StickMon,

I did the same thing. I still own my '96 Suburban (bought new) and it has run flawlessly. A real tough act to follow, of course it only has 157K on it but the only thing I have done to it is replace the fuel pump at about 110K miles. And of course plugs, wires, coil, oil, transmission fluid and front, rear diff oil and water pump.

So now to my 2011 Limited Expedition EL. I bought it for much the same reason you are. Political. I am glad I did, it really is a nice truck.

I have had more troubles with this Expedition than I did have with the Suburban but it is much more complicated with all the goodies so more to go wrong. My biggest gripe is the rear airbag suspension. I would forgo this option if you won't be towing with it. I have had some other small issues so far with the Expy, but they are minor such as lights out in the key pad entry, troubles with power cutting out on left hand turns (fixed with a TSB re-flash)

Overall I am very happy with the truck, I love the 6 speed transmission over the 4spd in the old Suburban, it makes it very easy to tow. The electrically actuated rear seats are a blessing. It makes it easy to change the truck from a people hauler to a cargo hauler. The rear seat is very usable compared to my Suburban.

Good luck with your search. The transmission can be a Achilles heel with bad shifting habits in and out of first gear, based on posts I've read. Mine hasn't acted up but it only has a bit over 15K miles on her, so that might be the biggest problem buying one of these second hand.

Johnny