Shake or Vibration Issues

[Georgia Dan]

Boy do i have a story for you guys and gals. Took my 1996 silverado with over 214k miles on it and traded it in on a brand new special order 2014 lt 5.3 all star edition double cab. Oh and the 1996 drove like a cadi from day one, no complaints about that truck what so ever other than she was getting old and not so friendly on the gas and the ac went out a few years back. So I did my research, saw all the comercials on tv with dirty job guy and all about being the quitest truck on the market. So i went to my local dealership told them what i was looking for and they found me one not far from my home(same dealership i bought the 1996 from). Sight un-seen i layed over half down in cash, financed the rest and turned the keys to old betsie over to them, which was like pulling one of my teeth out. Later that day i get a call, and rush to see the new girl of my dreams, and let me tell you its what i was waiting for.

 

Well at least thats what i thought, dont let the looks fool you, and dont ever buy a truck without test driving it. See I work 42 miles from my home and my ride is almost all interstate leaving Georgia and entering Florida where i work. The first few trips back and forth i was amazed how quit the ride was, but noticed a light whining noise throughout the cab, thinking well its new so maybe it will go away. That was the second mistake i made, it kept getting worse until it got to a point that it was driving me crazy. So with 1100 miles on my new truck i take it in to be looked at, had to take the service manager for a ride to prove it was making a noise. Sure enough he agreed it wasnt normal and told me they would get it fixed. Well 28 days later and 2 trips back only to prove the noise was still there, they finally found the problem and it was at last quiet as a church mouse.

 

As far as i know this is what i was told they replaced, first thing they did was rebuilt the rear axle, told me the ring and pinion was set up wrong so they reworked it, that did nothing for the noise. The next thing they did was ordered and installed a brand new transmission, that did quiet down the whine but it was still there. Next they changed out the drive shaft/transmission yoke assy, still no luck. So they found a donor truck and removed the rear end from it and installed it in my truck, still no luck. Last thing they did was swapped out the drive shaft, bammmmm, no more noise.

 

Now i know this has nothing to do with vibrations, but it gets better, I drive my truck back and forth to work for a week and one morning on the way i notice a very slight vibration thinking nothing about it, maybe road conditions maybe those good gy sra's. But the vibration got worse after 400 miles with all my new parts installed. So I do what any person would do, I take it back to my dealer to have the tires checked, knowing it prob not the tires all of a sudden causing this vibration. They ensure me that the road force checked out and all was in spec and also told me they drove the truck and it doesnt vibrate.

 

This is what im experiencing atm, on smoth freshly paved interstate where my 1996 was smooth as glass with bfgr comp ta's, my truck now at speeds starting around 65 and above will vibrate the steering wheel and floor boards, and it comes and goes without warning. One minute smooth next i cant stand to drive it, really vibrates and has a chugging feeling after its in v4 and has a noticable jerk in and out of v8, shifts rough from 2nd to 3rd, and makes a loud metalic ping when leaving from a dead stop. All of which was described the last time I dropped the truck off to have the tires checked and i was told it has no vibrations.

 

I really want to love my new chevy silverado, its has everything i want in a truck, but im about at my wits end with this thing. I have been very patient with my service department and i have giving them every operturnity to make me happy. I dont want to be a ford owner, but im going to test drive some this weekend, and if they feel any better than what i have now, i may be a new ford owner.

[mikeinmobileal]

I know exactly what youre going thru, Im in the middle of the same thing.

 

You are lucky in GA that the state has a site that walks you thru the lemon law process.

http://consumer.georgia.gov/consumer-services/lemon-law-complaint-process/georgia-lemon-law

 

You have to start with BBB Autoline arbitration before lemon law. Read my signature. Good luck and keep us informed.

[14SLTZ71]

Boy do i have a story for you guys and gals. Took my 1996 silverado with over 214k miles on it and traded it in on a brand new special order 2014 lt 5.3 all star edition double cab. Oh and the 1996 drove like a cadi from day one, no complaints about that truck what so ever other than she was getting old and not so friendly on the gas and the ac went out a few years back. So I did my research, saw all the comercials on tv with dirty job guy and all about being the quitest truck on the market. So i went to my local dealership told them what i was looking for and they found me one not far from my home(same dealership i bought the 1996 from). Sight un-seen i layed over half down in cash, financed the rest and turned the keys to old betsie over to them, which was like pulling one of my teeth out. Later that day i get a call, and rush to see the new girl of my dreams, and let me tell you its what i was waiting for.

