Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra - Owners hangout

obyone · February 2006

Both the '04 Sierra Denali and Silverado SS are 1500 series trucks that come with the 6.0.

henery · February 2006

My blower does not turn on in the first two switch settings, yet turns on for switch settings 3, 4, and 5.

What gives?

p100 · February 2006

Bad blower motor resistor

dukeblu · February 2006

Helped me get a 2006 Long Bed Silverado 5.3 for $14,100 today after tax. Incredible to get 295HP for that cheap.

avianflu · February 2006

Dustyone, after reading your post, I nearly bought a replacement switch for $45... but he task of removing the door panel, and the fact that I never use it (as I'm nearly the only driver) prompted me to start working with the switch and after a few days of manipulation it is now working. My '99 Sierra has 110K and the mirror switch has been acting up for the last 2 years. Key is to keep using it.

coopster3 · February 2006

check the 4 bolts at the bottom of the plate that holds all the brackets on the front of the engine. they are at the very bottom of the bracket just above the balancer.(these bolt holes are acually the holes for '55-'57 motor mounts----don't ya just love chevy?) if one or more of these bolts is broke off or missing you will need two extra belts just to get home. been there --finally figured it out. hope this helps.

p100 · February 2006

I assume you bought a regular cab 2WD work truck with a 5.3 engine. The maximum allowable rebate on the old GM card is about $ 3500.

dukeblu · February 2006

I did indeed. What a bargain. Only options are auto and the 5.3 flexible fuel, in addition to it being the long-bed, it does have cloth seats.

I used to have the original GM card but switched to the new one. Glad I did, or I would have been capped at $2000 on the trade. Bought an S-10 with the prior card 4 years ago. The $3K rebate was a big plus.

The GM Card is a must for anyone that buys GMs.

p100 · February 2006

According to GM customer service, there is no maximum redeemable limit on the old card. In other words you can apply the entire rebate toward any GM vehicle. I had $ 3,600 rebate built up on my old card. I could have used the entire amount toward the purchase of a new 2005 Cavalier SV, which with another $ 3k rebate from GM and the sticker price of $ 10,800, could be bought for $ 4,000 plus tax. Unbelievable for a new car with A/C and CD player. Unfortunately, there were only a few left in the country and the one I found within 500 miles radius was sold before I had a chance to buy it.

dukeblu · February 2006

The old card is capped at $500 per year. Since I bought an S-10 four years ago, 4*$500 would have capped me off at only $2000 max that I could have earned. I charge everything on my GM Card, so I end up better off with the new card.

I like your approach to value shopping. I also toyed with getting a Cavalier simply because they were so cheap with all the rebates.

jerrywimer · February 2006

I'm thinking about trading my Silverado on a new Avalanche once they become available. Right now I don't have a GM card, but I have a couple other cards that I'm in the process of paying off. If I was to transfer the roughly $2k balance from one of these cards to a new GM card what kind of earnings would I expect to see toward the new vehicle purchase? In other words, given the short time period before I'm planning the trade, would I benefit from transferring the balance from a different card to the GM card and cancelling the former? (I understand the longer term routine use of the GM card would be beneficial)

p100 · February 2006

So the new GM card is not capped at $ 500 a year? What is the maximum annual earnings on that one?

dukeblu · February 2006

As far as I know there is no cap. I usually have my earnings balance go up between $700-$800 per year. The downside is that the new card is subject to redemption restrictions. I had $3800 of earnings on the card, but the redemption allowance was $3000. So you lose some flexibility.

covah23 · February 2006

I have a newer GM Card. I believe I'm topped out at 5% of the price of the vehicle.

z71bill · February 2006

If you buy a new car every 2-3 years (or less) then the new card could give you a higher rebate - that is IF you charge MORE than $10,000 per year on the card. Since most items earn 5% - if you don't spend more than $10K the amount of earnings will not be changed. The old card is capped at $500 of earnings per year. The new card has no limit on earnings.

