2005 Chevy Suburban

You don't go out and buy a new suburban for the great gas mileage. In fact the gas mileage is horrible. Mine gets a solid 17.5 and it is pretty consistent around town and on the freeways. We were fairly comfortable with the gas prices until the recent increase. I filled it up yesterday and at $2.17 a gallon I ended up paying a hair over $85 to fill up the forty gallon tank. We didn't but it for the gas mileage though we bought it for the comfort and seating.

I hadn't seen cloth interior in a suburban for some time but my wife insisted. Her sisters suburban has leather and she packs around four kids. She is constantly cleaning the vehicle and the seats look horrible. My wife refused to buy the leather. It wasn't too hard to locate one and it even came in a color we both appreciated, charcoal grey.

I decided that we needed the full bench seat up front. The bucket seats accomadate 8 persons while the split bench up front seats 9. We had a mini van which everyone wanted to pile in when we went places with family and friends. This influenced our decision to upgrade to a suburban from the van even though we only have 2 children. I don't recomend the bench though. After a couple of road trips no one will ride in the middle up front, it's just not comfortable enough.

The first thing I would like to say is that it handles exceptionaly well for a large vehicle. It corners well unlike the Expedition I drove. The expedition would roll with every turn and felt like it would roll easily. The braking system feels adequate but the emergency stops seem to go a little long, although I hear it is much improved over earlier models. The drive train transitions very smoothly and runs at very low rpm's. It is also suprisingly quiet although most of the time we have the radio on anyway. The sound system is average and sounds fairly well.

Road tripping is what this vehicle is good at and that is why we bought it. The cargo area behind the back seat is spacious and we have filled it to maximum capacity several times. We live in Salt Lake City, Utah and have already been to Seattle, Las Vegas, and Los Angelos. It is far more comfortable than a mini van on the long trips and gives you plenty of room to stretch with out taking off your seat belt. Our children also appreciate it especially because they sit higher and can see more from their seats. If you road trip frequently this is the vehicle for you.

I do recomend the DVD player. We wanted this option but ours did not come with it and we did not want to wait for a special order. We use the one that you strap to the back of the seat which works fine once you are driving and have started a movie. When you are getting in and out it always seems to be in the way. Ours has several battle scars from being knocked out of position or falling out the door when it opens.

I know that GM offers several different motors but I couldn't tell you what we have under the hood. It runs effortlessly though and we stay consistent on the oil changes.

We love ours and recommend it to others for the right reasons. This vehicle is a road trip machine made to hall as many as nine passengers. I would not recommend it to the single person who always travels alone or as a commuter to and from work. It is just not economically smart. But as a second vehicle or just the vehicle for mom to drive the kids as well as all the neighbors kids around this vehicle fits the bill.