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Chevy Silverado: Problems & Solutions

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Comments

  • noobie1noobie1 Member Posts: 326
    I've never done it myself, but heard the procedure described here many times; inboard at the rear end of the torsion bar you'll find the adjusting bolt (18mm socket). Crank it clock wise (looking up at it) 4 to 5 full turns, which should raise the front of the truck the inch you're looking for. Alignment? Definetly. My alignment man advised me to be sure to have the truck re-aligned whenever the torsion bars are changed that much. Also, on a level surface, before you start, you might measure at the frame to be sure it's the same height both sides; recently, when having my truck re-aligned, the technician found the factory setting on the driver's side to be 3/4 in. low. Some suggest driving it a bit to settle it in and then re-measure, although I'm not sure it's necessary.
  • harvestmooonharvestmooon Member Posts: 9
    Thanks for the help, ill let you know how I make out.
    J.
  • minikinminikin Member Posts: 389
    bars up 4-5 full rounds; pretty common solution to "level out" trucks that are not normally run with heavy loads. Conventional wisdom aside, re-alignment is not required; you can change front end height pretty much at will within this range with no noticeable camber effect. But an awful lot of GM trucks seem to deliver with out of spec front ends; so if you haven't had yours checked by a good independent shop I would highly recommend it, whether you fool with the bars or not. Might want to also spec castor to the high side to cut down on wander.
    -- Don
  • gator36gator36 Member Posts: 294
    No matter what you say,when you are raising the front end by adjusting the torsion bars, you completely change the front end geometry.

    Per GM's TSB
    SMU - Revised Front Caster and Camber Adjustment Procedure #02-03-07-002 - (10/04/2002)

    Caster measurements or values must be compensated for the measured frame angle.

    Caster is relative to frame. The caster values must be compensated for the measured frame angle by using a digital protractor or equivalent on a flat portion of the frame in front of the rear tire.

    This is only a portion of the whole proceedure.
  • gator36gator36 Member Posts: 294
    Brought my truck to the dealer for a front end alignment. The dealer had a brand new alignment rack. After adjusting the truck to specs, the truck still pulled. The tech was inclined enough to take it to another rack and re-do the alignment. Sure enough it was a ways off...

    No substitute for a concientious tech.
  • harvestmooonharvestmooon Member Posts: 9
    Thanks to those who helped ! 6 full turns leveled the front end and raised it exactly 1 1/2 inches. Truck looks ALOT better. Had it realigned to be safe. No noticeable difference in ride quality at all. There is actually quite a bit of room for adjustment with the torsion bars and plenty left if I needed it. First I went w/ turns- came up 1/2 inch. Then 2 more-up another 1/2, then last two complete turns brought it up a final 1/2. Its pretty clear that with my truck each turn raised the frame 1/4 inch. I jacked the frame which made turning the bolt very easy. I have the snow plow prep package on my truck which is supose to include stiffer bars. Next, 285's. Ill let you know, looks like plenty of room now, well see. J.
    2003 2500HD Chevy
  • 0patience0patience Member Posts: 1,712
    minikin,
    Not sure I follow your train of thought.
    Conventional wisdom aside, re-alignment is not required
    Sure, not required. Nothing is required, but it is sure alot better for the front tires.
    When you change the geometry, as gator stated, you change the alignment, what do you think you do when you align it? You change the geometry of the suspension.
  • jnugent2jnugent2 Member Posts: 1
    2002 ext cab 2wd 1500 silverado leans 1 in. to left. dealer tried 6 times to fix,2 diferent left frt springs both rear springs. finally put 3 rubber insulators under lft frt spring and called it fixed. i dont think so. Smokes on startup occasionally, a cloud of light blue smoke, doors lock by themselves, headlights blink when driving slow plus other problems. I am in process of using lemon law.
  • rayt2rayt2 Member Posts: 1,208
    Sounds like a lemon to me too! Been there and done that once in NY against GM.

    Ray T.
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    Just a post to move this topic back from the archives...

