I have an Indigo Blue SLT with the 1SH package that I ordered almost a year ago and took possession of last July. I do have the articulating front headrests. I'll bet you do too. Mine both will tilt forward at the top of the headrest, which I just love. I like to have the headrest right up against the back of my head while driving. They do not move easily, it takes some effort, but they do stay put once you have tilted them forward. It's a safety issue with me, I want that headrest right there in case of an accident. I had a 1985 Pontiac STE that was the first car I had that had this feature. My 1992 Park Ave. Ultra, which cost exactly twice as much as the Pontiac, didn't have them and I really missed them. Having the articulating front headrests was one of the features I really loved about the Envoy. So, try to tilt them forward and if you don't get them to move, take it back the the dealer. I did not get a cargo area shelf, but did get the cargo cover. I see that there is a GMC acessory shelf/organizer that can be purchased. I do have the slight orange peel look, but it is consistant over the entire truck so it does not bother me. I pull a 3500# boat & trailer with no problem on the hitch. I just slid in my 2" hitch platform with ball and then took off.
I love the truck. I have had the wandering mirror and tailgate gasket problems, but those are minor. I would order another one just like it if something happened to this one. I came out of a 1998 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab and just could not be happier. The biggest problem I have is that my wife now wants to trade her Chrysler Town & Country van for a new Envoy XL with the DVD system for the kids!!
Yeah, I know about all of the storge cubbies in back and the cargo cover/shade but I didn't know about the secret one until we went through the delivery process yesterday. The manual also made mention of a shelf that would fit right behind the seats with 2 height positions. My manual is for both the regular and XL versions, and maybe this one thing that is XL only that they forgot to mark that way. Not a big issue, because it is not like I am missing something I thought I was getting.
I will definitely try to give the headrests a good tug forward, and knowing that yours do articulate forward, IE, if they don't I will follow up with my salesman.
As far as the paint goes, I went and looked at the pictures Tim has posted on his website of his black TB LTZ and I see the same effects in his. It is only noticeable when you are right up on the paint but looks fine from a distance.
IE, good luck getting your hesitation problem resolved. I haven't noticed it yet (only one cold engine start this morning), but I may not as the car I traded was a 98 Civic that only made 120 or so horses. Obviously, there is plenty of get up and go for me. Plus, with it being so new (came off the truck Friday, did the deal Saturday), I am hoping that all modules have been updated.
Finally, I get the new vehicle in the house, instead of my wife!!
JAW
P.S. hardhawk, thanks for input as well, I was composing while you responded. Although, if I assume correctly by where you live and you user name, we are natural born enemies. You see, I graduated from Ol' Mizzou and I would venture a guess to say you are a Jayhawks fan in the least.
I too have experienced the sudden loud wind noise at the top or top-rear-vertical edge of the drivers door. Sounded like the door was being sucked open for just a second. Last time, I was at wide-open throttle about 60-65 mph getting on the freeway and thought for a second I had HIT something! This has happened twice and I cannot replicate it. I loosened the door latch on the pillar and door latching mechanism in the door (torx screws) and moved the parts as far as the "play" would allow to tighten the door seal. So far has not happened again.
On the air conditioner issue with intermittent hot air blowing - does this effect only the triplets that have the electronic temp control? I have the manual sliders and have not experienced that. (Why I insisted on manual air temp controls? - had V E R Y expensive experience on another GM car with constant problems with the auto temp controller electronics. Never again.) I am in D-FW (Texas) and the temp yesterday was 93, very humid, and the air conditioner was blowing 41 - 43 degree air out of the center vents. Even idling in traffic! So far I LOVE the air conditioner capability of this vehicle. When the temp outside starts being consistently in the high 90's to low 100's I will report back.
Yes, the gasket shows about 1/4". The entire plastic pocket is pushed out slightly farther than without the gasket. The gasket angles back toward the outer metal portion of the tailgate. If yours is different, GM has changed their fix, but I'll bet yours is the same.
Yes, the headrests are articulated and will tilt forward (they usually are in the full rear postion initally). If you raise it first, it's a little easier to tilt them forward.
As to the A/C problems being mentioned here, I swear I read a TSB, when we had free reign of the GM site a couple weeks ago, that addressed that issue. Tim doesn't have it posted on his site, maybe when he gets back from vacation he can check with his new source and see what they can find. Sorry I didn't pay closer attention or I could tell you more of what it said.
Guess I've been too lucky so far with my only problem being the gasket issue.
I wondered if anyone has a procedure for changing the Pre-Set tone equalizer via the EQ button, to permanently set the bass, mid and high db settings for each of the "genre" pre-sets. ie: Classical, Talk, Country, etc.
The equalizer reverts to the pre-set for that genre of music when search selecting stations by the type rather than the tuner or personal button settings.
Thanks,
rialbo
Having to use the Custom setting for all as the pre-sets are all muffled tones due to the "premium" speaker locations. Currently boosting the mid by +4db and the highs to +6db to make remotely realistic.
