Shake or Vibration Issues

[Bart’s Silverado]

I been preaching this about the driveshaft for over 10 months! Glad some owners now realize I was not blowing smoke. 

[dogtracks]

On 10/27/2018 at 11:50 AM, Manny254 said:

I’ve recently encountered this “infamous” shake or vibration but mine is more around 1250 rpm. Doesnt really matter the speed but it’s more when I’m speeding up staying at  1250 rpm it’s constant so I have to give it more gas to get out of the “shake”. Has GM solved any of these issues? Or given answers to what’s at fault?

Are you sure it's the Shake/Vibration or is it what I call engine rumble, I get engine rumble that is caused by the lag in shifting from 4 cylinder  to 8 mode. Try putting your information display on the economy display that shows V4 and V8 status and at low speed apply some gas, see if you get engine rumble when in V4 and it goes away when it switches to V8, also you can put your trans in Manual mode and select 5 or 6 gears, this will keep it from going into V4 mode.

[GMCJOE17]

3 hours ago, Bart’s Silverado said:

I been preaching this about the driveshaft for over 10 months! Glad some owners now realize I was not blowing smoke. 

I never thought you were blowing smoke Bart, I was just at the mercy of the dealer going through GM's idiotic "lets Fix It" Flow Chart. 

 

I am glad they are finally on the shaft prior to me getting the shaft. 

[GMCJOE17]

I guess GMCustomerService gave up on this thread 2 years ago. I remember when I started reading this crazy 800+ page diary of a vibrator that they were replying to people with the issue and I did some reading and they stopped replying back in 2016. 

 

Internal GM Gag Order? 

[Colossus]

10 hours ago, Willyone said:

Class action might help but what I believe what we really need is for major news organizations (yeah, even the "fake news" folks) to be made aware of the issue and report it.  Make the problem known to the public at large, not just the unsuspecting suckers that buy these trucks.

they have been made aware.  But no one wants to bite. 

[Dearmosd]

Question: is this issue happening more with certain driveshaft lengths. Suburban versus Tahoe. Full size truck bed versus short bed ect

 

Has anyone replaced their driveshaft on their own? Is there a two piece driveshaft available?

 

 

Edited October 29, 2018 by Dearmosd

[Rolling Thunder]

16 hours ago, Bart’s Silverado said:

I been preaching this about the driveshaft for over 10 months! Glad some owners now realize I was not blowing smoke. 

It's been stated numerous times in this long thread that many who have replaced their driveshaft still have the problem.  What fixes your truck may not fix another's.

[Dearmosd]

On 10/27/2018 at 8:51 PM, Dearmosd said:

The more I read the more I question my situation. I have a 18 Suburban, my first red flag was the excessive vibrations when at highest speed, too it in and the balance my tires problem seemed to be better. Next I went in for a headline issue and mentioned vibrations so they road force balance them and replaced one tire. Just drove 350 miles around 70-90mph and it felt like excessive bouncing like suspension was over working. I didn't feel like the whole car was shaking like my first time I noticed this issue. My experience is that 50+mph it feels like I'm driving in a cobblestone street. 

Does anyone know what GM "within specs" are for road force balance. I just had my 2018 Suburban road forced and the numbers they said seen higher than I recall my previous cars have had. They replaced one tire but I still have vibrations.

 

 

To update myself I found this info

Road force balance specs.pdf

[Barak]

Based on all of information thus far, my best guess will still be that a specific cabin/seat and rear of cabin shake/vibration is due to aluminum driveshaft. I currently have an open case with GM and will be working with dealership in terms of performing PICO test but I will recommend to them to perform PICO in hot weather conditions vs cold. Being that I reside in CNY and it’s in 40s currently, I will ask to wait till June/July 2019 and have PICO done when weather is up in 70s+. My take is just like someone else mentioned in this forum that aluminum absorbs heat fast and could expand so due to all that it may cause vibration as driveshaft turns, etc especially at higer speeds. As of now I had my tires road forced, wheels checked, brakes/rotors inspected and nothing has been found out of ordinary however at the same time I am no longer experiencing any vibration similar to what I did while weather was warmer so we will see. It seems that GM is well aware of this issue but doesn’t want to proceed yet however I do feel it should be a recall anytime soon. 

[Dearmosd]

no recall, but a $60k+ mistake trusting GM to do the right thing. I avoided the Ford Expedition due to it being the first year back on production and never trusted the first gen of anything but I am regretting not looking at Ford before pulling the trigger on the 2018 Suburban.

