Shake or Vibration Issues

CounterMeasure · February 4, 2015

I returned my vibrating loaner today to get my Denali back. I mentioned to them that it didn't have the shift issues my truck has, but it vibrates something fierce. The roundabout answer was "we know, that's why it is a loaner and not on the lot for sale". They did mention they have two other customer trucks that vibrate badly they've been throwing parts at, with fixes working for a short time and then the vibration coming back. One of them has been there for two months while they try to figure it out. The people that own those vehicles are a lot more patient than I.

Oh, and buybacks go back on the lot as "pre-owned". Nice...

FrankJB · February 4, 2015

Sadly this is an alarming issue,I hear everyone complain about varying levels of dealer support. I was getting ready to trade in my 2011 Sierra CC SLT but after reading this topic pretty extensively I know there is no way that I would receive any dealer support here in the NY Metro area where dealer service is downright criminal. I will keep my 2011 and feel that GM really dropped the ball on this and it cost them a sale.

pm26 · February 4, 2015

I mentioned to them that it didn't have the shift issues my truck has, but it vibrates something fierce. The roundabout answer was "we know, that's why it is a loaner and not on the lot for sale".

Loaner, LOL

Edited February 4, 2015 by pm26

pm26 · February 4, 2015

Cutting of helical gears:

Fishingbear · February 4, 2015

I returned my vibrating loaner today to get my Denali back. I mentioned to them that it didn't have the shift issues my truck has, but it vibrates something fierce. The roundabout answer was "we know, that's why it is a loaner and not on the lot for sale". They did mention they have two other customer trucks that vibrate badly they've been throwing parts at, with fixes working for a short time and then the vibration coming back. One of them has been there for two months while they try to figure it out. The people that own those vehicles are a lot more patient than I.

Oh, and buybacks go back on the lot as "pre-owned". Nice...

My buyback was on the lot a week later as "certified pre-owned." I feel bad for anyone buying a used low mileage silverado or sierra because they have no lemon law recourse.

KARNUT · February 4, 2015

Im not on their side but you cant blame them, they are in business and cant eat them all they would go broke. Some of the vibrations people say they have don't happen till higher speeds, they are lots of people that never go over 60 and will never see vibration. Were I grew up in New Jersey most of the time 50 MPH was the fastest you ever went unless you hit the Turpike or parkway, unless they change it that's 65MPH. Its like most business, we all operate with crossed fingers and a prayer.

pm26 · February 4, 2015

Im not on their side but you cant blame them, they are in business and cant eat them all they would go broke. Some of the vibrations people say they have don't happen till higher speeds, they are lots of people that never go over 60 and will never see vibration. Were I grew up in New Jersey most of the time 50 MPH was the fastest you ever went unless you hit the Turpike or parkway, unless they change it that's 65MPH. Its like most business, we all operate with crossed fingers and a prayer.

GM should never let buy back lemons to be sold as "certified pre-owned" vehicles on their dealer's lots. The history of these vehicles should be fully documented, and if they cannot be repaired, then they should be auctioned off with a full disclosure of the problems and no warranty offered on the affected system(s). Which means that they would be sold at perhaps 1/2 of their used book price. I think this would be fair to everyone.

The way they are doing it is unethical in the extreme. They are just looking for the next sucker who will hopefully not be aggressive enough to pursue the issue.

Edited February 4, 2015 by pm26

KARNUT · February 4, 2015

GM should never let buy back lemons to be sold as "certified pre-owned" vehicles on their dealer's lots. The history of these vehicles should be fully documented, and if they cannot be repaired, then they should be auctioned off with a full disclosure of the problems and no warranty offered on the affected system(s). Which means that they would be sold at perhaps 1/2 of their used book price. I think this would be fair to everyone.

The way they are doing it is unethical in the extreme. They are just looking for the next sucker who will hopefully not be aggressive enough to pursue the issue.

Its not really a safety issue in most cases, so its a matter of good will. Lets face it if the truck was perfect some people would still complain its the nature of the beast, Im in business in know. I have a hard time finding a road that's smooth enough to tell if my truck has a vibration, I have and it doesn't. The fact that they are certified pre-owned shows they are still backing them, something they don't have to do. It an advantage that they stay in business for lots of people, if they did have a run of bad luck they will get pass it. I owed one of those 5.7 diesel olds and I forgave them, these problems pale in comparison. If they failed over that then I wouldn't have the pleasure of owning my 94 Impala ss, 94 z/28, 06 trailblazer ss, 02 Camaro , to name of few.