My problem with my A/C was the A/C cutting out after 20 minutes. I would start driving to work and the A/C was acceptable, but not blowing as cold as I thought that it should. After 20 minutes the fan would go to high and start blowing hot air. This happened two days in a row so I was confident that the dealer would be able to find the problem.
When I took the vehicle in, the temp here in Michigan was down into the 40's so I was a little concerned that they wouldn't be able to duplicate. My service adviser is pretty good and she noticed that the air blowing out of the vents was not as cold as it should be, even with the temp in the 40's.
They did the diagnostics and found the low pressure switch to be defective, so they replaced it. I haven't had the need to use the A/C since, so the first hot day will tell.
Thanks to Lyndell Webb from whom I got the idea. Adding the Rhino step hitch to the back of my trailblazer when I'm not towing. I saw his Envoy and liked it. Looks pretty good...even if it was my quick photoshop edit Perhaps I'll ad the wind deflector too. Saw that earlier but I"m concerned about adding wind noise. Any feedback on that? email me please as I'm going on vacation. pdqgp@yahoo.com
Here's an update on my Bravada, which has been in the shop since April 23 for a transfer case problem. I wrote Oldsmobile to complain about procurring parts. They wrote back that, yes, I will have to wait 7-10 working days before they will try to expedite parts. They ended the letter by saying they look forward to serving me (????????) and thanked me for making Oldsmobile my vehicle of choice. I won't print my response but it was a carefully worded work of art.
My black Bravada has a fair amount of orange peel from what I remember (but much better than my old exploder).
$4700 seems awfully expensive for a warranty. I'd go private party or put the money in the bank!
Anyone notice any rust on the under carriage of there trucks? I notice rusted area around front shock and lower control arm. Is this unusual for a new car? I live in SO/CAL so no chance this salt related exposure. Help any suggestion truck has a 02/2002 build date I purchase 5 week ago today.
Orange peel is never normal. My red Bravada has custom car show quality paint. Never seen anything like it on any new car. Perfect, flawless. Looks wet all the time.
Wind noise in Kansas is something we get used to. Most anything will howl with enough wind. My Bravada and my Lincolns before it all howl if the wind hits just right.
Something I found out the hard way, and it's gonna really bother the winers on this board, is the doors are not bolted or welded on. They are "bonded." Looks like superglue.
My wife allowed the 40+ mph wind to grab the door one day and it slammed full open. Pulled the hinge loose from the frame body. No bolts, no welds, thin steel.
Dealer rebonded and adjusted the door, was a litle messy with the glue, but it is holding. At some point I will probably have someone touch it with a mig welder to add some steel to the bond.
Take a close look, and hold that door on a windy day.
WichitaGreg Just like fine art, even my Bravada has a few imperfections.
I guess GM really is doing everything possible to save weight on these trucks (bonding doors, electric clutch engagedment for the fan, etc) I suppose that is a good thing for fuel economy, let's hope they hold up.
Whomever told you that your door hinges are not welded or bolted on is feeding you a line of cr**p!! The 360-370 series trucks have welded on hinges. It sounds to me like you may have experienced "cold" welds at time of production. Do not, I repeat, Do Not allow a dealer to "bond" your door hinge to repair a defective weld!!!!!! This is a FMVS-201 Standard requirement for both impact and rollover protection. If the dealer insists that this is not a welded joint, SEEK OUT ANOTHER DEALER!!! I would not want to drive a vehicle with a "superglued" door hinge, It Is Not Safe!! Please, I urge you to have this inspected and repaired by a dealer who has knowledge of what they are doing!! If you have any need of infor, specifications, etc, please e-mail me at mark.a.kramer@gm.com.
I have talked to my dealer about my tailgate paint issues and he is still researching. I have the print out of the TSB but did have it when I spoke to him. He has been cooperative with all the issues I have had thus far. In fact, he will plan to repaint the tailgate before updating the gasket.
I also told him about my roof rack warping upward in the front. I think I have the TSB number, but not the printed copy. Can someone confirm the number: 818804?
I wanted him to check on the fan/cooler engagement on cool morning start-ups but could not find the TSB on that. Does anyone have that number?
Has anyone had any issues with the passenger side seat belt engaging the inertia/child seat lock? I saw a couple of posts on it & did some "experimenting" on my own. I buckled the passenger seat belt (empty) and while breaking hard, noticed the inertia brake holding the belt as it should. When belt tension was released, so did the inertia brake. However, if the belt is ever extended all the way to the limit, a child seat lock engages and does not release until the belt is almost all the way retracted back into the unit. I suppose this is normal however, I have had a couple of passengers engage this by adjusting the shoulder strap. This is uncomfortable as the more you try to release the tension, the tighter it gets. They had to unbuckle the belt, let it retract and buckle it back up. I suppose this is normal, but would like to know for sure. If it is, it may seem like the belt length could be designed too short. Any comments? Any TSB?
Most vehicles I've seen/sat in do exactly as you describe for the child-seat thing. It's kinda a bummer but I've learned to live with it as it's the same no matter what brand I've riden in.
