Who makes the Best Shop Manual?

[Chev2tehCore]

I have a Chilton's for my 1995 Suburban. It says it is for 1993-1999. It definitely is lacking in some areas if there were a lot of changes in that timeframe.

I just bought a 2001 burb and I am looking for input on who makes the best shop manual. I want one with a lot of details and pictures/drawings.

Is Chilton's pretty much the only game in town other than a factory shop manual? Can I buy a factory shop manual from the dealer?
Thanks :great:

[84fiero123]

GM factory service manual is the best, also the most expensive, around 100 bucks, but you wont find a better manual.

Haynes, Chilton, Motors all have their weak points.

[Crawdaddy]

can you still get factory service manuals for OLD trucks, like my 91 Sub? I think I would gladly pay for one for my tank, knowing exact specs on everything could help with planning projects...

[unplugged]

can you still get factory service manuals for OLD trucks, like my 91 Sub? I think I would gladly pay for one for my tank, knowing exact specs on everything could help with planning projects...
Cdaddy, check out this one at Ebay (http://cgi.ebay.com/1991-GMC-SUBURBAN-JIMMY-TRUCK-SERVICE-SHOP-MANUAL-91_W0QQitemZ110080284464QQihZ001QQcategoryZ1316QQr dZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem)
or this one. (http://cgi.ebay.com/1991-CHEVROLET-SUBURBAN-BLAZER-SERVICE-SHOP-MANUAL-91_W0QQitemZ110048819190QQihZ001QQcategoryZ1316QQr dZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItem)

[makthenif]

haynes. this is the first place i look when i have a problem. you can check ebay and craigslist for repair manuals.

[BurbStone]

I just ordered a Haynes, from LMC Truck, for mine for $19.95, figured I couldn't go wrong at that price.

[IrishBrewer]

I got one of these (http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Chevrolet-Suburban-Service-Repair-Manual-03-04-05-01-02_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trkparmsZ72Q3a1205Q7c66Q3a2Q 7c65Q3a12Q7c39Q3a1Q7c240Q3a1318Q7c301Q3a1Q7c293Q3a 1Q7c294Q3a50QQ_trksidZp3286Q2ec0Q2em14QQhashZitem1 50319572596QQitemZ150319572596QQptZMotorsQ5fManual sQ5fLiterature)from ebay. It's great if you don't mind not having a paper copy (you can still print individual sections). It has the FSM information plus all of the TSBs. I had a problem getting it installed initially but it was because I did not have enough memory (1GB min) and that requirement wasn't in the listing.

The other great thing about this is that it has manuals for ALL of the GM vehicles from '98 to '05 so you may have multiple vehicles that this can be used for.

[silveradojc]

Looking for something like this? Let me know, I have a couple from our car club. Its the Helms factory truck service manuals on dvd. Print pages as needed and so on. loads on your computer and covers all 98-05 GM vehicles with their own dedicated set of factory manuals.


http://temp.corvetteforum.net/c5/jc97//manual.jpg
http://temp.corvetteforum.net/c5/jc97//schematic.jpg
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[JMoney02]

Service Manuals from the dealer are the best, they have it all, worth the 100.00, even has the wiring diagrams(complete) for the truck. It has been exceptional for me for a long time. I have the chiltons, Haynes and so on, but the factory is by far the best......

Jeff

[Crawdaddy]

I recently found out from my local Chevy parts dept that Helm Publishing makes all of GM's manuals, including shop manuals. It also looks like I can still get the factory shop manual from them for $135. A little pricy, but it should prove ever so handy.

[IrishBrewer]

Looking for something like this? Let me know, I have a couple from our car club. Its the Helms factory truck service manuals on dvd. Print pages as needed and so on. loads on your computer and covers all 98-05 GM vehicles with their own dedicated set of factory manuals.


This is the exact same set of DVD-based manuals that I got from the ebay link I provided in my earlier post. Not bad for under $40 but sometimes it would be nice just to have the Helms to leaf through.

[garagegoon]

can you still get factory service manuals for OLD trucks, like my 91 Sub? I think I would gladly pay for one for my tank, knowing exact specs on everything could help with planning projects...

Amazon has some good stuff



http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51kC4O-JYJL._SL500_AA240_.jpg

[cuda71]

I would like to get a GM Service manual for my 05 silverado too, having a hard time finding one. The Haynes manual will sorta get you by but they are still missing a lot of stuff.

[JMoney02]

I would like to get a GM Service manual for my 05 silverado too, having a hard time finding one. The Haynes manual will sorta get you by but they are still missing a lot of stuff.

These simple manuals(haynes/chiltons) were made for what they consider "More Experienced Diy'r Mechanic Want a Be's" thats why they leave quite a bit of detail out, they assume that you are aware of what needs to be done between a - z(lmnop are missing). Chilton on certain models make better manuals, but still can leave out a lot. Factory manuals provider better detail, more in depth displays and cover more for a specific model if requested, the others cover a range.

[Heineken]

I use Bentley. They're not cheap, but I find what I need. I have one for my Jetta and one for my BMW. I'm not sure if they make them for our trucks. I don't need them because if I need to find something, I just askone of ya'll :lol:

[Kraziken]

I also bought the ebay manuals. I think they are the same items dealer service techs use. Pretty cheap compared to the real manuals.