14SLTZ71 · February 4, 2015

Dealer gave me a '15 Sierra access cab 2WD Z71 to drive as a loaner while they let my Denali sit in their service department because they only have one tech that can diagnose tranny noises, and today he went home early. That aside, holy moley does this loaner vibrate. Around 55mph, its unbearable, smooths out a bit until you hit 70mph and then I worry its going to come apart.

I thought my original tire related vibration was bad, but its nothing compared to this one. I have a new level of sympathy for you guys chasing your vibrations. May your future miles be smooth as glass.

I returned my vibrating loaner today to get my Denali back. I mentioned to them that it didn't have the shift issues my truck has, but it vibrates something fierce. The roundabout answer was "we know, that's why it is a loaner and not on the lot for sale". They did mention they have two other customer trucks that vibrate badly they've been throwing parts at, with fixes working for a short time and then the vibration coming back. One of them has been there for two months while they try to figure it out. The people that own those vehicles are a lot more patient than I.

Oh, and buybacks go back on the lot as "pre-owned". Nice...

I drove three 2015's when they first came out. 2 were Silverado and 1 was sierra, they all vibrated at varying levels. At 35 mph one of them was vibrating and shaking violently. I asked the salesman if he felt it, he said yes and it's pretty bad. We returned to the lot and instead of taking it back to the service dept he put it back on the lot for the next victim to drive.

Anyways one of them I ordered and it was suppose to be my trade assistance replacement for my vibrating 2014. When I posted that I had driven three 2015's and they all vibrated, I was told that I was full of _ _it and basically called a liar by numerous forum members.

http://www.gm-trucks.com/forums/topic/166259-i-drove-3-gm-2015-1500-trucks-today/?p=1525642

Edited February 4, 2015 by 14LTZZ71

MrRotorsports · February 4, 2015

It is amazing to me that Silver Spaceship first posted about this issue in August of 2013, yet GM still has not fixed the issue – and actually carried it into a second model year! It's also unfortunate that I just traded by smooth riding 2011 SLT in for a $48k 2015 SLT vibrator. It has the same issue as many others in this thread, and I have already wasted a bit of time at the dealership trying to figure out the problem. I wish I had read this thread prior to my trade instead of stumbling on it while I was looking for a solution. I had them bring my truck in from another dealership’s stock so never drove it before taking delivery and I had no clue what I was getting into. I have to say that my dealer (in Florence SC) is the absolute best. They are truly trying hard to get it solved. The General Manager even insisted on personally coming to my office (45 minutes away from his dealership) and dropping off his own demo, taking my truck back to the dealership, and then making the swap again as soon as they had mine fixed. He said they would strip parts off any vehicle on the lot and swap them into mine if that’s what it took. To me that is an incredible statement that they are 100% focused on their customer service. For that reason alone I will stick with them to get this thing figured out.

I actually love the truck, except at 73 - 82 MPH. Mine seems to always have a slight vibration in that range but sometimes it manifests itself as an outright shake. Sometimes it settles back down to a light vibration, but there is always at least a light vibration present in that range. They have done the road force thing and even installed one new tire, as well as rotated them into different axle positions. It did not seem to change anything. The service manager explained that they had at least two other vehicles they have been working on with the same complaint. They tried tires, driveshaft and even a replacement rear axle in one of them to no avail. They wanted to keep mine and do some exploratory surgery but I suggested I keep driving it and they call me when they have found a fix on one of the other's in their possession.

For the record, it is a 2015 SLT crew cab, 5.3, short bed, 2WD, 3:42 gears, 20 inch wheels and the Goodyear LS2s. I had the same size LS2s on my 2011 with no issues. After the 2015s first trip to the dealership did not fix it the General Manager and I took out another 2WD SLT from the lot. It was an identically equipped truck and had almost the same vibration at almost the same speeds. Clearly there is a design or equipment issue repeating itself.

