2015 YUKON NOISE IN CABIN

cltsig · January 9, 2016

I bought my 2016 Denali about a month ago and as I posted then, the dealer rightfully acknowledged the issue and claimed it was fixed by something along the lines of "changing glass vendors". Maybe that was the watered down interpretation 6 people away from the source that the fix dealt with the glass in some way. Maybe his bro-in-law is a GM engineer and they're fully aware of the issue and fix but won't for the same reason they went with a crap rear hatch seal vendor-penny pinching.

I'm willing to take detailed pictures of all aspects of my non-buffeting rear hatch for comparison to one that does. The difference may not be visible though but could be thickness or the resiliency of the seal.

sas06 · January 9, 2016

I am happy to report a success. A few weeks back I noticed that buffeting was worse at times and was quite tolerable at other times and almost went away at some other times. Some participants on this forum have also noticed this behavior, and some also have suggested problems with the rear hatch. I noticed that the metal sheet of the hatch was coming in touch with the metal of the body, which shouldn't happen. At a couple of spots the paint was also coming off due to friction. So while driving, the vibrations in the hatch were causing it to continuously make low intensity impacts on the metal sheet of the body, which caused buffeting at low and high speeds. To solve this, there is a stud made of plastic on the hatch that can be opened/closed like a screw. This can be adjusted to allow some leeway so the hatch metal does not touch the body. So I opened it as much as I could. The door now requires more force to close but it is now stiffer and does not flex if you try to shake it with hand. Then I test drove it and the there was noticeable improvement. The buffeting was reduced to much tolerable level at high speed and low speed buffeting was almost gone. But I must admit that the low speed booming is still there and there is still some level of buffeting at high speed. However, the adjustment took the edge off. I think the remaining part of the solution lies in checking the metal sheet at the roof to see if it is attached to the bows, and putting some dynamat in the roof to support it. I believe it flexes at high speed and contributes to the buffeting.

Good luck.

Wrench589 · January 9, 2016

Fog, I did see it. Also go back to page 3 of this forum and read Speedvision's post about "Tailgate Seal Gap " 25 april 2015 And no response from anyone ? I think everyone is so hung up on roof,shocks,tires,wheels, exhaust,fenders,drive shafts, etc, as the problem. I think the problem is in the tailgate area. I do not know if there is any adjustment in the latch to tighten the hatch against the gasket ? Once again the bad car I test drove had the booming in the rear of the car, not over my head ,not under my seat, not under the tires, not around the shocks, not from the fenders or exhaust. Good luck. All the best, Booty

I spent some time the other night checking out the tailgate. Here's what I found:

- as found, the paper test showed the seal is quite loose adjacent to the lower corners, and a bit more snug above the middle stops. But, no problem pulling the paper out. (It's hard to tell. The paper gets bend by he bodywork, so it's not s straight, clear pull from the rubber seal alone)

- I applied a thin layer of silicone grease to all four stops, and closed the hatch

- as found, the bottom stops were not touching the body at all. Not at all.

- as found, the left middle stop was hitting hard and the right middle stop was barely touching.

- I then adjusted the stops to shorten then, to get the bottom to touch. After several trials, I had shortened both middle stops to the point there were no longer touching, and the bottom ones still did not touch! WTF. So, the gate was solely resting on the rubber seal, which in May case is not perfectly even all the way around. It's kind of rolled over on the left side.

- best I could do was adjust the middle stops to get the left and right side evenly hitting. Left it with no contact on the lower stops.

As I said before, it might be next to impossible to get all four stops hitting evenly. One set would need to be very flexible to allow some compression. I suppose with enough adjusting, one could get all four touching, but looks like in this case, since the lower ones are not adjustable, the gate bottoms out on the seal before hitting the lower stops. Now, one poster put some foam around the gate, including the lower corners, and reported some improvement in the buffeting. Perhaps getting some contact on the lower stops would help? I haven't testing that yet.

And, when I drove it after my adjustments, no improvement on the buffeting.

