Thomcat

It's a waste of time getting the unit (hardware) replaced if they haven't come up with a fix for it and chances are you'll get a radio manufactured before the vehicle without the latest update, or the new one will work the same way and something else will get screwed up with the install. All you can do is get the latest software rev. and put up with it until they do come up with a software fix. No different than the bugs and constant revs. on home computer software. I can live with popping the RDO fuse every few months to reboot the radio/Nav, but they should acknowledge their shortcomings ,and provide hardware reboot capability and software updating using removable media.

My .02 - Maybe that's because what is contained in your Z71 package and maybe that is all that was offered on older Z71 trucks. There is no Z71 "package" on the '16s, i.e a Z71 option package added to base models. The 2016s do not offer a Z71 package on base models but rather additional features incorporated within two separate model variants available only in LT and LTZ trims and not available in 2WD , LS or WT models. And these variants do not have $430 in upgrades but an additional $1,910 in the LT-Z71 and $1,165 on the LTZ-Z71 (because the stock LTZ contains some of the LT-Z71 upgrades). As indicated on the Chevy website, the standard '16 Z71s contain different shocks, Z71 off road suspension, different leaf springs, Eaton locker rear end w/different gear ratio, 2 spd. transfer case, larger wheels, aggressive A/T tires, tow hooks, LED fogs, under belly protection, branding crap, and appearance items (and likely software calibrations to modify the ride and steering assist) for the extra $1,500 over the older Z71 add on "package". Simply check out the window stickers on the Z71 variants lists two separate line item features under standard mechanical equipment heading "Z71 Off Road Suspension" and "Monotube Rancho Brand shocks". All it takes is a test ride in a base LT or LTZ vs the Z71 variants to convince one that the ride and handling is definitely different......I test rode plenty until I found the pick of the litter...and the difference between the ride and handling in the Z vs. non-Z models ain't just in the shocks.

They don't even use the same parts in the stock suspensions....some have aluminum control arms and some have steel.....and there is a lot more to the suspension than front end parts....Eaton locker, rear end ratio, different tires/wheel specs.......different number rear leaf springs used in many '16s.........essentially everything between one's a$$ and the pavement is a part of the suspension and the shocks are only one piece in the whole of the puzzle......and how about where there are no parts for direct comparison, i.e. software controlling the electric steering assist, alignment specs. Doesn't much matter because the whole matter is subjective - personally I preferred and chose the Z71 over the standard ride which is a bit rougher but provides more of a road feel; it's just fine as-is with the current combination of parts....... the Silverado doesn't need Bilsteins or anything else for a stiffer ride. I had Bilsteins as stock on my Z71 Avalanches where you did need them to counter the soft riding coil spring/welded bed setup and wouldn't want the Ranchos on the Avalanches any more than the Bilsteins on the Silverado. Will the Ranchos wear out sooner?.... won't matter, I'll be in a '19 by then.

How about on your keychain with the door remote? Single or multi-channel remote control 12v 10A relays are available on EBay for less than $10. Channel A controls the LED spots on the sports bar and Channel B the LED floods behind the grille. Plus you can control the lights from outside the vehicle. One of many on EBay: http://www.ebay.com/itm/315MHZ-DC-12v-relay-2CH-wireless-RF-Remote-Control-Switch-Transmitter-Receiver-/121532355607?hash=item1c4be49417:g:WRwAAOSwc0FUpfUv

The clockspring shouldn't make a clicking noise if undamaged and installed properly. Just check to make sure all the steering wheel buttons and horn still function.

Here's how the Z71 sits, it's not just emblems and decals, per the Chevy website: LT Z71 features for 2016"LT Z71 includes all LT features, with the addition or substitution of: 18-inch bright machined aluminum wheels and All-terrain tires Body-color headlamp bezels Body-color grille surround Chrome lower bumper appearance Black Recovery Hooks LED fog lamps Z71 appearance package (Brushed metal Z71 door plate, unique gauge cluster and unique finish interior trim plates) Heavy-duty locking rear differential Hill Descent Control Trailering Package Underbody transfer case shield Z71 Off-Road Suspension with twin Rancho monotube shocks " The last item indicates that the Z71 uses a different off road suspension not just different shocks, and additional mechanical and electronic options over the equivalent LT or LTZ so how can someone say too soft or too stiff because apparently the shocks are balanced to the system. Ever consider that the Z71 ride with whatever shocks were put in is exactly the way it was designed to ride and it's a mistake is to put in a shock that provides a ride that is softer on your a$$ at the expense of degraded off road handling? Don't like the stiff ride with the aggressive tred tires? Then get the LT or LTZ version. Painting anything white that is exposed on the undercarriage is an invitation to showing rust, but surface rust does not affect performance. Interesting that some people seem to care more about the poor paint job on the shocks where it doesn't matter than the crappy "Jello" clear coat finish and snot coating on the frames.

