Expedition vs Tahoe

[Azjeff]

Greetings. I'm in the position of needing more room for hauling people and gear than my 02 Xterra has. Looks like 05-06 is the recommended sweet spot for reasonably priced Expeditions and Tahoes, sorted out right before the next gen. Looking for comparisons/abilities between the 2. I need to haul various combinations of up to 5 adults, 2 car seats, 2 dogs. Sometimes 2 people + 2 dogs and gear for overnighting.

We do a fair amount of back-roading and some mild trails. I've been well served in the past with mild lift , good shocks and good AT tires.

The 3 choices I see are Expedition, Tahoe, Sequoia. Not willing to pay the Toyota tax.

I'm familiar with GM stuff so if you guys would do a pro/con against the Tahoe that's what I'm looking for. Expy koolaid is expected! I'm curious about the IRS off road, will the Expedition go where a Tahoe can go?

thanks
Jeff

 

[Gruz7]

Personally think this forum will be pretty bias on this thread but my obvious vote is the Expedition... I feel like the Tahoe may be a bit more capable offroad and might be a bit more reliable as far as having to not replace as many parts. Expedition looks better and hold passengers better.. This is all IMO


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[Azjeff]

Hi. Thanks for the honest reply. Are your thoughts about ability and reliability about the IRS or other things? Of course replies will be biased, it's a fan boy site, to be expected! (no disrespect)

Are you going to lift your 06?

 

[Gruz7]

Hi. Thanks for the honest reply. Are your thoughts about ability and reliability about the IRS or other things? Of course replies will be biased, it's a fan boy site, to be expected! (no disrespect)



Are you going to lift your 06?

Yes lol... Almost exactly why the Tahoe might be a bit better offroad and more capable (both of them stock)... Other thing the 5.4 is powerful and decent it just isn't as good as an ls motor like the Tahoes have.

To answer your question, yes I am lifting my 06 I have the new shocks and strut spacers in my garage just waiting to be put on lol... IMO the lift makes the truck 50x better and easily a stronger choice over the Tahoe for I'm doing with it.
Also to my understanding the Tahoes rear axle causes the third row to not be able to fold flat unlike the expy with The IRS and fold flat third seats.

 

[Azjeff]

Could I ask what you do that makes a lifted Ex a better choice for you than a Tahoe? The fold flat 3rd seat is nice, the GM either you flip it forward or take it out.

I know 2 people who took Expeditions to 200k + miles with no problems but they were onroad only. Hmm..

 

[Gruz7]

Could I ask what you do that makes a lifted Ex a better choice for you than a Tahoe? The fold flat 3rd seat is nice, the GM either you flip it forward or take it out.



I know 2 people who took Expeditions to 200k + miles with no problems but they were onroad only. Hmm..

Eh idk I have experienced prolly the bulk of the expedition problems myself but the motor just seems to be a bit more durable in the Tahoes for longer life (example: my mom has had a Yukon Denali with the 6.0 for 15 years and well over 200k miles)... And to answer your question with the stock ride height on the Expy it's hard to get anywhere on uneven terrain without removing the front bumper or bottoming out so the 3-4 inch lift gives me the extra room I need to hang with the jeeps in the trails and go over some light rocks and bumps without any damage

 

[xfiles67]

Not sure if the Tahoe you'd be looking at has the locker in the rear but that's a nice feature to have.

 

[Gruz7]

Not sure if the Tahoe you'd be looking at has the locker in the rear but that's a nice feature to have.

That's another thing to think about as well

 

[46L281GT]

I was in the same boat as you except I was looking at both the Tahoe and suburban as well as the expedition. I am biased towards ford, but I tried to keep an open mind. If I got a Chevy it was going to be the next gen body style. I hate the interior and looks of the older style Chevys. Anyway, when it came down to it, the absolute best feature was the fold flat seats. I work as a IT tech at a college that covers 7 counties and I typically use my personal vehicle to transport many computers. Sometimes it's last minute and if I decided to take 10 desktops and 10 monitors with 4 people including driver that would require me to pull the back seat. With the expy, all I have to do it fold them flat and take off. It's a great feature to have in my opinion.

