more stark because the size of a Traverse is much closer to the size of a Tahoe than the Explorer/Expedition comparison.

Johnhav430

I'd be curious to know if margins are huge on top level suvs? I walked past this decked out Escalade on the way to the gym today, and being interested in GM, I remarked how tiny and rather antiquated the brakes are. Contrast that to the Kia Stinger, or a european top level SUV.

Sure, part is marketing, the Stinger audience wants performance, but the price tag is reasonable. And yes, putting high performance brakes on an Escalade could go totally unnoticed by the buyer. Just thinking that since it's top of the line and very expensive, it deserves brakes to match...(to illustrate, for some GM SUVs, you can buy brand new, OE rear calipers for $50 to $55--not knock-offs, the original GM caliper)

Toys4RJill

Absolutely. All of the body on frame trucks and SUVs are big money makers.

mmarshall

........and note that virtually all of ones sold in North America are built in North America, with U.S or Canadian labor. That blows the argument that automakers cannot afford to keep jobs here, or have to ship production overseas.

Toys4RJill

Toyota 4Runner, GX, Land Cruiser, LX are all built in Japan . RAM, Chevrolet Silverado, GMC Sierra, and Tacoma are built in Mexico. Nissan Armada and Infiniti QX are built in Japan

I don't believe any trucks or body on frame SUVs are made in Canada.

mmarshall

True, but that does not discount what I posted...that American/Canadian-built vehicles can and do make money. One does not have to ship jobs to Asia or Mexico for production. That is why Trump got disgusted with the whole practice and brought out the tariffs.

Toys4RJill

mmarshall

OK, to clarify, while technically two different nations, I consider the U.S. and Canada to actually be somewhat united economically, as we share an open border, commerce, mutual defense needs, and a number of other issues. I don't want to take this thread too far off-topic politically, but that's why I don't think that either Trump or Trudeau should be talking about tariffs against each other. Save the tariffs for where they are actually needed.....overseas.

Since the thread-topic is the cost of full-sized SUVs, I think one should note that there is an enormous difference in the pricing of many vehicles in this category. Top-end vehicles (and trim versions) can sometimes run well into six figures. A few, like the Range Rover, actually start in that category. And, correct me if I misunderstood you, but I think that you and I, in the past, both agreed that the new Navigator, with its massive improvements over the previous version, is perhaps worth 90-100K.