If you're referring to the roof rack having a 1-2mm gap at the front lip, then there is definitely a tsb for it. It's an easy fix though. I performed it myself before the tsb was issued. All you have to do is pop the cover off with a flat head screwdriver and you will see the center most torx screw was overtightened. I pulled mine all the way out, used some loctite and a washer, and put it back in place. Basically the same as the tsb...
I have also experienced the cross wind issue on the interstate doing 75mph. I thought it was the wind hitting the gaps in the side mirror. I have owned 2 other 4X4's and my '92 soft-top Isuzu Amigo was quieter than the cross wind that was hurting my left ear. I have checked the door seals but can't find anything loose. I am waiting for another windy day to duplicate this problem. There is a new Chevy dealership by the interstate and I will be sure to make them experience the ear piercing pleasure. I delt with the noise for over a 100 mile trip.
I have been reading with interest all the posts about the fan noise in trying to determine if this is the problem I experience with my Bravada on an intermittent basis. My truck is always in the garage. I have had it for almost 9 months now and this problem started on the third day I owned it. When starting in the morning, the engine sounds like it is racing (is this what the fan sounds like??). The rpms are not running high, however, and the vehicle seems to run okay. The sound goes away after 1-2 minutes or driving about 3/4 mile. It happened again this morning and instead of babying the accelerator until the sound went away, I tried driving faster. Sure enough, it seemed to take longer to get to higher speeds, but no hesitation. Do you all think I have the fan problem? I always thought it was something with the engine. I can't believe this is a computer problem because my vehicle is on it's third main computer and the problem has occurred throughout. Advice would be appreciated.
Gam2, I checked with my friend on what they did to fix his wheel binding/grinding sound on sharp turns. This is what he said: "They said it was the AWD kicking in. They had to adjust when the awd was supposed to go in and out". He said since those adjustments were made, no problems.
I haven't taken my vehicle in for this problem yet, as I have only heard it two times and don't make these sharp, slow turns very often.
well, the vibration in the steering is starting to come back.
It's no where near as bad as it was before, but I can feel it. My other parts still haven't come in, so I'm going to wait untill they do and see if the problem gets better/worse. I'll have the dealer look at the transfer case again when I bring my Bravada in to have the parts put on.
If it gets worse and all they do to fix it is flush out the fluid again, I have a feeling it will happen a third time, but we'll see!
It is obviously hard to say for sure based only on a description, but I believe what you are hearing is probably the fan. There is a huge difference in sound between having the fan engaged vs not engaged.
What is this Transfer Case problem I'm reading about? Lady who sits next to me at work is experiencing these symptoms (binding and shaking around corners) and is receiving AWFUL treatment and service from her dealer. It's KLINE Olds in White Bear Lake, MN. They're totally jacking her around. She's intimidated and too easy going. I offered to go down there next time. Anyway, they suspect transfer case but didn't seem to know how to fix. Is there a TSB for this???
I drive Nissan and Toyota, couldn't give me a GM product, last car was a 90 Regal that was murder.
Anyway, I'm searching for her in the hopes you guys can point us in the right direction. I surfed the last 500 posts and found mention of transfer case / AWD problem but can't find enough info. Somebody please enlighten.
Do not, repeat DO NOT let the dealer jack you around if you have a problem with binding in the turns. Call Olds customer assistance (1-800-442-OLDS) and demand they start a case on this problem. From what I can tell, nobody has really had their problem fixed yet. I am awaiting parts for the transfer case, although it could also be a rear end problem with the locking differential. I have no idea how you adjust when the AWD kicks in like penny14 said. Maybe they made a computer update. I will not know if it is fixed until I get the vehicle back. Try another dealer if you have to. I'm beginning to think this is a bigger problem than anyone realizes. It may be time to report this to the national highway safety board.
I have a 02 Bravada with about 3800 miles. It is now binding, or at least making binding noise, in hard turns at slow speed. I have an appointment Monday to have it looked at. We will see if they say it is AWD or something else.
I don't want to jinx the triplets, but has anyone noticed that all of the posts are now basically repeats of older posts. There has not been a new problem for some time now. I think we have discovered all of the triplets problems, big and small. Now G.M. can start finding a cure for them all. Not bad, just over one year. It just goes to show what can be accomplished when you have several thousand investigators looking at the same crime scene.
Having trouble finding front mud flaps for the TB EXT. I think I read a message regarding this but I don't have the time to search all 5000 again.... The custom shop I went to explained he had not seen any problem like this before. The extension apparently has added more bottom molding where the front flaps would connect??? Any help out there would be appreciated. Regards, Rob
For all of our sakes, I hope the answer is yes! Actually, I've had it quite easy, with no mechanical problems! The only binding I've experienced at all in my bravada is when fully locked to either side and backing out. It doesn't make any noise, but you can feel it catch a little bit (doesn't coast at idle). I looked at the steering and it doesn't look like it could collide with anything at full lock, so I'm guessing it's the rear locker, which won't cause any damage. It would make sense since velocity is changing as the rear end is moving at an agle and the inner wheel is spinning slower than the outer... Should it start to do it during normal driving or start making noises, then I'd take it in. Otherwise, I don't see it as a bad thing.
changed the oil with mobile 1, have used it for years, great stuff. could not find the lube points, my truck is a bravada and the build date was 06-01 and guess what very few problems. what i have seen on this board is panic. some of you have serious problems and others are looking for them and running scared. relax and enjoy your truck. all of my friends have different makes foreign and domestic and they have problems as we have and spent alot more money. sorry about running on. just need too know about the location of the lube points.