After all that history, the real reason I am writing is to see if anyone has experienced this vibration issue with a 2015 crew cab short box, but with the 6.2 liter option? I read the first 163 pages of this thread, as well as the last 12 (got lazy in the middle) and I did not see a single posting about a 6.2. They all seemed to be with the 5.3, 6 speed and a mix of 2 and 4 wheel drive. Of course the 6.2 has a different engine, 8 speed transmission, different driveshaft and a heavier duty axle so the driveline is completely different. I drove a 6.2 off mu dealer’s lot for 4 days (over the same exact path I drive this one to my office every day) and never noticed even a hint of vibration in it. I actually loved every inch of that truck – from the incredible power to the drivability of the 8 speed – but it did not have navigation or cooled seats which were options I really wanted. It had the same wheels and tires as mine, it was 2WD with the same suspension package, but it rode smooth as butter. It would be great to know if anyone in the forum has a 6.2 that vibrates.

I know I am getting long winded now but my last question is about modifying my truck. A very good friend of mine is the GM at American Luxury Coach (they are the ones that build all those awesome lift trucks you see at the Chevy/GMC dealerships across the country) and I was planning to have them install a 3/5 drop with aftermarket 22s and 305-40-22s. When I found this vibration I asked if he had seen any issues before. They process around 400 trucks a month, lifting them 4 or 6 inches and then shipping them to GM dealers all over the country. They are certified by GM and the trucks are covered by the full factory warranty so certainly he would have heard if there were issues with the vehicles he was delivering. He honestly had no idea what I was talking about. They have lifted thousands of 2014s and thousands of 2015s and he was not aware of any issues relating to vibration. You would think the first thing someone would do was look at the up-fitter and blame their suspension modifications. So, that brings me to the theory that maybe their lifting the trucks is actually improving things and eliminating the vibration in the trucks they ship? Maybe that slight change of driveshaft angle is helping? I suppose it could be the removal of the stock wheel and tires (replaced with mud-tread 35s or 37s) but I have read a few posts where rear leveling kits actually improved the vibration.

So, after all that background, should I proceed with installing the 3/5 drop and 22s and see what happens? Since it will be performed by a certified GM up-fitter and I can prove the vibration was there from the get-go no one can’t say the problem is due to the suspension change. I could do it in stages, adding the drop first, drive it for a week and see if it improves, and then add the wheels and tires. That would let me know if one or the other changed things. Or, should I just push to swap the thing out for the 6.2 I drove before I get too much money invested into this one? I already added tint, an electric tailgate lock and some LED bulbs upgrades but I could cut my losses before they get too much bigger. Has anyone else seen an improvement after lowering their truck?

Edited February 4, 2015 by MrRotorsports

MrRotorsports · February 4, 2015

Holy smokes! I am soooo sorry for writing a novel. It looked so much less wordy in the writing window. Please accept my appology.

KARNUT · February 4, 2015

It is amazing to me that Silver Spaceship first posted about this issue in August of 2013, yet GM still has not fixed the issue – and actually carried it into a second model year! It's also unfortunate that I just traded by smooth riding 2011 SLT in for a $48k 2015 SLT vibrator. It has the same issue as many others in this thread, and I have already wasted a bit of time at the dealership trying to figure out the problem. I wish I had read this thread prior to my trade instead of stumbling on it while I was looking for a solution. I had them bring my truck in from another dealership’s stock so never drove it before taking delivery and I had no clue what I was getting into. I have to say that my dealer (in Florence SC) is the absolute best. They are truly trying hard to get it solved. The General Manager even insisted on personally coming to my office (45 minutes away from his dealership) and dropping off his own demo, taking my truck back to the dealership, and then making the swap again as soon as they had mine fixed. He said they would strip parts off any vehicle on the lot and swap them into mine if that’s what it took. To me that is an incredible statement that they are 100% focused on their customer service. For that reason alone I will stick with them to get this thing figured out.

I actually love the truck, except at 73 - 82 MPH. Mine seems to always have a slight vibration in that range but sometimes it manifests itself as an outright shake. Sometimes it settles back down to a light vibration, but there is always at least a light vibration present in that range. They have done the road force thing and even installed one new tire, as well as rotated them into different axle positions. It did not seem to change anything. The service manager explained that they had at least two other vehicles they have been working on with the same complaint. They tried tires, driveshaft and even a replacement rear axle in one of them to no avail. They wanted to keep mine and do some exploratory surgery but I suggested I keep driving it and they call me when they have found a fix on one of the other's in their possession.

