2000+ miles on 6 cylinders | 1994 Suburban

[jsnowbordr47]

I just got back from a trip that took me from Chicago, IL to Riverside, CA and finally up to Lodi, CA. I drove my 1994 Suburban with 2 dead cylinders the whole way.

It's just an example of how durable the Chevy 5.7 engine is. I was told by 2 different shops NOT to drive the truck cross country, and especially to avoid the Needle, CA area (temperatures 120+). However, after working the numbers, it still came out that it would be cheaper to drive, and I always have faith in my Chevy trucks whether it be my 94 or 95 burb.

I'm happy to say that the truck performed admirably. The acceleration was actually really good in my opinion for a Suburban with 2 dead cylinders. Of course whenever the truck idled at a stop it felt like there was an earthquake, and I'm sure people were laughing, but that's not important. The truck made it all the way back home and we plan to keep it until it finally dies.

There were only 2 things that went wrong during the entire trip. During the last leg we drove through the Needles, CA are and we decided to charge the A/C (it had a leak) after a few hours of 120+ degree weather, the high side hose blew up. So we had to drive with the windows down. Then the ignition coil stopped making spark for about an hour. However, after an hour the truck started right up again. (not quite sure what happened with that)

Overall, I'm happy with the way this truck has aged and how durable it is. It proves that sometimes you just gotta go with your gut feeling rather than with that of a professional