It's Time....

[Fishermedic]

Well let's try this again, I had this all typed up and lost it all, I had to sign back in.

So...
It's time for me to say HI, introduce myself and ask a few questions. First I'm Bryan and I live in Northern Ontario, yes another Canadian . I've been lurking for a few weeks now and I've learned a lot from this forum. I have never owned a diesel, don't have a diesel and until this site didn't know anything about them. Every time I login I learn something new and I've been on here almost every day, so I'm not feeling like a total idiot anymore. There was a lot of searching just to learn some of the lingo at the start!!

So on to why I'm here learning and reasearching. I need an SUV but not just any SUV, I need to be able to pack up the kids (in July there will be 6... I know Crazy Canadian ) hook up the boat (19 foot fishing boat) load up the camping gear and hit the road. A minivan or crossover won't cut it! I started out looking for a Suburban, then remembered the Excursion and started looking at that. Now my thought process goes something like this...
"If I can find a good diesel powered Ex (there's some of that lingo I've picked up) and take care of it, it'll last a lot longer that a similar gasser (more lingo ) would. If it lasts longer then I don't have to replace it as soon and I have more money to spend on fishing or on college educations

Now for the questions... A diesel Ex is very hard to find North Of The Border but I have two right now that I'm looking at, both are 05 Eddie Bauers and have about 110,000 miles (not kms) on them. They look like they are in good shape and the salesmen tell me they are 10/10 (what a surprise!). Here's the problem, the closest one is about 15 hours away so I can't just stop in and check them out. I'm trying to get as much info as I can before I commit to a road trip but once I go I want to check out everything I can. So here are the questions...

1. Who can I call to get an OASIS report for a truck that's already up here? All the dealers I talk to up here have no idea what I'm talking about. One of the trucks I'm looking at came up from FL in 08 with 74,000 miles on it. An OASIS would be nice to see. Yes I'll be looking at the CarFax as well and I already have the Canadian version CarProof reports.

2. I've done my reading on the EGR/oil cooler issues. I'm guessing that when I pop the hood on these trucks they will be nice and clean. How long does it take to start seeing residue on the degas bottle? Will a good long test drive show me anything? From what I've read if I pull the EGR vavle and it looks wet there's an EGR problem. If it looks good does that tell me that there is no problem?

3. I'm looking for an Edge Insight to bring with me. What should I be looking for? I know some of the obvious ones, ECT vs EOT, DTC's, FICM, (more lingo ) but what else can the Insight tell me? As a side note, does anyone know where I can find a good deal on a CTS shipped to Canada?

I'm sure I can find some of these answers by searching but I'm running out of time. I need to put all of this together in the next week or so because I don't have many options for making the trip to see the trucks. I'd really appreciate any and all input I can get.

Thanks for reading and thanks for helping!!

[Galaxie]

Welcome, awesome first post!!!! Yes, I would look for a clean ex and engine compartment. So, I would find your truck, take your edge and look at EOT, ECT, and trans temp!


Good luck, hope you get a 6.0. They are great!

[Saltfishr]

Welcome! I am a newcomer to the site also. have been reading for almost a month now and plan to get started with flushing the cooling system soon. I got my Insight on eBay for $380 ( i think) and the guy overnighted it. It was Snake River Performance. Great transaction and shipped it overnight at no extra charge. Good luck!
Roger

[Fishermedic]

Thanks for the welcome guys.

I was looking at Snake River last night, $399 for the CTS and $20 to Canada but I pay duty and tax when it gets here. I'd like to find a good deal though one of the vendors here. We'll see though.

Trans temp is a good one... I'm off to search for some numbers for these temps, they won't mean anything if I don't know what range they should be in.

Thanks for the tips.