GM Parts Club
Christmas travel is winter travel, at night, in a full vehicle, often on unfamiliar roads. Here is what to actually look at, using a 2007-2013 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 as the example.
Electrical and Charging
Watch for a slow crank on the first cold morning of the year. Batteries in Texas heat routinely give up between three and five years. Test annually after year three, before the first cold snap.
Auxiliary and stop-start systems use AGM batteries, and dropping a flooded battery in is a short path to a repeat failure.
Glass and Wipers
Watch for a washer pump you can hear running with nothing coming out. Blades every six to twelve months. In North Texas, summer heat kills blades faster than winter does.
Vehicles with rain sensing or heated wiper park use different assemblies.
Cooling System
Watch for crusty orange residue around a hose clamp or the surge tank seam. GM’s long-life coolant is generally rated for 5 years or 150,000 miles on the first fill and 5 years or 100,000 miles after that. Hoses and the surge tank should be inspected annually once past 80,000 miles.
GM cooling systems are DEX-COOL based and the seal and gasket materials are chosen for that chemistry.
The Short Checklist
- Batteries: Vehicles with stop-start often use two batteries. Confirm which one you are replacing before ordering.
- Wiper blades: Driver and passenger blades are frequently different lengths on the same vehicle.
- Radiators: Engine, tow package and rear-A/C content all change the radiator and hose part numbers. Have the VIN ready.
We have been selling GM parts online since 2009 and out of the Dallas store since 1956. Start with our Chevrolet OEM parts catalog, or search for Silverado 1500 parts.
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