2014 chevy silverado vibration issues

well I just joined the long list of suckers who didn't research the new trucks before buying so I now have the seemingly common problem of a drivetrain or tire vibration only at certain speeds and conditions. mine has a slight shimmy from 65-75mph most noticeable at 68-72mph and its mainly when slightly accelerating but tends to come and go at steady speed on smooth roads.

PLEASE NO FORD VS CHEVY BS BECAUSE FORDS SUCK TOO AND HAD THESE SAME PROBLEMS LAST YEAR THAT THEY COULDNT FIX EITHER SO THEY ARE NO BETTER, THEY JUST REDESIGNED A BUNCH OF STUFF THAT HAD ISSUES WHICH IM SURE CHEVY WILL DO AS WELL

this thread is created for chevy owners to compare notes and talk about what was done to their trucks and what worked for them or still hasn't fixed the problems.

near as I can tell its a common problem on something like 75-80% of all the new trucks and even if you don't notice it right away many notice it after putting a few hundered miles on their trucks.

there is a lot of info out there on the web about complaints but no sign its a common cause or solutions since a few things work as a fix for some but not others.

from my limited research over the past few days this my estimate of what the reports on the vibration issues are related to:

20% are fixed by the owner buying new tires of a different brand at their own expense (getting rid of the goodyear or bridgestones they come with)
30% are fixed by dealer rebalancing, realignment, and or replacing one or more tires from being out of round sometimes required as many as 6 trips to the dealer to finally be sorted out and owners still report a slight vibration that they say they can live with
10% are fixed by replacing the aluminum drive shafts (sometimes requires replacing it a second or third time to get a balanced one)
10% have the rear end gears replaced 2 or 3 times before its fixed
10% are fixed by reprograming the electronic power steering computer that sometimes freaks out on a smooth level road because it has no road input trying to make the wheels wobble and rapidly checks free play by wiggling the steering
20% are never fixed even after doing all of the things listed above and chevy has no clue whats wrong


I would like this to be a resource for chevy guys to help us all fix our own trucks since chevy has no clue what the problem is and wont try to solvre it beyond throwing a few free tire balancing and repairs your way

I will start out with mine:

2014 Silverado 1500 2WT
regular cab short bed
5.3L v8
3.08 gear ratio
mfg date 5/14
came with 4 miles on the truck
came with bridgestone dueler ht 684II tires 255/70R17
steel rims with the "chrome look" ss hubcaps
bought 8/27/14


I first noticed it on the ride home but put 230 miles to see if it was a flat spot tire before i went to dealer when it didn't go away.

dealer confirmed they felt the vibration and stated the tires had gflat spots that needed to be worked out and chevy policy was the truck needed to have 500 miles on it before they would replace the tires. they also agreed to comp me a full tank of gas to go run the truck to reach 500 miles. I think he lied to me but he claimed they would replace all 4 tires with new ones and check the front end alignment at that time. I think he lied because from what I read they only replace one tire at a time until its decent enough to claim they no longer feel the vibration that people dsay it still has with thos dealer tires on it.

in researching I see the bridgstone dueler ht tires and the goodyear tires have many complaints about vibration issues just from buying them unrelated to the vehicle they go on so its safe to say stock tires are crap either way even if they aren't the main issue.

[Sailor Steve]

Originally Posted by Webster

PLEASE NO FORD VS CHEVY BS BECAUSE FORDS SUCK TOO AND HAD THESE SAME PROBLEMS LAST YEAR THAT THEY COULDNT FIX EITHER SO THEY ARE NO BETTER, THEY JUST REDESIGNED A BUNCH OF STUFF THAT HAD ISSUES WHICH IM SURE CHEVY WILL DO AS WELL

Won't get that from me. My two favorites were a 1965 Chevy Panel Truck and a 1994 Ford Escort Wagon. Well, I actually haven't ever owned a car I didn't like. But to the point.

10% are fixed by reprograming the electronic power steering computer that sometimes freaks out on a smooth level road because it has no road input trying to make the wheels wobble and rapidly checks free play by wiggling the steering

Can we argue about computer-controlled everything vs good old-fashioned mechanical links?