 

Well at least thats what i thought, dont let the looks fool you, and dont ever buy a truck without test driving it. See I work 42 miles from my home and my ride is almost all interstate leaving Georgia and entering Florida where i work. The first few trips back and forth i was amazed how quit the ride was, but noticed a light whining noise throughout the cab, thinking well its new so maybe it will go away. That was the second mistake i made, it kept getting worse until it got to a point that it was driving me crazy. So with 1100 miles on my new truck i take it in to be looked at, had to take the service manager for a ride to prove it was making a noise. Sure enough he agreed it wasnt normal and told me they would get it fixed. Well 28 days later and 2 trips back only to prove the noise was still there, they finally found the problem and it was at last quiet as a church mouse.

 

As far as i know this is what i was told they replaced, first thing they did was rebuilt the rear axle, told me the ring and pinion was set up wrong so they reworked it, that did nothing for the noise. The next thing they did was ordered and installed a brand new transmission, that did quiet down the whine but it was still there. Next they changed out the drive shaft/transmission yoke assy, still no luck. So they found a donor truck and removed the rear end from it and installed it in my truck, still no luck. Last thing they did was swapped out the drive shaft, bammmmm, no more noise.

 

Now i know this has nothing to do with vibrations, but it gets better, I drive my truck back and forth to work for a week and one morning on the way i notice a very slight vibration thinking nothing about it, maybe road conditions maybe those good gy sra's. But the vibration got worse after 400 miles with all my new parts installed. So I do what any person would do, I take it back to my dealer to have the tires checked, knowing it prob not the tires all of a sudden causing this vibration. They ensure me that the road force checked out and all was in spec and also told me they drove the truck and it doesnt vibrate.

 

This is what im experiencing atm, on smoth freshly paved interstate where my 1996 was smooth as glass with bfgr comp ta's, my truck now at speeds starting around 65 and above will vibrate the steering wheel and floor boards, and it comes and goes without warning. One minute smooth next i cant stand to drive it, really vibrates and has a chugging feeling after its in v4 and has a noticable jerk in and out of v8, shifts rough from 2nd to 3rd, and makes a loud metalic ping when leaving from a dead stop. All of which was described the last time I dropped the truck off to have the tires checked and i was told it has no vibrations.

 

I really want to love my new chevy silverado, its has everything i want in a truck, but im about at my wits end with this thing. I have been very patient with my service department and i have giving them every operturnity to make me happy. I dont want to be a ford owner, but im going to test drive some this weekend, and if they feel any better than what i have now, i may be a new ford owner.

 

With all the parts they have replaced, It sounds like your dealership has really put an effort into trying to fix your truck. That being said, ask the service manager if he can contact the DMA and request a buy back or trade in assistance, which ever you prefer. If the DMA agrees you will avoid having to go thru the BBB and Lemon law arbitration.

Edit: once GM finds out that you have started the BBB or lemon law process the help from dealerships and Regional GM sources tend to become diminished, because then you have to deal with a separate entity within GM that handles those type cases.

Edit: as hard as it will be to do, try not to lose your temper at the dealership or when communicating with GM because that's the worst thing you can do if you want their help.

Edit: this is just some advise, but do what you think is right for you, everybody has their own reasons for dealing with the issue in a certain manner.

Edited October 31, 2014 by 15LTZZ71

[Silverado-Hareek]

I don't think it's your tires, I have the same issue with mine (felt more in the accelerator pedal and floorboards though) and when I put michelin LTX M/S2's on it the problem didn't go away.

Edit: I believe the vibration in my truck is being generated by the transmission.

 

 

 

I don't feel anything in the floorboard or accelerator pedal. Only the steering wheel. I do have a minor vibration in the passenger seat and center console but my 2007 did the exact same thing so it's hard to tell if that's even an issue or not. Right now, the only thing I really feel in this truck is the occasional vibration in the steering wheel. I also feel what can be described as back pressure when V4 kicks in. I'm not sure if that's related to the engine or the exhaust but I definitely want to modify my exhaust soon and remove the resonator and the flapper valve.

 

 

Maybe it is your tires then.

