Up next in 10
My 2007 Chevy Tahoe LTZ 1-Year Long-Term Review (2007 - 2014)
78K views
Feb 19, 2024
I have owned this 2007 Chevy Tahoe LTZ for almost a year, and I thought it was time to let you know my thoughts on this full-size SUV after spending considerably more time with it. I'll be going over modifications, the upsides, downsides, and driving dynamics of my daily driver. Here is my build list for the products RealTruck gifted me! - Armordillo Mesh Grille (Paid Link): https://imp.i128439.net/0JgWXR - Anzo Switchback Projector Headlights (Paid Link): https://imp.i128439.net/qnEryy - AVS In-Channel Ventvisor Window Deflectors (Paid Link): https://imp.i128439.net/OR6Qvn - Rhino Rack Roof Mount Cargo Basket (Paid Link): https://imp.i128439.net/jWNkan - Husky Weatherbeater Floor Liners (Front Two Rows) (Paid Link): https://imp.i128439.net/GjrrA9 - Husky Weatherbeater Cargo Liners (Third Row & Cargo Area) (Paid Link): https://imp.i128439.net/XxzzQb
View Video Transcript
0:00
If you remember, this is my 2007 Chevy Tahoe LTZ. I have had this for about a
0:06
year now and I have a lot of thoughts about it. So I'm gonna be going through
0:10
what I do like, what I don't like, and everything that you need to know about this SUV if you were looking to buy it. Now as a quick reminder, my Tahoe has the
0:18
5.3 liter v8 engine and I have a little bit over 156,000 miles on it now. Now
0:25
this engine makes about 320 horsepower and 340 pound-foot of torque and it is
0:30
made it to a four-speed automatic transmission. Now these are based on a
0:33
rear-wheel drive platform. Mine does have an automatic four-wheel drive system that
0:37
can actually kick on on its own whenever it feels like it needs it. But you can also manually turn it on to four-wheel drive as well. Now the interior of this
0:44
Tahoe is a light gray color. This is a three-row model and then the exterior is
0:48
a dark blue metallic. Now before we get into what I do and don't like about this
0:52
Tahoe, let's talk about the modifications that I have done on it. I'm of course going to be doing full reviews for these modifications for a one-year review on
0:59
each of them as well. Make sure to check out the comments as I build them out. Now each of the five modifications we're gonna be talking about that I have done
1:05
to this Tahoe in the last year were gifted to me by Realtruck, so make sure
1:09
to check out the links down in the comments if you are wanting to get one of these modifications for yourself. So first up is this Rhino-Rack X-Tray. This
1:17
is the large version obviously because this is a large SUV. I will say of all
1:22
the modifications I've added I think this might be one of the first ones I'm gonna swap out at some point. It is a great product but it's just not quite
1:29
what I'm looking for right now. Next up are these AVS in-channel rain guards. I
1:34
also did this Armadale blackout grille that I have really liked so far. It was a
1:38
pain to install but ever since installing I have really liked it. Then
1:42
the last exterior modification are these Anzo switchback headlights. They are expensive but they are really nice. And then the final thing I've added to the
1:50
Tahoe since buying it is this Husky floor mat here. As you can see it is
1:54
picking up a ton of grime and dirt and as you can see it's also hiding my
1:59
terrible terrible carpeting as well. Of which you will also find it in the
2:03
second row as well and the cargo area too. I should probably also mention I did
2:08
get this MagSafe car mount as well however that was not sent out to me by
2:12
Realtruck and was gifted to me by my wife. Alright so let's go ahead and get
2:16
into what I do and I do not like about this Tahoe. And first things up are what
2:21
I do like. And I think the thing I like the most about is honestly the way it
2:25
looks. I am a huge fan of the way these Tahoe's look. It was a huge jump forward
2:29
when it came out in 2007. The design was heavily heavily modernized over the last
2:34
generation and I really really like this dark metallic blue color. I think it
2:40
makes it look like it's a lot newer than it is. Especially since I think this
2:43
generation went through the 2014 model year. And let's be completely honest not
2:47
much changed in the next gen. Another feature that I didn't realize I was gonna use so much has to be this automatic tailgate. Again for 2007 this
2:55
feature right here was pretty revolutionary and not a ton of vehicles especially in the kind of more standard vehicles like this one had it at the
3:02
time. Next up is actually something that I talked about a little bit earlier and
3:05
that is actually the automatic four-wheel drive system. So you can actually switch this dial over right here to automatic four-wheel high
3:12
four-wheel low, and then two-wheel drive. I keep it on automatic quite a bit just
3:16
because it actually does a really good job when I'm driving at shifting between
3:20
the four-wheel drive and staying in two-wheel drive. So I'm super efficient I don't get the hopping or anything like that unless I actually need that
3:26
traction. Next up is the sunroof. I've been really impressed with it. I haven't
3:30
had all that many vehicles out there with a sunroof but being able to open and close it easily has been really nice. And the functionality of being able to pull
3:37
it all the way back as well as just tilt it up whenever you want is a pretty cool feature and this is something I've actually used a lot. Another thing I've
3:43
been finding myself using a little bit more than I expected is the heated seats. I have found them to work really well. I don't think the heating element actually
3:49
works in the driver's seat however the back does and it does get hot. That said
3:53
I do wish it had a heated steering wheel which it doesn't have but that's easy to get over. Something else I have been impressed with with the front end is
3:59
just how much room the driver has. I have plenty of legroom, it's super comfortable
4:05
to sit in and I've had no problems there. Same goes for actually the second row. I
4:09
have plenty of headroom, I have plenty of shoulder width and that kind of stuff
4:12
There's plenty of room in the second row but we'll get into the third row in a
4:16
second. And then the final thing I really like about this Tahoe is honestly the way it drives both in the powertrain, the power delivery, but also the suspension
4:24
