Rear leaf springs noise

[Robert.jean1]

I had a clunking sound coming from the rear of my truck and it turned out to be only a loose shock. My truck rides quiet as a mouse now.

[HondaHawkGT]

i am another one to add to the list of dissapointed leaf spring owners on the gm trucks. not sure what they changed from the 13s and down but they need to figure the problem out.

The 07-13 trucks had this issue too. GM even had a TSB on it. Not a new issue here.

[HondaHawkGT]

There is a new tech bulletin on rear leaf spring noises. If you can handle turning a wrench, you can fix this noise. I had a squeak/clunk when back down a hill. My rear shackles were surprisingly loose. I also sprayed the delrin pads on the leaf spring pack. No more noise.

[enroberts]

There is a new tech bulletin on rear leaf spring noises. If you can handlebtturning a wrench, you can fix this noise. I had a squeak/clunk when back down a hill. My rear shackles were surprisingly loose. I also sprayed the delrin pads on the leaf spring pack. No more noise.

Yeah, no noise....for now. It'll return and you'll be forced to lubricate the springs again. I've had GM trucks go well beyond 200,000 miles and NEVER ONCE had to apply grease to a leaf spring!

[agency12]

Last night I tightened up both rear shackles as well as both rear shocks. I was surprised how loose the shackles were and tightened the heck out of them. I also sprayed lubricant on the delrin pads and when I test drove the knocking / clunking is still there! GM needs to find out what is causing this and fix it right!

[HondaHawkGT]

Did you torque them? Frontleaf spring mounts spec 148 lb-ft, shackle bolts 70 lb-ft, leaf spring u-bolts 74 lb-ft, and shock mounts 85 lb-ft. Not many other parts that could make clunk in the back end. Maybe a slip yoke noise?

[agency12]

No, did not have a torque wrench so I just tightened all mounts as tight as I could get them.

[Almoalla6997]

I had this same issue with my 2014 Silverado 4x4 double cab from day one, most noticeable backing up while turning left/right. Spare was tight, exhaust wasn't knocking anywhere, took it into our shop and had a couple of Techs ride with me without telling them what to listen for and they too heard the clunk/bang/thump. We packed the leaf springs with grease as per an older bulletin, noise was still there. TAC suggested replacing the rear shocks which we did, noise was still there. We went over all cab/bed/suspension bolts and nuts, the noise was still there. We put the "ears" on and drove about but got nothing helpful. I had another Tech look at the truck without filling him in on what had been done, he went over all mount/suspension bolts and found the rear leafs were 1/8 to 1/4 of an inch out of alignment laterally(the grease was disturbed), we put a few large hose clamps around the leaf packs and drove the truck, NO MORE NOISE. Got the ok from TAC and replaced both rear leaf springs. We have submitted a P.I report to GM and had a field engineer from Oshawa pick up the springs for inspection, he told me he had seen this on older trucks but this was a first for him on the 2014/2015s.

If you experience this type of noise from the rear of your truck have a close look at the leaf alignment.

 

[Almoalla6997]

The dealer finally said that this was not because of greasing and lubrication as the senior engineer explained. Because after the lubrication the springs still kept on drumming.

As you said its because of the aligment.

Two tries and they still make some noise.

They requested that i keep the car with them to take their time aligning them.

May you please send photos on how you applied the hose clamps?

[Tuscani922]

Just as an update for my case, First visit to the dealer, I told them about the problem, and they immediately asked if I had the truck undercoated, which I had. They then said that was the cause, as the oil between each leaf caused dirt buildup. This caused them to bind against each other, or so they said. They then powerwashed the leaf springs to remove said buildup. Needless to say, this did not correct the issue. I recently went to a different dealer, and they gave me a loaner vehicle, and had the truck for about two hours. They retorqued the ubolts, and this appears to have solved my issue. I will post up again if it is not in fact fixed.

[gemsierra]

Ive been noticing that when I hit bumps (large or small) in my truck, it sounds like there is shuttering noise coming from the rear of my truck almost if as there was something large bouncing in my bed (my bed is empty). I took it into the dealer today and had a technician drive me around the block and he claims it is not normal. They said (they would take a look at it) but you know how that goes. Did anyone have a problem similar to this and find the solution?

[HondaHawkGT]

Ive been noticing that when I hit bumps (large or small) in my truck, it sounds like there is shuttering noise coming from the rear of my truck almost if as there was something large bouncing in my bed (my bed is empty). I took it into the dealer today and had a technician drive me around the block and he claims it is not normal. They said (they would take a look at it) but you know how that goes. Did anyone have a problem similar to this and find the solution?

Check the spare tire? It's not normal, the tech is just lazy/not paid enough to find the loose component. The spare will feel like its secure but the components that hold in place have just enough play to allow the tire to make a sound exactly like you describe.

[gemsierra]

Check the spare tire? It's not normal, the tech is just lazy/not paid enough to find the loose component. The spare will feel like its secure but the components that hold in place have just enough play to allow the tire to make a sound exactly like you describe.

Thanks for the info I let them know to check it out. They called me back and said that they narrowed it down to the right rear shock and are replacing it. Couldn't get the tech to tell me what exactly went wrong with the shock. Should be able to pick it up this afternoon after they re-align the front bumper and replace my infotainment screen.

[gemsierra]

Thanks for the input. a loose shock solved my problem.

[GMC-AT]

one shock and both leaf springs replaced by dealer... I still have the issue. Also tightened up everything. I also installed the leaf spring clamps. This is the only issue I have... and really hate it.