2016 Silverado 2500HD Steering woes

peanutavalon · July 19, 2017

I recently passed 9k miles (Flint built '16 SierraHD) and my steering is not as tight as it used to be. Here's a quick video I took, is this what others are experiencing?

http://vid535.photobucket.com/albums/ee355/stadt11/2016GMCSierraHD/SierraHDSteering.mp4

can't see your video for some reason...message me and maybe you can text it or wmail it to me...thx

480Ruger · July 19, 2017

They retorqued the nut and put on Loctite back at 7K. Now at 13K they said they changed the idler arm and put on a new gear and nut. (not sure which gear yet) They said they found a lot of play in the arm and gear. How can that be when one minute everything is tight with no problems driving to Lowes, then when I go to leave the store is when it let go? I’ll get it back today and see what happens.

stadt11 · July 19, 2017

can't see your video for some reason...message me and maybe you can text it or wmail it to me...thx

I went to my original post and posted the YouTube video instead

revrnd · July 19, 2017

They retorqued the nut and put on Loctite back at 7K. Now at 13K they said they changed the idler arm and put on a new gear and nut. (not sure which gear yet) They said they found a lot of play in the arm and gear. How can that be when one minute everything is tight with no problems driving to Lowes, then when I go to leave the store is when it let go? I’ll get it back today and see what happens.

That's basically what happened to my brother's truck. It's good 1 minute & then sloppy the next. Replaced the pitman arm back in Dec' & so far the steering is still good.

peanutavalon · July 19, 2017

They retorqued the nut and put on Loctite back at 7K. Now at 13K they said they changed the idler arm and put on a new gear and nut. (not sure which gear yet) They said they found a lot of play in the arm and gear. How can that be when one minute everything is tight with no problems driving to Lowes, then when I go to leave the store is when it let go? I’ll get it back today and see what happens.

Please do..I'm very interested in how to get this permanently fixed.

peanutavalon · July 19, 2017

I recently passed 9k miles (Flint built '16 SierraHD) and my steering is not as tight as it used to be. Here's a quick video I took, is this what others are experiencing?

Mine was rock solid after my gear box was replaced..now it's just like yours again. I'm getting very frustrated but do not want to move on to another truck. There's gotta be a fix for this. Please keep me in the loop if you get your back to normal. thanks

stadt11 · July 19, 2017

Mine was rock solid after my gear box was replaced..now it's just like yours again. I'm getting very frustrated but do not want to move on to another truck. There's gotta be a fix for this. Please keep me in the loop if you get your back to normal. thanks

I'm hesitant to take mine in if there's not a proven fix yet, just temporary band-aids. Serious, how is this not a safety recall?!

BTW, it was really fun pulling my 30' travel trailer last weekend, steering was all over the road!

peanutavalon · July 19, 2017

I'm hesitant to take mine in if there's not a proven fix yet, just temporary band-aids. Serious, how is this not a safety recall?!

BTW, it was really fun pulling my 30' travel trailer last weekend, steering was all over the road!

Ridiculous! It's simply unsafe. I've got little kids and they ride with me all the time. On the highway I'm white knuckling it so I don't run off the road. I don't want to give up my HD but I could probably swap my truck for a new 1500 crew with a 6.5 foot box. At least they have rack and pinyon steering. Not this digital assist stuff...It's disappointing. I really like my truck otherwise.

EChavez · July 20, 2017

I'm really curious to see if this is still an issue with 2017 models. If it hasn't been fixed yet I feel like it might be. Can anyone with a 2017 hd chime in? I wonder if it'll continue into 2018 models seeing as how there aren't any significant changes.

BlkSS · July 20, 2017

Answered my own question with a Google search. There is indeed a PIT5501F. Can someone going to the dealer for this please ask them for a copy them upload it here like I did with 5501E?