Not to throw a wrench into the mix on the wind noise at highway speed (not talking about the crosswind problem), but has anyone noticed if you open the front door and look towards the engine compartment, you see right out the front bumper & wheel well! many a wind can come howling through and contribute to the noise.... Take a look at yours and see if you are able to peek through your wheel well area. Doesn't make a difference, driver or passenger side...
That was an interesting comment - the GM van owners complained about having three separate discussions so someone created a "triplet" board to combine them. Go figure :-)
There are a lot of messages in here -- even thought there are three models covered, it's only for one model year (and predictions about next year).
We'll "unfreeze" the Oldsmobile Bravada discussion and maybe you can kickstart it.
And it's a good time to remind everyone that there are Owners Clubs for the Trailblazer, Envoy and Bravada. Steve Host SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
Hmmm.. I think that this forum has come quite a long way if you know what I mean. Therefore I smile and chuckle when I say, "I ain't moving unless everyone else is moving." Maybe they could rebadge this forum as "MY2002+ Chevy Trailblazer, GMC Envoy, Oldsmobile Bravada Problems, Service Issues or Concerns," and use the owners clubs for individuals to post their more "positive, performance mods, new model news, etc." type of items.
Ha, ha.. I honestly thought about this the other day. Our little GM_Drone may have entered our forum at the right time now that there are hundreds of very interesting postings of general issues, comments and concerns. On the other hand, I don't know how many of you remember the Flintstones cartoon? For those of you who do.. remember how Fred and Barney used to summon Gazoo (the little green martian guy with secret powers)? I feel as if our GM_Drone could be our personal GAZOO!! Ha, ha
As funny as it sounds, it's true.. He/She is in a secret place until needed, so from now on I think that we should summon our "little green martian" friend by starting out with "Question for Gazoo" in our subject line.. Hopefully our Gazoo will become more engaged in our forum! This could be quite beneficial to triplet owners!
Have not been able to find the invoice & options price for the Trailblazer Ext. on Edmunds new car pricing site. Why has it not being listed under the Midsize SUV pricing category? Please advise.
I see it under Midsize SUV (as well as under "New Cars > Chevrolet") Please let us know if that link doesn't work. Steve Host SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
I like the forum, but what bothers me the most about all of the Town Hall forums is that the search function is ridiculous. I can't understand why a company like Edmunds has such an inferior search engine that won't even find individual messages based on keywords. If you want to find a message about a particular item you remember from 3-4 months ago, good luck on finding it. I'm grateful Edmunds provides the forum, but would be even more grateful if they had a decent search mechanism
Agreed. This software was the best option when the old Well stuff got outdated. But the search has always been an issue (no promises, but I hear it's at the top of the bug fix list). Steve Host SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
This sunday a bunch of subie, Isuzu, and other SUV owners are heading down to the Pine Barrens of NJ to do some very light off-roading. Even a BMW X5 is rumored to show up. Anyone interested in tagging along is welcome. http://isuzu-suvs.com/events for details.
It sure doesn't pay to take any time off from this forum! I'm already 300 messages behind. Good thing I've finally got high-speed internet at home.
I was reading--with great interest--the discussion on GM's service site, and the subsequent loss of the TSBs. In there, you'd mentioned that Audi posts their TSBs freely. Since my brother-in-law has a friend interested in a new Audi, I thought I'd cruise over there and see if there's any TSBs affecting his purchase, but I couldn't find them. Do you have the link? I'd appreciate it greatly.
FWIW, I think GM would do well to allow access: it helps both the buyer and the dealer (their real customer). Maybe they could give everyone access to the TSBs that have an active OnStar account (maybe that would help their subscriber base, too).
