2006 Gmc Sierra 1500

AmericanBadlander · January 2, 2014

Hi this is my first truck. And I have several problems with it. It's a 2006 GMC Sierra crew cab short bed with the Regency Badlander package. 57xxx miles. on the truck. A 6.0l Vortex Maxx. A fiberglass bed cover. A 4 inch body lift and about a 5 or a 6 inch block under the rear leaf springs and a front lift of some kind. It has 38x15.5R20 lt toyo open country tires. Traction bars and front torsion bars.

The problems are.

Vibration always at 42-49 mph. The vibration feel like they are coming from behind my seat. It kind if travels around. It's not as bad at speeds above 50.

Bump steer like crazy. Pulls to right. I'm driving down most streets with steering wheel cocked to left. Gets pulled hard into dips in road. Shaky steering wheel at almost all speeds except under 15mph.

Low pitch banging over bumps. Feels like loose part in front end some where.

When coming to a stop I get light shaky vibration in pedal not like warped rotors. I can also hear a kind of moan grinding from rear and front tires.

When backing up and turning wheel sometimes something shakes like crazy and It sounds like something metal hitting something.

When trans is shifting from 3rd to 4th it hangs no matter if I'm light on gas pedal or heavy. Then it usually drops into OD shortly after that if below 2000 rpms

Engine is strong. I have recently the left front axle. It was broken the cv pulled straight out of the joint on the knuckle. The links were shot so I replaced those. I changed the oil.

I just bought this truck last week. I will do whatever I need to to fix it. I want it to drive smooth and a lil more friendly. I know it's lifted with 38s so I'm not really in a truck that's going to be comfortable. But I know it shouldn't be this bad. Please help.

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scooby5121 · January 2, 2014

Sounds like you bought someone elses problems.

You Test drive the truck and saw the problems.... RUN.

IMO Scooby

AmericanBadlander · January 2, 2014

Money isn't the issue. I love this truck. I always wanted one and I got a great deal on it. I will buy whatever it needs. Just don't want to take it to a garage and get raped. I'm a mechanic but I haven't ever worked on trucks before. Always wanted one so I could. Just want a general idea of what areas or parts I should look into.

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kstruckcountry · January 2, 2014

1. Ditch the 38's. I can't think of a single suspension part that isn't put under way too much stress on a half ton by that big of a tire. You need a lot of upgrades to run them without trashing everything.

2. Since you say it has 38's, I'm assuming they're Mud Grapplers. They will vibrate just from the way the tread is at some speeds.

3. Bump steer is from it being a half ton truck with 38's. Steering isn't designed for that big of tires and it will never be happy until you completely change it out, and add hydraulic assist IMO.

4. The shake while braking is from the 38's I bet. Big tires gives the brakes less leverage to slow the truck down so they wear faster. Could just be worn out or warped.

5. The problem with the tranny is the 38's. It's probably worn out from turning them.

It might sound like I'm blaming everything on the tires. That's because too big of tires without the right upgrades trashes everything. Honestly where I'd start is jack up the truck and start wiggling stuff and replacing everything that's loose. From the sound of it you like the truck even with all the issues, especially ignoring them on the test drive so the sooner you start the better.

AmericanBadlander · January 2, 2014

I know the tires may be a lot of the problem. But when regency added them they upgraded most everything that needed to be upgraded. It has a pro comp 6 inch lift from regency then it was put on 4 inch body blocks.

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KMGZ400 · January 2, 2014

Most importantly, like another guy said? That trans needs a rebuild. The 4l60 tranny is a relatively weak tranny in stock form and when you put 38's on it it's gonna kill it even faster,, get a rebuild and build the trans.

I would find a good frontend shop and take it there. Not a just tires or pep boys Repair shop. That stuff will be hard to diagnose without someone who knows these truck and someone who knows what they are doing

Carder09 · January 2, 2014

Thought he had the 4L65E, which is a smidge tougher when handling torque.

AmericanBadlander · January 2, 2014

My truck is a 1500 top of the line model was 44000 brand new before the badlander package. Idk what the 6.0l h.o vortec Maxx has for a trans. It has the factory tow package rated to 10000 lbs. and 4.10 gears

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KMGZ400 · January 2, 2014

Thought he had the 4L65E, which is a smidge tougher when handling torque.

I forgot he had a 6.0 yeah I guess it's the 4l65

kstruckcountry · January 2, 2014

4L65 or not it won't like those tires. Minimum of 4.88 gears will help it last longer. Lower gears will make it drive much better.

And like KMG said it would be good to take it somewhere that knows trucks to get their opinion on what needs fixed.

Badass69 · January 2, 2014

Thought he had the 4L65E, which is a smidge tougher when handling torque.

I forgot he had a 6.0 yeah I guess it's the 4l65

4L70E actually in a Max. Still a piece of junk though lol. Truck probably still has the original 4.10s as nobody reg ears anything. 4.88 minimum lol. Actually it could have came with 3.73s too

.

Op how about losing the body lift and running a 35. Might save some headache.... and still go with 4.56

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AmericanBadlander · January 2, 2014

So what I'm basically getting from everyone is my trans is junk even though it shifts up and down fine in every situation except that long shift going into 4th/OD. And my tires are causing all my problems. Thanks for all your insight guys I will look into the diffs and find out what gears are in there. It came with 4.10s but it def has aftermarket covers so maybe the gears have been changed. I mean it hauls ass this truck. I smoke mustangs at lights. For weighing 7000 pounds that's pretty impressive. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I'm sticking with the 38s. I'll just look into upgrading everything. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

What would the body lift have to do with any shakes coming from the drivetrain/steering/suspension parts??Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

AmericanBadlander · January 2, 2014

I'm also averaging about 9.5-10 mpg

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lextown03 · July 3, 2014

If u want the 38's you needs better lift you cant use cheap ass blocks under it,, if u wanna dobit fine but I would take it to an off road builder,, and run some good shit'' ,, not dissing the blocks but there more for trail rigs,,,,

P.S. nuffsaid

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8.1HD/ALLISON · July 3, 2014

Start with checking the front end over. If u gonna keep truck and moneys not a big deal, i would replace the whole front end. As stated, lifts and tires are hard on parts. Do some brake work. Get truck drivable and have a tranny shop check operation before throwing a rebuild at it. Could be simple fix. Check into gears too.

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