I think it you may have it right with respect the cause being due to harmonic imbalance between the two states, but not so much the increase in combustion kinetics otherwise all V4/6 and all V4/8 would experience the shudder caused by a power surge and they do not. And, a V6 configuration is definitely not more balanced than a V4. Inherently harmonically balanced "V" engines are those with equal numbers of opposed pistons in each bank, i.e. V4, V8, V12, etc. as are all "I" or flat (pancake) engines I4, I6, I8, I10 etc. The "V" engines with unequal numbers of opposed pistons in each bank must rely upon kludges such as counterweighting on the main crank, or a system of counter rotating auxiliary crankshafts. The amount of counterbalancing necessary being determined by the angle of the banks, i.e. 90 or 60 degrees. So as the V4/8 AFM engines do not have a harmonic vibration related to balancing consideration the V4/6 AFM arrangement may which would be noticeable in the V4 to V6 transition. Besides, other than cooling concerns for the middle cylinders on an I6, the only real advantages of a V6 to an I6 is length of the engine so it can be jammed into the width of front wheel drive transverse mounted configurations and the height of larger displacement engines permit lower hood lines.

X2 Since my 74 Impala with a 454 V8 I've always been of the impression that "there's no substitute for cubes". Recently I've accepted that design, materials and technology is at least if not more important in a power train than the size of the engine. I use a good dealer and bought plenty of vehicles from him so he's more than willing to put up with some of my crap. It was time to trade the '13 Malibu "grocery-getter" for a '16 and there were two choices the old body '16 which I favored with the 2.5 liter and the new body with a 1.5T. I wanted the cheaper old version with the larger engine and the wife loved the sleek shape of the new version with the $800 tricoat paint job. To discourage the wife I tested both loaded down with two of the largest salesmen in the dealership and to my amazement the 1.5T was at least if not more responsive and quicker than the 2.5. This 1.5 turbo engine is barley larger than a motorcycle engine and provides quick response and power and gets over 40 mpg. and the dealer provides lifetime warranty on the engine. Makes me rethink why I paid another $1095 for an AFM V8!

Could be pinging/knocking under load, not serious enough to activate the knock sensor and retard timing. Might want to try a tank of 89 or 93 octane to see if it quiets, won't hurt anything but your wallet

How about applying the parking brake when in Neutral and letting your foot off the brake and then shift to Park so the weight of the truck is on the rear brake shoes instead of the pawl in the automatic transmission? And to eliminate the problem caused pulling on the steering wheel and jamming the steering wheel lock, install a driver's assist handle on the driver's "A" pillar to match the one on the passenger side. It should be standard as far as I'm concerned, but GM offers the part aftermarket for less than $50....and worth every penny, even if you have the assist step.....no more grabbing the steering wheel to get in or out!

Another post on this. It was supposed to be fixed in the '16s with a new HMI module, but my '16 screwed up the same way. Brought mine back by pulling the RaDiO fuse in the passenger fuse bank which hard reboots the head and it has been OK for the past few weeks. Mentioned it to the dealer and that is how they have been correcting the problem.....pulling the battery cable will also erase the tranny programming.

Evidently there is no permanent hardware or software fix - yet - and given the right set of conditions the My Link head will lock up and require a reboot. Should have a reboot button. Checked with the dealer today when I was bringing in another vehicle for State inspection. They are aware of the problem and reboot the same way by removing then reinserting the RaDiO fuse in the passenger side fuse bank which is a lot easier than yanking the battery cable and also losing the tranny's learned settings.

Same with '16 Silverado with the latest auto-android update. Main screen went blank and remained dark....still dark after multiple starts...BUT screen still worked with the camera only when shifted into Reverse...removed and examined the RDO fuse in the passenger side cluster for about a minute which was OK.......screen came to life as soon as the fuse was reinserted. Apparently a logic screw up somewhere in a million lines of code......hopefully they'll correct it in a few years.

If the vehicle was submitted, examined, evaluated and denied as a warranty repair it should still be in the system as part of the warranty repair history - if for nothing else so the dealer can get reimbursed by GM for the amount of time expended. There's no longer a choice for self or independent repair. Since the new BCM must be reprogrammed to make it play nice with the rest of the modules on the vehicle's network, it has to go to some Chevy dealer for repair. Might try another dealer on the chance the invalidation of the warranty was not in the system.

I don't wonder, because it is not a cheap kludge like jamming a $1 diode to cause a one way short in the wiring harness and pray it doesn't screw something else up. Worth the extra $99 or so for piece of mind and designed protection for a $50K vehicle. Purchased their fog wiring harness for my Camaro......uses all GM OEM electrical connectors which plug in series with the existing lamp connectors. As I see how it operates, the harness contains the it's own fuse and relay(s) which switch using the power from the upstream headlamp side, isolating it from the downstream BCM side of the GM headlamp relay, and a separate fused power tap to fire the its relay(s) instead of increasing electrical draw on the existing GM circuitry. Simply plug harness connectors in-line with existing headlight/fog light connectors, looks like an extension of the OEM harness and not readily apparent to other than the installer........but works great and maintains existing OEM operation of the (off with) DRLs. Fogs go on automatically with low only, or low and high beams depending upon the version of harness. I bought their more complicated harness which contains 2 instead of 1 relay because in my State it is illegal to have fogs on with highs and an instant flunk for State inspection (can't do that with diodes!).

