Chevy Silverado Problems

ricsch

I had a '00 Silv. with the shakes. Came with General 255's and had the 4 orig. tires replaced with 4 more Generals, and then 2 more that were out of spec. Finally convinced the dealer to get some good tires, went to Michelin LTX M/S and this helped some, but even with the rack & pinion repair, it still had the problem. Only after going through the proper process with the Better Business Bureau did I rid myself of this problem. I now have a '01 Silverado that is what that '00 should have been-smooth.

redsilverado

what tires did your '01 show up with?
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red

svoma123

What would you do if you bought a 2001 rado z71. decked it out with spray in liner, nerf bars, etc...and found out your front bumper is rusting through after five months and one winter? you can see that there is no rust proofing on the bumper. Now the other thought is that if they forgot to spray the bumper...what else did they forget. I am going to the dealer about this sometime this week, and I was wondering what you guys would do about this. I think they should replace everything that is rusting and respray the whole car. Is that too much to ask for?
let me know
scott

redsilverado

and here it can be said again.....the BBB will be your best solution if the dealers are giving you the runaround. i used them once, and was suprised to the quick response i got from GM on rectifying my steering shaft problem. if you have a "rust through" problem, then the dealer shouldn't be giving you a problem on replacing the front bumper.
if you feel that the truck has not been properly rust proofed, then the BBB will surely help you resolve the issue.
dealers will usually take care of any warranty related items that they know they will get reimbursed for, and then again......
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red

adragna

Last month my attorney's filed suit against GM.
Ever since the odometer rolled over 1,000 miles on my 2000 ext cab.
1. Steering wheel squeaking/whining- 8th repair attempt; dealer screwed up alignment after 2nd attempt- has not been right since. 2. Front suspension knocking - 2nd attempt. 3. Rubber trim falling off around door/frame interface causing excessive wind noise. 4. Rear seat shakes when foled upright- turns out a rubber damper was missing. 5. Cold start- loud tapping coming from the block. 6. Electronis whine/whistle during accelerations. 7. Power window fails to go up occassionally. 8. Abnormal tread wear...the list goes on...

narg

I originally had Goodyears on the 2000. I said Uniroyals, that was incorrect.

Well, after a weekend of driving with one new tire and one new rim, it seems to be better, but not fully fixed. I take it back again later this week to try out another tire and or rim. I just can't get over the difference of those Generals. I do here a lot of people who don't like Generals, and not just here, but other places. Yet, I've never had problems with them. Then again, this problem could totally be the rims, but if the dealer wants to replace tires too, so be it. Any one know would a good set of blackwall 255/75/16 Michelins cost? I'm not a tire expert, so if I wanted a tire that looked just a little bit fatter, would I get an "80" instead of "75"?

obyone

the largest tire size to fit would be the 285/75R16. On the 2wd, the largest size would be the 275/70R16. Michelin makes both sizes.

If you have a friend who owns a repair shop, they can order the Michelins for around $95 a piece. Retail will go for $115 to $125 each.

The Generals are worth about $35 a piece retail and $25 wholesale. Tells a real good story about what they are worth.

ebbgreatdane

Looks like the 2001's have been holding up pretty well. I've been away from this post for a couple of months but it seems that there are very few posts for 2001 rado owners; aside from the tranny slipage issue. Encouraging...Maybe Chevy's got it right?

John

ricsch

The '01 showed up with the General 255s, brought it home with the Michelins from the '00.

svoma123

I also have a whinny noise coming from the winshield wiper when that is on also. Is this normal? Also the bottom rubber molding is peeling away from either end. Not to mention the rust thing on the bumper. I suppose I will be making an appointment with the dealer.

xbbuster

Did your lawyer tell you how long you may have to wait for your $30,000 check?

hunter98

I would like to see the 285x75R16 tire that michelin makes. Never seen one on their site, any site or on a vehicle. I would be interested in an LTX AT in that size or in 255x85R16. Would like to have outlined white letters too, since they really set off my current truck with 265x75.

