GMC Yukon Steering Wheel Shake

mmontana

My 99 Yukon has a shaky steering wheel between
50-65 MPH. It's done it since the truck was brand
new. At first I thought it was a wheel balance
problem on my aftermarket rims and tires, but was
told by 3 different shops (after having them pull
the wheels to re-balance them each time) that the
wheels were already balanced.

I brought the truck back to the dealer and was
told once that the amount of shake was normal. I
wasn't satisfied so I brought it back again a few
months later and was told that my brush bar was
causing the wheel to shake erratically.

I don't buy that. The problems seems to be worse
and is bordering on dangerous. I have since heard
that some tahoe owners have had a similar problem.

Has anyone had this problem?

Thanks,
Matt

btroy

I wonder if you have a tire or tires that are out of round. If a vehicle sits long enough without moving (many weeks or maybe even months), the tires can develop permanent flat-spots that make them feel out of balance, even though they are balanced. If your truck sat on the sales lot long enough, maybe that happened. You can check the date of manufacture on the plate in the driver's door jamb. This may give you an idea of how "fresh" it was when you bought it.

dwg1

I experienced the same front end shake, shimmy etc
with my 99 Tahoe. Went to the dealer, no real ideas with an unresponsive service Mgr. Came back to find a "new" Mgr who promptly aligned and balanced. Better but on a long trip Dec 99 I was passing and hit 70 plus mph lots of steering wheel shake. Back to the dealer, "new" Mgr, Balanced front tires "free" after I said I had paid once and not again. They also thought the weights had possibly been thrown???? GMCs being brothers feel the problems are family oriented. One owner on the Chevy side said a dealer tech said the vehicles reach harmonic resonance at 65 mph causing the shakes. For a vehicle costing this much they shouldn't shake. Good luck I am now looking at 2000s to get the new safety stuff, hope it doesn't shake.

jflynn4

TRY HAVING THE WHEELS BALANCED WHILE ON THE VEHICLE. IF THE IMBALANCE IS IN SOME OTHER PIECE THAT IS ROTATING SUCH AS THE ROTORS BALANCING THE ENTIRE ROTATING MASS MAY WELL SOLVE THE PROBLEM. IF THAT DOESN'T WORK TRY THE FOLLOWING: WITH THE FRONT END JACKED UP, MOUNT A PIECE OF CHALK TOUCHING THE MIDDLE OF THE TIRE. ROTATE THE TIRE AND SEE IF THE LINE MOVES AWAY FROM THE CENTER. IF IT DOES NOT STAY CENTERED, IT MEANS THERE IS A DEFECT IN THE MANUFACTURING OF THE WHEEL CAUSING THE WHEEL AND TIRE TO OSCILLATE LEFT AND RIGHT.

erniey

I have a 1998 Yukon SLT. I love the vehicle we have two children and three chocolate labs. The vehicle is comfortable for everyone. However, we have had several problems with it. We had an evo sensor go. Going around a corner one day, and the yukon did not take the corner. It didn't steer for only a second. I was very lucky there was not a car coming the other way. When I got to work I called the service department they said they had been having problems with the evo sensors. It had been defective from the factory. I just thought that was the way the vehicle handled. We have had the vehicle back to the service department twice for the shake. They tried balancing the tires both times. No change. I'm trying to decide if I should buy a new Yukon XL or a Suburban? Any suggestions?

mgeist

I HAVE A 96 YUKON WITCH I HAVE HAD PROBLEMS WITH SINCE DAY ONE. I NOTICE THE WHEEL SHAKE AS SOON AS I START OFF ON COLD TIRES. THIS STOPS AFTER A HALF MILE OR SO. ONCE I HIT SPEEDS OF 70-80 IT STARTS UP AGAIN. I CAN NORMALY DRIVE THROUGH IT ABOUT 85 WHERE IT SMOOTHS OUT. I AM IN THE AUTO REPAIR BUSINESS AND CAN NOT FIGURE THIS ONE OUT. I HAVE TALKED WITH A GMC REP. AND HE TOLD ME TO CHECK THE BALANCE OF THE ROTORS. THIS IS A NEW ONE TO ME. I HAVE NOT YET DONE THIS BECAUSE I AM PLANNING ON TRADING THE CAR OFF.