 

I am just stumped that all the test drives of 2016-2017 used suburbans and 2018 Yukon I never left what I am feeling in my suburban.

 

Edited October 29, 2018 by Dearmosd

[Bart’s Silverado]

4 hours ago, Dearmosd said:

Question: is this issue happening more with certain driveshaft lengths. Suburban versus Tahoe. Full size truck bed versus short bed ect

 

Has anyone replaced their driveshaft on their own? Is there a two piece driveshaft available?

 

 

Performance Drivelines out of CA made my two piece driveshaft kit for my 2017 1500 crew cab LTZ 2wd. Over 15k of silk smooth operation so far. Cost is under a grand delivered. Can be installed with a drill and normal hand tools in about 90 minutes. All steel construction and are way stronger that stock shaft.

[Dearmosd]

does anyone know if the Silverado and the Suburban have different rear axle (internal parts/NOT housing)

[Dearmosd]

I talked to Performance Drivelines today, good talk with Damon, seems knowledgeable about the GM issue and gave good advise on this take with the issue. I will keep in touch with him about updates. 

[kunads]

I have a 2014 Silverado 4x4 LT with the high speed shakes... I bought it used, so I really get the shaft when I try to bring it to the dealership and get this fixed.  The service manager told me this is normal, and his truck does it so get use to it. Then I brought it to a ring-and-pinion shop. They were no help, as they wanted nothing to do with diagnosing this problem. They blamed it on the suspension, and that automakers are trying to make all their light duty trucks ride like a car.  My '02 Z28 feels like a frickin Caddy compared to this truck. One thing I did notice, is when I put a little bit of weight in my bed, I get a better ride.

I'm just going to throw some money at this thing soon, and seems like a new custom built steel driveshaft is my best 1st option, with some new shocks.

 

Maybe RAM can take over GM as number 2 truck sold, and wake them up. Quality Control in GM is questionable at best right now. AAM isn't far behind.

 

813 pages later.... Thanks for all the info guys. 

[Olvim]

Hey Guys,

 

Longtime viewer (since purchasing), first time poster. Bought a new 2018 Chevy Silverado LT Z71 Crew Cab Short Box 5.3L V8 6-Speed 3.42 in May, 2018. Pretty much since purchase it has had vibration issues. Wanted to give you guys a bit of what I've experienced, which might be a little different than some of the other complaints, though definitely has severe similarities.

 

My vibrations, specifically, are in the steering wheel only at any speeds 70mph or greater - outside of this range, the truck is smooth as glass (though I can feel literally every road disturbance resonate through the wheel). I was rather convinced starting out that it was simply an unbalanced or out of round tire. I have never experienced any seat, floor, pedal, or cabin vibes, nor have I had issues with the phasing boom. My center console (bench seat) does shake a little at around 42-45 mph and a little on the highway, but it doesn't bother me much and it is the only thing (other than the steering wheel) that shakes. I've tightened the bolts holding it down and it's significantly reduced the vibes (though also obviously made it harder to move up and down, though not a big deal at this time since I rarely utilize that seat). 

 

My truck's been to the dealer six times for this issue for a total of 32 days combined. I was initially told, when I finally convinced the dealership to perform a PICO, that I had a T3 vibe in the low 30hz range in the steering wheel. The initial set of tires on my truck were loaded with flat spots, and I've gone through three sets of Goodyear Wrangler SRAs on the 18in Z71 rims to date. Each time I brought the truck in, the vibes got better. First it was a bad dynamic balance, then it was a bad road force, then it was replacement of tires. As I continued to complain, since I was not satisfied with the truck I paid $39,000 for that drove worse than the 2005 Jeep Wrangler I traded in for it, a DMA was finally called in to drive my truck. He felt the vibration, and went around and around trying to identify the problem. He finally called in the engineers and I was informed that the PICO scope was installed incorrectly on the previous test and I actually had a T2 vibe in the mid 20s range with an amplitude of about 20mg. Afterward, all the tires on my truck were replaced until the wheels road forced out to 10lbs or less. It is my understanding from my dealer, though I've never seen it in writing, that the tire spec is 15lbs, but I was informed the engineers prefer to see it under 10lbs. They also did an engine mount procedure at the same time, unbolting them and moving the truck to be sure none were binding. When I got my truck back last month, I noticed that is about 90% vibration free, though it still occurs (with a MUCH lower amplitude, never spiking over 12mg - I was told by my dealer that 14mg is the "GM Spec").