Hunter

ebbgreatdane

Not that it's any business of mine but I would abstain from posting comments on your pending court battle. Only bad things can come from it.

My 2 cents...

xbbuster

I was being facetious in #561. If a lawyer says he's got a check for you, watch out.

adragna

It takes GM 5-6 months to work the payback process. Considering if I had taken NO action, 5-6 months down the road, I'd still be visiting this website bitchin and whining about that turck in my driveway.
Attorney's won't say they gotta a check for me. GM writes it after negotiations and sents it directly to me; they also pay the attorney fees.

xbbuster

I'm sure there's very few that would wait five or six months for a buyback, making payments and trying to keep the mileage down. GM knows this, it's their strategy. As for me it's been ten months for this '00 2wd ext. cab, been through the BBB process (an arbitrator that didn't know a Silverado was a pick-up), nine repair attempts on a year old truck that that just rolled 3k. At the end of the month it's trade in time or for sale.
As for "ebbgreatdane", the name of this discussion is Silverado Problems, I'm not afraid of posting comments about what I've been through so far, if it helps anyone, maybe a good thing will come of it.

bettisph

Does anyone have an answer to the pinging problem? I've had the upgrade to the PCM. I've tried all the different octanes and several brands of gasoline. Nothing seems to help. It has gotten worse since warm weather and having to use the air conditioner. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

jsm6

Anyone having problem a slight rattle/loose condition in the steering? It almost feels like the linkage is loose or something just does not fit right in the steering box.

Also, anyone having problems with the paint chipping? Have gotten a few chips in odd places, hood & top side of wheel well, and have not made contact with anything that I am aware of. Paint appears very thin to reveal the primer.

obyone

I had the same problem on my rear quarter panels with the thin paint and some dust impregnated in the paint. Took back to dealer who sent to autobody whop. They repainted both sides removing the dust spots and even the orange peel.

Your steering looseness can be attributed to your upper intermediate steering shaft which needs to be replaced. This also is coverend under warranty. The rattle is most noticeable when making slow turns over rough roads. TSB No. Clunking Noise Under Hood/Felt In Steering Wheel (Replace Upper Strg Shaft Assm) #00-02-35-003

obyone

Some owners have changed plugs to NGK TR-55 and have gotten rid of the ping.

redsilverado

just curious, what's an auto body "whop"? LOL
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jsm6
i second the intermediate steering shaft. this was my problem as well and oby steered me in the direction of the Tsb as well, which helped when it came time to show the service department what they needed to do to repair the problem.
i've also got a couple small chips on the top of the hood and one on top of the bed rail for no aparent reason. thank god for touch up paint and acetone.

wvtruck

The area around my dash CD player makes an occasional whirring noise when the vehicle is shut off. Does not matter if a CD is in the player, if the power button to the radio/player is on or off, or what position the ignition switch is in. Sometimes, the noise cycles on and off, but at other times you hear it for 20 seconds or so after shutting vehicle off. Does not appear to be ambient temperature related as far as I can tell from feel - has occurred in winter and summer.

Left vehicle in my garage for 10 days in August. When I tried to start it on day 11, motor turned over hard like the battery was low.

Dealer says there is a thermostatically triggered fan in the audio module to control temperature, presumably based on component temperature. I wonder if that fan ran since it was hot in the garage and drained the battery - certainly something that should not have happened.

I have heard of the ABS module running, but that sound comes from under the driver's seat.

Anyone heard of this sound module problem or have suggestions??? Thanks

punjab

I too had the pinging. Dealer decarbonized the cylinders. That worked for about 30-45 minutes...

I have a 2001 black Silverado and it seems that i can scratch the paint just by looking at it wrong. Is this possibly bad paint, or are these hairline scratches just more noticeable on black?

ryanbab

Also noticable on blue.