Edited January 9, 2016 by Wrench589

Booty · January 9, 2016

I spent some time the other night checking out the tailgate. Here's what I found:

- as found, the paper test showed the seal is quite loose adjacent to the lower corners, and a bit more snug above the middle stops. But, no problem pulling the paper out. (It's hard to tell. The paper gets bend by he bodywork, so it's not s straight, clear pull from the rubber seal alone)

- I applied a thin layer of silicone grease to all four stops, and closed the hatch

- as found, the bottom stops were not touching the body at all. Not at all.

- as found, the left middle stop was hitting hard and the right middle stop was barely touching.

- I then adjusted the stops to shorten then, to get the bottom to touch. After several trials, I had shortened both middle stops to the point there were no longer touching, and the bottom ones still did not touch! WTF. So, the gate was solely resting on the rubber seal, which in May case is not perfectly even all the way around. It's kind of rolled over on the left side.

- best I could do was adjust the middle stops to get the left and right side evenly hitting. Left it with no contact on the lower stops.

As I said before, it might be next to impossible to get all four stops hitting evenly. One set would need to be very flexible to allow some compression. I suppose with enough adjusting, one could get all four touching, but looks like in this case, since the lower ones are not adjustable, the gate bottoms out on the seal before hitting the lower stops. Now, one poster put some foam around the gate, including the lower corners, and reported some improvement in the buffeting. Perhaps getting some contact on the lower stops would help? I haven't testing that yet.

And, when I drove it after my adjustments,mass I suspected no improvement on the buffeting.

Just got thru with a good look at the tail gate. Did a paper test all around the gasket. The top and bottom papers were tough to pull out. Had to be careful not to tear them. The side papers pulled out easier ? So... the top and the bottom of the hatch is tighter on the gasket. I did not pry the square covers off of the latch to see if there was a slot for adjustment. Did notice there were 2 bolts on each hinge not 4. Maybe there is an adjustment slot there ? The gasket feels a bit weak and cheap compared to all the cars in my past. After all the lowest bidder got the job !!! And his brother in law was the purchasing agent ??? They both are on the beach in the Bahamas drinking rum........ Good luck to all with solving this problem. Cheers, Booty

Wrench589 · January 9, 2016

I took the vibration analyzer and went out for a test drive yesterday. Mounted the accelerometer on the seat rail on the passenger side (had to slide the seat fully back to gain enough clearance for the magnetic mount). The lowest reading I got was around 30 mg. GM spec in 13-03-10-002 is 12 mg. Now, the vibs (and buffeting) typically come and go. When gone, the vibs were 30 mg. At times, would be at 40 - 60 mg. All this at constant speed of 110 kph. When accelerating from a start, over 100 mg. But, goes away pretty quick, so not the end of the world.

So, all this with 2 new tires recently and RF balanced.

Now, the other thing to remember is these readings are at one location only. I have no idea if this is a node (point of maximum vibration) or anti-node (point of minimum vibration) or somewhere in between. Short of testing every square inch of this piece of shit, I don't know. But I do know it's 3 to 4x GM spec. Guess I'll be calling the dealer on Monday!

John Dell · January 9, 2016

Hi all, new here. Just found this thread from a friend because I am set to pick up a new Yukon xl on Monday. It is a 2016 Yukon xl SLE with trailer package. It was just built around thanksgiving. Should I take it, I can back out as I put no money on it yet. Wondering if it affects all models and all options. I see tire choice does not matter. Is this still an unknown problem today. If anyone will get a bad one it will be me. What should I do?

The Zip · January 9, 2016

Hi all, new here. Just found this thread from a friend because I am set to pick up a new Yukon xl on Monday. What should I do?

Read and be as informed as possible, this is your payment. That friend may have spared you a headache, by him a beer then read some more.

TOBTEK · January 9, 2016

Hi all, new here. Just found this thread from a friend because I am set to pick up a new Yukon xl on Monday. It is a 2016 Yukon xl SLE with trailer package. It was just built around thanksgiving. Should I take it, I can back out as I put no money on it yet. Wondering if it affects all models and all options. I see tire choice does not matter. Is this still an unknown problem today. If anyone will get a bad one it will be me. What should I do?

