2003 Chevrolet Suburban Consumer Reviews

Perfect SUV

Written by: Perfect SUV on 09/17/2007

Vehicle

2003 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 LT Rwd 4dr SUV (5.3L 8cyl 4A)

Review

We just bought a 2003 Suburban LT, and this has got to be the perfect SUV! We traded a 2005 Dodge Grand Caravan for this truck, and we are so pleased with this Suv. It has 70,000 miles on it, and runs like brand new. The turning radius is excellent, the 5.3 vortec V8 is extremely strong, and rides very nice. Ours has 4 bucket seats and a 3rd row bench seat, and it can seat 7 adults very comfortably. It also has a very large cargo area in the rear to hold all of the kids stuff. I also have a 99 Chevy Z71 Truck with 170,000 miles on it, so I know how dependable and reliable Chevy trucks are. I am so glad to have my wife and 3 kiddos in a big, strong, dependable truck. We all love it.!

Favorite Features

Leather, DVD player, so much interior space, Extremely Comfortable, strong 5.3 Vortec V8, Tow/Haul mode, Gets really good gas mileage considering the bulk of this SUV. We do around 99% city driving and average 15.5 to 16.9 MPG. That's real good when you think about this big SUV.

Suggested Improvements

I just wish that Chevy and GMC would advertise more often. It seems like everytime you turn on the TV all you see is Ford or Toyota commercials. I've driven Chevy, Ford, Dodge, Toyota, and Jeeps, and I rank Chevy/GMC at the very top. They are simply the best in reliability, and gas mileage.

5 out 5 people found this review helpful

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Amazing car?

Written by: Gaucho blue on 08/13/2007

Vehicle

2003 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 LT 4WD 4dr SUV (5.3L 8cyl 4A)

Review

I traded in a 740 BMW for this cruiser. No it is not a race car but for everyday and for vacation you cannot beat the comfort. It rides like a Cadillac deville.Lots of room. Mileage is poor. I average about 15-16 miles per gallon. One trip the best I got for 4 hours driving was 19.6 miles per gallon. You cannot fill the tail end of this car!

Favorite Features

Size, comfort, reliability, solid vehicle drives like a car

Suggested Improvements

Better gas mileage

3 out 4 people found this review helpful

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5.3 seem bulletproof

Written by: consolidatedwm on 01/20/2007

Vehicle

2003 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 LT 4WD 4dr SUV (5.3L 8cyl 4A)

Review

Bought the our '03 z71 burb after an accident sidelined our same style Tahoe. We had 160K on the clock with the Tahoe and I'm convinced it would have gone well past 200K with no major repairs. Very dependable and it never left us stuck. I'm sticking with the 5.3 engine and glad I did with the 'burb. Ride quality is incredible and we are amazed at the steering radius in the 'burb vs our older Tahoe. Creature features all are good quality and overall we give kudos to GM for quality, looks, and performance. We did change out all fluids to synthetics as we had good luck last time - why tempt fate. We will be in the market for a brand new one it two years, very happy with what we have to get us there.

Favorite Features

Her: Heated seats. Him: Automatic seat adjust per driver, lumbar and overall added capacity over the Tahoe.

Suggested Improvements

Mileage, but what can you do? If you want a bus you're gonna pay. We still get about 17mpg avg

2 out 2 people found this review helpful

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Poor Reliability

Written by: Bryce Christensen on 01/08/2007

Vehicle

2003 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 LT 4WD 4dr SUV (5.3L 8cyl 4A)

Review

Z71 Ride quality is very good and the vehicle is fun to drive. However the vehicle has had numerous reliability problems at 50,000 miles. The instrument cluster has gone bad, front end is loosening up, shocks gave out, replaced side mirrors, lights, etc. Recommend selling once the warranty expires or purchasing an extended warranty. Or purchase a better engineered SUV and avoid the extended warranty and service hassles all together. Actual gas mileage is around 13 MPG on average.

Favorite Features

Suggested Improvements

Fix the poorly engineered dash electrical cluster and side mirror features. Front end suspension is highly questionable

3 out 3 people found this review helpful

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Transfer Case and Transmission replaced

Written by: NNN from DC on 05/28/2006

Vehicle

2003 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 LS 4WD 4dr SUV (5.3L 8cyl 4A)

Review

After driving 87,000 freeway miles in 3 years, the transfer case and transmission went out at the same time. So much for being built to last. Not certain if I will ever buy American again as our qualilty can not compete!

Favorite Features

Bose system rocks!

Suggested Improvements

Focus on quality! Offer 10/100K as a standard warranty.

