2015-2020 Tahoe & Suburban Platforms

[y5e06]

In my "overlanding" adventures I've gone through a tough Z71 OBS Tahoe which I had for many many years (its still sitting derelict in the corner of the driveway). My current DD and escape vehicle is a basic NBS Yukon that has near no mods. I have a 6.0 NBS escalade I had plans for, including a 2spd transfercase swap etc but I sorta lost interest.

However, I'm just looking to get something new(er) and shiny.

How are the 2015-2020 platforms for the purposes experienced on these forums?
I'm not talking a crazy build, just something like mild leveling & boost, 33's, mild armor, and lots of Arizona pinstripes. I want to make it decent and just abuse it. But, def something I can road trip to make it to the back country, forest roads, Big Bend, and who knows where else. Can these be as good as the revered NBS trucks? Yes, I'm sticking to 1/2 tons.

To me, they'd seem to be not much different than the NBS if you ignore the DOD/AFM and low hanging fascia. The 6L80 can be a plus or minus, depending on how you look at it but its not needed for this discussion. I can find an occasional clean 2spd case 4x4 Sub or Tahoe with ~100K miles at or under $20K. A tad more if I want a Z71.

example 2015-2020 stock pics shown.
and for fun, my NBS's and OBS

 

[Todd n Natalie]

In my "overlanding" adventures I've gone through a tough Z71 OBS Tahoe which I had for many many years (its still sitting derelict in the corner of the driveway). My current DD and escape vehicle is a basic NBS Yukon that has near no mods. I have a 6.0 NBS escalade I had plans for, including a 2spd transfercase swap etc but I sorta lost interest.

However, I'm just looking to get something new(er) and shiny.

How are the 2015-2020 platforms for the purposes experienced on these forums?
I'm not talking a crazy build, just something like mild leveling & boost, 33's, mild armor, and lots of Arizona pinstripes. I want to make it decent and just abuse it. But, def something I can road trip to make it to the back country, forest roads, Big Bend, and who knows where else. Can these be as good as the revered NBS trucks? Yes, I'm sticking to 1/2 tons.

To me, they'd seem to be not much different than the NBS if you ignore the DOD/AFM and low hanging fascia. The 6L80 can be a plus or minus, depending on how you look at it but its not needed for this discussion. I can find an occasional clean 2spd case 4x4 Sub or Tahoe with ~100K miles at or under $20K. A tad more if I want a Z71.

example 2015-2020 stock pics shown.
and for fun, my NBS's and OBS

Have you read through @Imnosaint build thread?

ImNoSaint's Tahoe Build

I've moved on to my next and last project, a 2015 Chevy Tahoe. This is no ordinary Chevy Tahoe; it’s a commercial edition built by GM’s service vehicle arm as a four-wheel drive police pursuit vehicle. It’s a traditional body-on-frame platform driven by a beefed-up 5.3 EcoTec3 V8 delivering...

forum.expeditionportal.com

 

[Klutch7]

Personally, I like the GMT900 (2007-2014) trucks better. They had some DOD/AFM issues, but if that is mechanically deleted, they are typically pretty sound. I'd rather have the tried and true LS platform versus the LT platform in the 15-20 trucks with direct injection. the GMT900s show up at auctions pretty regularly with 250-400k miles on them. I think they're a more simple platform for this kind of use. I have a 2009 with 228k miles which has been flawless apart from routine service and an axle seal. I had a 2020 and while the ecotech motors are nice on the highway, I prefer the '09 in almost every way.

I'm always browsing Chicago Motors and Asia Motors websites - two groups that sell the used commercial variants frequently. I'm sure there are others out there in different regions.