    PF Flyer
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  • cryscrosscryscross Member Posts: 2
    #1 of 2 Chev Silverado 2003 Transmission Whine by cryscross Aug 08, 2003 (9:42 pm)
    I'm new on board but not new to cars and trucks. My new Silverado LS w/ a 4.8 and extended cab has a whine and slight vibration in the tranny at very low speeds and up to 1500 rpm. It sounds like a bus or a 10 ton truck and is annoying to say the least. Varying the throttle slightly makes it very noticeable. Like to hear from anyone with similar problem and what if anything their dealer is doing about it. Mine says it is in the exhaust system and has added some dampers to no avail. Thanks for any help that might be available. Tom
  • jrock80jrock80 Member Posts: 66
    I have the same problem with my 2003 Z71. I dont know what it is, the truck runs fine and the transmission shifts well. It only makes the noise at very low RPMs for me, like around 700-900RPM. I took it to the dealer and they said it was fine. I have the extended warranty so I am not worried about it as it seems to shift fine and such. I am going to wait till I get some more miles on it to see if it goes away. I only have 500 miles on it still.
  • cryscrosscryscross Member Posts: 2
    Thanks jrock80. It's nice to know that one is not alone I guess. I also have the extended wty. w/ the no "co-pay" feature so as far as the dealer is concerned I will wait awhile. I do plan to drop by the best tranny shop in town and ask the boss to take a ride with me just to get his opinion. If he has any worthwhile advise I will let you know.
  • jrock80jrock80 Member Posts: 66
    After doing some investigation on my own it is not the transmission after all. It is the A/C Compressor. Mine doesnt do it with the A/C off. I had the dealer check it out and everything is fine. Some compressors are just noisier than others I guess. The sound is also becomming less apparent as I get more miles on the truck. Everything seems to be running better. After a trip over the weekend I am just getting under 20MPG with the A/C at about 75MPH. I am very pleased.
  • bissi1bissi1 Member Posts: 2
    I have a 2003 1500 silverado 4wd with a drivetrain vibration at 40 mph.the dealer doesn't know what is wrong. anyone have or had this problem? i'm ready to take it to another dealership.
  • rayt2rayt2 Member Posts: 1,208
    Your not the first with this issue and obviously won't be the last. Scroll back thru the posts, this issue has been addressed and the GM fix posted before.
    So much for GM fixing this issue.

    Ray T.
  • noobie1noobie1 Member Posts: 326
    TSB 01-01-38-013 relates to noisy A/C. Sorry I have no way to get it to you, but you probably should check it out. Don't fall for that "normal" bs.

    -David
  • big2dbig2d Member Posts: 1
    there is a rattle noise in my motor. You hear it when you apply the gas. could this be bad gas,plugs,wires or bad injectors.Thanks D
  • ndegroat1ndegroat1 Member Posts: 11
    OK, I am new to the American truck discussion, so please go easy on me. My fiance's truck (posted above) would not start for me the other night. It was raining and about 45 degrees. The night prior we drove around alot and I figured it was out of gas (the gauge has never worked correctly- we always fill it up around 300 miles). I went to the gas station and brought back a 5 gallon tank and filled it up. Still no turn over. It sounds as if it is not getting gas and all things electrical work. One other thing: The singing that comes from the fuel pump in rear? I couldn't tell if it was working. Could the fuel pump be the problem or should we start looking elsewhere? The truck is sitting in our driveway and he needs it for a hunting trip next week. I'd like to get this fixed for him while he is away on business this week....thanks so much!
  • akjbmwakjbmw Member Posts: 231
    When I turn the ignition to the on position (not all the way to start), cold or warm, I can hear the fuel pump sing briefly till the presure is up (unless there is too much noise nearby).

    I wouldn't expect there to be much difference between that '97 Z71 and my '98 Z71.

    Your biggest bother will be getting it to a trustworthy service place to get it corrected. Just because the pump doesn't sing, it doesn't mean that it is the problem... it just may not be getting power to make it sing.
  • ohneedshelpohneedshelp Member Posts: 13
    2001 5.3,4x4,z71 50,000 miles I was Backing up, heard a sound like I ran over a Soda can, Got out looked around, got back in and NO reverse ! and a Transmission Whine. Dealer says bad bearing needs $1800.00 to fix. Can anyone help ??????
  • nbrewernbrewer Member Posts: 1
    Have been thinking about buying a new Silverado 2WD but have been hearing for the last few years that the transmissions won't hold up. I have heard this from several people including one person who said that he was towing a light load in overdrive and it fried his trans. What kind of experience have you guys been having? I sure don't want to be buying trouble. Thanks for any help.
  • rayt2rayt2 Member Posts: 1,208
    Iv'e got 46k on my 2000 x-cab 2500 2wd rado (5.3) had the brief 1-2 upshift problem but that got fixed early on and tranny has been without problems. I have towed a 6000 lb travel trailer for about 10k of those miles.

