2015 Colorado/Canyon Shakes Vibrates

[SuitUpAdventures]

I have a new 2015 Chevy Colorado Crew Cab Z71 2x4 and i have had it for about a month now after waiting 2 months ordering it. I am hoping someone here can help or possibly provide some insight beyond what I have already been able to figure out.

 

I am getting a pretty strong left to right shake on the freeway that starts almost exactly at 79/80 mph and doesn't go away as i go up. I live in Southern California so 80mph is a pretty standard speed on the freeways here. If no one is in the passenger seat you can see it moving back and forth. I don't feel it at any lower speeds.

 

I have had it to the dealership 3 times so far. 1st time they balanced the tires and it didn't fix it. 2nd time i took the tech on a ride and he said he definitely felt the shake and thinks it is most likely the drive shaft. So i take it the 3rd time and they had it for a week only to find out they only balanced the tires again. They claim to have done the vibration test and couldn't find anything and obviously didn't listen to the tech that was in the car with me. They have since claimed there is no issue and I am basically making it up/ it is a normal shake. Personally, i don't think they even tested it at 80mph because they keep trying to say that since it is over the speed limit they can't test it. I would love to hear them say that to someone who bought the Corvette and had this complaint.

 

I am not an idiot when it comes to cars, i have worked on my own cars for a long time but this is a brand new car that I feel the dealership and Chevrolet/GM should be doing a far better job of insuring it is issue free and SAFE. I do have another scheduled appointment with the dealer set up through Chevy/GM customer service where i will show them the video i recorded with my GoPro that proves at 80 and over its shakes like a massage chair so bad you can't even see the cars/lanes through the window.

 

I love the truck and really want to get this issue fixed but if Chevy keeps denying it and wont stand behind their products I will have to get the lawyers involved and lemon law. If the truck would have came with a disclaimer that you can't drive over the speed limit without it shaking I wouldn't have bought it.

 

I would love to hear if anyone else is having the same issue or any professional mechanics that might have an idea of what it could be.

 

Thanks

[PMurray]

My vibrating Silverado was fixed and continues vibe-free. They found the ring gear in the rear differential was badly out of specs and replaced the entire axle and diff. Worth a look.

 

Good luck!

[MA-Silverado]

Appreciate the info, will bring it up to the dealer.

[SuitUpAdventures]

Thanks for the info. I mentioned it to the dealer and they are going to look into it after I took the higher ups for a ride to feel the shake.

[trem99]

I am having the EXACT same issue with my 2wd 2015 Colorado. The shake can be felt at above 70mph but at 80 (my normal commute speed) the entire truck resonates. I have had the wheels and tires road force balanced with no improvement. I have also swapped all the tires with the spare and this made no difference. If I put the truck in neutral at 80mph the shake continues, so it seems to originate somewhere between the transmission and the rear wheels.

 

My dealer would not take the truck above 55mph, so they "cannot duplicate the issue".

 

I'm very interested to hear what you find out.

 

 

[Pinnacle]

You have got to be kidding, same thing on these as the s/s

[MA-Silverado]

Update, 2015 1500 Silverado.

 

Had the truck at the dealers yesterday afternoon and they did not fix the issue but here is what they did. Re-balanced all four tires, fixed weight issue on a few and they wanted to check the rims but their machine was out of service so I have to go back for another service call for that. Dealer could not guarantee that this would fix the issue because they could not drive the truck due to rain. They advised to call back if the issue continued. After the service call it seemed to be worse so I headed to my father in-law's to try his rims and tires from his GMC Sierra. His tires (Goodyear) and rims (steel) were the same size but different brand with almost 14k miles on them. After placing his tires on my truck I really noticed the vibration/shaking. So it seems, the more miles on a tire and lower PSI I notice the issue, the newer the tire with more PSI the less I notice the issue. I may be wrong in thinking it's the tires that's causing the issue. If it was the tires the vibration should have stopped with his.

 

Also, my father in-law drove his truck with my rims and tires and felt no vibration or shaking, smooth ride!

 

I will be calling the dealer back today to schedule another service call. I’ll update the post from my next visit.

[SuitUpAdventures]

@Tremm99

 

I would highly recommend taking the service manager for a ride and show them the shake. They tried to pull the same thing with me about the speed limit so i told them I would take them for a ride and both times they have felt it. The problem now will be making sure they can fix it. The shake in these things is not Normal no matter how many times they want to say it is. Mine will not be back into the dealership until next week at earliest so I wont have an update on a fix or attempted fix till then.

 

I did get a call from GM stating my complaint has been "escalated" but then tried to once again tell me that above the speed limit the shake might be normal. If that's the case they should not be making vehicles.. Might be better suited for vibrating chairs or toys.

 

@MA-Silverado - I do not think its the tires or rims for most the cases. I did read how some of the silverados were fixed with tires or new rims but i think those were not quite the same issues. Both the tech and service manager think it has something to do with the drive line or rear end somewhere. But then again from reading all these it could be ANYTHING. Just hoping they can get it fixed and stop wasting all our time going to the dealership.

[MA-Silverado]

@SuitUpAdventures - I agree, dropped off the truck at the dealership this afternoon so they can work on it. They advised me that it's okay to drive but I disagreed and got a loner instead. Since the vibration started after 800+ miles, something happened and I fear the more I drive the worse it will get. All I need is for GM to come back with a lame excuse that I should not have driven the truck making the issue worse after notifying the dealer. Will update the post once I hear from the dealership.

 

Also, dealership claims they have never had/experienced this issue before. I doubt it but we will see.

[trem99]

Thanks for the updates everyone.