I think its just because its a dark color. My dads Black 92 S-10 is the same way

blair223

I have also heard the whirring noise on my 2000 x-cab. When I open the door it shuts off. Same time the radio shuts off when its turned up (I never turn it off, just down). I thought it was the cd spinning but if there is an internal cooling fan then that could be the case. Either way it shuts off when the door is opened. As for the battery drain, I'm sure there are a few things that run all the time such as the remote door lock receiver. Seems that drain should not be significant over the period of a 10 days. May want to measure the current draw at the battery with everything shut off.

Blair
2000 2500 4Door 4W SB

ebbgreatdane

That doesn't seem all that unusual. If the engine didn't crank, that would be a different story.

Did you buy your 2000 in '99? If so your 2+ year old factory battery could be the culprit.

John

michgndr

I keep seeing TSBs referenced and sometimes copied here. Is there a web-based place to go search through them, or is access controlled more tightly than that?

700 miles on my 1500 and nothing wrong yet. It'll come, I'm sure.

narg

Is a cooling fan inside the radio. Some go bad, get it replaced (the whole radio! only way the dealer will do it.) under warrenty.

obyone

Never heard it before...so maybe it's not working? I know there was one for the condenser to alleviate the foul odor....but one for the radio?

pwitz

My '99 Silverado LT Z71 X-Cab started squeeling like a pig this past week. Sounded like
I had a block of styrofoam lodged in the axle. Dealer says its a bad universal joint...."probably one of the bearings is bad/went dry." Said he saw the same problem on another one just this week. What the hell is this? Anyone else have this problem? My truck is babied....has 25K on it, and I think this is garbage to have a powertrain related problem this early.

Also, any of y'all having problems with your power windows? Mine seem like they are being carved/etched as I raise them...glass doesn't seem to be sitting in the track quite right.
Anyone else had a dealer fix for this?

By the way, I noticed that fan whirring too...I think its designed to cool the factory radio head unit down when it gets hot....stops when you open the door, because the accessory power feature stops then too.

obyone

the cigarette lighter will still work along with the other two outlets allowing for me to charge my cell phone with or without the doors open....

wight1

A number of posts back, somebody was talking about installing a Mag-Hytec miff cover. I was interested in getting one of these for my 2500 ext-cab, but was wondering about clearance between the miff cover and the spare tire. It looks to me that if the Mag-Hytec cover is much deeper than the stock cover, it might be up against the front edge of the spare tire. Any comments/input on this?

mledtje

My power windows make that awful grinding noise after I've been in a dusty dirty area. After two weeks back home, they are quiet again. My belief is that dust/dirt gets in the mechanism and causes the noise. After a while it works its way out.

If I lived in Death Valley or the desert, I would hear it all the time.

Mike L

smith53

i think the noise you are hearing in your dash may be the motor that turns the cds or something else in the radio. try pressing the cd/aux(i think) button on your radio the next time you hear the noise.

bihisello

I am thinking about buying a 1996 Silver ado Diesel fully loaded. Does anyone have pro's and con's to tell me about this truck. Thanks for your help.

gmc_griz

I have been reading the post on this site and it helped me get a problem fixed (though not under warranty) with the intermediate shaft.

I am now having a problem where the lite will go out that shows you are in 2 HI (or whatever) and moments later the message center shows a warning "Service 4 Wheel Drive". If I stop the vehicle and restart the condition is reset (which makes me think it is electrical)... I have also seen examples where I had to "tap" the 2 HI button to get the lite to comeback on and stay on. If I can get this lie to stay on then the message center never records the failure. Once the error has been displayed in the message center it can only be reset by turning off the key and re-starting. Once this happens I cannot switch to 4 wheel drive or get any mode to stay lit.

I drive 18 miles to work and rarely does the light come on... but on longer trips it comes on frequently.

I stopped by the dealer and they stated that there would not be an error stored in the computer and it would probably cost quite a bit to trouble shoot... any ides?