But the new card earnings have other limits - GM sets the maximum earnings level on each vehicle - for example if you want to buy a 2007 Tahoe you can only use $1,000 of GM earnings - even if you have $10,000 of GM earnings built up - if you want a 2006 Tahoe then the limit is $3,500. So if you always want the new model - and trade vehicles every 4-5 years - then the old cars would be better.

Under the old card - if you have spent $10K or more per year over the last 7 years - you would have $3,500 in earnings built up - you could use it all on a 2007 Tahoe (the $1,000 limit does not apply) - or on a 2006 or just about any GM vehicle.

jerrywimer · February 2006

for all the information on the way these cards work. At 5% I'll only get roughly $100 credit if I were to transfer the remaining balance from a different card to the GM card and close out the other account. That's also assuming GM applies the earnings to balance transfers. (Does anyone know if this is the case?)

p100 · February 2006

I am almost positive that you earn rebate only on purchases, not balance transfers. But they could have changed the rules recently.

z71bill · February 2006

Sometimes GM has a special deal for new customers where they will allow GM earnings points on balance transfers. But most of the time they do not allow it.

This is the GM card home page

http://www.gmcard.com/GMCard/index.jsp

jerrywimer · February 2006

Thanks for the link. I'm reading up on it now. Too bad I didn't apply for the card a year ago. :P

gitpicker50 · February 2006

I am having trouble shifting into park and removing the ignition key on my 2001 Sierra 2500HD. Any ideas would be appreciated before I have to cave into the dealer.

daveceron · February 2006

So I took my truck in to have the tires rotated today, and just like any other time I take one of my vehicles in the mechanic tries to sell me on other maintenance that would wind up costing me hundreds. What do you all recommend for 30,000 mile maintenance, and what should I leave up to the mechanics? I've worked on my previous 2 trucks just fine, but they were older ('77 Chevy Luv and '95 Ranger). Thanks for the help.
Dave

jerrywimer · February 2006

I'd go by what the owner's manual recommends.

klofy1234 · February 2006

yea ive used mine twice i hear guys talk about caps but i had 112.00 in rewards they topped it off to 2000.00 and with the 4000.00 in incentives i paid 13000.00 on my silverado which i love this is my second chevy rocks!!!!! and so does the gm card

dustyone · February 2006

The switch is a 5 minute removal job. The door panel doesn't have to come off. The switch is gently pried up, disconnected, disassembled, cleaned and reinstalled. Very simple.

dustyone · February 2006

Started receiving the message, removed the switch and cleaned the contacts. Did not fix the problem. Under extended warranty
the dealer rebuild the front differential. The 4wd felt as though it were engaged at all times. Charged GM $600 (I paid $100 deductible). Also replaced the 4wd selector switch as they said that it had an internal short (part number 15709327)

I am experiencing what may be another problem. When the switch is in Auto 4wd, the front propeller shafts turn and the wheels bind when turning as though it were in 4 hi. The dealer says that this is normal. The assembly turns but is not pulling unless the rear wheels slip. Is this correct?

2000 Silverado, Ext Cab, Z71 with 54K fun filled miles.

aik262 · March 2006

I have 2004 1500 reg cab, std box (6.5), 4.3 v6, 5spd, 3.42 rear gear, Now I get 17-18 miles avg,87 shell gas, on 89 shell gas, i get 18-19.5 avg,witch depends on how much city and highway driving I do, I'm sticking with 89, the engine seems to run smoother, other than that i love this truck, drive till wheels fall off.

vp46 · March 2006

I bought a new a 05 Z71 Crew Cab - it now has only 15,000 miles on it. Its the nicest most expensive vehical I have ever owned. I gave up the dream of aircraft ownership for this truck. :mad: Dammit if I am going to put up with a bad tranny.......that said:

Tranny Slipping on a 15k mile 05 Z71 CC

I don't have any wierd noises any where in the truck (unless the kids are in back ofcourse).

I am wary of my transmission - when its cold the tranny feels like it slips in Reverse. There have also been times where it would slip in forward also cold - it may have been an overly sensitive shifter???? IE not all the way engaged becuase it was in between D and another gear? Not really sure.