My truck is completely stock. At about 9k I noticed the steering loosening. At about 11k I could turn the wheel between 11 and 1 and the front wheels didn't move. Went to the dealer with PIT5501D in hand. They said it had been superceded by 5501E. They did the locktite fix (5501E). It's been a couple thousand miles and so far so good. The existence of 5501F has dashed my hopes that the problem is permanently fixed. Now I'm back to waiting for it to loosen up again so I can take it back for whatever the most current PIT5501 happens to be. If someone could get their hands on 5501F that would be very helpful.

I'm really curious to see if this is still an issue with 2017 models. If it hasn't been fixed yet I feel like it might be. Can anyone with a 2017 hd chime in? I wonder if it'll continue into 2018 models seeing as how there aren't any significant changes.

According to my service advisor that I spoke with today, PIT5501F is the same as PIT5501E with the exception that they removed the 2017 MY. I have not seen it personally so I can't verify if that is the only change(s) but I am currently trying to schedule mine for service for this and I will try to get a copy.

Agriont · July 21, 2017

Ridiculous! It's simply unsafe. I've got little kids and they ride with me all the time. On the highway I'm white knuckling it so I don't run off the road. I don't want to give up my HD but I could probably swap my truck for a new 1500 crew with a 6.5 foot box. At least they have rack and pinyon steering. Not this digital assist stuff...It's disappointing. I really like my truck otherwise.

I dropped to a 1500. I think a class action lawsuit is in order. GM owes a lot of people compensation for the trouble we've had with these trucks.. including the financial loss realized when offloading the truck. The 1500 I have is not comparable to the 2500 but it sure handles well. Don't hang on to yours too long if you are not happy with it. It is depreciating by the day, a huge investment and GM doing squat. Report your concerns to the transportation safety dept. It won't do any good but it will create a file and time stamp of your complaint. Good luck.

BlkSS · July 28, 2017

Just to confirm that PIT5501F is in fact the same as PIT5501E with the exception of removing the 2017 MY. Here it is for your reading pleasure. On the 60 mile trip home from the dealer, the issue appears to be resolved.

#PIT5501F.pdf

Silver16 · July 29, 2017

I dropped to a 1500. I think a class action lawsuit is in order. GM owes a lot of people compensation for the trouble we've had with these trucks.. including the financial loss realized when offloading the truck. The 1500 I have is not comparable to the 2500 but it sure handles well. Don't hang on to yours too long if you are not happy with it. It is depreciating by the day, a huge investment and GM doing squat. Report your concerns to the transportation safety dept. It won't do any good but it will create a file and time stamp of your complaint. Good luck.

1500 is rack and pinion. Car suspension. 2500 is torsion bar A frame Truck suspension. The only people having "trouble" are on the internet. Not everyone is unhappy. When you start vibrating or shaking you'll be back talking how GM suxs, etc. Good luck with your class action.

Agriont · July 29, 2017

1500 is rack and pinion. Car suspension. 2500 is torsion bar A frame Truck suspension. The only people having "trouble" are on the internet. Not everyone is unhappy. When you start vibrating or shaking you'll be back talking how GM suxs, etc. Good luck with your class action.

It isn't my first GM nor will it be my last. Unless you have access to every GM/Chev owner on the planet, you wouldn't know who is having problems. A fraction of owners find their way online to find out more about it or to see what others are experiencing. If this 1500 of mine shakes or vibrates, it too will go back to GM.

Silver16 · July 29, 2017

It isn't my first GM nor will it be my last. Unless you have access to every GM/Chev owner on the planet, you wouldn't know who is having problems. A fraction of owners find their way online to find out more about it or to see what others are experiencing. If this 1500 of mine shakes or vibrates, it too will go back to GM.

Point being ALL MANUFACTURERS have problems period. For the most part you can get good results not modifying crap that effects other systems. Not saying you have or did but the majority of complaints come after some kind of modification(lift, delete, re programming,etc.). Saying that GM or Ford or whoever need a class action suit doesn't represent all owners, unless you have access to all owners.