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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2003 Z71 4X4

Written by: z71 on 03/28/2006

Vehicle

2003 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 LT 4WD 4dr SUV (5.3L 8cyl 4A)

Review

First off, not going to complain about MPG because I knew it when I bought it. 18 hwy, 14 city. 17 hwy with 6 passengers and a weeks worth of luggage. Drives great, like sitting up high. I have the Z71 package, handling is better than expected, parking is easy. We have two minivans as well, 4 kids and the Suburban is the vehicle of choice for long trips - only one that can hold all our luggage. Have the 2nd row captain chairs which makes it easier to access the third row, but not as easy as the minivans. That is the only advantage the minivans have. My wife preferred the minivan because of ease of access, but now she wants a Suburban when we replace hers, probably in 08.

Favorite Features

Cargo room behind third seat; center console is the best I've ever had; message center has tons of info; I hear lots of complaints about interior quality but have yet to have anything break (w/ 4 kids!); Bose sound system is great;

Suggested Improvements

Put cruise buttons on steering wheel; Split folding third row seat; flat folding third row seat; waiting for the Duramax diesel, even if it is only offered in the 2500 and cost $5K more! Removable or flatter folding 2nd row - easier to fit a 8'X4' sheet of plywood. Ditch XM and pick up Sirius

2 out 2 people found this review helpful

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Last Chevy

Written by: PW on 03/14/2006

Vehicle

2003 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 LS 4WD 4dr SUV (5.3L 8cyl 4A)

Review

Where to begin, probably the worst truck I ever owned. Four Wheel Drive front end was replaced, steering box of some sort replaced, speedometer cable/control, catalytic converter, battery leaked and went dead (15K miles), acid ate through the pump for the windshield washer. Tons of problems. Biggest pile of junk I have owned. Latest problem I have is it slips into 4wd, but the indicator light does not go on, happened twice. I am going back to Ford.

Favorite Features

Size

Suggested Improvements

Quality. GM spends more man hours to build a vehicle, but it sure doesn't show

0 out 1 people found this review helpful

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2003 Suburban 1500

Written by: Rick on 12/18/2005

Vehicle

2003 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 LT 4WD 4dr SUV (5.3L 8cyl 4A)

Review

Good open view of the road. Roomy and comfortable to drive. Luxury feel with heated leather seat option. Stock CD and radio system have good sound quality. Handling very good for a high profile vehicle. No mechanical problems in 33000 miles. Smooth shifting tansmission. Overall rating is good to excellent.

Favorite Features

Heated seats, Z71 color keyed exterior trim. Prefer sunroof to dvd player however now both are available together a nice package.

Suggested Improvements

Diesel option

0 out 1 people found this review helpful

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The Best Yet.

Written by: Z71 on 12/01/2005

Vehicle

2003 Chevrolet Suburban 4 Dr 1500 4WD SUV

Review

This is my third Chevy SUV(two suburbans,one K5 Blazer )and all have been 4wd. I enjoy surf fishing and going off road with this z71 model is great. Although I am not 100 % convinced that the electronic 4wd is better than the manual shifting 4wd it has its good points.The shift select sending module has required replacement once but now seems to work okay. Not having the shift lever on the floor enhances the interior appearence. The over all ride is very comfortable and is welcome on long trips(the wife sleeps easier and more). I will probably buy another when this one wears out or my son takes it over.Its the best vehicle for my purposes. I'm not rich but I don't let the gas mileage get me

Favorite Features

Roominess. It's used for every thing. I've even had a pallet of floor tiles loaded into the cargo area using a fork lift with no problems. All the electronic features(i.e. onstar,xm radio,gps)are a real convenience.

Suggested Improvements

Increase the quality of the carpets and woodgrain the dash. It shouldn't have to be a Caddy to get the good treatment

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Keep your mini-van

Written by: ColoGSD on 11/30/2005

Vehicle

2003 Chevrolet Suburban 4 Dr 1500 4WD SUV

Review

Z71 off-road package. Although this beast was supposed to be for my husband, it's MINE! I haul the kids, 2 large dogs, camping gear, you name it, with no problem. Sure beats driving a soccer mom mini-van anyday. It's been off-road on trails that may have been better suited for a Jeep but it sure was fun. towed a 25' loaded travel trailer to the mountains and the only problem was with the trailer. I am able to park the beast in a two car garage (remember to fold IN the mirrors FIRST) and still have room for hubby's commuter car. With the 2nd row captians chairs kids and dogs have plenty of room. Steroe is adequate, vents in roof liner are most welcomed.

Favorite Features

Heated seats and the Z71 package. Handles better than the LT we test drove.

Suggested Improvements

Gas mileage and drop the plastic overload. Upgrade the interior knobs, buttons with something more durable. Stow-and-go for 3rd row, would be nice to have seat fold flat instead of up or taking it out.

1 out 1 people found this review helpful

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