It Was A Good Run...

landryd · December 25, 2010

My 2007 GMC 2500 classic had a trouble free 3 1/2 year run, then it started happening. At 59K miles I noticed coolant and transmission fluid on the ground in the driveway. I went to change the oil and confirmed it was from my truck. I also noticed a ticking sound coming from the engine on back of the driver's side at around 2K rpm. Brought it to the dealership because it's still under warranty. They replaced the water pump, cam shaft and lifters, transmission pan gasket, and transfer case output shaft seal. When I got it back the engine was quiet, there was no coolant leaking, but there still was a transmission fluid leak. However, before I could take it back to them a few days later, I started it up and there was no oil pressure. I towed it back to them and they replaced the oil pump and torque converter seal. Since I got it back from then a couple weeks ago there have been no more problems. They had my truck for a total of two and a half weeks last month to fix all this, at no charge. I can't complain about the service they gave me because the technician was outstanding. It just bothers me that this kind of stuff happens to a vehicle I'm paying a lot of money for. Luckily it is still under warranty, but what can I expect next, and will it start again after the warranty period?

focijoe · December 25, 2010

What warranty are you under at 59k? Is that considered the 100k powertrain warranty or did you buy an extended warranty?

landryd · December 26, 2010

It's the factory 100K drivetrain warranty. They started offering it in 2007.

jro909 · December 26, 2010

anything mass produced by humans is going to have a few lemons, i've seen trucks beat down and driven like a raped ape and never had an issue...ive also seen trucks treated well and babied have alot of issues...

Prokopchuk_9 · December 26, 2010

anything mass produced by humans is going to have a few lemons, i've seen trucks beat down and driven like a raped ape and never had an issue...ive also seen trucks treated well and babied have alot of issues...

it always seems that way eh? guys that baby their rigs are always in the shop, guys that just bag the snot out of their trucks never seem to give up. LOL. im one of those, just rat bag it ahahah. never breaks!

OP - be thankful your stealership is treating you so well, i would look for any excuse to go in for warranty if mine still had it...why not??? that ticking noise you are talkin about was it really that bad? bad enough to change lifters and cam?? sounds like it was a knock, not a tick LOL.

[email protected] · December 26, 2010

Oil pump, cam & Lifters

2 1/2 weeks in the shop for a two day job

Most likely some fault from the beginning with the oiling system. Very rare in my experience that you would need an oil pump replaced at 60K miles - but a weak oil pump not supplying sufficient lubrication to the cam/lifters would cause pre-mature wear there. Plugged or restricted oil galleries could also be the original cause.

This would have been a good case for engine oil analysis, to see how much metal was coming off the cam prior to the tear down. Who knows, maybe they did that and if so that would account for part of the extended time in the shop. That would be a good reason...

A bad reason would be they were simply billing warranty hours to your truck when they didn't have any retail work to give to the technicians.

If it were my truck - - I'd be sending oil samples out for analysis at the next three or four oil changes at least. If you have restricted or plugged oil passages the metal wear will show up in the analysis.

FWIW,

Carl B.

landryd · January 3, 2011

Thanks Carl, I thought of all that too. I asked the tech if he thought it might be an oil delivery problem as the failed cam lobe is farthest from the pump. He said it's a possibility. I should start an oil analysis. He also did say that the oil pump issue was a check valve. The lower part of the engine was getting pressure, the upper was not, until the engine rpm was increased off idle, then it was. He was using a mechanical gauge at the sender and at the filter. It's running great now, and it's even gained 5 psi on the oil pressure when going down the highway. I know this because I always keep an eye on it all the time. I'm an aircraft mechanic. It comes natural because when I run jet engines I have to pay particular attention to those gauges or it may cost a great deal. Anyway, as I said I should probably start sending the oil out to be checked so I can track any trends before the warranty runs out.