 

I'm starting to think shocks. Vibration showed up yesterday evening driving out to my inlaws. The temperature was about 52 out when we left and closer to 40 heading home. This vibration in the steering wheel has always been temperature related which led me to believe it's the tires, but the way it's coming and going on similar roads I'm starting to think it's shock failure. I've ruled out the drive-line based on the fact that the vibration doesn't seem to change from changes in engine RPM's or the throttle and when I drop it into neutral, the vibration persists. The rate of the vibration also doesn't seem to increase or decrease with the rotational speed of the wheels, but it does show up at higher speeds (like 60+) and it's less noticeable or not there at all at lower speeds or driving around town. I'm thinking 1 or more of the shocks are bad and there's a lot of wheel hop that isn't getting settled down and it's transmitting through the truck. I'm thinking the temperature comes into play by affecting the seals in the shock, fluid temperature, gas pressure, etc. I'm going to crawl under the truck this weekend to see if I can see signs of shock failure like leaking fluid. I have the Z71 package so it has the Rancho shocks which are notorious for early failure. Google it you'll read a lot about the problem. I've never liked these shocks from the start. Anyway just wanted to provide an update. I'm patiently waiting for Bilstein to come out with a 4600 series shock for this truck and I will be swapping mine out as soon as they become available.

[14silverado4.3]

If you can see the shock mounting bushings, they should be flat but not squished. Might be a loose nut on a shock. Compacting the bushing too much will cause a harsh ride, not enough will be a vibration.

[Silverado-Hareek]

If you can see the shock mounting bushings, they should be flat but not squished. Might be a loose nut on a shock. Compacting the bushing too much will cause a harsh ride, not enough will be a vibration.

 

Cool I will take a look at that

[mikegmi2]

Dealer road force balanced my tires, they have to order 3 new ones. One checked out good, the others are out of spec and have 29lbs of force or something like that. Going to install new tires, then check for vibrations again. They say they think this will fix it, but after reading 200+ pages of this thread, I am not planning on it. I hope so though.

 

More next week, happy Halloween!

[shakey]

Hello fellow GM enthuseist!

After 9 visits to Mr Goodwrench and some nagging from my brother and a previous post I tried something new today.

One fellow said to raise the truck and check the runout on the axles..... I took that idea and put my own twist on it.

I raised the rear of the truck a couple inches and put the jackstands under it. Block the front wheels. I used a6"x6" x12" block of wood with a stiff piece of wire fastened to it. Shaped the wire to point directly at the edge of the wheel. The truck idled at 6MPH.

A good speed for this. ( Remember those moving parts will put a hurt on you!) Both sides were as near perfect as they could have been. NOTE: Had one or both sides shown an out of round or wobbling problem then I would have gone to thenext step and removed one or both wheels and checked the axle center ":knob" called the "drum register" by axle manufacturers. (The one in the USA anyhow). No problemo found there......So I say HEY PACO HANDME DAT WOOD. It is a Mexican axle assembly you know.......

I took the make shift dial indicator under the truck (still doing 6MPH on the stands) and started under the truck to check my YES WAIT FOR IT SECOND DRIVESHAFT on this pos and even Ray Charles could see that dam thing wobbleing around off center! Don,t tell me Ray is gone I know.... For my own amusement pushed the block and wire up to the shaft near the u joint and you could hear with your ears how out of round it was! Sounded like someone doing the 1st cut on a set of pulsating rotors.

It has to be out about 3/16" Does anyone wonder why this truck WAIT FOR IT............"Was operating as designed" NO PROBLEM FOUND....COULD NOT DUPLICATE CUSTOMERS COMPLAINT............Really? I would not take this truck back to the same set of jack asses if you paid me.

Does it say something to you guys that a disgusted customer can use a jack and stands to discover at least one of of the problems this pos has? There really is no quality control with these things. I posted earlier about the rear axle (and of course the front) assemblies from Jalisco Mexico. Ironically the name is still American axle and gear. They put a hurt on Chrysler Jeep a few years ago with a bunch of defective products. Low bid wins!!!!!!!

This is no magic bullit. I will take the shaft to a local company that makes shafts for every thing from cars to tractor trailers. ONE SHAFT at a time and I won,t need a translater.

Now someone will say " why would you want to pay for that?" My time is worth something too. Ihave already filed a claim with the BBB. After hearing about that some one from gm called to say they would be investigating and would get back with me.

