2017 Suburban Poor Snow Performance

onekama_mi · January 3, 2018

Anyone else have concerns driving in heavy snow conditions? My 2004 Yukon was so much better than my 2017 or even my 2011 Yukon. The 2004 I nicknamed the "snow beast". Kids are still driving that one with 240k miles.

Biggest snow performance problems I have noticed are:

1. Rear tailights, rear chmsl, rear glass all covered with thick layer of snow within 1/2 mile. Stoplamps just not visible after a bit and I need to pull over and clear off regularly with my brush.

2. Front fascia clearance just too low. Can't go thru deep snow without endangering the front bumper asm and air dam. I'm always acting like a snow plow until roads are clear. No way to adjust or fix the limited clearance that I see. My 2011 had same issue and I pushed in entire front bumper first day I drove into a snow drift across our road.

3. Power running boards constantly get jammed up with ice. Just need to disable them but....

Handling is fine with Nokian snow tires. The stock continental tires were downright dangerous after 27,000 miles.

4wd and brakes work as expected but with three other issues it makes me feel like I purchased a prima donna truck that can't handle the stress of a heavy winter.

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davester · January 3, 2018

The fix for the front fascia might be removal. IIRC, it was in the owners manual for my '04 Sierra to do that for going off-roading. However, from replacing the fascia after it was busted, the clips holding it in place were pretty hard to get out without busting them, even with the bumper off the truck.

newdude · January 3, 2018

1 hour ago, onekama_mi said:

Anyone else have concerns driving in heavy snow conditions? My 2004 Yukon was so much better than my 2017 or even my 2011 Yukon. The 2004 I nicknamed the "snow beast". Kids are still driving that one with 240k miles.

Biggest snow performance problems I have noticed are:

1. Rear tailights, rear chmsl, rear glass all covered with thick layer of snow within 1/2 mile. Stoplamps just not visible after a bit and I need to pull over and clear off regularly with my brush.

I can't find any car on the road within the past 15 years that doesn't do this. All of my pickups did it, and I see cars and trucks day in and day out that do it. Lots of aerodynamics I think are to blame.

2. Front fascia clearance just too low. Can't go thru deep snow without endangering the front bumper asm and air dam. I'm always acting like a snow plow until roads are clear. No way to adjust or fix the limited clearance that I see. My 2011 had same issue and I pushed in entire front bumper first day I drove into a snow drift across our road.

Valance can be removed. Will end up looking like the Z71 if you needed a visual reference.

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truckguy82 · January 3, 2018

1 hour ago, onekama_mi said:

Anyone else have concerns driving in heavy snow conditions? My 2004 Yukon was so much better than my 2017 or even my 2011 Yukon. The 2004 I nicknamed the "snow beast". Kids are still driving that one with 240k miles.

Biggest snow performance problems I have noticed are:

1. Rear tailights, rear chmsl, rear glass all covered with thick layer of snow within 1/2 mile. Stoplamps just not visible after a bit and I need to pull over and clear off regularly with my brush.

2. Front fascia clearance just too low. Can't go thru deep snow without endangering the front bumper asm and air dam. I'm always acting like a snow plow until roads are clear. No way to adjust or fix the limited clearance that I see. My 2011 had same issue and I pushed in entire front bumper first day I drove into a snow drift across our road.

3. Power running boards constantly get jammed up with ice. Just need to disable them but....

Handling is fine with Nokian snow tires. The stock continental tires were downright dangerous after 27,000 miles.

4wd and brakes work as expected but with three other issues it makes me feel like I purchased a prima donna truck that can't handle the stress of a heavy winter.

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sounds like someone is venting

front fascia - it's there to save gas mileage, remove it if you don't want it

running boards - ok disable them

lights - what does that have to do with the vehicle, clearly the particular conditions you were driving in

All that matters for snow is ground clearance and amount of wheels spinning, still have the g80 locker from 2004, and likely the same ground clearance.

It's the same thing

cheyenne383 · January 3, 2018

I love mine in the snow, haven't had any issues yet. Yes the rear end gets covered in snow but so do my other vehicles. I want to trim the valance for appearance but it's stock now and hasn't caused me any problems.

aseibel · January 3, 2018

2 hours ago, onekama_mi said:

1. Rear tailights, rear chmsl, rear glass all covered with thick layer of snow within 1/2 mile. Stoplamps just not visible after a bit and I need to pull over and clear off regularly with my brush.