and how it goes around corners is quite impressive but I'm gonna go into that a little bit later. Alright so now let's go ahead and get into the things that I
4:30
don't like and these couple things have actually made me consider selling this
4:34
Tahoe to get another vehicle. Now of course there are some minor issues that
4:37
just kind of come with wear and tear. Some paint dings and the door up front creaks when it opens. However I want to talk a little bit more about fundamental
4:45
issues that will affect you and the first one really comes down to gas mileage. This vehicle gets around 14 miles to the gallon combined and when
4:53
it's compared to something like our 2013 Ford Explorer that we also have that
4:57
actually is pretty poor and so we find us driving the Explorer quite a bit more
5:01
kind of because of that reason. But the reason I'm sitting in the back here is
5:05
actually because of this rear end I think is the biggest weak point of the
5:09
Chevy Tahoe of this generation. Now I've talked about this in a past video
5:12
however after a year it just continues to be an issue. So this is actually a
5:17
three-row SUV and as you can see right here these are the third row they're
5:21
folded up instead of into the floor like you see nowadays. However the issue that
5:25
happens is it takes up a ton of the cargo room in here to fold them up
5:29
forward and then cargo room gets even worse when you want to use that third
5:33
row so when you fold them down there isn't really room for much of anything. And considering how large this SUV is that's kind of sad to me and especially
5:41
when you compare it to something like our Ford Explorer that I mentioned earlier it has considerably more cargo room that is much more usable because
5:49
the third row folds into the floor unlike folding up like these. Now I feel
5:52
like I could excuse the terrible cargo room if the third row occupants were
5:56
comfortable however that also just isn't the case. Unlike most third-row SUVs
6:02
there isn't any place for your legs to go down into instead they're just
6:05
sitting on the flat load floor of the cargo area. So someone like me who is 6'1
6:10
has their knees basically up into their face there isn't much legroom to the
6:14
seats in front of us. So ultimately even though this is a massive three-row SUV
6:19
the third row is very comparable to something much much smaller that also
6:24
probably has better gas mileage. So what are my plans moving forward with this
6:28
Chevy Tahoe? My plans right now are to continue fixing it up. I want to use this
6:32
as a platform to review products and show you guys all the awesome things
6:36
that you can be getting for your vehicles. So it's things like I need a new front bumper because I actually have a hole in the front and then I also want
6:43
to do things like fixing up the paintwork, fixing dents, and just kind of
6:47
cleaning this vehicle up in general. But I wouldn't be doing those things if I
6:51
was planning on selling this Tahoe. So that brings me to my next question of is
6:55
this a vehicle that I'm going to hang on to even though it has issues like I
6:59
talked about before? And the answer is yes. For the price of under $10,000 and
7:04
prices are continuing to go down as our market adjusts it really brings a really
7:08
good value to it. There's a lot of really cool features that only newer and more
7:12
expensive SUVs have like that automatic tailgate, heated seats, and even that
7:16
automatic four-wheel drive system. And it also drives really nicely which we're
7:21
gonna go ahead and get into right now. Alright so let's go ahead and talk about
7:25
driving my 2007 Chevy Tahoe LTZ. I talked about how this is actually one of
7:30
my favorite aspects of this Tahoe and I think it's actually because it surprises
7:34
me so much at how good it drives. So I am used to pickup trucks but I also am used
7:39
to SUVs. I've driven some cars recently and I'm always really surprised when I
7:43
get into this Tahoe at how well it drives, how well it takes turns, and that
7:46
kind of stuff. I don't know why it is. This actually does have the passive suspension in the back. It originally did have the air ride suspension in the rear
7:53
but it was swapped out for the passive when I bought it from the dealership. So
7:58
the suspension itself in the rear isn't even meant for this vehicle. So taking turns as well as this thing does, it really doesn't... I'm just really surprised
8:06
by it. You also want to talk about the powertrain. This does have the 5.3 liter
8:10
engine in it. It does have a 320 horsepower. I've been really impressed at
8:14
the power delivery. I have no problem passing. I have no problem going up hills
8:18
It actually is plenty of power even though this is such a large SUV. Of
8:22
course all that does translate to a way worse gas mileage. 14 miles to the gallon
8:26
is not great. I do have a lot of other things I do want to do to this SUV. So I
8:32
actually have some new tires on the way right now. I'm gonna be doing a video
8:35
once I get them in. I'm not saying what they are because I actually ordered some
8:39
other tires and they are an indefinite back order. So I actually had to have
8:43
those canceled and order some new tires. I'm waiting till those get in to be able to talk a little bit more about that. I do have a lot of other stuff going on
8:50
with this SUV that I'm really excited about and I'm hoping to find some other good sponsors to help me out with continuing the build on this Tahoe. So
8:57
after a year of ownership of this vehicle I'm excited to say I'm gonna
9:00
continue owning it. I think it's a great SUV and I've really enjoyed it so far
9:05
And I think honestly at this point the only way I would sell it is if I could
9:08
get a major upgrade over this SUV. It's a great SUV. If you're looking at getting
9:13
one I really do think it is a fantastic value. As long as you're not planning on
9:17
having anyone in the third row for long periods of time and you're not too
9:21
terribly worried about the rear cargo area in comparison to some other vehicle size. So if you found this review helpful make sure to subscribe and like this
9:28
video. And if you want to watch the video of when I originally bought it I'm leaving a card up on the screen right now
#Autos & Vehicles
#Chevrolet
#Custom & Performance Vehicles
#Hummer
#Motor Vehicles (By Brand)
#Motor Vehicles (By Type)
#Trucks
# Vans & SUVs
#Vehicle Specs
# Reviews & Comparisons