It doesn't make any sense

Letitride_T1 · July 8, 2016

Hey fellas the names Randy, I've been keeping up with this forum for a while now.

driving an 07 Tundra and other truck is a 2011 Silverado LT. waiting for my chance to grab a brand new

Sierra 1500 All Terrain w/ the 6.2L/8 speed

(as you can tell I've been putting off a purchase for a while)

I must have test driven this truck like 3-4 times but cant get convince myself to pull the trigger.

after reading these 2017 updates i was hoping these very minor things would be fixed. (im sure this has been discussed)

now im getting frustrated, especially since I love everything about these trucks.

now my question is

how the hell does GM build a 40-60k truck without rear vents.

I know most of you say "I don't care, i don't sit in the back seat", but living in SoCal this is considered a necessity. It isn't even an option (which would work out for most of us who want it and don't)

good job GM you're the only brand without rear vents.

the only other concern is, can somebody please explain to me why the All-Terrain package doesn't offer vented seats? but the Silverado LTZ Z71 does?

whose the brilliant engineer that thought this would be a good idea?

Its as if they have the potential to fix these two minor problems, but don't want to.

instead, we got some stupid color changes.

KMGZ400 · July 8, 2016

i dont know how they cant put vents in a brand new denali yet my 2001 silverado LS extended cab had rear vents in the center console? i just dont understand the logic behind this..

I live in PA and on hot summer days with people in the back they complain its too hot, only way to keep them cool is to blast air in the front and freeze the front passengers.

GMP · July 8, 2016

I agree. In the winter people in the back freeze and people in front are dying of heat.

muddkatt · July 8, 2016

My advice is simple, if you live in a hot climate and need rear AC then go buy a different brand. Like KMGZ400 stated, my 2001 GMC SLE has the rear vents in the console. If they could put them in back then, why not now? I don't sit in the back but a couple of weeks ago the Mrs had to. She was pissed at how hot is was and then really went to bitching about the hot air from the cooled seats blowing on her. She actually has started talking about trading the truck off and it just turned 2000 miles on it.

Donstar · July 8, 2016

With a little practice you can balance the heating and cooling nicely between the rear and front passenger areas. There are vents under the front seats directed to the rear of the cab. Your controls need to be set to the floor vents in order for them to be effective. I have owned Sierra crew cabs since 2009 in very cold and hot weather and have been able to keep all passengers comfortable. You do not need vents directly blowing at you to provide heating or cooling.

O_J_Simpson · July 8, 2016

GM is a truck for the masses. They do not focus on the top end markets. The focus is building trucks as cheap as they can that will still sell to most of the masses. Sure they lose a bunch of top end sales but that is not a GM focus for the K2 trucks. If you don't like it, go to another brand that offers the features you want.

amxguy1970 · July 8, 2016

I live in Texas (it is hotter than so cal), here the air comes out plentiful and have no complaints from rear seat passengers. The cabin cools down plenty quick and stays cool. Rear vents never throw out much air as the long path they have to travel (none of the cars or trucks I have owned or rode in had much come out to make a difference). Guess a little cool air on my knee helps?

Not sure why this is such a big complaint, it the back seat wasn't getting any air and the cabin was hot I could see but that is just flat out not the case (and I even have a dark color). Seems to be a perception thing more than anything else (kinda like LED headlights).

All this complaining about rear vents, how in the world do the rear passengers not melt in the back of mid and lower level trucks from those manufacturers that offer rear vents only on their high level trims? I guess rear passengers of the box checker versions are more important and allowed to have rear vents but those of lesser models aren't. Never see any complaints on that either from the lower levels without vents...

Cooled seats, not sure why the AT doesn't but you can get the Denali which has all that and color keyed bumpers.

BTW, they have been discussed in droves and if you had searched would have seen that. Not sure what you were trying to accomplish other than a complaint thread it seemed...

Tyler

Silverado Steve · July 8, 2016

The topic of the lack of rear vents on these trucks comes up all the time, but what we don't discuss is that the center consolel in these trucks were designed to house the rear entertainment system DVD player smack dab where the vents and HVAC controls go in the competitor models. Because of this, there is no room for such a system, or you would sacrifice a lot of console storage space which frankly is probably more important to more buyers. Now those GM trucks that don't have the rear Entertainment option installed have a carnaverous cubby for items like a binder, maps, books, items for the rear passengers. Personally i place a phone recall binder of my coworkers in there as i get called off duty and have to contact over someone out of 200 personnel on a whim. It's a give take on the design. As others have mentioned it's not like the GM engineers just neglicted the idea of air flow to the rear as there are vents under front seat vents. If younhave the Weathertech or Husky type floor tray, the vents can be easily blocked by the lip on the tray. While not necessarily the most practical design, when on auto mode the cabin temp will balance. For those really hot days, it will take a little effort on your behalf to set the vent control in the front from auto to bi-level or floor only. Another trick i use is to open the sliding rear to held excavate the hot air from the cabin until the AC can lower the cabin temp to a manageable temp. Gm is not going to redesign the rear HVAC at this stage of the K2 run, but i would anticipate we will see a redesign on the next model. As Mudkatt said, if this si a deal breaker for you, the e are 3 other makes that can accomodate your wants. Personally for me, there are not enough hot days in the year to make it adeal breaker for me, but to each their own.