I,mstupid I guess! I thought MAYBE they will send out a REAL tech to trouble shoot and fix the dam thing.....NOT WAIT FOR IT............. Aweek and a alf later she calls back and says she can assist me with making an appointment with the service dept. to look at my truck if if if IF IF IF IF i STILL have any concerns.......BUELER BUELER BUELER BUELLER.....

I stayed calm and professional and asked how after these days of research and inof gathering does she thik that this could somehow be A. something helpful. and B something that I couldnot or have not already done my self 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 yes NINE times already???????????? She was polite and seemed like she was reading from a cue card we are familar with. I,m sorry you experiencing problems.........

Any how for those that can and want too check your runout on the edges of the wheels and look at the shaft as it spins. BE CAREFUL!!!

And remember Keep that great gm feeling!!!!!! 'WE ARE INFERIOR GRADE'

 

SIGNED; Still Shakey IN NC.

 

 

 

 

o

[deputy]

My 2014 Sierra has the same problem it came with the 20 inch wheels. One of the tire was bad the dealer replaced it to no avail.

I decided to buy a different combination of wheels and tires 22INCH no change..

Now since I went to the 22 inch GM will not honor the warranty since I changed the wheels

Thanks GMC

You know there is a problem and refuse to admit it

[LSK]

Has anyone had the steering module checked. It's called a SMOOTH ROAD VIBRATION compensator

.

 

[keakar]

Hello fellow GM enthuseist!

After 9 visits to Mr Goodwrench and some nagging from my brother and a previous post I tried something new today.

One fellow said to raise the truck and check the runout on the axles..... I took that idea and put my own twist on it.

I raised the rear of the truck a couple inches and put the jackstands under it. Block the front wheels. I used a6"x6" x12" block of wood with a stiff piece of wire fastened to it. Shaped the wire to point directly at the edge of the wheel. The truck idled at 6MPH.

A good speed for this. ( Remember those moving parts will put a hurt on you!) Both sides were as near perfect as they could have been. NOTE: Had one or both sides shown an out of round or wobbling problem then I would have gone to thenext step and removed one or both wheels and checked the axle center ":knob" called the "drum register" by axle manufacturers. (The one in the USA anyhow). No problemo found there......So I say HEY PACO HANDME DAT WOOD. It is a Mexican axle assembly you know.......

I took the make shift dial indicator under the truck (still doing 6MPH on the stands) and started under the truck to check my YES WAIT FOR IT SECOND DRIVESHAFT on this pos and even Ray Charles could see that dam thing wobbleing around off center! Don,t tell me Ray is gone I know.... For my own amusement pushed the block and wire up to the shaft near the u joint and you could hear with your ears how out of round it was! Sounded like someone doing the 1st cut on a set of pulsating rotors.

It has to be out about 3/16" Does anyone wonder why this truck WAIT FOR IT............"Was operating as designed" NO PROBLEM FOUND....COULD NOT DUPLICATE CUSTOMERS COMPLAINT............Really? I would not take this truck back to the same set of jack asses if you paid me.

Does it say something to you guys that a disgusted customer can use a jack and stands to discover at least one of of the problems this pos has? There really is no quality control with these things. I posted earlier about the rear axle (and of course the front) assemblies from Jalisco Mexico. Ironically the name is still American axle and gear. They put a hurt on Chrysler Jeep a few years ago with a bunch of defective products. Low bid wins!!!!!!!

This is no magic bullit. I will take the shaft to a local company that makes shafts for every thing from cars to tractor trailers. ONE SHAFT at a time and I won,t need a translater.

Now someone will say " why would you want to pay for that?" My time is worth something too. Ihave already filed a claim with the BBB. After hearing about that some one from gm called to say they would be investigating and would get back with me.

I,mstupid I guess! I thought MAYBE they will send out a REAL tech to trouble shoot and fix the dam thing.....NOT WAIT FOR IT............. Aweek and a alf later she calls back and says she can assist me with making an appointment with the service dept. to look at my truck if if if IF IF IF IF i STILL have any concerns.......BUELER BUELER BUELER BUELLER.....

I stayed calm and professional and asked how after these days of research and inof gathering does she thik that this could somehow be A. something helpful. and B something that I couldnot or have not already done my self 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 yes NINE times already???????????? She was polite and seemed like she was reading from a cue card we are familar with. I,m sorry you experiencing problems.........

Any how for those that can and want too check your runout on the edges of the wheels and look at the shaft as it spins. BE CAREFUL!!!