Not yet time for it's 6 month wash.

Two cents: This whole situation is analogous to a person who develops lung cancer......doctor's first question is always: "Do you or did you ever smoke cigarettes?" If you did.....case closed, you did this to yourself....that's the cause and excuse for the condition despite the fact that humans (like the vehicle's BCM) are subject to millions of operations, interactions and environmental extremes over it's lifetime, any one of which could have been the trigger for a partial or catastrophic failure. Whether someone's smoking really did trigger the cancer or someone's screwing around with their electrical system actually caused the eventual BCM failure is irrelevant. The dealer will use that same justification for any external screwing around with the electrical system: It was not necessary for the vehicle to operate as delivered........you did it for your own purposes and assumed the risk despite a specific worded disclaimer in the warranty.......So, it's likely you caused it yourself and you will pay the price. And there you are with no way to prove differently! As far as expecting coverage under the warranty......reminiscent of TV Baretta's catch phrase for advice: "If you can't do the time, don't do the crime".

Could be used as a reason to void all ECM networked electrical system and vehicle accessories containing solid state components. All electrical systems switching/monitoring are controlled by the ECM within its CPUs internal pathways smaller than a human hair and susceptible to external damage not visible on the external circuit board. A momentary short caused by touching the diode or a wire to the wrong exposed pin(s) even for a fraction of a second could cause such damage. All the GM electrical accessories I've installed in my vehicles Silverado sports bar, bed lights, Camaro fog lights, etc. have always included either a new or replacement wiring harness to add the accessory or function, never splicing into existing wiring or messing with exposed pins. Shouldn't affect mechanical components or drive train hardware. Unfortunately, other than the remote chance of finding a good a used ECM from the same model, year vehicle with the same accessories which should be plug and play any replacement part you purchase will require dealer reprogramming anyway. So, you might have to pay the devil his due and have the dealer replace and restore the warranty on future electrical work. Wouldn't drive it too long in it's present state because there may be other engine control circuits within the ECM's CPU that were weakened or compromised which could fail at any moment and leave you stranded.

Two cents comment: Change may have had no effect, or in conjunction with another unrelated failure controlled by the BCM may have caused a cascade effect and crapped out other controlled functions of the ECM. Luck of the draw on how it fails...diodes nearly always blow open but if it shorted out instead, and/or in conjunction with another mod may have a damaging effect. Or leaving it in while the dealer did other diagnostic testing could have caused the damage. Even if you buy a new ECM it still has to be programmed by the dealer; a used one from an identically optioned same year, same model vehicle may work without reprogramming. Why screw around, for less than $100 you can buy the plug and play custom wiring harness using GM connectors and never have to remove anything or play with it again?

'16 Z71LT Silverado standard bed build date 12/15 aluminum control arms (and hood)

Not as simple as tapping into a wire. gen5diy.com makes a custom harness with integral relay(s) for aftermarket fog light installation. Worked fine on my Camaro. Have a version for the Sierra http://www.gen5diy.com/GMC/Sierra/P-P-Harnesses7/Foglamp-Harness8/ Versions for both on or off with high beams depending upon State inspection requirements

There were no instructions with the sports bar. There is a sheet of paper advising to go to the dealer to have the instructions printed which I did and for the $900 (10% discount) they were happy to do so. Unfortunately I discarded after the install, but didn't follow them exactly anyway. Mechanically a simple install......cutout the stake holes in the front bed rail cap and remove side plug below and fastener attaches from side and top, rear fastens under the rail and insert fastener. The trickiest part is loosening the gas filler and snaking the power harness for the CMHSL in the bar (the one on the back of the cab is blocked by the bar, but the bed lights which point downward are not) through the exposed hole to feed to the frame below. I ignored the hookup instructions for powering the new LED CMHSL which involved pulling the fuse block off the bulkhead, removing the positive feed wire and substituting the new one into the harness to disable the original stop light and power the one in the bar. Much easier to buy an inexpensive a piggyback fuse tap which has space for the old fuse and a new fuse powering a positive lead.....left out the original fuse socket in the tap using only the new one which has the same effect of disabling the old CMHSL and powering the new one or could put in both fuses and both will work.

Just installed a Lund Genesis rollup cover.....the sports bar does not interfere with the mount........only change wasa installation of and extra 3/8" foam insulation to take up the difference where the bracket overlaps the side rail cap.

GM sport bar with aftermarket lights and GM fender flares

Looks something like the "sail" on my old Avalanche or the "wings" on my '69 Chevelle, but a lot meaner. Like the photos show.....mean