We are on our THIRD brand new GM in Apx one year. Have spent countless time dealing with this mess. You have to go drive this vehicle for no less then an hour over all types of road surfaces, and freeways. If you don't hear the Booming and Buffeting consider your self a lucky guy. You may have read mine and other posts. I believe all these vehicles produce these sounds, some people just do not hear them. Great looking new trucks, not the most reliable I've ever seen though. I personally would go buy a nice CPO 2011-2013 Escalde, and wait till GM fixes these problematic SUV's.

John Dell · January 10, 2016

Someone commented it was like being inside a speaker box and that the rear tailgate or window may be causing some of the problem. Has anyone covered the rear window with a towel or layered it with painters tape since it is a hard smooth surface it may be amplifying the noise and it may be part of the problem.

FogDucker · January 10, 2016

Someone commented it was like being inside a speaker box and that the rear tailgate or window may be causing some of the problem. Has anyone covered the rear window with a towel or layered it with painters tape since it is a hard smooth surface it may be amplifying the noise and it may be part of the problem.

Yeah, I've been experimenting with that.

Unfortunately, no results as of yet. The experiment continues...

John Dell · January 10, 2016

Yeah, I've been experimenting with that.

Unfortunately, no results as of yet. The experiment continues...

Cover the glass itself, on the inside, that is what I was thinking. I have no experience because I am not going to pick mine up but I wondering if the auto lift gate plays a role?

Edited January 10, 2016 by John Dell

FogDucker · January 10, 2016

Cover the glass itself, on the inside, that is what I was thinking. I have no experience because I am not going to pick mine up but I wondering if the auto lift gate plays a role?

I did that too. With the window closed, I used that stretch wrapped and tuck taped it on the interior of the glass. Better seal with my hack but not air tight.

I've also been adjusting the door stops, one full turn at a time.

Still can't stop the buffeting at 40mph and 70mph.

Wrench589 · January 10, 2016

I'm not so sure it's the rear lift gate. I keep going back to an observation I made months ago - when I swing the rear doors through the detents I hear the "boom". I have not yet been able to isolate the location of the source, but here is what I have observed:

- the outer skin of the door itself vibrates slightly

- I can feel the floor vibrate right below the rear seat

- I can feel the roof vibrate slightly as well.

- Interestingly, the boom is significantly less when the opposite rear door is open.

- even more interestingly, the roof vibration seems to be more when the opposite door is open and the boom is less

- opening the rear hatch had no effect to the observed boom generated by swing the rear door.

To date, this is the most significant observation I have made. Whatever is being excited by the detents in the door is EXTREMELY sensitive, as those detents aren't really that strong. So, if we could isolate the exact source when the doors excite it, my guess is we would find the source when road vibration, residual tire unbalance, etc, excites it.

Wrench589 · January 10, 2016

Hi all, new here. Just found this thread from a friend because I am set to pick up a new Yukon xl on Monday. It is a 2016 Yukon xl SLE with trailer package. It was just built around thanksgiving. Should I take it, I can back out as I put no money on it yet. Wondering if it affects all models and all options. I see tire choice does not matter. Is this still an unknown problem today. If anyone will get a bad one it will be me. What should I do?

I wouldn't want to tell someone what to do, but my experience is that every rental I had when mine was in the shop (4 or 5 in total) exhibited the buffeted/boom/drone. IMHO, there is a design flaw that is present in all versions and all specimens. Maybe to varying degree, but there nonetheless. So, all I can say is, if I had found this forum before I bought, there is absolutely no way I would have bought this vehicle.

Good luck!

John Dell · January 10, 2016

I wouldn't want to tell someone what to do, but my experience is that every rental I had when mine was in the shop (4 or 5 in total) exhibited the buffeted/boom/drone. IMHO, there is a design flaw that is present in all versions and all specimens. Maybe to varying degree, but there nonetheless. So, all I can say is, if I had found this forum before I bought, there is absolutely no way I would have bought this vehicle.

Good luck!

You are right, I have already decided not to buy it, as much as I like it and others seem to really like theirs as well with one huge exception I will not go down this road. I can see a fight with the dealer already in my future. Thanks.