Any one else have this issue? :confuse:

p100 · March 2006

What do you mean by slipping in reverse? Transmission slippage is characterized by prolonged shifts, with an accompanying increase in RPM during the shift. You may have a shifter issue, not a transmission slipping issue.

I have an '06 Z71 crew cab with the same transmission (4L60), but I have too few miles on it to have any issues yet. However, two people who live on my street own Z71's. Both had their tranmissions fall apart recently. One was an '04 with 35K miles, the other an '05 or '06 with something like 20k miles. They were pulling large trailers, but still, these failures do not instill any confidence in this truck. Something tells me I should have bought a Dodge 2500 with Cummins diesel and 6 speed heavy duty manual transmission.

vp46 · March 2006

It does not have prolonged or delayed shifts in Reverse (cold engine). The rear end kind of feels like it pulsates? (just came back and read this - for the record the wife was not on one of those quarter operated beds)

Possible prolonged shift in Forward, it felt like it popped out of gear (higher rev but would not characterize it as HIGH) and then would settle back in. Both times I'm moving from a stop to about 5-10mph when it occurs I let off the gas but not completely. This has happened at least three times. Once I screwed with the shifter (muttering WTF) to see if it was a misaligned shifter or something - which is quite dangerous if your off road on a steep incline......popping out of gear gives me the shivers.

p100 · March 2006

I wonder if there is a service bulletin describing a problem similar to yours. You need to have the shfting linkage checked on the transmission. You never know - somebody could have adjusted it wrong, so hopefully it is just an adjustment issue. Unfortunately, these auto transmissions are complicated. If you like, go to gm-trucks.com site, register, and describe your problem in the "GM tech" forum. There is a genuine GM tech on the site and he is usually helpful.

Why is it that GM does not offer manual transmissions with the 5.3 liter engine in the Z71? I am a manual transmission guy and really do not care much for automatics, especially when they are problematic.

sebring95 · March 2006

I've had three of these transmissions ('00 Silverado, '02 Tahoe, '03 Silverado) and all three had "issues". None failed, but they all had goofy shifting, dumb-dumb programming, and occassional slips/clunks/bangs. The problems however were so sporadic the dealer couldn't nail any of them down. The '02 Tahoe was the worst; when trying to accelerate from a stop, it would just rev for a moment then slam into gear. Other times it would abruptly downshift for no reason and make a big "clunk" noise. No idea what became of those vehicles after I owned them, but they made it through the miles (50k, 45k, and 30k respectively) without actually failing.

What most annoyed me about them was their anxious upshifting. Unless you put your foot clear to the floor, they would upshift easily even if accelerating while climbing a hill. Poor programming if you ask me. There are some smart transmission out there, but not these. I was quite surprised to see the new Tahoe has the same old slush-box.

geo9 · March 2006

GUYS......My 01 2500 6.0 would slip from a stop and
bang into gear at times when new. After reading
these forums I took it to the Chevy dealer for a
TSB # PCM re-flash and never had the problem again.......

My 04 2500 has been flawless.............

sebring95 · March 2006

I complained on all three of my trucks to the dealer, and they did reflash the tranny. The '00 resonded better (less clunking), the '02 still occassionally slipped, and the '03 would shift sluggish for a couple days and then go back to clunking. The slipping issue was very sporadic on my '02.

I believe the 2500 has a completely different transmission than the 1500 trucks.

geo9 · March 2006

Right........But I have noted posts about both the
l460e and l480e but no issues with the l485e yet.

But I also snowplow and heavy tow and hang in the snowplowing forums and note transmission failures
on many different brands...............

The new Ford 5 speed auto. backing the diesel is
currently a troublesome unit..............
I shudder to think the new GM 6 speed auto. will
also be the same when put to work !!!!!