I got the chance last week to test drive a TrailBlazer EXT. In one word--WOW! I wanted to drive an Envoy XL because I want to seat seven, and I prefer the styling (see previous comments), but they only had two--one sold to the folks just before me (I watched them drive it away!), and one in white (my wife nixed that one) on the showroom floor. So we went next door, and drove the Chevy. It was a black LT with all the options, including DVD. The salesman insisted on driving the truck off the lot, so I sat in the front passenger seat for a short while, leaned down to pick the brochure off the floor, and got stuck by the seat belt ratcheting--annoying, but I think I could "learn" not to activate it. Otherwise, no squeaks, no rattles, and none of the wind noise I've read so much about. Despite the greater weight, the engine accelerated nicely onto the highway, and then accelerated nicely to pass. I didn't have any power lag, and I felt more confident in accelerating that I do with my wife's Tahoe with an 8--probably because the TB weighs less. The interior is cavernous. There was plenty of leg room in all seats, and I spent about 20 minutes in the third row. I'm 5'11", and I had plenty of leg, head, and shoulder room. In fact, I had more "toe room" with the TB with the elevated seats than I did in the Yukon XL, which gives you foot space by leaving an opening in the rear of the second seats. The one drawback is that the cargo space in the back is slightly smaller than the regular TB, and I'm not sure I could fit my wife's and my daughters' bags in the back with all the seats up--I'll need to be prepared to use the luggage rack for long trips. By the way, I didn't need to perform contortions to get into the backseats with the flip and fold middle seats. I'm impressed, though I'll still wait for the Envoy XL with a DVD player. We also have a couple of months left on our current lease, so I'll have to be patient. I was feeling guilty driving away from the salesman after all his time until my older daughter laughed when she saw that same TB EXT driving off the lot with another couple. Bottom line: GM took a great product, and made it better. GM's got a winner here.
I just wanted to clarify an issue that was raised the other day, because I received several e-mails regarding my comments. The triplet front and rear door hinges ARE welded to both the hinge pillar and to the door inner. They are projection welded from the INSIDE of the respective panels, therefore there is NO weld dimple that is visible when the door is open. The "adhesive" that you, and your dealer see is actually a silicone seal applied to protect the weld from corrosion. If you look carefully, you will notice that the sealer does not generally get applied to the bottom of the hinge to pillar/door inner interface, because of there being no need to protect the joint from that angle, water rarely flows uphill, given the properties of gravity, and the absence of road splash in the area when the door is closed. I hope that this clarifies the issue for all.
Witchita Greg, not seeing your vehicle, but from what you described, either one of two things happened, maybe a combination of both. When the door was hyper-extended (fancy engineering word that means pushed open too far), it is possible that the door inner panel to which the hinge is WELDED to was deformed or bent , causing a poor fit, or excessive gap. The normal repair for this procedure would be to use a block of wood, or other type of lever to reform the deformed area to adjust the door back into position. If the door was pushed severely enough, I could see that some of the sealer was pulled away from the hinge to body joint, causing the dealer to want to reseal the area, for appearance and corrosion protection. He also may think that it is indeed some form of structural adhesive, but in reality it is not. To be perfectly frank, I wouldn't be at all surprised if it is even called out as an adhesive in the parts book that he orders material from, things like that sometimes happen around here. The other area that may have suffered damage is in the door inner to door outer panel interface. That is a structural adhesive, we call it an"induction cured" joint. The purpose of this usage was to reduce the number of spot welds required to stitch the door together. This is done primarily for appearance, so that you do not see any weld dimples. The repair for that joint would be a similar type of repair for the door hinge area, bending the metal back into place, and repairing any surface breaks for corrosion protection. Sorry for the long-winded explanation, I just want to make everyone aware of the construction. It is the least I can do for all of you loyal customers! IEEXPLORE: No, I am not Gazoo, but I sure wish I was!! Maybe I could make some more significant contribution to the product/process. As it is, I try to do my job as though I am building my own vehicle, and I would have to say that at least 95% of my co-workers are doing the same. I am pretty proud of what "Generous" Motors has been doing in the last couple of years, for a time I thought that we were gonna go the way of the Titanic, but so far we have survived the collision with the iceberg, between Wagoner and Lutz, we may get this thing back on track yet!
I don't know what car companies are so afraid of in letting the consumer public know what TSB's are available for their vehicle. Yes it may put some stress on the dealer's service department, because people will run in saying that they have a particular problem... but isn't it the service department's job to determine what is wrong with your vehicle? They still have final say whether or not a TSB applies! Giving access only to the dealers promotes deceipt and refusal to acknowledge problems! Dealers HATE performing warranty work... because there's little to no money in it for them, and it ties up time they could have spent doing costly repairs. You tell me who has the conflict of interest here?
I tried to post this once before and when I pressed "Post My Message" my work just disappeared into cyberspace.
My TB LS seems to have a problem keeping the doors in the ductwork under the dash in the position that I want them. I can hear them move open and closed at random with a telltale vaccum hiss. Not long ago the car was pushing air through the defrost vents when I had it set for the dash vents. So far no problem with hot air when I want cold, but I suspect they are related. The same doors that direct air to one set of vents and away from the other vents are also used to pass air across the AC evaporator coil or across the heater core. I suspect your AC compressor is working fine, but air is flowing across the heater core instead of the AC evaporator coil.
I realize I do not have a solution here, but I do think I am on to the problem. Listen for the ductwork doors opening and closing, and try changin vent positions and setting the recirculation vents too. Just moving the doors around seems to get mine to behave.
I saw a TrailBlazer EXT on the road this morning. No EXT badging, but definitely the extended version. That is one long wheelbase. It looked like a school bus trying to turn a corner.
I notice that GM has raised the roofline above the rear seats. The roofrack mounts in the same position as the standard length, but the side rails are taller to accomodate the higher roof.