And remember Keep that great gm feeling!!!!!! 'WE ARE INFERIOR GRADE'

 

SIGNED; Still Shakey IN NC.

 

 

 

 

o

in your case with that much out of round my bet would be the u-joint was assembled 180* out so take the u-joint lose and then flip the yoke 180* and then reassemble. I would bet your shaft will be much closer to being true if not actually true with just that one change.

[20SierraL8T24]

Has anyone had the steering module checked. It's called a SMOOTH ROAD VIBRATION compensator

.

 

This could possibly the issue for those with steering wheel vibrations. Its been said before though

[Jeffgmtruckvib]

Hello fellow GM enthuseist!

After 9 visits to Mr Goodwrench and some nagging from my brother and a previous post I tried something new today.

One fellow said to raise the truck and check the runout on the axles..... I took that idea and put my own twist on it.

I raised the rear of the truck a couple inches and put the jackstands under it. Block the front wheels. I used a6"x6" x12" block of wood with a stiff piece of wire fastened to it. Shaped the wire to point directly at the edge of the wheel. The truck idled at 6MPH.

A good speed for this. ( Remember those moving parts will put a hurt on you!) Both sides were as near perfect as they could have been. NOTE: Had one or both sides shown an out of round or wobbling problem then I would have gone to thenext step and removed one or both wheels and checked the axle center ":knob" called the "drum register" by axle manufacturers. (The one in the USA anyhow). No problemo found there......So I say HEY PACO HANDME DAT WOOD. It is a Mexican axle assembly you know.......

I took the make shift dial indicator under the truck (still doing 6MPH on the stands) and started under the truck to check my YES WAIT FOR IT SECOND DRIVESHAFT on this pos and even Ray Charles could see that dam thing wobbleing around off center! Don,t tell me Ray is gone I know.... For my own amusement pushed the block and wire up to the shaft near the u joint and you could hear with your ears how out of round it was! Sounded like someone doing the 1st cut on a set of pulsating rotors.

It has to be out about 3/16" Does anyone wonder why this truck WAIT FOR IT............"Was operating as designed" NO PROBLEM FOUND....COULD NOT DUPLICATE CUSTOMERS COMPLAINT............Really? I would not take this truck back to the same set of jack asses if you paid me.

Does it say something to you guys that a disgusted customer can use a jack and stands to discover at least one of of the problems this pos has? There really is no quality control with these things. I posted earlier about the rear axle (and of course the front) assemblies from Jalisco Mexico. Ironically the name is still American axle and gear. They put a hurt on Chrysler Jeep a few years ago with a bunch of defective products. Low bid wins!!!!!!!

This is no magic bullit. I will take the shaft to a local company that makes shafts for every thing from cars to tractor trailers. ONE SHAFT at a time and I won,t need a translater.

Now someone will say " why would you want to pay for that?" My time is worth something too. Ihave already filed a claim with the BBB. After hearing about that some one from gm called to say they would be investigating and would get back with me.

I,mstupid I guess! I thought MAYBE they will send out a REAL tech to trouble shoot and fix the dam thing.....NOT WAIT FOR IT............. Aweek and a alf later she calls back and says she can assist me with making an appointment with the service dept. to look at my truck if if if IF IF IF IF i STILL have any concerns.......BUELER BUELER BUELER BUELLER.....

I stayed calm and professional and asked how after these days of research and inof gathering does she thik that this could somehow be A. something helpful. and B something that I couldnot or have not already done my self 9 9 9 9 9 9 9 yes NINE times already???????????? She was polite and seemed like she was reading from a cue card we are familar with. I,m sorry you experiencing problems.........

Any how for those that can and want too check your runout on the edges of the wheels and look at the shaft as it spins. BE CAREFUL!!!

And remember Keep that great gm feeling!!!!!! 'WE ARE INFERIOR GRADE'

 

SIGNED; Still Shakey IN NC.

 

 

 

 

o

[Jeffgmtruckvib]

They are doing me the way. Same phone calls every Friday at 4pm talking like my truck had been fixed. I just hired me a lawyer. Now let's see what happens!!!

[ToesonTheNose]

everyday I check in on this thread and read. It breaks my heart to see you guys going through this. I will say just in a few months of reading this thread i've learned so much, you guys are some smart SOB's i'll wager one of you in here figure all this out before anyone in GM land does