    Ray T.
  • vklunevklune Member Posts: 3
    2001 Silverado 2500 HD Automatic headlights come on when called for, but at times there is no low beam, only fog lamps and high beam. After stopping for half an hour or so, they sometimes will work again and sometimes not. Come home at night with no low beams(driving very cautiously), put truck in garage and next morning, everything works fine again. First time this happened was in winter(last Feb) and was fine until this month(Dec). I live in northern Minnesota, so it appears that the cold might be a factor. Dealer has replaced switch and a module with no fix(they can't seem to duplicate the situation), but they are just shooting in the dark, they have no idea what to do. Sure would appreciate any suggestions. Thanks.
    Vic
  • ohneedshelpohneedshelp Member Posts: 13
    Headlights(low beam) dont' work occasionally(in winter only).
    My bet is your By-Pass switch or connection to the switch has a problem,
  • mgonzalesmgonzales Member Posts: 8
    The BBB did nothing for me due to I brought the truck in after the 36,000 mile warranty . It had 38,000 miles on it. Michigan lawyer wants me to sign the papers to get on board with the billion dollar lawsuit against GM. Anyone else have the problem . I heard the piston slap before 36,000 but could not get into the dealer because I was to busy. It has gotten worse.
    Thanks ,
    Mike
  • mitzijmitzij Member Posts: 613
    If you have a repair order from a Chevy dealer stating your complaint of piston slap, confirmation that the tech heard it, and GM's current line that it's noisy, but not a problem, then just keep an eye on it. Keep your records that you have maintained the truck properly. (consistent oil changes, regular maintenance...) If the engine blows, you have documentation that it's not your fault. You took care of your truck. You can then go to GM try to get financial help to fix your engine. If a lot of people's engines blow, then you have more standing, there may even be a recall. If you pay to have your engine replaced, GM would reimburse you in the event of a recall.
    I'm not sure a lawsuit will help. The lawyers will get most of the money, consumers will get a few dollars. There was a class action lawsuit on my car (91 lumina) for the rear sliders. I learned about the suit in a mass mailing, sent in a repair order, and voila! Six months later I got an $8.00 check! Sure put a dent in that $200.00 slider bill I paid.
  • teal2500teal2500 Member Posts: 1
    i just purchased a 1995 2500 diesel 34 gal tank. the fuel gauge jumps all over the place. the dealer said the tank sender unit and dash unit were replaced. any ideas?
  • rayt2rayt2 Member Posts: 1,208
    Check the ground for a good connection. That might be the problem.

    Ray T.
  • rachelannerachelanne Member Posts: 1
    I am having a problem with my keyless entry system. The buttons on the system will not lock or unlock the doors. This happened once before, right after I bought my truck. I took it in and the mechanic reset the remote. So when it happened just a few minutes ago, I looked it up in the owner's manual and did the resynchronization that the mechanic had done. Unfortunately, it still didn't work. My truck is only 3 years old, so maybe it is a battery, but I'm not sure. It had been working fine earlier in the day, and I haven't noticed a weakening signal or anything. Any ideas what it could be? Does anyone know how to fix this?

    Thanks,
    RAchel
  • obyoneobyone Member Posts: 7,841
    in all the remotes and reprogram all of them. After three years, I'd suspect that the batteries are a bit worn.
  • z71billz71bill Member Posts: 1,986
    I have about 40K on my 99 Silverado Z-71.

    Since starting to work out of my home (and also buying a new car) - I don't drive the Z-71 that much.

    About 4 months ago I noticed a small clunk in the driveline - I would hear it when I stopped and then again when I took off. It seemed louder when cold.

    I stopped by the dealership and was told that the driveshaft should have been lubed at 30K - so I was over due. They lubed the driveshaft and the clunk went away. Problem solved. In the 4 months since then I have only driven about 1,000 miles - this morning the clunk is back - same as before.

    I don't see how letting a truck sit would cause this problem, -

    Anyone know of a fix?

    How easy is it to lube a driveshaft?

