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Suburban Tahoe Vibration Problems
I have a 07 Suburban w/ less 1000 miles. It has been in the dealership for a week with a vibration problem from 45 mph and higher. Every time they says its fixed, it is worse.
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This is my first post and I looked for other topics that covered this but found nothing for my year tahoe. May be a different problem. A year or so ago I sold my jeep to buy my wife a hyundai and I took her 99 chevy tahoe. She put a 3 inch suspension lift on it and tires before i met her. Anyway, when im driving almost any speed the truck is fine, but when I start to slow down the whole front end seems to shimmy. It doesnt do it all the time though. Ive heard it could be my pittman arm or my brake calipers. Just wanted to know if anyone else had this similar problem before I crawl up under there this weekend.
Thanks
John Dillard :sick:
Usually a shimmy when you step on the brakes is caused by a warpped brake rotor. Hope that is it for you, its an easy fix compared to a pittman arm or other steering linkage parts.
I am new to this forum and have a couple of questions.
I am interested in buying a 1999 Chevy Suburban 2500 4X4 w/ 104k miles. This one has the 7.4 (454), and I was wondering what kind of issues (if any) could I expect with this engine/trans powerplant
What happened to you,did they fix it?
Thanks
keithl2
Or is it a warped rotor type of vibration? ..... doesn't vibrate until you begin to apply the brakes most detectable slowing from 40mph?
Or could it be an unbalanced drive shaft?
You might have someone drive your vehicle about 50 mph on lightly travelled road, and then you follow around in another vehicle and watch the wheels to see if you can find one which is misbehaving badly (wobble, bouncing, etc). It is sometimes easiest if while following you inch your car over, so you can get a visual sight line up the side of the vehicle. You may have a bent wheel, but you would think that the tire balancer's would look closely and monitor that.
If none of that finds anything, look for a shop that has a 'road force balancer'. Do an internet search, and their website will identify local garages. It is a special balancer which balances the tire while it is pressing a load on the tire, simulating the weight of the vehicle.
I have a 2007 LTZ w/20" OEM wheels and tires, and it is smooth as can be.
Your post does not say how the vibration occurs but I assume it occurs while driving and not just when you apply brakes, right?
If above is true, i.e. your vibration happens all the time and of course more severely with higher speed, check your drive axle from the gear box to the differential.
The U-joints in the end of the drive shaft must be positioned correctly. This means that on the middle part of the shaft, the long part, the U-joint knuckles must be aligned. I hope I use the correct wording here. The middle part of the drive shaft usually has the axial movement built in to it (spline) and when assembling this part of the shaft it can be done wrong, i.e. the U-joint knuckles are not aligned correctly.
On correctly assembled shaft the U-joint knuckles are positioned in the same plane. Only at this position the shaft delivers constant rotation speed thru the shaft. If shaft is assembled with an angle (rotation direction) difference between the U-joint knuckles the shaft will develop an "oval" speed output in the other end, which would make the car shake as hell while driving.
If your truck is 4-wheel drive check the front wheel drive axles too as they might be simple U-joints instead of CV-joints and can cause a vibration issue just the same way the drive shaft can if assembled incorrectly.
Arrie
Thanks for the quick and detailed reply. Plenty of very good suggestions.
Yes, I have had the tires road forced balanced. One the new OEM Bridgestone tires failed the test. The dealer said that it was a problem they had been seeing with the Bridgestone tires and suggested I contact Bridgestone for warranty information.
Burbo7 said on June 18th:
"GM ended up purchasing a set of premium (grade A) Michelin tires at a cost of $1200+. This is what the Service Manager said is the only thing that he has seen that takes care of the problem. GM district rep agreed. Problem fixed. The burb cruises smoothly at all speeds. I have to give GM some cudo's, they stood behind the product and spent the money to fix it. According to the SM, the OEM Bridgestone tires are a grade B tire."
That's quite interesting. Costco sells these tires and I have ordered a set of 4. Will inform the board if this fixes the vibration issue.
Rich
I did not know this bulletin existed.
I have a fully loaded LTZ Tahoe with the 20" tires and I will be at my dealer Monday morning with a copy of the bulletin. Will keep you updated on what they tell me and what occurs. If nothing, I will contacted GM directly. We shouldn't have any vibration issue on a vehicle we are still making payments on.