For Bravada owners out there with the “binding” problem, my 2000 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited AWD had the exact same problem during slow turns and backing out. It progressively got worst to a point where the whole car would vibrate vigorously. At first the dealer tried the “it’s normal for AWD” routine but eventually the problem was solved by simply changing the transfer case fluid with a fluid of higher viscosity as per the TSB issued by Chrysler. If I remember correctly the description of the problem was” viscous coupler not disengaging”. I realize these are totally different vehicles with different types of transfer case but the problem you are experiencing sounds very similar to what I used to have. Just my two cents. Good luck!
Normally I wouldn't defend dealers, but as a former GM service mgr. I want to make you aware that dealers are reimbursed for warranty work at the same rate as the customer labor charge. Granted some of the warrany repairs can be more complex and demanding because of trying to satisfy customer expectations on a new vehicle.
Has anyone tried to purchase factory skidplates for the TB? If so, what was the cost and can they be self installed? Any special tools needed?
What is the aftermarket brandname/type of rubber soft mudflaps available that are specifically sized for the TB? I don't want the solid plastic factory ones because I know I will brake them when 4-wheelin'. I also don't like to be a rolling billboard for Chevy. My TB is a LS with no running boards. I want to protect that very thin paint job. Thanks in advance!
Comments
I love the truck. I have had the wandering mirror and tailgate gasket problems, but those are minor. I would order another one just like it if something happened to this one. I came out of a 1998 Dodge Ram 1500 Quad Cab and just could not be happier. The biggest problem I have is that my wife now wants to trade her Chrysler Town & Country van for a new Envoy XL with the DVD system for the kids!!
Yeah, I know about all of the storge cubbies in back and the cargo cover/shade but I didn't know about the secret one until we went through the delivery process yesterday. The manual also made mention of a shelf that would fit right behind the seats with 2 height positions. My manual is for both the regular and XL versions, and maybe this one thing that is XL only that they forgot to mark that way. Not a big issue, because it is not like I am missing something I thought I was getting.
I will definitely try to give the headrests a good tug forward, and knowing that yours do articulate forward, IE, if they don't I will follow up with my salesman.
As far as the paint goes, I went and looked at the pictures Tim has posted on his website of his black TB LTZ and I see the same effects in his. It is only noticeable when you are right up on the paint but looks fine from a distance.
IE, good luck getting your hesitation problem resolved. I haven't noticed it yet (only one cold engine start this morning), but I may not as the car I traded was a 98 Civic that only made 120 or so horses. Obviously, there is plenty of get up and go for me. Plus, with it being so new (came off the truck Friday, did the deal Saturday), I am hoping that all modules have been updated.
Finally, I get the new vehicle in the house, instead of my wife!!
JAW
P.S. hardhawk, thanks for input as well, I was composing while you responded. Although, if I assume correctly by where you live and you user name, we are natural born enemies. You see, I graduated from Ol' Mizzou and I would venture a guess to say you are a Jayhawks fan in the least.
On the air conditioner issue with intermittent hot air blowing - does this effect only the triplets that have the electronic temp control? I have the manual sliders and have not experienced that. (Why I insisted on manual air temp controls? - had V E R Y expensive experience on another GM car with constant problems with the auto temp controller electronics. Never again.) I am in D-FW (Texas) and the temp yesterday was 93, very humid, and the air conditioner was blowing 41 - 43 degree air out of the center vents. Even idling in traffic! So far I LOVE the air conditioner capability of this vehicle. When the temp outside starts being consistently in the high 90's to low 100's I will report back.
Yes, the headrests are articulated and will tilt forward (they usually are in the full rear postion initally). If you raise it first, it's a little easier to tilt them forward.
As to the A/C problems being mentioned here, I swear I read a TSB, when we had free reign of the GM site a couple weeks ago, that addressed that issue. Tim doesn't have it posted on his site, maybe when he gets back from vacation he can check with his new source and see what they can find. Sorry I didn't pay closer attention or I could tell you more of what it said.
Guess I've been too lucky so far with my only problem being the gasket issue.
The equalizer reverts to the pre-set for that genre of music when search selecting stations by the type rather than the tuner or personal button settings.
Thanks,
rialbo
Having to use the Custom setting for all as the pre-sets are all muffled tones due to the "premium" speaker locations. Currently boosting the mid by +4db and the highs to +6db to make remotely realistic.
When I took the vehicle in, the temp here in Michigan was down into the 40's so I was a little concerned that they wouldn't be able to duplicate. My service adviser is pretty good and she noticed that the air blowing out of the vents was not as cold as it should be, even with the temp in the 40's.
They did the diagnostics and found the low pressure switch to be defective, so they replaced it. I haven't had the need to use the A/C since, so the first hot day will tell.
Hope this helps.
See you all in a week or so!
tim
http://www.timlauro.com/cars/trailblazer/hitch-step-mod.htm
(????????) and thanked me for making Oldsmobile my vehicle of choice. I won't print my response but it was a carefully worded work of art.
My black Bravada has a fair amount of orange peel from what I remember (but much better than my old exploder).
