How often do you have an evap leak, vs say.... need to do an oil change?

I think the GMT800 chassis is very easy to service. Hardly anything needs a special tool and there is tons of space. Some things are tightly packaged, but every vehicle is a system of compromises in every aspect

If you think the GMT800 is bad, come hang out for a night and help me on my C5 lmao

 

I think I have fixed all evap leaks (at least fixed enough to where the PCM won't detect any more leaks or throw codes). I ended up just running some rubber vacuum hose of my own and routed it the same way instead of trying to pull the old evap hard plastic hose out and put a new one in.

I do like a lot of stuff about the GMT-800 and the way its designed. The hardest part for me working on it is I can't reach over into the engine bay. I need some kind of better step stool. I find my 2017 Camaro actually way easier to work on and the main reason being I can reach into the engine bay since its lower to the ground. I tried to get one of those cheapo standing up, top side creeper and it was pretty useless.

 

Reach is important and it was a driving factor in my bumper design to make it a comfy ledge to stand on, which is why it's not "super tucked" like some of the new gen prerunners; I wanted space for my big ol 'Merican Red Wings

However, you can lie on your back and reach over the fender of the C5; still doesn't make it easy to work on haha

 

Metal lines like you're talking about are like that on every car made. I had a SUV in the other day that needed a heater line for the rear heat, entire body had to come off the frame to change it.

Bypassing it the way you did is the way to go.


As for not being able to lean over the fenders... reach over the bed side into the bed.... that, believe it or not, was the thing that pissed me off so bad that made me start lowering this current truck. I was considering lowering it but I went to reach in the bed one day and got so pissed off that I stopped thinking and started cutting. And I keep lowering it a little more and a little more. I like the looks but I love the fact I can now reach in my bed, and check my oil, without a ladder

 

So I hope I am not annoying anyone, but I still have a little motivation left in me to try to fix this thing. So another couple weeks and the oil pan gasket I would say is sealed, I don't see any spots around the oil pan seam or the bolts except at the very end at the bellhousing. The same lines still have there oil on them too. I am also getting trans fluid (I can tell its red by wiping some of it on a paper towel) looks like coming from the smaller bellhousing inspection cover hole.








At this point how hard would it be to just pull the motor and do rear main, front seal, and anything else I can think of? I haven't really pulled too many motors, but honestly this one in the Escalade doesn't seem too bad? I was thinking since I have a pair of junkyard 706 heads laying on my bench, I could grab a cam and whatever else and pull the heads (which dosen't seem to bad with the motor in the truck), then once I've pulled the heads I should have very easy access to the bellhousing to transmission bolts? It seems like from there it would be real easy to pull the motor? I would think the hardest thing is navigating around the stupid AC lines and trying to remembre how harnneses are routed and getting around all these 50 million cooler lines everywhere on these Escalades, must be sooo much easier for basic 2wd trucks since they don't have all these extra cooler lines and brake crap and extra hoses and rear and front AC and heater core lines in the way?

Also if I do a cam and the heads, what else could I do if I pull the motor to prep for possible supercharger or turbo?

 

We aren't annoyed by you. Just annoyed for you

 

Haha thanks

The biggest pita is if the lines are leaking and I do try to replace them, its going to make a huge mess. I invested in some of those bent piece of metal things with a wing nut and a rubber nipple thing that you are supposed to be able to put in lines and seal them up when you take them off. The rubber cracked and they all broke haha

I think maybe I should pull the intake manifold again and look for leaks on top, maybe by this time the dye will show up on top and I can find it if there is one. Also maybe I need to invest in a higher quality dye set? I just have the cheap parts store set.

 

One small minor victory to report. I broke down and ordered a brand new (not reman) GM genuine power steering pump, I have finally learned my lesson with cheap aftermarket and reman parts, I think.

Anyway after multiple quarts of fluid spilled everywhere again all over the motor, 3.5 hours that should have been 30 min, using the wrong tools for things because of stubbornness and laziness and not stopping, getting up and getting the right tool, and dealing with those stupid hose line clamps and trying to compress them and slide them over the ends of the lines, I got the new pump on.

I didn't have the vacuum tool anymore so I just did the turn the steering wheel left, fill cold, turn lock to lock a bunch of time (40+), keep fluid filled at the cold mark. I don't think I saw any bubbles, but the really good news is no sounding like I have a fake supercharger, and even more good news, although it might be placebo, I think I have better braking and defiantly better, smoother, easier steering. No more of that click, click jumpy feedback when slowly steering the wheel.

Bad news is I think the steering gearbox is leaking too, it looks like fluid is coming from the shaft seal or the pitman arm seal (which I have heard is the only place it could leak power steering fluid?). Good news is everyone at LKQ instantly pulls any 6.0 out of any escalade the second it gets put on the lot, so easy access for me to go get a steering box, hopefully a good one.

 

Good to hear the good news, sorry to see it's still leaking. Glad you're sticking with it.

I'm with arthur, not annoyed by any means. I can't speak for anyone else but I'm glad to see you're sticking with it and keep going. Too many times we see people ask a bunch of questions and when we recommend doing something that requires work or effort, the OP disappears and we know nothing of what happened or how it's going.

 

I'm already in too deep now haha. I wish the truck was in better shape because I feel like I'm just sinking money into nothing. The body is in pretty bad shape (probably average for its age and what it is (an old Escalade)), it is also extremely rusty, and its been "mudded" which once that happens to a vehicle, in my standards, its completely ruined there's just nothing you can do to clean that mud and clay and dirt off especially when its been baked on from the exhaust heat.

For the steering box leak and cooler lines, I will probably try LKQ junkyard, as much as I despise going to that nasty place, the good news is if there is a Escalade LQ9 out there, the engine is 100% guaranteed to be gone haha. This leaves me easy access to grab the steering box and cooler lines (although I bet they will have been cut by lazy people who ruin good parts at the junkyard) this will minimize the amount of time I have to be in that miserable place.