A $0.02 review of my 2019 RST

Wiggums · April 22, 2019

Quick question, do you have two shocks instead of one? My dealership thinks that was what aggravated it. He said not all seem to have that problem but he's had a very few come in with that problem and he knows it can be really dangerous.

econometrics · April 22, 2019

I read a review recently that talked about this rear-end ride issue with the Z71's. The reviewer said when 500#+ was put in the bed, it really rode a lot better.

Strange... as most of us urban cowboys don't ride around with loads in the bed these days.

Wiggums · April 22, 2019

I tried the weight thing myself but the problem is it would have to be a very unusual terrain for it to happen. It's only happened twice and whenever I went back to duplicate it, it didn't happen again. Both were on roads with dry dirt caked on top from the recent rains, not a lot of dirt, about an inch high. I deflated my tires to 32 psi instead of 40 and it happened again even with roughly 400 pounds in the back (I happened to have camping equipment in there). Now, it's back to 40. It doesn't happen often though.

I think the problem is the front wheels handle so well and stay planted. With my old 4x4, all four tires would jiggle and I wouldn't get out of angle and have to swerve to avoid hitting anything since it'd still go straight.

econometrics · April 22, 2019

7 minutes ago, Wiggums said:

I tried the weight thing myself but the problem is it would have to be a very unusual terrain for it to happen. It's only happened twice and whenever I went back to duplicate it, it didn't happen again. Both were on roads with dry dirt caked on top from the recent rains, not a lot of dirt, about an inch high. I deflated my tires to 32 psi instead of 40 and it happened again even with roughly 400 pounds in the back (I happened to have camping equipment in there). Now, it's back to 40. It doesn't happen often though.

I think the problem is the front wheels handle so well and stay planted. With my old 4x4, all four tires would jiggle and I wouldn't get out of angle and have to swerve to avoid hitting anything since it'd still go straight.

Interesting.

This happened from time to time in my 2007 LT Crew RWD, but I just thought it was a truck thing. If I went over a lot of jitter, the back end would wander on me a little. Never enough to really concern me, though.

What do you mean by asking (above) if there are two shocks vs. one in the rear?

Wiggums · April 22, 2019

3 minutes ago, econometrics said:

Interesting.

This happened from time to time in my 2007 LT Crew RWD, but I just thought it was a truck thing. If I went over a lot of jitter, the back end would wander on me a little. Never enough to really concern me, though.

What do you mean by asking (above) if there are two shocks vs. one in the rear?

It's twin tube, not monotube. I looked in other websites and some have mentioned unpredictable handling that comes with twins, but not monotube.

The front handles so well it stays planted. I would rather have all four wheels even in terms of handling and performance so nothing slides out of the way. My F-150 was like that and it never turned on straight roads, maybe a little but it never concerned me. The Silverado RST had only 60 miles when it did that the first time. It was off by around 15 degrees. It wasn't instant, it took about 4 or 5 seconds to get to that position and I was on a straight road. I had to swerve the steering wheel to straighten it up. Even before that, I wasn't touching any one of the pedals. I had taken my foot off the gas pedal a few seconds before when I saw the caked dry dirt on top of the road. I never braked during the entire incident.

econometrics · April 22, 2019

23 minutes ago, Wiggums said:

It's twin tube, not monotube. I looked in other websites and some have mentioned unpredictable handling that comes with twins, but not monotube.

Aren't the Ranchos on the Z71 trims monotubes?

I've read the Ranchos can lead to this kind of performance in the rear end over bumps at speed. I know the OEM Rancho shock on the Z71s is a very hot topic amongst truck enthusiasts...

Wiggums · April 22, 2019

9 minutes ago, econometrics said:

Aren't the Ranchos on the Z71 trims monotubes?

I've read the Ranchos can lead to this kind of performance in the rear end over bumps at speed. I know the OEM Rancho shock on the Z71s is a very hot topic amongst truck enthusiasts...

https://www.tfltruck.com/2018/11/2019-chevy-silverado-rst-4wd-z71-review/

Suspension:

Front: Independent coil-over-shock with twin tube shock absorbers.

Rear: Solid axle with semi-elliptic, variable-rate, two-stage multileaf springs and splayed twin-tube shocks

That was for the RST 4WD CrewCab with Z71 - exactly what I have.

Wiggums · April 22, 2019

The problem with twin tubes is that there are two separate tubes.. on monotubes, it's one taking care of everything and there's no confusion between the two... that was how it was explained to me.

econometrics · April 22, 2019

Odd. Chevy's website lists monotube Ranchos: https://media.chevrolet.com/media/us/en/chevrolet/vehicles/silverado/2019.html

Z71 Off-Road Equipment Package is available on all models. Content includes: Rancho monotube shocks, Electronic Hill Descent Control, two-speed transfer case, locking rear differential, front skid plates and heavy-duty air cleaner

Same listed here: http://gmauthority.com/blog/2019/03/2019-silverado-trail-boss-vs-z71-off-road-package-comparison/

But then other places, it's listed as twin-tubes. https://www.holidayautomotive.com/blog/what-comes-with-the-2019-chevy-silverado-z71/

...and now I see it. The Trail Boss Z71 package has monotubes, but the non-TB Z71 package does not. So weird.

http://gmauthority.com/blog/2019/03/2019-silverado-trail-boss-vs-z71-off-road-package-comparison/

wizard4878 · April 23, 2019

Mine 19 is not a Z71, but my 05 was. There is one place particular that it's bad about jumping sideways on my way home from work, it's in a slight curve that has about 7 or 8 degrees of banking, the speed limit is 45. At that speed it kicks out enough you can feel it, but if you run through there with traffic (55-60) it feels like it kicks out about 2 feet. The 05 would do it at 45 and never move, if fact you would have to get over 60mph to get it loose even a little bit. Like I said in my earlier post, I believe it's just the stiffer suspension, the 19 doesn't ride quite as well as the 05 did either, IMO

Even though it sounds like I'm complaining, I'm really not, this small issue really does not bother me and I like everything else about the truck, at least so far, oh, except for the payment, I haven't had one of those in 9 years...