 

I've spent some time under the truck the past couple days - my driveshaft seems to have several large weights on both ends. I measured runout of the driveshaft and it was 0.035" nearest the transmission, so it seems they correct the runout with weights to get everything back in balance. Makes sense I guess. The transmission mount/dampener there seems really soft (I could shake the driveshaft/trans with my hand quite noticeably) so I can see how a slight balance issue might shake at high speeds.

 

For fun, I strapped a couple of washers to the driveshaft to see if I could affect the shake - well sure enough it seems to really have calmed down to a point I barely notice it, at least in my quick test drive this evening.

 

I wont have a chance to try anything else over the next week or so as I am heading out of town, but maybe this info helps.

[MA-Silverado]

Update,

 

Truck has been at the dealership today and they found two problems. The right rear tire is bad and driveshaft is 23 degrees out of spec. They have ordered a replacement tire and drive shaft. Hopefully parts will arrive Monday/Tuesday depending on shipping because of the holiday weekend. I am not holding my breath but I sure hope this fixes the issue. Will update once parts are replaced, have a great holiday!!!

 

@trem99 - You may be onto something.

Edited July 2, 2015 by MA-Silverado

[Pinnacle]

Update,

 

Truck has been at the dealership today and they found two problems. The right rear tire is bad and driveshaft is 23 degrees out of spec. They have ordered a replacement tire and drive shaft. Hopefully parts will arrive Monday/Tuesday depending on shipping because of the holiday weekend. I am not holding my breath but I sure hope this fixes the issue. Will update once parts are replaced, have a great holiday!!!

 

@trem99 - You may be onto something.

23 degrees out of spec

 

23 degrees out of spec!!

 

Thats crazy.

[MA-Silverado]

Update,

 

Hope all of you had a great a 4^th! Here is the latest from the dealership.

 

Replace the original driveshaft with another BAD driveshaft and BAD tire. When driving, the vibration is still noticeable but not as bad from what the dealership has noticed. So, they have ordered another driveshaft and tire but cannot rule out a backend issue. Honestly I have no idea what a backend issue really means nor do I believe the dealership does either. I cannot get a date/time on when the new parts will arrive other than we will call you. This is the second week they have had the truck and I’m starting to lose patience and confidence they will get this resolved. Will update once they replaced the parts again.

['01LS1]

Thanks for the updates everyone.

 

I've spent some time under the truck the past couple days - my driveshaft seems to have several large weights on both ends. I measured runout of the driveshaft and it was 0.035" nearest the transmission, so it seems they correct the runout with weights to get everything back in balance. Makes sense I guess. The transmission mount/dampener there seems really soft (I could shake the driveshaft/trans with my hand quite noticeably) so I can see how a slight balance issue might shake at high speeds.

 

For fun, I strapped a couple of washers to the driveshaft to see if I could affect the shake - well sure enough it seems to really have calmed down to a point I barely notice it, at least in my quick test drive this evening.

 

I wont have a chance to try anything else over the next week or so as I am heading out of town, but maybe this info helps.

 

Maybe look for a local shop to balance your drive shaft properly. I know it will cost a few dollars vs warranty, but if a couple of washers were noticeable, it may be worth it.

[MA-Silverado]

Update,

 

Received a call from the dealership that the driveshaft and tire have been replaced and it seems the issue is gone. Service manager and tech working on the truck assured me they test drove it and they did not feel the vibration. Excitingly I dropped everything I was doing and b-lined to the dealership. Well sure enough the issue has NOT been resolved and at 62mph the vibration starts. I looked over at the service manager who was in the truck with me and asked him if they really test drove the truck. Driving down the highway the service manager noticed the vibration in the steering wheel and throughout the cabin. After the service manager acknowledged the vibration issue has not been resolved we returned to the dealership. I asked what was next and their response was “well, we will hook it up the computer again and see”. Clearly they have no idea what is causing this issue and in my opinion they will not be able to fix this issue. I have not been without a truck going on two weeks and every time I ask for a loner truck, it’s out. I am stuck with a loner Equinox at this time.

 

I called GM customer care and opened a claim. I explaining the issue to the service rep and she had the guts to say that this maybe a characteristic of the truck. I told her that was preposterous, misleading and false advertising. I told her that if this was a characteristic then the vibration should have been listed on the sticker of truck as a feature that the truck may vibrate around 60-75mph. I told her that if I knew of this feature I would not have purchased the truck. Customer care rep asked what I wanted. I told her I wanted my money back. She claims they are not sure if they can do that. I tell her, GM can sell a defective truck but can’t take back a defective truck; there should be a law for this. I asked her what their interpretation of the lemon was and she said I don’t know and we don’t have any lawyer’s for this information. I am now waiting for call back from a manager at the dealership on what my options are.

 

Also, service manager told me that the Colorado’s have an open bulletin on a vibration issue caused by a software issue. To resolve it, an update to the truck’s software has to be updated. Asked if the Silverado has the software issue and he said no.

[SuitUpAdventures]

Sorry to hear that MA - Silverado. I was actually told the same thing by the GM customer service. She said it may just be how the truck is supposed to be. I couldn't believe it because she even said that after i had told her the the Service Manager admitted there was something wrong with it. Mine is supposed to go in next week. They needed a new vibration tool. Apparently there aren't real mechanics anymore.. My buddy who is a master Toyota mechanic but is not bias to them, he still loves his american made, is in aw of how Chevrolet is handling all these issues.

 

Hopefully you can get it resolved quickly. I would love it if mine was fixed by something as easy as a software issue but its hard to think of how software could be causing this shake. Then again its amazing what the computers control in these things these days.

 

Ill keep everyone posted with how mine ends up next week. Fingers crossed!