The vehicle doesn't have any problems or make any noises but I am concerned I will damage the vehicle.

Thanks in advance for any ideas!

lwittorf

Go th the maintance&repair topic and look up the 6.5 diesel trouble topic. My brotherinlay had a 93 3500 GMC with the 6.5 in it and he lost it with 90k on it they put a new one in and he lost it after 20k the third one has had trouble with a slaping noise in the r rear of the motor loose piston but no fix til it goes clear out according to GM. I wouldn't touch it at all unless you want to play games with GM or have a good lawn piece. The rest of the pu has been a good strong 10 though. [93 GMC 3500 w/auto,4/4,4.10 ratio,ec,LB]

pwitz

Just had my '99 Silverado serviced as a result of its universal joint issue. According to the dealer, there is a national GM backorder for GM universal joints. Dealer subsequently pulled the entire driveshaft and replaced the entire thing (including all u-joints) from another local supplier. Seems like this is a pretty common problem among the GM new body style trucks....

drej

Hey folks.
My truck is really acting up last few days, if anyone has a solution before it gets worse & I take it in to the dealer let me know.
Its a "Starting problem" The truck starts fine in the morning or after its been sitting a long while ( or right after you shut it off... & turn it on again) , But after driving it, if you shut it off... and come back after 20 minutes or so it just won't start. All I get is cranking ( on another occasion I did get a start out of it on a 6th or 7th try once, it was like the 7th try when I turned the key it didn't even struggle and started right up at the touch of the key). Also once, I did try pressing the pedal all the way down "as maybe it was flooded" but no luck.
Notes: I did a tuneup about a few months ago, its got ~68K mi. Its' a 5.7L V-8 with a TBI Rochester carb. I did a top end cleaning today to see if it will help. I also checked for loose fittings as I pressure cleaned the engine compartment a while ago.
Thanks in advance !:
drej,(with his fingers crossed when he starts the truck)

obyone

the Rochester? Sounds like somethings sticking.

ebbgreatdane

you mean you cleaned the carb with Gumout or another product for cleaning carburetors. I I would agree with Obyone but find someone you trust or who at least has worked with Rochesters before or who has a ton of experience rebuilding carbs. If done wrong, your problems will persist or be worse.

Honestly it sounds like possibly the idle plate is sticking closed. When you try to start your warm vehicle there isn't enough vacuum to pull in the right mixture of gas and air to start your truck normally. As it cools, your automatic choke will provide a cold engine plenty of gas to get it started and cut off to allow air in. When it heats up, you start the process all over again as you truck returns to it's normal idle position.

Try https://www.howstuffworks.com and do a search for carburetors. You'll find a ton of info.

John

jlflemmons

TBI is a fuel injection system, not carb. Have you had a check engine light come on? If so, the fault code will be stored in the ECM. What all was replaced in the tune-up? Has the fuel filter been replaced? I have seen a problem such as you describe where the temp sending unit for the ECM was bad. This will affect the fuel/air mix to the TBI when starting. Easy way to check this is to spray cool water on the sending unit when the car won't start and see if it fires up.

If a code is stored in the ECM, you can retrieve it by shorting the A and B pins together in the diagnostic connector under the steering column. Turn the ignition key to "on" but do not start the truck. The check engine light will give a one flash, pause, two flash and repeat three times. This is the self-check to show that the ECM is functioning normally. Also known as code 12. After a brief pause with no illumination, the check engine light (CEL) will flash each stored code three times. After all codes are flashed, the code 12 will repeat. If no codes are stored, the 12 will just keep coming up.