Oldbay · July 8, 2016

Hey fellas the names Randy, I've been keeping up with this forum for a while now.

driving an 07 Tundra and other truck is a 2011 Silverado LT. waiting for my chance to grab a brand new

Sierra 1500 All Terrain w/ the 6.2L/8 speed

(as you can tell I've been putting off a purchase for a while)

I must have test driven this truck like 3-4 times but cant get convince myself to pull the trigger.

after reading these 2017 updates i was hoping these very minor things would be fixed. (im sure this has been discussed)

now im getting frustrated, especially since I love everything about these trucks.

now my question is

how the hell does GM build a 40-60k truck without rear vents.

I know most of you say "I don't care, i don't sit in the back seat", but living in SoCal this is considered a necessity. It isn't even an option (which would work out for most of us who want it and don't)

good job GM you're the only brand without rear vents.

the only other concern is, can somebody please explain to me why the All-Terrain package doesn't offer vented seats? but the Silverado LTZ Z71 does?

whose the brilliant engineer that thought this would be a good idea?

Its as if they have the potential to fix these two minor problems, but don't want to.

instead, we got some stupid color changes.

I'm in a similar boat as you, but vented rear seat should be the LEAST of your concerns.

I have a 2017 6.2L scheduled to come in around September, and I've been taking this time to thoroughly research every aspect of this vehicle before driving it off the lot. Right now the things that bother me are:

Active Fuel Management (AFM) that is tuned into these engines with the flipping between V4 and V8 mode. Around town this is a big thing for the 8-speed transmission.
LED Headlamps---are these a little too bright? I've heard people say that the 2016+ LEDs are crazy bright and irritate oncoming traffic.
The Rancho shocks that come on the Z71 seem to be way too bouncy.
Oxidation on the frame

These are all things that you should investigate---that's what I've been here discussing and learning about. A $50K-$57K is a lot of money for a truck, so making a wise choice is key. I've always been a "Chevy Guy" and my grandfather and uncles before me...but I need use my head with this next purchase.

John

martinto · July 8, 2016

2016 Sierra SLT Texas Edition, 6.2L 4X4 with max tow pkg. Towed 1000+ miles with grandkids and dogs in back seat. This thing blows some real cold air...100 degrees plus heat index outside, and no problem keeping her comfortable. Air vents for the rear are under the front seats. Need to turn dial to floor vent to get air flow to rear. I just used dash vents on auto at 72-74 degrees...everyone was happy.

kp52 · July 8, 2016

I have had the same two ever complaining kids for the past seven new pickups I have owned. some had rear A/C vents, some not. Never hve either of the two kids (teenagers now) ever complained its been too hot or cold in the back of any of the trucks. Even though they did like the rear seat heaters in the newer RAMs Its hot as balls here in the summer, winters arent bad but stil get some cold days.

I have had a '15 Silverado CC LT and a '16 GMC SLT CC and my only complaints are slight vibrations at 72-75mph and funky transmission shifting, nothing is perfect.

Last couple Rams I owned had rear vents but even on full blast AC lukewarm air just trickled out of the rear vents. Like the new GM trucks they also had heat/floor ducts under the seats that had little flow.

Thomcat · July 8, 2016

With a little practice you can balance the heating and cooling nicely between the rear and front passenger areas. There are vents under the front seats directed to the rear of the cab. Your controls need to be set to the floor vents in order for them to be effective. I have owned Sierra crew cabs since 2009 in very cold and hot weather and have been able to keep all passengers comfortable. You do not need vents directly blowing at you to provide heating or cooling.

X2--

Appears these models are set up for one size fits all......40/20/40 bench seats have no floor console leading to the dash, so no console vents......cheaper to keep the same setup even if the vehicle does have a full floor console. Problem with this setup is if you store anything on the floor under the front seats you will completely block the shallow floor vents.

When it is set to Auto the initial cool down favors the front vents, but then gradually feeds more to the under seat vents until the temp balances and the fan slows down. Opening the bed window helps to suck out the cabin air and speed heating and cooling. No complaints from rear passengers other than being squashed in the double cab....but, wouldn't matter if they did, seat position and temperature are at the discretion of the ship's Captain.....complaining passengers can take a taxi.

