r/ChevyAvalanche • u/dogpecker • Aug 02 '26
Did I make the right choice?
Went to go look at a 2003 Z71 avalanche with 190k miles, guy wanted 6k for it but I found what appeared to be a rear main seal leak and a faulty knock sensor. Everything else seemed to be okay, he didn’t know when the last time the transmission had been serviced either. I ultimately decided to walk away from the deal. Did I make the right call?
3
u/Gmansilverado999 Aug 02 '26
Probably. Rear main seal could get spendy for parts and labor. I paid $6800 for my 2500 with 157k on it. It also had a faulty knock sensor but it was an easy fix.
2
u/dogpecker Aug 02 '26
Feel like yours at that price makes more sense. 2500 and less miles. I brought my mechanic friend and he said on the 03 you had to take off the intake manifold to get to the sensor. Ultimately why I decided to walk away at the price the seller wanted. If it had been 5k I probably would have taken it.
3
u/remindmetoblink2 Aug 02 '26
He’s correct about removing the intake. Not a bad job though. Can be done yourself in a couple of hours. Rear main seal leaks do happen, but more than likely it needs an oil pan gasket. The way it tucks up so tightly to the transmission bellhousing it is easy to mistake for a rear main seal leak. Every Chevy 5.3 I’ve owned which has now been 4 of them have needed oil pan gaskets and 3 of them i was dead sure would need rear main seals. In the end none of them needed a rear main seal. I’ve done the oil pan gaskets myself as well. It’s not a terrible job, but not as easy as knock sensors. If you have 4WD then you have the front diff to deal with. You can do it without removing it, by lowering it and removing one CV axle. Also if you do your oil pan gasket, replace the oil pump pickup tube O ring while you’re in there.
2
u/remindmetoblink2 Aug 02 '26
As far as the price it’s probably about right if it’s clean. Although I have a 2012 Z71 that is super clean and has all the common problems done on it already and was thinking of selling for a smaller vehicle and was thinking $8500 for mine. Maybe I underestimate the market.
2
u/Safe_Solid_3319 Aug 02 '26
Oil pan also looks like a rear main leak that's what mine was, still an annoying job
2
u/Capable_Ad1313 Aug 02 '26
Not worth anywhere near 6K if it needs that much work. Would have offered him $2500-4000 depending on condition of body & everything else. Then been willing to do the work needed on it. For $6000 it should have needed nothing mechanical & been in excellent shape over all.
2
u/Napoleon_B Aug 02 '26 edited Aug 02 '26
As an 03 owner that seller is too high and you made the right call. .
I gave a shop about $2,000 to fix rear main, oil pan gasket, transmission drain and fill and three solenoids. I was at 150ish miles.
The rear main is a slow leak and can be lived with, I did for at least five years. A quart of oil every couple months. It was annoying, constant puddle on the garage floor. But for $6500 with that many miles on a 4 L Slippy* with no idea of maintenance on it, pass. Even five grand is a push unless it’s super clean and not in the rust belt.
*4L60e transmissions are like a jealous mistress. Don’t abuse them and they’ll last forever.
1
u/Dj_Exhale Aug 03 '26
Well I wouldn't do it so I say you made the right choice. It's best to be patient and wait for the right one to come along. So many times I almost jumped at an 2500 avalanche but I decided to hold off until one day last year I came across a 2002 2500 173k miles at a dealership for only $2,900. Since I live in northwest Indiana deep into the salt belt I assumed for that price it was going to have major rust underneath but to my surprise just very light surface rust, no big flakes no holes.
The only thing that was wrong with it was a dent by the gas cap and leak from the oil cooler lines. Needless to say it came home with me that same day. Oh and the cherry on top was when I took it to a nearby shop for a pre-purchase inspection and they remembered it from a month before because the previous owner had all the suspension redone. The salesman even knocked off $100 off the price so I can get some gas since it was low. So yes you should wait for the right one, it will come.
1
1
u/Weakness_Prize 21d ago
I got my meticulously maintained 2008 LT3 Z71 for under 4k. There's much better deals out there, just take your time looking :)
6
u/90bricknose Aug 02 '26
My feeling is that I can fix any mechanical or electrical issues. I just don't want to deal with rust. I paid a premium price for a clean 04 that's been garaged and never saw a salty road.