kale7

I HAD THE SAME SHAKING PROBLEM WITH MY 99 YUKON. I HAD THE TIRES BALANCED EVERY 5K MILES, LITTLE SUCCESS. FINALLY THE DEALERSHIP IN MIAMI DID A HIGH SPEED BALANCE AND RESURFACED THE ROTORS AND I HAVEN'T HAD THE PROBLEM FOR THE LAST 5K MILES. I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE ROTORS HAD TO DO WITH IT OTHER THAN BRAKING, BUT IT FIXED THE PROBLEM.

camydog

Do you know if the dealer did a regular balance with the tires off the truck or balanced them on the truck?

kjeldson

We too have a 99 Tahoe that developed a vibration at certain speeds. Went through all the balancing, alignment, etc. NO CHANGE. They put 3 different sets of tires on the vehicle - NO CHANGE - so much for the tire theory. The dealer finally contacted Chevrolet Technical Assistance center. Apparently, the vibration problem develops due to a "design flaw". The vibration is within their specs (I take that to mean, if you can't fix, say it works as designed). They did a couple more things (there is supposed to be a list of things they can do to help). Some vehicles get fixed and some (like ours) do not.
The last thing they did was realign the vehicle with maximum caster and added a steering stablizer shock. Not much improvement, but that is all they can do. Needless to say, we are pretty unhappy to have a vehicle that always feels like it needs to have a wheel balance.
I have read that a lot of the new Silverado trucks have this problem (and that is the basis for the Tahoe/Yukon). I do not know if they have fixed it for the next model year, but I would not count on it. Chevrolet Customer Service was less than helpful and basically said, too bad the car works as designed.
An interesting note however, concerning the fix dealing with the rotors. We had warped rotors on our front brakes and had to have them resurfaced. Maybe I will pursue this. Has anyone else noticed a relationship between the brake rotors and the steering vibration??
Debi

abuc887

I am about to purchase a '98 Tahoe LT 4x4. Is the shake a problem limited to 2wd or 4wd. I am having second thoughts about the car b/c I figure it was used for towing or off-road by the first owner if he traded it with only 17K.

richardswagon2

I had the same problem with my 97 suburban. The shake would occur at 70-72mph and disappear at 80mph. Wheel balance and tire rotation did nothing. Dealer finally replaced all four tires and about 90% of shake disappeared. The problem started at about 20k miles.

Tell me, anybody! Does any one experience an engine ticking noise inside cabin at 15k rpm. This problem also started at 20-25k miles. According to GM they had a valve stem seal problem on a number of 5.7L engines. I had been after the dealer to fix the problem, however, I was always discouraged to pursue the problem. According to the dealer, the noise is not indicative of any harm. Finally after 64k I requested to have the valve stem seals replaced. Problem continues and GM I assume, has no fix.

I thought of buying a 2000 suburban, however, after hearing about wheel shake and brake problems again I will probably wait, or go to a Ford product. Any Suggestions?

camydog

My truck is a 95 4 door, 4X4 with 61k on it.

cshayni

last summer i purchased a 97' tahoe 4x4 from one of our local dealers. we test drove and noticed the wheel shake at highway speeds. the dealer was also aware of the shake and stated that the appropriate part had been ordered and he would notify me when it arrived. i took the tahoe back and the dealer had to take the steering wheel apart and install the new part, unfortunately i do not remember what the part is called. but the steering does not shake at any speed, and that was 10 months and 10,000 miles ago. i bought the vehicle from the used lot at a local toyota dealer and they had steve smith gmc in springdale, arkansas perform the service. i was not charged for the service so i cannot help in this regard either. sorry i can't be more specific.

