So now I have an 06 LTZ, in Blue of course. Had to go to Tulsa, OK to get it, and paid too much, but what the heck. So now I am "restoring" it back to original, like I did the 05. Ordered a set of Detroit Axle brakes, rotors and wheel bearings. Car kept having electrical problems, so I got on You Tube and after watching all the experts, some backyard guy showed where a lot of grounds come together and sure enough, the bolt was loose. Fixed that but then the starter let go. While the mechanic was under the car, he told me I had a massive oil leak, which turned out to be the front main (3.9). The tranny was doing the typical shudder and nothing would help it. Maddening, because it shifted perfectly most of the time. Started trying to find a 4T65e and found out the supply chain is really broken. Took 6 weeks to get one and it finally came today. While the cradle was off, went ahead and pulled the oil pan to reseal it all. Did as much as possible so I would not have to duplicate labor. Motor mount was soaked in oil. Went ahead and put two new axles in, even though it only needed one. Had a freak problem with the brakes dragging, and it turned out I had to have rear calipers. Well I didn't buy this car to show or sell, so I spent money on it to keep it as my next driver. I really do like the car, and it's loaded. LTZs are rare, but no one seems to care. Found the last electric seat base in the country for $390. Found a seat back (mine was ripped) for $190. Seat itself has a small tear, so looking for one in gray. Overall the outside is nice, and will take it to the same guy that painted my first one for touch up stuff. This one is called Superior Blue. Car has 190K miles, but the motor runs great. Not burning oil, and seems sound. Put new iridium plugs in and a new throttle body. Some jerk had put an aftermarket on there, but the dealer could not program it. It was idling at 2000 rpm. So the money is spent,. and just a matter of getting it back on the road. One neat thing - I was on FB and found a beautiful set of rims and they had tires on them too, expensive ones - Sumitomo's @ $155 each. . Got them all for $225. So here is some eye candy.

Driver headlight replacing soon.

Car is Tulsa.

Parking lot

New TYC headlight. None better.

Almost the same from the rear as the 05.

Seat rip - fixed now.

She's real fine my 3.9.

New rims and tires. Wife is bringing them home in her Malibu. Great girl.

Gotta love working on FWD stuff. Took this to the car wash and cleaned it. Note new sway bar.

And NOW I finally have a tranny.
Got the top off. Here we go guys, one reman 4T65E with a 3 year warranty, unlimited miles for under $2000.

StreetSmartTransmissions.com

She's waiting......

 

Wow, you really like fixing these up. Good on you to keep one going anyway. I like the homemade engine support. When I did the oil pan gasket on the '06 MC we had recently, I just used a couple 2 x 4s screwed together. It worked good enough for me.

 

After going back to the dealer 3 times for a leaking tranny pan, turns out it was the filler tube all along. Anyway, all's well that end's well. Back on the road and running like a champ. You would never know this car has 192K miles. Still trying to sell the 05 for an insane price of $6K. I must be missing something. This is a steal. Fresh pics of both. Take care.

Quoted $3K on new paint. Already have new wheels and tires.

Now it is 100% original.

 

As used car prices are starting to slide downwards again, I wonder if you're running into the problem of people holding out in the hopes that they keep going back down to pre covid levels?

I'll say that I'm part of that group. Prices have come down on W cars in general enough that I've started seriously picking up a 4 door variant for a beater again. If they keep going down, we'll definitely pick one up in the near future.

 

The market is totally screwed. Only thing selling are trucks and SUVs. I have come down from $8500 and still nothing. But I watch the 06-07 forum on FB and they are still hot. Go figure. But most want an SS V-8. The problem is there are so many of these out there in just total crappy shape, that my price seems crazy. Now those of you on here know better. These cars can be money pits. But you know, this car will go another 75K miles or more with all I have done to it. Try and find any car for my price that will do that in comfort and performance. But most of these people have no clue what a real paint job costs. I was quoted over $10K my very reputable body shops that do a lot of insurance work. I was lucky and met a guy that Drag Races that owns a paint shop and got a great deal.