Subject:EI07266 - Vehicle/Tire Vibration, P275/5R20, LT265/70R17, P285/45R22, LT245/75R16, P265/70R17 #07-03-10-013A - (11/01/2007)
Models:2007-2008 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT
2007-2008 Chevrolet Avalanche, Silverado, Suburban, Tahoe
2007-2008 GMC Sierra, Yukon, Yukon XL
with any of the following Tire RPO's:
- QSS (P275/55R20)
- QXT (LT265/70R17)
- QST (P285/45R22)
- QIZ (LT245/75R16)
- QAS / QAN (P265/70R17)
- QJM / QJP (P265/70R17)
Attention: Proceed with this bulletin ONLY if the customer has commented about this concern AND the EI number is listed in GMVIS. If the customer has not commented about this condition or the EI does not show in GMVIS, disregard the bulletin and proceed with diagnostics found in published Service Information. THIS IS NOT A RECALL -- refer to Service Bulletin 04-00-89-053A for more detail on the use of Engineering Information bulletins.
This bulletin is being revised to add tire RPOs QST, QIZ, QAS, QAN, QJM and QJP. In addition, step 11 has been revised to request the 11-digit DOT number of the tire. Please discard Corporate Bulletin Number 07-03-10-013 (Section 03 -- Suspension).
Condition
Some customers may comment on a vehicle/tire vibration.
Cause
GM Engineering is attempting to determine the root cause of reported tire vibrations on vehicles equipped with P275/55R20, LT265/70R17, P285/45R22, LT245/75R16 or P265/70R17 tires. GM has a need to obtain information during diagnosis and BEFORE repair. This information will be used by engineering to "root cause" the customer's concern and develop/validate a field fix.
If the customer's concern can not be duplicated -- disregard this bulletin. If the customer's concern can be duplicated, complete the following steps. Be sure to note the following information on the repair order:
Verify that the VIN and mileage listed on the repair order is accurate. Describe the customer's concern (i.e. shake, buzz, roughness, tingling). Note when (mph, idle, accel, decel, etc) and where (steering column, seat, etc) the vibration is felt. Document the tire size and manufacturer of the tires currently on the vehicle. Inspect the following components to verify that they are in good working condition. Note any "faults" on the repair order:
• tire/wheel assemblies
• steering components
• suspension components
Install the J 38792-A (Electronic Vibration Analyzer -- EVA) sensor to the component identified by the customer as the most respondent to the vibration. If no component was identified, install the J 38792-A sensor to the steering column. Select a smooth, level road and slowly accelerate the vehicle up to highway speed. Observe the vehicle for disturbances that match the customer's description and note the following conditions:
• Vehicle speed
• Engine RPM
• Transmission gear range and specific gear
• Vibration frequency reading, detected by the J 38792-A
If the sensor was originally placed on the steering column, and the vibration seems to excite a particular component of the vehicle more than the steering column, move the J 38792-A sensor to that component and repeat steps 6 and 7. Does the frequency data clearly fall within the tire/wheel parameters? (Refer to Symptoms -- Vibration Diagnosis and Correction, found in SI).
• NO -- continue to diagnose and repair the vibration not related to the tire and wheel assembly. • YES -- proceed with Step 10.
Using the HUNTER GSP9700 Roadforce/Balancer, measure the roadforce variation of each tire/wheel assembly. Also, with the original balance weights still installed, measure the inboard and outboard imbalance. Record the findings on the RO. Record on the repair order, the 11-digit DOT number found on the rim flange of the tire.
PRIOR to making any repairs, contact the engineer listed below with information from your diagnosis. The engineer will provide direction to repair the customer's concern. For vehicles located in SE Michigan, the engineer may need to physically inspect the vehicle.
The dealer has replaced the Intermediate shaft, 4 new OE shocks, replaced the wheels and tires(new take offs from a 2008 Tahoe, 20"inch- road forced balanced the tires, balanced the drive shaft, did rotor run out, checked the rear rotors for warpness, but the vibrations are still there between 65-75 mph and doesn't go away unitl you get below 65 mph..Whats next?
I've put 30,000 miles on my original tires and they're holding up great. Plenty of tread wear left and no vibrations. I routinely rotate them and keep my Tahoe in 2 wheel drive mode unless it's raining or I go up to the snow.
Or put your wheels on another vehicle that initially drives smooth, see if the problem moves with the swap or not.
I got a call Saturday (27th) that it was ready to be picked up and problem was fixed. They replaces the Ring gear in the differential. They drove it and said it was fixed. I picked it up and drove maybe a mile and knew it wasn't fixed. I took it back to them Sunday. They called again today to say the ring gear is out of round again. OMG-- I can't take too much more of this crazy stuff.
Bought a new '09 Avalanche (last to be built for the model year, 10/09) on the last day of February '10. Almost 2 months now, 2700 miles (first 700 from the dealer in Georgia delivering it to me). 2wd Z71 model with the "off road" bits, 265/65/18 Bridgestone Dueler A/T RH-s tires, 6-spd trans and 3.08 rear axle.