 

The vibration I'm still getting happens only at times in which "something" comes into/out of phase. It's harmonic, happens typically in 2-3 second intervals every 2-3 seconds alternating until I make a turn that causes my wheels to spin at different speeds and move the harmony out of/into phase. I've noticed that if I drive for longer periods rather than short, it seems to diminish. I've also noticed it appears worse on blacktop than concrete, and that temperature or humidity seem to affect it (the hotter/more humid it is, the more likely I am to feel the vibe in the steering wheel).

 

Of course, all of my service tickets state that the truck is operating within normal tolerances and that GM TAC has no further instructions to work on the truck. They state that the mechanic at the dealer "inspected" the driveshaft, drivetrain, and suspension and that all appeared normal. Now, the interesting part in all of this, and what also appears in writing on my most recent service ticket, is that during the diagnoses of my vibes, the dealership test drove another 2018 Silverado, observed no vibrations, and then took those 4 wheels and put them on my truck. Those wheel configurations were 20" rims with Continentals. After driving my truck with the wheels/tires from the other truck, the vibrations in my truck GOT WORSE. When I brought this up to the DMA I've been working with, he told me he still felt it was just a tire issue since "the Z71 suspension is more stiff". To be frank, I'm simply not accepting this as an answer. While the truck's vibes are "currently" 90% gone, I find it hard to believe that I can walk into a tire shop when it comes time and demand I get four new tires that road force out to 10lbs or less. Since GM sells Z71 configurations with 20" rims, I'm going to continue complaining until they 1.) check and provide me a printout of runout measurements of literally every driveline component, 2) check and provide me a printout of the driveshaft's balance numbers, 3) check and provide me a printout of the runout of the driveshaft itself, and 4) check and provide me a printout of the camber and castor of all the axles. While I have no intention of ever getting 20" rims on my truck, it seems fishy to me that GM would simply "mask" this problem with PRISTINE wheel road forces, send customers on their way, and not have a care in the world when 3-4 years go by and they have to buy tires and suddenly encounter a vibration again. I've obviously read a lot of this topic and freely admit that I think my Goodyear SRAs are an utterly shit tire and flat spot damn near over night, however, it seems odd to me that such nightly flat spots would last more than 5-10 miles. I've had issues with Wranglers before (on my old Wrangler, in fact) and have ALWAYS been much more satisfied with the quality of Coopers and Michelins. 

 

I'm not sure if sole steering wheel vibrations is classified as part of the "Chevy Shake", but I can tell you guys its annoying as hell. I drove 200 miles on Saturday in my truck and I felt the slight harmonic vibration for literally all of 12 seconds during the entire trip, but its enough for me to believe something still isn't right, knowing that the vibes in my truck got worse on well balanced 20" rims during the previous diagnoses.

 

I'm not necessarily looking to file a lemon law case with this, but I'm also not ruling it out completely. I consider myself lucky to have found a 5.3L V8 and 6 Speed tranny that seem to be mating well together. I've had ZERO hard shifts, ZERO stutters, and ZERO lifter ticks thus far. While I don't consider myself to be fiercely brand loyal, my father was a GM employee for 31 years and I try to keep that in the family and support fellow American workers. My family has purchased 10+ GM vehicles in the past 20 years and this is the first problem I've ever encountered. I can tell my dealership is absolutely fed up with me and my truck, but I'm going to continue this until I get some real numbers and ideas as to what the hell is going on. I don't think my issue is in the rear end like some of the other shakers since I experience only vibes in the steering wheel, but I want to be sure I can take the runout measurements to a good mechanic and get some opinions as to what might be going on. As a side note, I've driven 5 loaner 2018 Silverados during this whole process. 2 of the 5 shook, but none in the steering wheel like mine - they all had visible cabin vibes in the seats, the floor, or the whole cabin. One had 20" wheels, the other had 18".

 

Anyway, I've currently got an open case with GM Corporate, and I've called my dealer and advised what I want them to do. I'm waiting to hear back from the DMA. I've been MOSTLY patient and kind through this process, but will continue to push until its resolved. I know my case may seem minor to some of you, but I was hoping that by sharing you'd get a little more info. Please feel free to reply if you want further details from me.

Edited October 30, 2018 by Olvim