clunk when starting and stopping

jhanick · November 8, 2004

i saw another thread about this but i thought i'd start a new one. i have a gmc 1500 4x4 2004. i notice when i start and stop i get a clunk. it almost sounds as if the body is sliding off the chassis...the whole truck clunks. i think its something to do w/ the tranny and w/ the history of the gmc's and their transmissions, it wouldnt surprise me one bit. i took my truck in the other day to get the tailgate recall looked at and told them about it but the dude sounded like he didnt know what the heck i was talking about. i know this was a known issue w/ the earlier models at least 94-97 so i think he was just playing dumb. my experience w/ them made me feel as though i had to prove to them that i was having the problem and they wouldnt just take my word for it so he didnt offer to take a closer look at it himself unless i would drive w/ the technician and show him. i told him i had to get to work so he knew i wouldnt be able to do that.....i am very disappointed in their customer service....what would it have killed them to take a 5min drive or hook it up to a machine and check it out. you spend $35,000 on a truck, you'd think they'd want to go out of their way to help you. anyway, im not very mechanical so i couldnt really describe it in mechanical terms to him so i felt he took advantage of that. has anyone else experienced this in this same model and if so, any advice on how to deal w/ them so they will take me seriously next time?

Shaners · November 8, 2004

It sounds like a slip yoke problem, but I thought it was supposed to be fixed in the new trucks like your 2004.

99silveradoz71 · November 8, 2004

I'm thinking the same way Shaners is. I was surprised when I saw your vehicle year though. There were problems on the early NBS trucks with the slip yoke making noise and needing grease or replacement. A search on the site here using "driveline clunk" should give you plenty of info.

Rookie · November 8, 2004

Sorry to hear about you problem. In defence of the dealer you need to help them help you. You stated that you wanted them to Take it for a test drive or hook it up to a machine. In the time it would have taken to do that why could'nt you go for a drive with the tech? You look at it as bad service. On the other side of the coin you could look at it as good service, maybe they want to witness the concern with you in the truck to make sure you dealing with the same thing. So they can fix it right the first time. I worked for a dealer for a gew years and nothing in more frustrating than fixing what you thought was the concern. Only to have it retrun the next day because the it was something else and the customer could not be bothered to help you help them. Dont take this the wrong way but the techs are only people. Just my .02

jhanick · November 8, 2004

i understand what you're saying. Im a computer tech and i get people all the the time that want their computers fixed but can't be bothered to be w/o the machine. however, if its an issue that is a known issue, i don't act like i have never heard of it before. i definitely felt like he didn't want to help me. i will try again though.

Rookie · November 9, 2004

Yes by all mean try again, i would only suggest that you have a few mins to go for a ride. Make sure you can reproduce the sound. I would'nt quit untill you get it fixed. A the price of trucks these day they should be perfect. Post again when its fixed. I would like to konw what it was. Have a good one

mcreyaufmiller · November 9, 2004

I would tend to agree with Rookie about the service thing. I had a situtation with my 98, the transmission began to throw the slippage code and when I took it into the shop, the tech drove it for 10 minutes and told me he could not find the problem and that it was a figment of my imagination. This pissed me off to all ends because I told them how to reproduce the problem (and it happened on the way home from the dealership). I have never had a problem with and more times than not, i prefer that the tech drive my vehicle home overnight if necessary to ensure a problem is repaired correctly. Sorry for the rant, if a dealer is willing to take the time to ride in your truck, take advantage of it. This is not the norm for most shops.

Mike

dr9672723 · November 9, 2004

I can't argue with Rookie; my brother is a mechanic, a very good and honest one, and it's irritating when people automatically assume he's a crook.

But if you read my post about what I encountered when I took my truck in for the steering clunk symptom- and they acted like I was inconveniencing them by being there, well- I don't get it. We all know about the survey GM sends us shortly after we take our vehicles under warranty in for service. After 2 bad experiences, what do they expect me to say this time? I was not unkind on the first one, but I will avoid setting foot in their service dept. again, and you can bet your sweet a** I will never purchase a new vehicle there again.

I know with Chrysler, if you return your vehicle for service to a dealer other than the one you purchased it at, a red flag is raised, and they'd like to know why. Chrysler dealers with the 5 star rating do all they can to retain that status.

catiaeng · November 9, 2004

All right, back to the subject. I searched Sunday for the same thing, and found the yoke was the most common issue. However most of the links were from early 2003 and were about 2000 to 2002 model year trucks, well its happening again.

My father-in-law purchased his 04 Z-71 in May and has had the clunk since summer. It's getting worse (louder) now, but maybe that has to do with the temperature. About two weeks ago he was at the dealership and they went for a test drive with the service tech, and this guy was not concerned with the noise. My point and others is, if you purchase a $25K truck, it better not make clunking noises! I told him about the issues I found, and he is calling the dealership today.

Now, why is it happening again? I work for an automotive supplier, and we are constantly pressured to reduce the cost of our parts. When a vehicle first comes off the assembly line it has robustly designed and very high quality components. As the accountants and buyers get involved they try to drive cost down, sometimes by changing materials or suppliers. If they change materials but something does not work correctly (yoke slop) they change it back to the first material to "take care" of the issue. After a year passes they may try a new material, only to have the same issue occur.

Moral of the story...buy a new (or used) vehicel in the first 1 to 2 years after it's debut on the market, it will have the best quality parts and materials. Why did I buy an 03...because thats when my company started making parts for the chevy trucks (my parts are better!)

MHO and $.02

jhanick · November 10, 2004

thanks guys. Im going to call the dealership again and take the time to do a drive. my wife has now heard the noise so i know i'm not imagining the issue. we're having a steering problem with it almost locking up and getting very stiff as well as the clunking when starting and stopping. i'll let you all know how it goes when i take it in. probably next week.