Some of the things I do not like is mainly power. The 5.4 is a reliable engine in the upmost way, but it's a slouch when it comes to towing. Don't get me wrong, it will definitely pull the max towing weight, and even a little over it, but it might take a little while to get you there. This is all my opinion, but like I said I'm biased.

 

[docraymund]

The expedition looks better than the tahoe because its not butt ugly. But if you would want a chevy truck, then go for the suburban instead.

 

[Gruz7]

The expedition looks better than the tahoe because its not butt ugly. But if you would want a chevy truck, then go for the suburban instead.

Yeah I'm all for the suburban over the Tahoe as well... Tahoe just looks a bit like a tiny truck with subie and out there... In opposition, the EL doesn't really seem to make the regular expedition seem too tiny at all

 

[Azjeff]

The fold-flat seat is a nice feature for sure but for me not a deal breaker or maker. As to looks, never really liked the hip bulge over the rear tires on the Tahoe and have to admit some color/trim combos look really nice on the Ex, not crazy about the two-tone Ex look, but, looks is far down the list for me. Suburban is on the radar but it takes away a bit more territory I can comfortably get to just because of the longer wheelbase. I went from an XJ to the Xterra and now a full-size (maybe it should be an Xpedition?), I keep losing a little offroad ability.

So it sounds like the Expedition was never intended for even moderate offroad use? More of a people mover, get to the ski slope - hunting lodge - airport in any weather vehicle? It seems like it mainly gives up some ground clearance to the Tahoe but nobody is saying with say 2 inches of lift it will hang right with one?

Gotta thank you guys for not going all fanboi on me. Still haven't taken them off the short list.

 

[Gruz7]

My buddy's JKU has a 3 inch lift and 35s my previous 03 ex with the 3.5 level hung just fun in the same type of trails with him


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[ManUpOrShutUp]

One factor that has always weighed heavily with me in regards to Ford vs Chevy SUVs is handling. The Chevys always have a lot more play in the wheel, which translates to less responsive handling. On the flip side, many people prefer the Chevy handling as it is more forgiving and requires less effort to turn. Stock suspension was a factor for me as well. All the Tahoes and Suburbans I drove were really soft and bouncy compared to the Expeditions, which made me uneasy when doing 80 down the interstates. Again, some people prefer that nice, soft ride. Ideally, I'd like to have both (eyeing the new Expeditions with the suspension selector).

 

[GAINMOB]

Upgrade the anti sway bars and handling is drastically increased

Mr. 10K

 

[Gruz7]

Not to throw any wrenches in or anything... BUT the newer 4Runner is a beautiful truck with unlimited capabilities and some fine style... Sacrifice some passanger room though


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[GAINMOB]

I had a 2k 4 runner...loved that truck...UNTIL I got my expedition...

Mr. 10K

 

[Gruz7]

I had a 2k 4 runner...loved that truck...UNTIL I got my expedition...

Mr. 10K

I might just feeling other things right now because my expy is down... Annoying having only one car but with it currently not running I'm thinking about what my other options could have been

 

[ManUpOrShutUp]

Upgrade the anti sway bars and handling is drastically increased

Mr. 10K

That will help the body roll, but it won't tighten up the steering. You can adjust the steering to some degree though I'm sure how much difference it would make. Again, not a bad thing, just a very different experience from driving a comparable Ford, especially if you're traveling a lot of twisty roads.

 

[Zidjan]

I just bought a 2004 Expy myself and I am no Ford or Chevy Fanboy ..I look at things based on what I need and don't need...like what others had chimed in, I do find that the Ford is better on the handling dept, flat 3rd row, better looking interior and heavy duty towing package comes with 2 diff plugs (4 pin and 7 pin)...on top of that the Ford is priced better....the Tahoe feels a little scary when driving on the hwy at high speed and the steering feels looser than the Ford...I don't feel the Expy's size when driving on the hwy.