$4700 seems awfully expensive for a warranty. I'd go private party or put the money in the bank!
GAM2
-mike
Wind noise in Kansas is something we get used to. Most anything will howl with enough wind. My Bravada and my Lincolns before it all howl if the wind hits just right.
Something I found out the hard way, and it's gonna really bother the winers on this board, is the doors are not bolted or welded on. They are "bonded." Looks like superglue.
My wife allowed the 40+ mph wind to grab the door one day and it slammed full open. Pulled the hinge loose from the frame body. No bolts, no welds, thin steel.
Dealer rebonded and adjusted the door, was a litle messy with the glue, but it is holding. At some point I will probably have someone touch it with a mig welder to add some steel to the bond.
Take a close look, and hold that door on a windy day.
WichitaGreg
Just like fine art, even my Bravada has a few imperfections.
-mike
Thanks,
Mark
I also told him about my roof rack warping upward in the front. I think I have the TSB number, but not the printed copy. Can someone confirm the number: 818804?
I wanted him to check on the fan/cooler engagement on cool morning start-ups but could not find the TSB on that. Does anyone have that number?
Has anyone had any issues with the passenger side seat belt engaging the inertia/child seat lock? I saw a couple of posts on it & did some "experimenting" on my own. I buckled the passenger seat belt (empty) and while breaking hard, noticed the inertia brake holding the belt as it should. When belt tension was released, so did the inertia brake. However, if the belt is ever extended all the way to the limit, a child seat lock engages and does not release until the belt is almost all the way retracted back into the unit. I suppose this is normal however, I have had a couple of passengers engage this by adjusting the shoulder strap. This is uncomfortable as the more you try to release the tension, the tighter it gets. They had to unbuckle the belt, let it retract and buckle it back up. I suppose this is normal, but would like to know for sure. If it is, it may seem like the belt length could be designed too short. Any comments? Any TSB?
John
http://www.autoweek.com/cat_content.mv?port_code=autoweek&cat_code=carnews&loc_code=index&content_code=09432564
-mike
Gam2, I checked with my friend on what they did to fix his wheel binding/grinding sound on sharp turns. This is what he said: "They said it was the AWD kicking in. They had to adjust when the awd was supposed to go in and out". He said since those adjustments were made, no problems.
I haven't taken my vehicle in for this problem yet, as I have only heard it two times and don't make these sharp, slow turns very often.
It's no where near as bad as it was before, but I can feel it. My other parts still haven't come in, so I'm going to wait untill they do and see if the problem gets better/worse. I'll have the dealer look at the transfer case again when I bring my Bravada in to have the parts put on.
If it gets worse and all they do to fix it is flush out the fluid again, I have a feeling it will happen a third time, but we'll see!
I drive Nissan and Toyota, couldn't give me a GM product, last car was a 90 Regal that was murder.
Anyway, I'm searching for her in the hopes you guys can point us in the right direction. I surfed the last 500 posts and found mention of transfer case / AWD problem but can't find enough info. Somebody please enlighten.
Thanks
I have no idea how you adjust when the AWD kicks in like penny14 said. Maybe they made a computer update. I will not know if it is fixed until I get the vehicle back. Try another dealer if you have to. I'm beginning to think this is a bigger problem than anyone realizes. It may be time to report this to the national highway safety board.
GAM2
Frank
There are a lot of messages in here -- even thought there are three models covered, it's only for one model year (and predictions about next year).
We'll "unfreeze" the Oldsmobile Bravada discussion and maybe you can kickstart it.
And it's a good time to remind everyone that there are Owners Clubs for the Trailblazer, Envoy and Bravada.
Steve
Host
SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
-mike
Just a thought.. :-)
As funny as it sounds, it's true.. He/She is in a secret place until needed, so from now on I think that we should summon our "little green martian" friend by starting out with "Question for Gazoo" in our subject line.. Hopefully our Gazoo will become more engaged in our forum! This could be quite beneficial to triplet owners!
Thanks!
IExplore2000@aol.com
Please let us know if that link doesn't work.
Steve
Host
SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
Steve
Host
SUVs, Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
-mike
I was reading--with great interest--the discussion on GM's service site, and the subsequent loss of the TSBs. In there, you'd mentioned that Audi posts their TSBs freely. Since my brother-in-law has a friend interested in a new Audi, I thought I'd cruise over there and see if there's any TSBs affecting his purchase, but I couldn't find them. Do you have the link? I'd appreciate it greatly.
FWIW, I think GM would do well to allow access: it helps both the buyer and the dealer (their real customer). Maybe they could give everyone access to the TSBs that have an active OnStar account (maybe that would help their subscriber base, too).
I wanted to drive an Envoy XL because I want to seat seven, and I prefer the styling (see previous comments), but they only had two--one sold to the folks just before me (I watched them drive it away!), and one in white (my wife nixed that one) on the showroom floor. So we went next door, and drove the Chevy.