 

The market is totally screwed. Only thing selling are trucks and SUVs. I have come down from $8500 and still nothing. But I watch the 06-07 forum on FB and they are still hot. Go figure. But most want an SS V-8. The problem is there are so many of these out there in just total crappy shape, that my price seems crazy. Now those of you on here know better. These cars can be money pits. But you know, this car will go another 75K miles or more with all I have done to it. Try and find any car for my price that will do that in comfort and performance. But most of these people have no clue what a real paint job costs. I was quoted over $10K my very reputable body shops that do a lot of insurance work. I was lucky and met a guy that Drag Races that owns a paint shop and got a great deal.

 

I agree - its been a wild few years in both the new and used markets. Still not out of the woods with some OEMs from a chip perspective - I felt bad when car shopping lately that some of the brands had almost completely empty lots. I absolutely detest car salesman and dealers, but I hate to see anyone lose their job / struggle with income because they have literally nothing to sell.

I never would've guessed cars in general would've become such a niche item. I thought the OEMs were crazy for pivoting away from them to focus on trucks and suvs - but you're right - that's whats selling these days.

 

I used to make fun of them, calling them what most truckers do - Jelly Beans. But we were redoing our house several years ago and bought a 2000 Blazer 4WD. It has more than paid for itself. My wife had a Malibu, but being a nurse she needed more room, so we decided to dump it while I could still get money out of it, and I found a steal on a 2018 Equinox. She just loves it. Has a mini turbo, and she gets 33 on the Interstate. I was amazed. But it is FWD, so I found an AWD Acadia to replace the Blazer. I must admit it is pretty cool. But my daily is still the 06 LTZ.

 

The question is:
- Are trucks/SUVs selling more because manufacturers decided to focus less on cars OR is this truly what the masses really want?

It's like saying "We don't want to spread resources so thin to make cars, so if we just stop people will be forced into trucks/SUVs and make that the new norm".

 

I really do think that the public truly wants SUVs, at least for their main family hauler. Of course that's totally personal opinion based on the relatively tiny number of people that I know closely enough to understand their car buying process.

Theres two main reasons I've seen:

-Utility. They're more convenient than a car in almost every way for a family with 1 or more kids. More cargo space to carry stuff, more room for people, easier to load kids into, generally more individual space, etc. All of the benefits of a minivan, but without the uncool stigma just by putting normal doors on the back. I'll say thats the main reason we got one as our family was growing (previous car before we got into SUVs was a 08 Impala).

-Status. I think there's a large element of 'keeping up with the Joneses' in car buying for the average public. "Jimmy's mom just got a new Escalade, they must be so rich. We can't afford one, but we can finance a used Denali." and it just continues to snowball from there. There seems to be a perception tied to being middle class that involves owning the biggest house and SUV you can possibly afford the payments on. I do really think that many people believe a SUV is a higher status item than a car (even if mechanically some of them are very similar) stemming back to the late 90s.

The status thing is also my theory on trucks. Of the people I know that buy new trucks, I'd bet less than 10% really use them ever foe their intended purpose, much less on a regular basis like a contractor or someone would. America has an obsession with bigger and better, and almost nothing is bigger than a truck. The OEMs cater to those types also by adding all of the amenities of a luxury vehicle to further fuel the desire (which I think is partly responsible for both taking off in the late 90s / early 00s).


I do see your point as Chevy tends to have substantially more margin on up optioned SUVs and trucks. Its certainly in their best interest to push things that direction as much as they can. But I also dont blame them for not wanting to invest more in cars as their recent track record has been very poor. The Malibu seems to hold sales rather steady (although it could be argued thats only partially because of the other chevy lines being canned), and obviously the vettes have their own core following, but none of their other cars have done particularly well in recent history.