2015 YUKON NOISE IN CABIN

Wrench589 · April 8, 2015

There is no question the "booming" noise is worse in V4 mode, but it still notice it in V8 mode as well. My take on it is that any and all "impact" forces that go into the chassis and body result in noises being generated. So, he extra vibration generated in V4 mode makes the situation worse. As does the stiffer tires and suspension. And so on, and so on. Basically, a bad situation made worse.

In addition, I did some testing on the highway by putting it in manual and dropping a gear and the "Buffeting/pressure" did not change. Haven't played around with manual mode at lower speed to see what it does to the booming, but I did seem to notice that when I accelerate hard, the booming seems to go away?? Hmmmm. Be interesting to take a test drive with the exhaust flapper valve forced open.

ateam_burb · April 8, 2015

Most of what has been posted points to GM thinking this is a vibration issue. Based on my experience, I agree. Just search my posts here and you'll see I was able to reproduce the pressure and buffetting at low speeds by exciting the chassis. I started off with the buffetting at 39 MPH but it would occur at other speeds too. BTW, replacing the entire rear end practically eliminated it at 39 MPH but as I said it reared it's ugly head at other speeds. I would assume GM knows this is a real I issue but is quietly sweeping it under the rug, well, because they can. My bet is that the 2016's will not have this issue (or it will be less noticeable) but we'll have to wait and see.

Edited April 8, 2015 by ateam_burb

TOBTEK · April 8, 2015

Question ....

Is their a aftermarket shock manufacture that makes replacements for the Magnetic ride controll system? There is NO doubt in my mind these OEM shocks are complete junk! And I feel this is where the problem starts. I'd be willing to spend the money to try this. I just can't drive this Escalade anymore. It's not worth the aggravation, and the pounding pressure in my head.

AGAIN.... If your reading this thread and your un desided weather to purchase a new GM SUV... I would WAIT! We are on our 2nd 2015 now. They both have been a completely disappointing!!!!!

Oh yeah. Had our meeting yesterday with the GM field engineer. Went exactly like I thought it would. He said he could hear a touch of the booming sound, but ours was one of the better ones he's driven. Total corporate BS answer. they want to rip the car apart and do the cross members in the roof. I asked if anyone has acknowledged this has helped the problem, for I've never seen anyone online that has stated an improvement.

As for the low speed lugging and bogging. He said that's Normal in V4 mode. Sorry Sir, that's BULL CRAP! It's not normal for any car or truck to bogg, shutter, lumber along then smooth out. Tell your coworkers back in engineering to fix these new POS 8 speed transmissions, and the computers that run them. Even better, how about TESTING these things before selling them to the open public.

So basically to conclude my rant. F-U GM! I'm so 100% tired of dealing with this complete piece of crap you sold us.

Edited April 8, 2015 by TOBTEK

Wrench589 · April 9, 2015

Question ....

Is their a aftermarket shock manufacture that makes replacements for the Magnetic ride controll system? There is NO doubt in my mind these OEM shocks are complete junk! And I feel this is where the problem starts. I'd be willing to spend the money to try this. I just can't drive this Escalade anymore. It's not worth the aggravation, and the pounding pressure in my head.

I did a search and there doesn't appear to be an aftermarket replacement for the shocks on the vehicles equipped with the Magnetic ride suspension. However, Bilstien does list shocks for the non-Magnetic ride version in the 2015's and a set of 4 is around $400 depending where you buy them. On my list of things to try eventually is to through a set on and see what happens! I'll tie-wrap the wiring harness for the electronic version something and see what happens.

But, I've had two 2015 rentals (while ours was in the dealership) that did not have the Magnetic ride suspension and both of those had all the same noises as ours. So, I don't think it's the Electronically controlled damping itself that is the problem. It certainly could be the base damping used in both versions of the shocks, though. Could be too stiff.

I read an interesting article on shock absorbers on the weekend. Seems that the latest and greatest in shock absorber technology is shocks that dampen immediately upon any movement, instead of older designs that had to move many millimetres before getting stiff. Hmmmm. Perhaps In GM's quest to modernize the ride, they have installed "too good" a shock absorber? There is no question the wrong shock absorber can mess up a suspension's performance and the ride quality big time. And more refined the suspension, the more this is the case.

The other thing that concerns me is that GM made the springs too stiff. Again, trying to give a more solid ride and remove the "lumbering" feeling of a large, body-on-frame pickup based vehicle with a high center of gravity, they may have gone too far.

So, softer tires, softer springs, and softer shock absorbers.

Wing350 · April 9, 2015

I totally agree that there is a big problem with the shock and spring setup for both the Premium Smooth Ride and Magnetic Ride vehicles. Add into that some 20" or 22" wheels and it's even worse. A bad expansion joint will set your teeth rattling. It will also excite the roof section to give you a quick baffling sound to accelerate your headache. But if you're going to push back at Chevy with how miserable those suspensions are then you are only going to hear " that's how we built them. Sorry if you don't like the suspension but they're performing to specifications."

If you want your money back you need to take a copy of the GM Service Bulletin PIT 5318 and a copy of your state's Lemon Law into your dealer and say "we're going to fix this baffling sound that GM admits is a problem. And if you can't do it in the time/attempts as spelled out in the Lemon Law then I will demand a refund." Any service manager that has tried this repair will probably dump this in GM's lap at this point because he knows it's a hopeless cause. GM will send out an engineer to measure how bad your vehicle is and if they think they can get away with pretending there is no problem. Read the bulletin as it explains many of the different things that excite / "oil-can" / baffle the roof. Stay tough. Document your calls and conversations. They can't fix them. You will get your money back.