jfisher2000

I have been hanging out on these posts now for months and just recently took possesstion of my all new 2000 Tahoe, and I have not heard any talk of a steering wheel shake on these machines and no brake problems. They have made these vehicles 1000% better. Big brakes and all 4 disk. You should go to details V and read the many posts and see how many satisfied people there are. Yes there have been some first run problems, but mostly only minor things. You should also go to Clifford Martins web site he set up just for those interested in Burbs/Tahoes/Yukon/XL.
Hope you find it helpful. I really did.
Jo Ann

mkgilroy

My 99 Yukon has an extreme vibration problem between 35 and then again at 60-70. I have had it in the shop 8 times for this issue to no avail. Yes they balance and align the vehicle every time it is in...this does not correct the problem. They refuse to buy it back. It has been this way since off the lot in October of 1998. I have now hired an attorney. They have taken the case with no money up front! Anyone out there with this similar problem I urge you to pursue it. It is a defect and I feel that GMC should stand behind what they sell! And Matt if you're out there....reading your complaint duplicates everything I have gone though. Same exact situation!

obyone

a few of the '99 Silverado owners have alreacy done that...funny, they ended up buying 2000 Silverados.

jfisher2000

is there a link to Clifford Martin's website?

mbuna13

is there an address for the Clifford Martin's website?

northshore1

I believe his email address is clifford.martin@mindspring.com if that helps.

mrmilkytou

I have noticed most responses to this problem have focused on the front tires and alignment. It is obvious that the problem may not be the balancing or alignment but the tires themselves. GM typically equips all trucks with a standard and or optional tire of the same make and size. I have BF Goodrich All Terrain tires on my 1993 Yukon and have no problem whatsoever.
Another possibility is that the Rear Drive Shaft could be out of balance, however remote this may seem, it can transmit a severe or minor vibration thru the truck, it could be a front axle half-shaft, newer 4x4's the front end always turns the half-shafts, but freewheels in the front differential. Maybe these suggestions will help as I have owned and worked on Full Size GM Trucks and SUV's for the past 15 years. Good luck to all

obyone

those cheap Firestone's. Personally, I don't know anyone who has or has bought Firestone tires...leave it to GM to put it on a $44k truck. Or they will also use the Generals...ugh..

xeroman

Your truck should have the tires balanced on the vehicle and in both 2wd and 4wd mode if your truck is 4wd... the running gear can cause the vibration...

steve227

For those of you with late model Yukon/Tahoe/Suburban?CK's etc.:
The shake may be due to faulty MagnaSteer units. This is GM's newer version of variable ratio power steering. The fault apparently lies with the electronics that run the system. A friend's 99 Suburban had the same problem of shake at highway speeds. Also had a control issue with the vehicle not wanting to steer properly. Sometimes at highway speed the effort needed diminished instead of increased, as it should. A Buick dealer traced the problem(Magna Steer is on many GM vehicles) to the unit. GM knows of the defect and has purchased the 'Burb back from him on the condition that he not pursue the issue further. His new '00 'Burb does the same thing. The Buick dealer says to disconnect(!!!) the unit. While I wouldn't recommend that, I do believe GM has a big problem with the Magna Steer units.

djwong

I own a 1998 Yukon SLT 4-door which I purchased new from the dealer. Although, I am aware that the brakes suck, I liked the vehicle enough to overlook that minor inconvenience. I am committed to above average brake service for this truck. I also maintain the truck religiously and upon rotating the tires at the 6K interval, I noticed a slight front end shake which was cured with a dynamic balance. This repeated itself again at 12K. At 15K, I had both front rotors turned to cure the shaking. However, the shaking persisted for the next 3K. At 18K, I had the dealer performed/checked both a front end alignment and dynamic balance three times. I finally got so fed up with their crappy service, I went to a front end/tire specialty shop to get it re-aligned and re-balanced. I am at 20K now and holding out O.K.