Has shuddering/vibrating quiver where the seat shakes, steering wheel vibrates and floor quivers cruising and accelerating. Random at times in how bad, once in a while will just go smooth. Cross truck shudder & quiver, cruising and accelerating, especially when warm/hot out.
Did it from new, but I couldn't figure out what it was. Drove a new leftover '09 4wd 1LT with the factory 20's and 3.42 rear before, it was dead smooth. No vibration, just smooth and solid. Drove a '10 2wd Z71 with the 3.42 before signing for mine, since mine was coming from so far away & I had never actually driven a Z71, and it was softer than the 1LT with a bit of flat spotted tire shake for a couple miles, then smooth. Just a little luggier feeling than the 1LT & 20's, because of the A/T 18" tires, as expected.
Mine does this:
-"Quivering" feeling driving even at really low speeds, feel it in the seat and wheel
-Vibration through the seat and wheel continue up to speed, worst generally from 35-55 and can get a little less if faster
-When warm out, sunny, etc. and the tire pressures bump up, it shakes worst...oddly, on night trips, it's turned smooth or smoother for no real reason, cooler roads aside
-Any kind of texture to the road makes for a constant quiver throughout the truck, still there on perfectly smooth roads but not as much; driving through my development at 25'ish, it quivers
-Warm/hot days when shaking, it'll studder to the side and wobble over bumps...maybe just the A/T tires, but more pronounced at times
-Some days, not cold but not hot, and raining/wet it'll be smooth...or at least smoother than otherwise
-On the days that the vibration in general is really noticeable, shakes badly when accelerating from a stop too
-Shuddering is V4/V8 mode regardless, and the truck idles and revs like butter--not even a vibe at idle. Just had the ECM/TCM custom tuned (performance, better shifting, etc.), and no change in the shaking whatsoever
What's been done:
1) Dealer tech drove, felt vibration, road forced all tires & said they were out of balance; said it still had a vibration afterwards but to drive it since it was still new, and see "sometimes those tires get like that if they sit a while"; for the most part, it was the same or worse after they balanced them.
2) Not believing the dealer, I took it to an actual Bridgestone dealer locally who was glad to help. Knew every possibility. Day I drove it to them in the rain and 50 degree temps, it didn't vibrate a bit and was SMOOTH. Of course. They road forced all the wheel/tire combos too, and said they were actually some of the best assemblies they'd seen and were true & in balance. Said it could either be something with the truck or maybe just the feel of A/T tires on a luxury SUV.
3) Back to the dealer last week, but of course the truck got SMOOTH the same day, for no reason. Couldn't even make it shake. Explained this, but what it also does most often when warmed up & they noted it. End of day, got a call a tech had driven it 25 miles "but didn't feel anything'. Of course. Still felt smooth when I picked it up, like in the morning, but after about 5 miles of errands & heading home in on a warm, sunny afternoon, the shakes were back, not the worst but still there. The next morning, same roads, same temps, it vibrated like crazy first like a switch had been flipped, steering wheel shaking, seat shaking, the bad cross truck shudder on perfectly smooth roads turned back on. Sad to stop in next time I'm out, it's shaking, and they're open. Trying...
It's weird because it always shudders, but some days can go from barely to really bad. Usually just always the constant light to aggravating quiver & shudder that comes through the seat, wheel and floor. Our '02 Z66 and '04 Suburban before never had a single vibration issue at any speed from day one, and I didn't notice anything in either of the other 2 new Av's I drove, or any other GMT-900 Yukon's, etc. I drove before.
The fact that it's worst when hot and the tire pressures bump makes me think tires, as does the smoother rain drives. But 2 road force jobs, including one from a very helpful Bridgestone dealer, and it still shakes slow, accelerating, or cruising.
1) Tires/wheels. Still likely. But on/off/sorta random-ness? Still possible. These Bridgestone Dueler A/T RH-S tires in this size are on an eon bazillion of these trucks, but I have yet to find any reported number of issues. 1 or 2 here or there, complaining of them throwing rocks all over, but not vibration issues.
2) Drivetrain? Runs like butter, still, doesn't hesitate, doesn't even give off any vibes at idle. If the driveshaft were out of balance, a U-joint, etc. with issues, I wouldn't think there'd be the random shakes, doesn't shake, sorta shakes, smooth as silk, my hands are going to fall off shakes...weird. I know the 6L80E from my G8 GT well, not a normal trans issue. Truck is now tuned, ECM and TCM, and not a single change in the shaking.
3) Smoother at night after sitting sometimes? Again, weird...
I'm about to just pay for new tires and go from there. Hoping for a good shaky soon with time to stop in at the dealer & give an impromptu ride, but we'll see.