What do you think?

djpedro78 · December 8, 2015

Hi everyone,

I am new to the site. 11 days ago I bought a 2008 Sierra 1500 SLT with the 5.3, 2WD, 59,000 miles one owner.

2 days ago when I started the truck after work I heard a strange ticking sound.

Then yesterday I heard the same sound when I started it.

After about a 15 minute trip I stopped at the store (morning coffee) I shut it off.

Came out of the store and slowly rolled out of the driveway, when I accelerated the truck started sputtering and all sorts of chimes and lights came on.

Check engine light started blinking, the triangle traction light came on and the display said traction control/stabilitrak off, service traction control/stabilitrac.

I had the mechanic at my job scan the truck for codes and it came out with misfire cylinder #4.

He also said to me that the way the truck sounded from the exhaust he thinks it may be a bad valve.

Contacted GM and they said my truck is covered under a special warranty covering the throttle body issue which from a little research gives the same symptoms as mine has.

I have an appointment tomorrow at a dealer to check if it is the throttle body issue. If no then I have to pay out of pocket.

Any info or knowledge is greatly appreciated.

I know this topic is all over the forums. I did a search but didn't find the info I needed.

Thanks again!

djpedro78 · December 9, 2015

Got it looked at today.

Shop calls me with a $5600 plus tax estimate

Says it has bad lifters/rods and also needs a cam shaft.

Nervous breakdown about to happen

What to do?

Sirstud1 · December 9, 2015

O me that sucks.. I had 05 silverado the slung a cam shaft bearing.. bought a used motor and had it installed then sold it... used motor and install would be much less that 5600... jasper engines in memphis tn has 3 year warranty on rebuilt motors if u wanted to go that route they run about 3600 with install labor added in here in mississippi... check jasper out or find a used motor from a wrecked truck...

Sirstud1 · December 9, 2015

O btw I also had nervous breakdown.. good thing a buddy had a wrecked truck with good motor for sale.. used motor and all labor cost me about 1300 bucks

djpedro78 · December 10, 2015

The Chevy dealer I bought it from said they were going to tow it to there shop to look at it and tell me how they can help.

Sirstud1 · December 11, 2015

If u got it 11 days ago I would tell them u bought a lemon... Raise hell with them and call the BBB... They may let u return it then find a new dealership to deal with.. U should check ur state laws on returning a used vehicle

djpedro78 · December 12, 2015

No Lemon Law on Used Vehicles here in Florida.

They called me today with a "helping you out" estimate of $4300.

I told him that was still too high, he said maybe I can get a few hundred more off.

I told him I'd call him back.

I want my truck back working

djpedro78 · December 12, 2015

Now we are at $3900

This is ridiculous

tbarn · December 12, 2015

What do I think? You bought a used truck. A 7 year old truck (albeit with low miles) at that. If the selling dealer didn't give you a written warranty, you're out of luck. While $1700 is a nice discount, $3900 is a lot to spend on a motor. Get a used motor from a reputable salvage yard with a warranty or a reman.

djpedro78 · December 25, 2015

Waiting to update when it is closer to completed .

Sirstud1 · December 28, 2015

Yup go with used motor with less miles as i stated before... Way way cheaper even with them pulling the old and putting in the other one... Have them warranty their work and also most places at least give 30-90 warranty with a used motor...

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BlackZ71Silverado · December 28, 2015

Sounds like the truck you bought may have given the previous owner problems. With the parts you listed, I would bet the truck had used oil, it's an Active Fuel Management issue. Get the service records if possible and see if it's been looked at for AFM oil usage, loud lifters, or anything similar. Try to get in touch with the previous owner, that's probably the only way to get the truth about the truck if there are no records because stealerships lie!

If it's a 2008 with low mileage, it should have had a warranty from the dealership. If not, I would believe that the dealership was well aware the truck had issues so they were not willing to offer any type of warranty. They decided to dump it onto an unknowing customer, that's the only reason I can come up with for the dealer not willing to take care of the truck they just sold. All of the 2008-2013 GMT-900's on the lots in my area with that type of mileage are marked as "GM certified pre-owned" and come with a warranty.

If GM and that dealer are unwilling to help, I would just bite the bullet and buy a new crate engine. That way you have a brand new engine and don't have to worry about any other parts failing and don't have to worry about oil usage. It will cost more up front but will save you money and headache in the future since it seems you would have to pay out of pocket for any repairs.

Get yourself a new crate engine, tune it and disabled AFM. That gives you a worry free engine, no oil usage worries, and piece of mind that your truck will last. Sorry to hear you bought what seems to be a problem child but once it's taken care of the right way (new engine), you will be happy with it.

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KARNUT · December 28, 2015

It's just bad luck when buying used. I can't imagine any internal doctoring to the engine to sell it, makes more sense to fix it right before sale. I'm with new engine crowd and a warranty.

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djpedro78 · December 30, 2015

I pick it up tomorrow.

njs2247 · December 30, 2015

I would definitely get a hold of all service records for that truck. That would be pretty low if the dealership knew of this problem and still put it up for sale. I truly hope you can get a good deal on a new crate engine. I wouldn't even consider buying a used version of the same engine with lower miles. Sooner or later you'll probably run into the same issues you're having now. Although my old 08 Sierra never had any oil consumption issues with AFM, once I hit 100K miles I got it tuned and had AFM disabled just to make sure. I would for sure get a new crate engine.