I have replaced all 4 ball joints once, and a couple of them twice. Now they need to be raplaced again after less than 6 months. I had the oil cooling lines replaced, along with a water pump. Also, the heater core needed to be flushed twice, and the coolant intake resealed. The thermostat has also been replaced. The steering idler arm has been replaced along with a rear brake line. The front pads and rotors have been replaced. The battery and alternator have also been replaced. The driver's side front door and the passenger's side front door need to have the pins replaced. The rear speakers have not worked since I bought the vehicle.
As far as the engine itself, it's a great running SUV. However, the vehicle is not structurally sound in my opinion. I have owned the vehicle for less than a year and cannot recount a time period of more than 3 weeks where something has not gone wrong. Total estimated cost of repairs is around $3,000. That price is mostly parts, I am an amateur mechanic and have done a lot of the work myself witht he help of more qualified friends.
A lot of shops are misdiagnosing ball joints (especially the lowers). Some shops think that when measuring the play in the ball joints, there shouldn't be any- not true. The spec. is 0.125" of an inch, which looks like a lot when inspecting. This misdiagnosis will lead to new ball joints every few months. This is a huge money grab for the aftermarket shops that "didn't know" this spec. Have a gm dealer measure the ball joints, the private shop probably doesn't even know how to properly (dial indiacator).
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