Chevy Colorado and GMC Canyon Vibrations
I bought a 05 GMC Canyon w/33000 miles. It was not long before I found it had a bad vibration at 60 mph, was told it was tires so put top of the line Toyo's and vibration got worse. Power Chev. in Siblimity said it was tires so back to tire dealer where they rebalanced them and put truck up on rack to check for bad wheel or out of round but found nothing. Back to dealer, service manager happens to live close to me so suggested he drive it to work for a few days. 3 days later he calls and tells us it is a problem with this suspension and the fix is --150+lbs of weight between wheel wells and tail gate. Amazingly the vibration all but disappeared. There is a bulletin from GMC on this.
Tagged:
0
Comments
99-05 Chevrolet/GMC Silverado Sierra suspension Vibration or Frame Beaming at 40-60 MPH Recommendation/Instructions:
Test drive vehicle to confirm the condition. a beam shake condition will usually respond to concrete type pavements more than asphalt, so the vehicle should be driven over both surfaces if possible, Place 200-500 pounds in the pickup bed between the closed tailgate and the wheel wells. A beaming condition should dissipate
If the concern is determined to be beam shake, this is a normal characteristic and no repair attempts should be made. A Field Product report should be submitted by following bulletin 02-00-89-002C.
The weight that they put in the back of my pickup did not get rid of the vibration all together but it took enough of it away that it is comfortable to drive now.
Hope this helps.
The first thing I did to my '05 Canyon was get rid of the OE General tires. They're worse than terrible. That in itself was the biggest part of the cure, but I still had a little shake in the steering wheel. It wasn't bad, but annoying. Just for grins, I took out the OE rubber sway bar bushings, and replaced them with polyurethane pieces. The poly allows the bar to rotate more freely, instead of binding. 99% of the shake is now gone.
I also took the driveshaft to a reputable shop to have the balance checked, as GM shafts are sometimes suspect. It wasn't severe enough to have the warranty cover it, but they replaced both u-joints, because they had a slight bit of slop, and balanced the shaft. The cost was $75, and it did smooth it out a little bit more.
Another couple of years, and a few hundred more dollars, and I should have this truck sorted out to where GM should have had it!
I'm sure that this is part of the problem, there's so little compliance in the suspension.
I am very upset about all this. Why should I have to go through this after paying well over $34K for a new truck with a problem? GM knows of the problem, but they are still selling the built in problem. I would like to return my truck, and get my money back.
When you got the tires balanced, was this performed with your GM dealership or at another location? If it was the former, we're happy to follow up on your visit with them and look into this further! Please contact us at socialmedia@gm.com with more information (including your name and Edmunds username, contact information, the last 8 of your VIN and mileage, and the name of your dealership).
Sarah, GM Customer Service