For the record, it is a 2015 SLT crew cab, 5.3, short bed, 2WD, 3:42 gears, 20 inch wheels and the Goodyear LS2s. I had the same size LS2s on my 2011 with no issues. After the 2015s first trip to the dealership did not fix it the General Manager and I took out another 2WD SLT from the lot. It was an identically equipped truck and had almost the same vibration at almost the same speeds. Clearly there is a design or equipment issue repeating itself.

After all that history, the real reason I am writing is to see if anyone has experienced this vibration issue with a 2015 crew cab short box, but with the 6.2 liter option? I read the first 163 pages of this thread, as well as the last 12 (got lazy in the middle) and I did not see a single posting about a 6.2. They all seemed to be with the 5.3, 6 speed and a mix of 2 and 4 wheel drive. Of course the 6.2 has a different engine, 8 speed transmission, different driveshaft and a heavier duty axle so the driveline is completely different. I drove a 6.2 off mu dealer’s lot for 4 days (over the same exact path I drive this one to my office every day) and never noticed even a hint of vibration in it. I actually loved every inch of that truck – from the incredible power to the drivability of the 8 speed – but it did not have navigation or cooled seats which were options I really wanted. It had the same wheels and tires as mine, it was 2WD with the same suspension package, but it rode smooth as butter. It would be great to know if anyone in the forum has a 6.2 that vibrates.

I know I am getting long winded now but my last question is about modifying my truck. A very good friend of mine is the GM at American Luxury Coach (they are the ones that build all those awesome lift trucks you see at the Chevy/GMC dealerships across the country) and I was planning to have them install a 3/5 drop with aftermarket 22s and 305-40-22s. When I found this vibration I asked if he had seen any issues before. They process around 400 trucks a month, lifting them 4 or 6 inches and then shipping them to GM dealers all over the country. They are certified by GM and the trucks are covered by the full factory warranty so certainly he would have heard if there were issues with the vehicles he was delivering. He honestly had no idea what I was talking about. They have lifted thousands of 2014s and thousands of 2015s and he was not aware of any issues relating to vibration. You would think the first thing someone would do was look at the up-fitter and blame their suspension modifications. So, that brings me to the theory that maybe their lifting the trucks is actually improving things and eliminating the vibration in the trucks they ship? Maybe that slight change of driveshaft angle is helping? I suppose it could be the removal of the stock wheel and tires (replaced with mud-tread 35s or 37s) but I have read a few posts where rear leveling kits actually improved the vibration.

So, after all that background, should I proceed with installing the 3/5 drop and 22s and see what happens? Since it will be performed by a certified GM up-fitter and I can prove the vibration was there from the get-go no one can’t say the problem is due to the suspension change. I could do it in stages, adding the drop first, drive it for a week and see if it improves, and then add the wheels and tires. That would let me know if one or the other changed things. Or, should I just push to swap the thing out for the 6.2 I drove before I get too much money invested into this one? I already added tint, an electric tailgate lock and some LED bulbs upgrades but I could cut my losses before they get too much bigger. Has anyone else seen an improvement after lowering their truck?

I was ask your dealer if they bless the mod do it, maybe the change will fix your shake.

pm26 · February 4, 2015

it seems that a lot of customers were convinced by their salesmen that the vibration they perceived during the test drive was caused by temporary flat spots in the tires. Yes, temporary flat spots can be annoying, but the sensation is more like a thumping feel, that gets better as you drive the vehicle. If the problem is truly caused by temporary tire flat spotting, it should go away after 10 minutes of driving or so, or at least get significantly less severe. Truck tires are a lot less susceptible to flat spotting because the rubber compound is harder and the tire profile generally taller than that on cars. High performance low profile car tires are the ones that suffer most from flat spotting.

Edited February 4, 2015 by pm26

mjj · February 4, 2015

Holy smokes! I am soooo sorry for writing a novel. It looked so much less wordy in the writing window. Please accept my appology.

No need to apologize. Great post.

I have the 70+ slight vibration that somtimes gets worse. It bugs me most feeling it in my foot so sometimes I just set the cruise. Its my work around for the moment. Kind of been waiting til summer and to see what others end up with a fix before having my dealership dig into it.

I really want to add the RC 2.5" lift/leveling kit to mine but am very hesitant with the vibration and what that might mean for warranty work trying to figure it out.