Gas Pedal Flex Solution

[Black02Silverado]

18 hours ago, oachalon said:

I just picked a 2018 Silverado LT up last week and noticed the poor tip in response.  I noticed the flex as well.  I quickly stuck a paint stick in there and it is a world of difference.  On that, i am looking for a more permanent solution.  I have a 3d printer at work, has anyone come up with a design that can be 3d printed?  

Thanks, 

Maybe take the assembly out, measure and make one that is stronger in that area?  Then you could sell them and make a nice chunk of change.  Of course you would have to put a legal disclaimer in so if it broke and caused an accident they couldn't sue you.  

[huntr1117]

Print a paint stick?

That's pretty damn funny. Well done.

Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

[oachalon]

Not worth the time to mass produce and sell them, just looking to make 1 if someone had a design made up.  

[Geojohn5]

Hi Guys!

 

I've had my 2015 sierra for about 36 months now, and the same issue has driver me nuts since the day I got it.  I love the truck, but this one issue drives me nuts.  Maybe you can point me in the right direction. 

 

1) I find the accelerator very hard to push down.  To the point my foot hurts sometimes.

2) I find I spend 90% of my driving within the first 1/2" of pedal travel.   I find it very hard to maintain speed.  It seems like the truck keeps wanting to shift into the next higher gear unless I barely touch the pedal. 

3) When this thing shifts, it seems like it riiiiiiiiiides the clutch bigtime.   Sometimes its almost a full 3 second shifting to the next gear.  I just watch the rpm's slowly go from higher to lower over 3 seconds or so until it settles in the gear. 

4) I tried a diablo tuner... and set it to firm shifts.... and I can see its a bit quicker but not really substantially.  This leads me to believe its another issue.... or the issue is just me?

 

Any thoughts?

 

John

[DEV1ST8R]

Just checked my '17 with adjustable pedals and sure enough it moves around like toy car pedal. Stuffed in the prescribed paint stick and cured a little of the movement. Unbelievably cheesy setup Chevrolet - not impressed... Thanks for the heads-up OP.

[sk]

On 6/11/2018 at 2:32 PM, oachalon said:

I just picked a 2018 Silverado LT up last week and noticed the poor tip in response.  I noticed the flex as well.  I quickly stuck a paint stick in there and it is a world of difference.  On that, i am looking for a more permanent solution.  I have a 3d printer at work, has anyone come up with a design that can be 3d printed?  

Thanks, 

Why?

 

Just use these like I did:

 

https://www.lowes.com/pd/TimberWolf-Actual-0-1875-in-x-1-5-in-x-7-9375-in-12-Pack-Composite-Shim/3377156

 

$2 for the whole pack and I only needed 2 for the shimming.  Now I have a bunch left to use for projects around the house!

[kevinfranklin]

Well, you hadn't sent him the link to those shims yet, silly.  Although they do say they "Split 4x as easily as wood shims" so maybe some folks want something with a perfect fit that they have 100% confidence in. 

[sk]

22 hours ago, kevinfranklin said:

Well, you hadn't sent him the link to those shims yet, silly.

The link was already posted in one of my replies earlier in this same thread.

[John K.]

I have a 2018 Silverado double cab Z71 with less than 600 miles and had noticed the same symptoms as others.  Then I found the "paint stick" fix.

It's very sad, for all the money we pay for these trucks and we still have to follow behind with bailing wire, duct tape, wood shims and bubble gum to make them run as they should. 

I have to wonder, does anyone at GM read these forums to see what we think and what is really going on with their product?

[Sierra Dan]

This pedal flexing might be GM's intentional way of squeezing another .01mpg out of the truck to meet CAFE standards...….

Now we are all screwing that up with our shims and paint sticks!       LOL

[Silverado-Hareek]

10 hours ago, John K. said:

I have to wonder, does anyone at GM read these forums to see what we think and what is really going on with their product?

 

If anyone does read it, it's likely to find out about major issues or what "features" people are interested in for future developments, but I doubt they see something this and immediately go and redesign their trucks.  At the end of the day, most of the feedback they get is from customers at dealers complaining about why GM doesn't offer an 18" touchscreen infotainment system like (insert other brand here).  And that's how you end up with trucks that cost $50,000-$60,000.  Me personally, I'd be satisfied with an off road package that has metal skid plates and a gas pedal that's securely attached to the truck.  But I'm old school I guess.  I just want to drive something that works, I'm not as interested in all the extra bells and whistles.

[Thomcat]

Can't believe I waited 2 years to try this out. Never noticed much of a downward flex on  the motorized pedal assembly - I should have pulled up...over 3/8" play. Almost impossible to get at without ripping out part of the  3/4' mastic rubber soundproofing. Easy way to lube the end of a slotted trim stick and wedge under the backing plate around the screw then slice off the stick with a Dremel cutoff disk leaving the wedge end glued under the assembly.

 

A definite improvement in drive ability.

[FL335i]

The people that troll these forums are customer service types.  They don't know what R&P Backlash is or why we're doing what we're doing with a paint stick.   If you like this thread, check out my Yukon axle shafts thread....  lot more expensive than a paint stick.

Edited August 4, 2018 by FL335i

[DONWT15]

I'll give another positive response to this fix. Didn't experience the lag in response all the time, but occasionally it would be slow to speed up on turns at intersections and such. Biggest thing that bugged me was when you want to override the cruise control and it needed a big push to gain any speed. When I first checked it didn't appear to be flexing. When I pulled up on the pedal it moved quite a bit and after doing that, pushing down lightly the flex would be there.

Didn't have a paint stick laying around so I taped a couple of 1 in diameter washers together to use as a shim.

Worked like a charm. Throttle responds instantly now. 

[Jchoi]

I guess I’ll consider myself lucky, but I went out this morning to apply this mod, and I have very little flex in the pedal or bracket. I pulled back the carpet, and something seems to be bracing the bracket or taking out the slack. . There’s still a tiny amount, but I attribute that to being plastic.  I honestly didn’t realize the gas pedal was plastic as well. Lol. Unless the bracket starts to flex more, I think I’ll leave it alone. I have an 18 Silverado. Thanks for this thread. It was a great read though.