It was a black LT with all the options, including DVD. The salesman insisted on driving the truck off the lot, so I sat in the front passenger seat for a short while, leaned down to pick the brochure off the floor, and got stuck by the seat belt ratcheting--annoying, but I think I could
"learn" not to activate it. Otherwise, no squeaks, no rattles, and none of the wind noise I've read so much about.
Despite the greater weight, the engine accelerated nicely onto the highway, and then accelerated nicely to pass. I didn't have any power lag, and I felt more confident in accelerating that I do with my wife's Tahoe with an 8--probably because the TB weighs less.
The interior is cavernous. There was plenty of leg room in all seats, and I spent about 20 minutes in the third row. I'm 5'11", and I had plenty of leg, head, and shoulder room. In fact, I had more "toe room" with the TB with the elevated seats than I did in the Yukon XL, which gives you foot space by leaving an opening in the rear of the second seats. The one drawback is that the cargo space in the back is slightly smaller than the regular TB, and I'm not sure I could fit my wife's and my daughters' bags in the back with all the seats up--I'll need to be prepared to use the luggage rack for long trips.
By the way, I didn't need to perform contortions to get into the backseats with the flip and fold middle seats.
I'm impressed, though I'll still wait for the Envoy XL with a DVD player. We also have a couple of months left on our current lease, so I'll have to be patient. I was feeling guilty driving away from the salesman after all his time until my older daughter laughed when she saw that same TB EXT driving off the lot with another couple.
Bottom line: GM took a great product, and made it better. GM's got a winner here.
Witchita Greg, not seeing your vehicle, but from what you described, either one of two things happened, maybe a combination of both. When the door was hyper-extended (fancy engineering word that means pushed open too far), it is possible that the door inner panel to which the hinge is WELDED to was deformed or bent , causing a poor fit, or excessive gap. The normal repair for this procedure would be to use a block of wood, or other type of lever to reform the deformed area to adjust the door back into position. If the door was pushed severely enough, I could see that some of the sealer was pulled away from the hinge to body joint, causing the dealer to want to reseal the area, for appearance and corrosion protection. He also may think that it is indeed some form of structural adhesive, but in reality it is not. To be perfectly frank, I wouldn't be at all surprised if it is even called out as an adhesive in the parts book that he orders material from, things like that sometimes happen around here.
The other area that may have suffered damage is in the door inner to door outer panel interface.
That is a structural adhesive, we call it an"induction cured" joint. The purpose of this usage was to reduce the number of spot welds required to stitch the door together. This is done primarily for appearance, so that you do not see any weld dimples. The repair for that joint would be a similar type of repair for the door hinge area, bending the metal back into place, and repairing any surface breaks for corrosion protection.
Sorry for the long-winded explanation, I just want to make everyone aware of the construction. It is the least I can do for all of you loyal customers!
IEEXPLORE: No, I am not Gazoo, but I sure wish I was!! Maybe I could make some more significant contribution to the product/process. As it is, I try to do my job as though I am building my own vehicle, and I would have to say that at least 95% of my co-workers are doing the same. I am pretty proud of what "Generous" Motors has been doing in the last couple of years, for a time I thought that we were gonna go the way of the Titanic, but so far we have survived the collision with the iceberg, between Wagoner and Lutz, we may get this thing back on track yet!
We'll see.
Regards all,
Mark
Note you don't even have to be an owner!
I don't know what car companies are so afraid of in letting the consumer public know what TSB's are available for their vehicle. Yes it may put some stress on the dealer's service department, because people will run in saying that they have a particular problem... but isn't it the service department's job to determine what is wrong with your vehicle? They still have final say whether or not a TSB applies! Giving access only to the dealers promotes deceipt and refusal to acknowledge problems! Dealers HATE performing warranty work... because there's little to no money in it for them, and it ties up time they could have spent doing costly repairs. You tell me who has the conflict of interest here?
My TB LS seems to have a problem keeping the doors in the ductwork under the dash in the position that I want them. I can hear them move open and closed at random with a telltale vaccum hiss. Not long ago the car was pushing air through the defrost vents when I had it set for the dash vents. So far no problem with hot air when I want cold, but I suspect they are related. The same doors that direct air to one set of vents and away from the other vents are also used to pass air across the AC evaporator coil or across the heater core. I suspect your AC compressor is working fine, but air is flowing across the heater core instead of the AC evaporator coil.
I realize I do not have a solution here, but I do think I am on to the problem. Listen for the ductwork doors opening and closing, and try changin vent positions and setting the recirculation vents too. Just moving the doors around seems to get mine to behave.
I notice that GM has raised the roofline above the rear seats. The roofrack mounts in the same position as the standard length, but the side rails are taller to accomodate the higher roof.
I've had that happen twice in two days - will keep an eye on it and see whether it's just a random event.
tidester
Host
SUVs
What is the aftermarket brandname/type of rubber soft mudflaps available that are specifically sized for the TB? I don't want the solid plastic factory ones because I know I will brake them when 4-wheelin'. I also don't like to be a rolling billboard for Chevy. My TB is a LS with no running boards. I want to protect that very thin paint job. Thanks in advance!