2. Front fascia clearance just too low. Can't go thru deep snow without endangering the front bumper asm and air dam. I'm always acting like a snow plow until roads are clear. No way to adjust or fix the limited clearance that I see. My 2011 had same issue and I pushed in entire front bumper first day I drove into a snow drift across our road.

3. Power running boards constantly get jammed up with ice. Just need to disable them but....

1. Yeah, every SUV, van, hatchback and anything else with a flat-ish rearend does this.

2. How frequently are you driving in 8+ deep snow? I see that Onekama is in the lake effect snow zone, but jeeze, I see lots of FWD passenger cars that somehow manage to get out of the garage in winter.

3. sorry, not much you are going to do about that. pull the fuse until warmer weather?

onekama_mi · January 3, 2018

Fyi attached is a pic of snow covered suburban rear after short trip. Brakes lights on so this is as bright as it gets. Once you add snow coming down and kicked up snow from suburban, the stop lights are even harder to see.

8" snow is not unusual for us. Drifts all the time on the roads. Clearance is probably not a concern for those in city or suburbs or from areas without snow.

Hoping there are other snow belt members that can offer additional insight on their heavy snow experience. Much appreciated.

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onekama_mi · January 3, 2018

From browsing specs on internet, it looks like front ground clearance in 2004 was 9.8inches vs the 2017 at 7.9 inches. The air dam looks integral to fascia, unlike some trucks where it is more easily unbolted. Either way, it is what it is and my purpose in posting was to understand if other snow belt drivers found this to be problematic or no big deal.

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Donstar · January 3, 2018

I lied in northern Canada with a brand new '86 Suburban (GMC version) We often stopped to wipe front and rear lights. The wheel base, weight and drivetrain in a Suburban makes it an excellent snow vehicle, imo. Maybe improved/lhigher tires will give you a snow beast 2.

truckguy82 · January 3, 2018

24 minutes ago, onekama_mi said:

Fyi attached is a pic of snow covered suburban rear after short trip. Brakes lights on so this is as bright as it gets. Once you add snow coming down and kicked up snow from suburban, the stop lights are even harder to see.

8" snow is not unusual for us. Drifts all the time on the roads. Clearance is probably not a concern for those in city or suburbs or from areas without snow.

Hoping there are other snow belt members that can offer additional insight on their heavy snow experience. Much appreciated.

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Clearly there was some sort of special situation with the wind or turbulance that caused that

Also, I’ve driven through, and I mean through for an entire mile, 36” of fresh snow on a flat road in my old tahoe. I have no doubt in my mind my current truck could handle it as well.

Edited January 3, 2018 by truckguy82

cheyenne383 · January 4, 2018

This is the worst I've seen my Suburban, on the drive from Tennessee to Alaska last March, this was after 7-8 hours of driving in snow. You could still see the lights from behind me at night, I didn't have any issues.

The second pic is a regular sight, we get tons of snow... every once in a while I have to disable stabilitrac to get momentum but overall I have been impressed.

Imcrazy · January 4, 2018

Pull the front valance...

Try putting a really good sealant on the tail lights maybe it will help... And or spray some cooking spray on 'em...

Edited January 4, 2018 by Imcrazy

truckguy82 · January 4, 2018

Dont you guys have rear window defoggers to melt that crap off?

cheyenne383 · January 4, 2018

12 minutes ago, truckguy82 said:

Dont you guys have rear window defoggers to melt that crap off?

They pile up quick... washer fluid and wiping only go so far. I can attest to the rear window clogging up fast for sure! I don't have the traffic issue some do so I'm not as sensitive to the rear window being covered but it happens surprisingly quick.

truckguy82 · January 4, 2018

8 hours ago, cheyenne383 said:

They pile up quick... washer fluid and wiping only go so far. I can attest to the rear window clogging up fast for sure! I don't have the traffic issue some do so I'm not as sensitive to the rear window being covered but it happens surprisingly quick.

Yeah but don’t you literally have heating strips inside the glass?

I’ve been in some bad storms that I had to pull over because of the ice on the car, including the windshield with defrost on blast. Never have I seen snow on the rear window because of the heating elements inside the glass.