Sure glad I dump my trucks before the warranty runs out!

p100 · March 2006

How are the Dodge Cummins manual 6 speed transmissions holding up? At this point I do not trust ANY auto transmission used in ANY 3/4 or 1 ton new American trucks. It appears that the days of good reliable auto transmissions that would last 300k miles are gone. Now all they give you is a super fancy computer controlled POS that is structurally just strong enough to last through the warranty period. After that, you can buy extended warranty or go pound sand. Pretty sad philosophy, if you ask me. I sincerely hope that strong competition from Japanese manufacturers will force the big three to get their act together. It's about time.

sebring95 · March 2006

Pretty much everyone has transmission issues these days, some slightly worse than others. Having a sloppy shifting transmission like many of the 1/2 ton Chevy's is not acceptable with the electronic controls and such now available. I suppose you could live with sloppy shifts IF the transmission was bullet proof like some sloppy shifters fromt eh past. From what I've gathered from transmission experts, the Chevys fail just as quickly/often as any of the others. The Ford/Toyota transmissions are fairly intelligent in how they shift at least. Coming out of my '03 Silverado into an '06 Tundra, the transmission is a huge improvement. It holds gears up/down hills, downshifts as you're braking into a turn, and will easily come out of OD on the highway for much better acceleration.

From what I've seen/heard, the Allison is pretty tough for the most part and seems to have its act together in the shifting department as well. I wouldn't hesitate to buy one. I'm thinking about replacing my '01 Ram 2500 as it's crossing 200k miles and it's not the ideal setup any longer (short-bed, loads are getting heavier). I may spring for an '06 Sierra with D-max/Allison. I'll be leary of the '07 redesign for awhile, just like I was when the D-max was introduced.

I have the NV5600 6-speed in my '03 Dodge 3500 and absolutely love it. It currently is close to 100k miles of towing 12,000-15,000# and has given zero issues. The clutch is fine, shifting fine, drives quite impressively. I've heard Dodge is not using the NV5600 6-speed anymore in their newest HD trucks and I'm not real sure what they're using. The Dodge HD automatic seems to be stout enough these days, but it's still lacking in gears/intelligence compared to the Allison.

geo9 · March 2006

Guys........I found a current GM TSB for 04/05
GM truck transmissions. (At another GM truck forum)
This also cures the 2-3 shift clunk !!!!!!!!!!

GM TSB# 05-07-30-013 Dated May 9 2005

It involves a PCM re-flash......MUCH to wordy to
post/paste/copy here.

Drop me your e-mail to my profile addy. and I can direct you to it..........

geo9 · March 2006

Look here for that TSB:
http://www.gm-trucks.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=45694

indian3 · March 2006

Just had mine done day before yesterday and it has worked so far. It does seem to have less power now after the reflash.

ricsch1 · March 2006

I'm looking to go from my '03 Silverado ext. cab 4wd to a 1/2 ton crew cab short box 4wd w/ a 5.3 and was wondering if the 3.42 rear axle ratio would be better than 3.73s for fuel mileage. Would it even be a noticeable difference?

Have a couple trucks in mind, one has 3.73s, the other 3.42s.

geo9 · March 2006

You can assume the 3:42 will get better mpg. than the
3:73s. With gas coming back to near $3.00 a gallon
again I would test out both.............

A 2wd will even do better !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Do you tow?

joe29001 · March 2006

I've owned two 5.3 4x4 trucks, one with 3.73 and one with 3.42 gears. In my experience, the 3.42 gears yield worse mileage (and performance) around town or pulling any load. On the highway & empty, they're about even (if the 3.42's are better, it's not enough to notice). Given the choice between the two, I'd definitely go with the 3.73's.

Having owned trucks geared as high as 3.08 and as low as 4.10, I've never regretted having lower gears (even 4.10's). I did regret buying the 3.08-equipped truck and the 3.42's, while bearable, are pushing it, IMHO.

noobie1 · March 2006

It really depends a lot on how you're going to use the truck. I have two trucks, one with 3.32's (F250) and one with 3.73's. Generally, I agree with Joe; Lower is better. I don't know about gas mileage; If the 3.42's are more economical it can't be much. Remember, with the higher ratio you're going to stay deeper in the throttle to produce the same torque at the rear wheels. Looking back I wish I had gotten 4.10 instead of 3.73's. Remember also, you can always raise the effective ratio by going bigger on the tires.