Anon2015 · April 10, 2015

It may be helpful to some if when you mention something like "GM Service Bulletin PIT 5318", you provide a link to the document.

Dadof4 · April 10, 2015

Hi all,

We requested a buyback from GM several weeks ago and all we get is the run around. We've been told the District Manager would be calling us on 3 different occasions. This hasn't happened for 2 weeks. We will be hiring a lawyer.

I wonder how quick the judgment will be when I drag my 4 little kids into court.

$70k for a vehicle that gives you headaches and vertigo. They better hope this doesn't turn into chronic inner ear problems for my wife, or I'll be getting a lot more than my $70k back.

TOBTEK · April 10, 2015

Hi all,

We requested a buyback from GM several weeks ago and all we get is the run around. We've been told the District Manager would be calling us on 3 different occasions. This hasn't happened for 2 weeks. We will be hiring a lawyer.

I wonder how quick the judgment will be when I drag my 4 little kids into court.

$70k for a vehicle that gives you headaches and vertigo. They better hope this doesn't turn into chronic inner ear problems for my wife, or I'll be getting a lot more than my $70k back.

Isn't it crazy that we all have been dealing with this nonsense. We all spent a ton of money in good faith for the betterment of our families, and we've all been put through the ringer. I ride in our new Escalade little to not at all any more. It's just not worth the annoyance, headaches, and the arguments it creates between my wife and I. She still thinks if there was a known problem GM wouldn't be selling theses vehicles.

Sure wish Toyota would step up And build something more modern then their out dated Landcruiser or Sequioa. I hear the new Infinity is really nice, just don't care for the look of the thing.

Edited April 10, 2015 by TOBTEK

Wing350 · April 10, 2015

GM Service Bulletin PIT 5318 is copied on Post 113 of this Topic. I think roughly page 8. There is an updated PIT 5318A that has the additional note regarding other "Inputs that can excite the roof". You would need to ask your service manager for that version as I have not yet seen it posted.

Wrench589 · April 11, 2015

GM Service Bulletin PIT 5318 is copied on Post 113 of this Topic. I think roughly page 8. There is an updated PIT 5318A that has the additional note regarding other "Inputs that can excite the roof". You would need to ask your service manager for that version as I have not yet seen it posted.

Something interesting about PIT5318. I have found a couple of websites with GM service bulletins listed. While it shows PIT5318 listed, the link is always dead when I try to open it. All the other links to various bulletins work, but not that one. And, on a couple of different websites. Weird, eh? I doubt it's a coincidence. Perhaps GM is trying to avoid it getting out because of legal action coming at them?

Wing350 · April 11, 2015

They're hiding it because of the millions of dollars of buybacks they are forced to do. And let me tell you they watch this website closely. They want nothing more than for this topic to quiet down. That's one of the reasons you haven't seen the GM responses anymore.

Anon2015 · April 12, 2015

Actually, they have admitted it (indirectly). Their customer satisfaction surveys has a long list issues which you may have experienced (water leaks from antenna, buffeting, wind noise...dissatisfied with the radio, etc.). So, they know of the complaints, problems and issues. They have made changes in the 2016 models to 'fix' the problem. Back to the survey. Good luck getting a buy back for that problem if, on the survey, you say it isn't a problem.

jer1346 · April 13, 2015

Supposed to pick up my Yukon XL today from Liberty Buick/GMC. They have had it for 3 weeks. They did the roof fix and it did not solve the problem, then they installed a new exhaust. When I asked the service tech if the booming/buffetting noise was gone he hesitated and said yeah.....

Going to take a long test ride, if it's not fixed I'm done with this vehicle.

I hope GM will step up and buy this vehicle back. Trade assistance into another Yukon is not going to get it. If GM does not want to help, I'm off to a Ford dealership and will trade my Yukon for a Expedition and take the hit.

I'll keep you posted.

Quick shout out to the service dept at Liberty. Robert and Rocky have been great to work with.

Matthew Gluck · April 13, 2015

Hi Guys,

Sorry to hear about the difficulty you guys are having. It's sounds both awful & extremely frustrating.

On Thursday I placed a deposit on a 2015 Tahoe LT, and I am supposed to pick it up this week. Afterwards, I was poking around and I found this thread. It is concerning to say the least.

It's seems this is having to some, and not ALL vehicles? Is this correct? Are most effected or just a small sample?

But most importantly....

What exactly should I do to test my vehicle on a test-drive PRIOR to signing the contract? What is the best way to test this and what should I look for prior to agreeing to the purchase? I have small kids, and certainly wouldn't want to put them in a vehicle that would make them uncomfortable.

Thank in advance.

yukontruckman · April 13, 2015

Actually, they have admitted it (indirectly). Their customer satisfaction surveys has a long list issues which you may have experienced (water leaks from antenna, buffeting, wind noise...dissatisfied with the radio, etc.). So, they know of the complaints, problems and issues. They have made changes in the 2016 models to 'fix' the problem. Back to the survey. Good luck getting a buy back for that problem if, on the survey, you say it isn't a problem.

Can you elaborate on this? Are you talking about the 2015i models or upcoming changes for MY2016? There are several people here with 2015i's that have the buffeting. Thanks.