    The dealer did not charge me or even write up a ticket when they lubed the driveshaft 4 months ago - So I have no "warranty" coverage.
  • dch0300dch0300 Member Posts: 472
    I had a similar problem in my 2001 several months ago. I had an occasional clunking/jolting sound/feeling from the back end of the truck when braking and almost stopped, or when releasing the brake from a stop.
    The Dealer replace the yoke in the drive line with an upgraded one. Warranty covered the cost. The problem is 100% gone.
    -David
  • tjackson2tjackson2 Member Posts: 19
    I know this has been discussed in the past, but can anyone tell me if it is necessary to raise the the body to replace the 245's. I asked the service manager at the local dealer and he said you might have to tweak the torsion bars. a friend said you need a 1 inch spacer in the rear and raise the front with the torsion bars 1 inch.
    any advice?
  • bigfurbigfur Member Posts: 649
    I dont think you should have to raise anything. I have a 01 silverado 4x4 with 285s on it, didnt have to raise it at all. I did raise the torsion bars, but not cuz i had to, did it to get a level ride height.
  • z71billz71bill Member Posts: 1,986
    I don't understand - the clunk is gone. I drove about 50 miles on Wednesday . Hauled some heavy junk - Drove truck yesterday and today and the clunk is gone.

    Not sure why - maybe it just needed to work a little!

    I have seen more than a dozen 1500HD and at least 50 2500HD Silverados with 265 75 16 tires. On both stock and after market wheels. These ties will fit without any modifications.
  • stansharpstansharp Member Posts: 2
    I recently purchased an 02 Silverado 1500HD 6.0 litre and love it. The truck has a full cap on it and I would like to be able to lock it up tight.I carry a lot of equipment and tools in it for my job.
    The existing lock is on the cap only and seens to be pretty badly corroded and it is not very secure.
    If anyone knows of a solid fix to this problem please let me know.
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  • gpabbottgpabbott Member Posts: 1
    Goodmorning: Sunday morning May 9th 2004

                   I just bought a new Chevy Silverado 2500 H D
    I have always owned Ford's 1973,1984,1995 and the
    last one was a 1999 F 250 lariat, I got a deal I could not
    refuse. I have a question that is trivial (maybe).
                   I bought locking wheel lug nuts for it, I put them
    on yesterday, I noticed that there is a space now in the
    hub cap where I took off the regular plastic lug nut cover
    it will not fit over the lock. How much trouble can moisture
    getting in under the hub cap cause me. I was thinking of
    taking the caps off and duct taping the inside of the caps
    to hold excess moisture out. Any suggestions ?

                                           Thanks Al :

                                                           GPABBOTT itshimagain@juno.com
  • picklesorviepicklesorvie Member Posts: 28
    We recently purchased a 2004 Silverado with the
    5.3 engine. The air compressor makes a clunking
    sound when it is turned on at low speed. Chevrolet indicates there is nothing they can do.
    It is a redesigned compressor. This is another
    instance of GM not getting it right. I have had
    it with them; unfortunately for the USA the next
    vehicle we buy will be a Toyota.
  • chevy4lifechevy4life Member Posts: 20
    My '00 1500 4x4 has a problem w/ the gas gauge: when idling in park, the gauge will go from an accurate reading and shoot up to full and then down to empty and sit there. Once I put the truck in motion, it corrects itself.
     
    Anyway, I took it to my local dealer and they told me that I needed a new sender unit (which is in the gas tank). They said it was $400 for the part and $150 to install it= $550! I told them no thanks. When I got home, I crawled under the truck, and the tank still had mud all over it - they hadn't even dropped it to look, but they did charge me $80 to tell me it would be $550 to fix.

    As if that wasn't suspicious enough, they said my throttle body needed cleaning...Now I am quite familiar when it needs cleaning, as the gas pedal will stick firmly and you have to mash the gas pedal to get it unstuck (a potentially dangerous situation). I clean it myself from time to time; takes about 5 minutes to do. It didn't need cleaning!

    Finally, they wanted $250 to do the rear brakes (new pads).

    While I am not up to date on new cars, I did spend two years of high school in an automechanics course, so I know a few things. I guess if I was an uninformed customer, I'd be getting swindled.