-David

marylandbob · March 2006

I am considering buying an '06 Silverado 4x4 1500 EXT Cab or Crew Cab. The deals seem to be getting better but I suspect they may improve even more as the model year ends, gas continues going up and the new '07 model debut gets closer.
I'm interested in hearing about anyone's buying and ownership experience with this truck. More specifically, are there any serious problems, real MPG, things you really like or dislike? I've browsed through some of these forums but they cover a broad spectrum of models and years. I owned a '98 Silverado 4x4 and really liked a lot of things about the truck but did encounter some problems with brakes, engine lights and electrical. I've seen some of those problems discussed in this forum.
I currently own a 2006 Honda Ridgeline which has given me a lot of trouble, serious water leakage, windshield noise, hesitation, creaking steering wheel and poor MPG for 6 cyl.
So I don't want to make another mistake. Any feedback and advice from '06 or other owners will be greatly appreciated.

ricsch1 · March 2006

Thanks for the feedback on the question. I don't tow alot, when I do its only about 2,000 lbs.

Most likely go with the truck with 3.73s if the deal comes together.

p100 · March 2006

I like 3.73s in my truck. In the past Ford even offered an F150 with a straght 300 cu in 6 cylinder and 2.73 rear end gears! They even said in their towing guide not to tow anything with a truck so equipped. What kind of BS is that? Who buys a full size truck that cannot (or should not) tow anything?

white6 · March 2006

Purchased new in July 2004. Sales price (after all incentives) of $19,000; also received a $500 Lowes Gift Card as small business incentive, so my effective price was $18,500 (before trade and tax). Truck stickered for just under $29,000. Dealer got me a 3.65% loan through Chase. No added on fees of any kind (advertising, title, etc.). Buying experience was one of the best I've ever had. Small town rural dealer (Knipplemier Chevy in Blanchard, OK). 16,000+ miles so far and not a single problem. Upgrades so far: SS grille, roll-up tonneau cover, set of 17-inch Suburban take-off wheels and tires, Predator handheld tuner (87 octane tune mainly to improve tranny performance and correct for speedometer error from larger wheels/tires), and a seat-raising kit. This last thing fixed the only real flaw in my truck; darn seats were too low. Only option we didn't get that I wish we had was power seats so they can be raised. Bought a kit off E-bay that raises the seat about 1-1/2-inches: perfect! Get 18-19 mpg in mixed driving. All in all, very happy with this truck. And the best part? I'll be paying it off this week!

p100 · March 2006

You must have had a hefty GM card rebate. Otherwise, a discount of $ 10,500 would put the dealer deep into the red zone over his true cost.

I am gald you mentioned the seat rasing kit. You are right, the seats are too low in these trucks. I have a power seat on the driver's side, so I can raise the seat more, but the passenger seat needs to come up. Are the brackets in the kit sturdy enough? The seatbelts are integrated into the seat, so it is essential that the brackets do not fail in a crash. I noticed they use a peculiar fastener for securing the seat to the foorboards. they look star shaped. Is there a special tool for these?

glennp · March 2006

I may be too late, but, I just bought a 2006 sierra with the 5.3 and a 3.42 rear end. It does do good on gas, but I had trouble pulling an enty 7 X 16 foot enclosed trailer. We pull a 5th wheel camper. When we had the 2004 5.3 w/3.73 gears we had no problem pulling. Maybe the milage wasn't the best, but we could go. We just traded the gas burner off for a Duramax w/the allison trans. I think this will take care of our pulling problem............

p100 · March 2006

I am surprised that you have so many problems with the Ridgeline. But every new model has problems, so this is to be expected.

I have an '06 Z71 crew cab. 5.3, tow package, 3.73 gears. Good power, smooth ride. Mileage, so,so. 15-16 MPG. But for the money I think this is one good practical vehicle. I like the interior space of the crew cab. No problems worth mentioning at 2K miles.

Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra - Owners hangout

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