Good luck,

Jim

hunter48

My son had the same problem with his 96 5.7 it turned out to be the rubber hose that go's to the fuel pump inside the tank. You will have to remove the tank to get at the fuel pump. You should do a fuel pressure check first.

chris191

2001 Silverado 2500HD 4x4 Regular Cab, base model, 6.0L, auto trans., 4.10 locking diff., 4300 miles, built East Pontiac, purchased 3/7/01. Overall I am happy with my truck. I purchased it to replace a trusty 4 cyl. Toyata 4x4 that isn’t up to the task of towing. I drove the Chevy from Seattle to LA after its’ first few hundred miles, observing break-in procedure as outlined in owner’s manual. Highway mileage was 15-16 mpg with speeds up to 55mph – then up to 65, once first 500 miles were past. Put many city miles on truck in LA before renting a trailer and picking up my unfinished ’66 Impala from the high desert to bring it back to Seattle. For the drive back to Seattle all of the parts for the ’66 were loaded in the bed and the stripped-down Impala with big-block and trans. installed was trailered. The truck performed very nicely and pulled strongly up the steepest hills of the Grapevine and Siskiyous. Towing mileage was 13-14 mpg, with no speeds over 65mph. Performed first oil change before beginning tow – yielded small amount of shavings on magnetic drain plug. Performed diff. fluid change upon return to Seattle. Used new GM grape-scented gear oil at $28 per quart. Used 2.25 quarts exactly to fill – glad I didn’t follow dealer’s advice – said to use three quarts and see if it needs more.

Problems:
1) slapping noise from engine at cold start
2) flat spot during acceleration when using light throttle (I tend to drive very conservatively around town), engine sort of bogs down, reminiscent of bad accelerator pump on Rochester 2GC carb.
3) bed rails kind of soft – they dented from me kneeling on them while tightening tarp covering Impala parts. Chevy – not like a rock – like a soft-shelled crab. I guess my knees are kinda knobby.

Anyone else out there with similar complaints? I am especially interested in/worried about the slapping noise. Otherwise the truck is powerful, smooth, and quiet. I am actually happy with the Firestone Steeltex tires – 55lbs. Front, 60lbs. Rear – I have offroaded them in both snow and mud with excellent results and they are fine on the highway – very quiet. I was skeptical about them and took a “wait and see” attitude. I’ll use them until they wear out and then try something more deluxe.

obyone

Slap is most likely piston slap when cold startup. Don't think you'll get GM to do anything about unless you have the assistance of the BBB. Good luck.

chris191

Er, how serious is "the slap?" Is this the death knell of my engine at such a young age? Are we talking about connecting rod bearings? Or is a piston whacking into the cylinder top? It is definitely coming from within the engine. Your input and ideas are appreciated.

obyone

the rod bearings. Seems to be a common thing in these vortec engines. It doesn't seem to cause any problems, but then again the 4.8, 5.3, and 6.0 has been around since '99. That is not long term. I guess it all depends on whether you can live with it or not. Some have pursued buyback, some extended warranties, and others have sold/traded their trucks. Again, it comes back to if you can live with it. There is a couple of sevice bulletins regarding this issue. I'll see if I can dig them up.

valky

Drej. I agree with Hunter48 that your problem may be in the fuel tank. What actually is the problem is the short fuel line between the fuel pump and sender develops a cut or slice. This in turn causes the fuel pump to lose prime and can be a pain to re-prime. The solution is to drop the tank and look very closely at the hose. If I had to do that I would go ahead and replace the fuel pump while I was in there, since Chevy fuel pumps have been known to go out prematurely. You may have already done some damage to the pump, if indeed, you were losing prime and the pump was running dry.
I don't know if I'm correct in this or not, but you may not be able to get codes from the ALDL on your truck. Your truck, being a 95, may have OBDII diagnostics which would not allow you to gather codes without a scanner. Good luck.
Valky

jlflemmons

chris191

For Silverado and Sierra: Does anyone know of a way to bypass the automatic headlights, other than depressing the dome light override switch 4 times? Although the system is kind of slick, I would prefer to able to turn on my headlights at will without having to do the override each time. I would also be very happy to get rid of warning tones for lights, seat belt, etc. Is there a reversible fix for this? Thanks, and everyone have a nice weekend.