    Oh, I did the brakes myself: $34 for pads and $40 to turn the rotors. $74 vs. $250.
  • ggregory2ggregory2 Member Posts: 1
    I own a 97 Chevrolet p/u 4X4 with a 5.7 L engine. At 42K a misfire began to occur. After numerous tries at resolving it, a mechanic found that the lifters were collapsing. I ended up having all of the lifters replaced to correct the problem. Even with new lifters, I still got a lot of lifter chatter at cold start. To remedy this, my mechanic had me add a quart of mystery oil and this seems to have cured the problem. One important item: if you or anyone removes the distributor from these vehicles, make sure that you follow the steps to correctly "phase" the distributor. If you don't, the timing will be way out causing a hot engine misfire.
  • mitzijmitzij Member Posts: 613
    The fuel sending unit problem can be diagnosed without pulling out the fuel tank. The computer system can be tapped by the dealer's computer and see that no signal (or a wrong signal) is being sent by the fuel level sending unit. Dropping the tank takes longer than $80 worth of labor.
    On the throttle body cleaning thing, they may do recommendations based on mileage. We had a tech working here for awhile who did that. He'd see 50k on the odometer and make a list. I had to weed through the list before presenting it to the customer.
    You saved most of your money on the brake deal by doing them yourself, you saved labor $. The pad price you give is not a GM price, so you saved money buying aftermarket. They weren't scamming, they were using regular charges based on GM parts and their own hourly labor rate.
  • rayt2rayt2 Member Posts: 1,208
    Don't forget that the labor rate charged is directly from their "book" on how long manf. says it should take to do job. Then there is the real world where the proficient mechanic cuts the time in half but the dealer still charges the "book rate" based on the job. This is where the inequity in the system and customer deception comes to play.
    I have a friend who works for Honda as a mechanic and he gets the "book rate" for job whether he gets it done on time or ahead of time. To me that is a rip off of the consumer. Say you have a particular job done and book rate says 5 hrs., job is completed in 2 hrs. by mechanic but the customer is still charged for the job based on book rate. It's hard to trust dealers or repair facilities that do this and believe me there are more that do then don't.

    Just my 2 cents.

    Ray T.
  • mitzijmitzij Member Posts: 613
    I agree. Book time should only be used as a guide. We go more with actual time spent working on a vehicle than book time, unless a customer calls in asking 'how much will it cost?' without looking at the vehicle first. Then we yank out the old 'Motors' manual and start looking up labor. Book time can also hurt the mechanic, especially on driveability or wiring issues. It may take 5 minutes to replace a sensor, but it took the guy 2 hours to be sure that's all it needed.
    In the case of this guy with the fuel sender, $150 doesn't sound bad, if the labor rate is $60 or $75. The part price doesn't sound too far off, either.
  • chevy4lifechevy4life Member Posts: 20
    I know about book rate. I think it's in the dealers' and mechanics' favor more often than not, though.

      I know everyone has to make a living, but IMO, there's something fundamentally wrong, when something as benign as a fuel sender costs $400! This isn't a Boeing 777; it's not rocket science. It shouldn't cost that much. I refuse to cave-into car companies' ploys of teching-out the car to the point where it's just one big friggin' computer with four wheels.

    Sorry about my rant. Now I'm off to the junkyard to find a used sender.

    Thanks for the replys earlier.
  • jwashinjwashin Member Posts: 2
    2001 2500HD,6.0, Automatic transmission. Just bought used. When accelerating truck feels like its under load. Is this normal for this truck? How does yours feel. Also, seems like there is slight slip when going from a dead stop to start. You can feel it a little.
  • smokey2smokey2 Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2000 chevy p/u with 53000 miles on it. The other day I stoped at a red light. After turning right the truck went dead in the middle of the turn. This was the first time the truck has gone dead like that. The truck stared right up and ran fine. Then tonight I was driving started to stop and noticed the RPM,s droped to almost 0 and the brake pedal felt like it was going to the floor, the truck didn't go dead but almost did. Has anyone had this problem or have any idea what the problem might be.
  • karmakarma Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2003 HD 6.0 liter/auto and do not have those problems. I bought mine new however, not that it should matter. Sounds like a drivetrain problem of sorts but Im no mechanic.
  • tkisnertkisner Member Posts: 1
    My truck has the same problem with the gas gauge slopping around when stopped and from what I read it is the sender unit. What did you do to fix the problem. I would like to fix it myself if possible. I have heatd you ahve to drop the tank

    Also, I have had the throttle body problem. how do you clean that in 5 minutes. Is it documented somewhere?

    Thanks,
    Travis Kisner
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