.02 - And everyone seems amazed that their $50K truck isn't built to the same standards as a Testarossa. In 1960 my Dad bought a fully equipped Impala for $2K rollout and I bought a Hershey bar for a nickel.......now the Impala is $40K and a Hershey bar is near a buck. We complain vehicles are designed that our toes are cold and they vibrate at 70 mph, in '60 you got vent windows instead of A/C and if the car didn't vibrate it meant that the engine had stalled. Gone are the days when one had to shove a screwdriver in the carb butterfly because every one of those "automatic" choke designs were useless and then duck so the flame wouldn't singe your hair when the engine caught. No more pumping the gas or 4 mpg I just hit the key and go, no more stalling, rotted mufflers falling off, 2 speed trannys, 15K mile bias belted tires, lack of seatbelts/air bags, 12000 mi/12 mo warranty or a 10 mph crash requiring body work for the driver instead of the vehicle, etc. Our $50K trucks are just as cheap as ever and a helluva lot safer and easier to drive......so I'll gladly put up with a little crap from it now and then.

fbachman · July 8, 2016

Hey fellas the names Randy, I've been keeping up with this forum for a while now.

driving an 07 Tundra and other truck is a 2011 Silverado LT. waiting for my chance to grab a brand new

Sierra 1500 All Terrain w/ the 6.2L/8 speed

(as you can tell I've been putting off a purchase for a while)

I must have test driven this truck like 3-4 times but cant get convince myself to pull the trigger.

after reading these 2017 updates i was hoping these very minor things would be fixed. (im sure this has been discussed)

now im getting frustrated, especially since I love everything about these trucks.

now my question is

how the hell does GM build a 40-60k truck without rear vents.

I know most of you say "I don't care, i don't sit in the back seat", but living in SoCal this is considered a necessity. It isn't even an option (which would work out for most of us who want it and don't)

good job GM you're the only brand without rear vents.

the only other concern is, can somebody please explain to me why the All-Terrain package doesn't offer vented seats? but the Silverado LTZ Z71 does?

whose the brilliant engineer that thought this would be a good idea?

Its as if they have the potential to fix these two minor problems, but don't want to.

instead, we got some stupid color changes.

You obviously don't know how a big profit seeking corporation works. I am sure it is always convenient to blame "an engineer".

As an engineer myself (30 years of experience --- not in the auto, but in aerospace industry), just how many of the decisions you cite above do you actually think are at the hand of "an engineer"?????

Trust me, GM has very bright engineers that could provide the best rear seat vents in the industry. They also have bright engineers that could put two ventilated bucket seats on a small motorcycle and make them work flawlessly.

Somewhere in the management chain are decision makers that are looking at GM's production cost for a vehicle down to the $#%$ing penny. I would bet a senior level accountant somewhere decided that adding rear vents in a truck would add $12 of production cost to the vehicle when factoring in the hundreds of thousands of units that are to be sold. Take $12 and multiply by x hundred thousand and you come up with the 0.5% increase in profits GM realizes by omitting them---all the mean time with the executives putting their arms in a in a sling patting themselves on the back.

As far as ventilated seats go , they cost (more) money too. I am almost certain that an accountant somewhere figured out that people realllly want those, but need to be "forced" to buy the "premium equipped" version (translation, the most profitable trim level) to get them.

I can not tell you how many times in my career I, myself, and others like me, have fought, pleaded and argued for the right TECHNICAL solution only to get shot down by a snot nosed so-called "business-leader" who decided that 0.1% more profit was more important than doing the technically correct thing.

Engineers are scientists, not business people. You got a technical problem, an engineer can tell you the best technical solution. It is not left up to the folks that know the most, technically, to bring that solution to market. Sad part is, it is often a clown with a business suit that has no clue how that product actually works, from a technical detail leve,l that makes that final decision.

Your points are well taken, but place the blame where it belongs. It's usually the engineers that are fighting for YOU, and the accountants that have the final say.

I'd like to know how many time the engineers there came up with the RIGHT solution, and an accountant comes back and says "find me 30% savings in your solution, or it's gone".

Sorry, your blame is mis-placed.

Debra in Cali · July 8, 2016

I live in the heat of the Central Valley of California. It was 105 to 109 for several days the last week of June. I had grandkids all week that week. There was not one complaint out of the back seat about it not being cool enough. I did turn my middle vents full open and pointed toward the back with the fan on full blast. It did take a few minutes for all of us to cool off, but once it was cool it worked just fine. I was concerned about the valley heat with those in the backseat until I had that experience. Trust me if the grandkids weren't cool enough in the backseat, I would have heard about it.