Originally Posted by Webster

in researching I see the bridgstone dueler ht tires and the goodyear tires have many complaints about vibration issues just from buying them unrelated to the vehicle they go on so its safe to say stock tires are crap either way even if they aren't the main issue.

Shouldn't the car manufacturer be getting the tire maker involved in this? And no, I'm not going to make a joke about one tire maker vs another.

At least not another one.

[Wolferz]

Sorry to hear about your troubles, Webster.
Yeah, the factory mounted tires suck rocks.
Those are usually shipped to the factory very tightly banded to pallets which can damage the sidewalls of any tires that have the band cinched up against them. You and I both know that they are probably buying the cheapest tires they can get their hands on.
I'm afraid that your only relief may be to go the one tire at a time route until they find the culprit, which does leave the possibility of having another shipping damaged tire put on in place of the bad one or it could be an out of round rim but, balancing should fix that. There is still a whole laundry list of other items that can cause a noticeable vibration.
Do you feel it in the steering wheel or in the seat of your pants?
A good mechanic should move the tires one at a time and recheck to see if the vibration moves to narrow things down.

If all else fails, check your state for a Lemon law if you need to make more than four trips to the dealer and they still can't fix it, you may be able to force them to give you another truck and pass yours off to another sap... err...customer.

[Buddahaid]

I don't understand why if it's a wheel/tire issue they don't spin balance them. It should be plain to see if the vibration picks up at a certain speed.

Originally Posted by Wolferz

Sorry to hear about your troubles, Webster.
Yeah, the factory mounted tires suck rocks.

thanks

Originally Posted by Wolferz

Do you feel it in the steering wheel or in the seat of your pants?
A good mechanic should move the tires one at a time and recheck to see if the vibration moves to narrow things down.

If all else fails, check your state for a Lemon law if you need to make more than four trips to the dealer and they still can't fix it, you may be able to force them to give you another truck and pass yours off to another sap... err...customer.

its a little bit in the steering and a little more in the seats so I would say it "feels" like both a back and front issue or an alignment thing though they swear an alignment is just if it pulls to one side which is BS because if tires both face in or both face out then it can cause tires to vibrate or shimmy and that is a viable option they shouldn't just dismiss offhand.

you can tell they are in damage control mode and just trying to do the least while waiting for "guidance" from GM on how to lie about these problems that "almost" all their trucks are having

Originally Posted by Buddahaid

I don't understand why if it's a wheel/tire issue they don't spin balance them. It should be plain to see if the vibration picks up at a certain speed.

they did and they told me they were balanced fine but its flat spots in the tire from sitting on the lot too long not moving so I need to put 500 miles on it and if the vibration was still there then and only then they would replace the tires but chevy wouldn't pay to do that until I had 500 miles on the truck



if anyone is surprised by hearing this stuff, google 2014 Silverado vibration issues and you will see this is a huge widespread problem yet nothing is said about it on the news at all

if you know anyone thinking about buying a new truck tell them NOT to buy a 2014 Silverado of any kind

if you know anyone looking to buy new truck tires tell them NOT to but goodyears or bridgestones and google them to see why everyone complains about them being crap

[Wolferz]

Gee Webster,
It sounds like you've stepped into a huge pile of Government Motors scat.

The jerks took a bailout from Obama and they still keep using parts made in China and charging retail price for them. After the ignition switch debacle and all of the denials about people getting killed in their Chinese cars, I don't think I'll ever touch another GM vehicle. My '95 Silverado has turned into a total rust bucket that is being held together by the paint. I guess they started skipping the zinc dip a long time ago in an effort to make enough money to pay the exorbitant salaries of their upper management.
But, mine still runs like a scalded dog because I'm the only one who works on it. The dealers stopped hiring mechanics in favor of cheaper part replacers. They are kind of forced into that corner because GM charges a dealership through the nose for everything. Most of it mandatory.

The dealers aren't going to cut their bottom line by making warranty repairs they might not get paid for.

If it were me, I'd be talking to a lawyer about your state Lemon Law and get my money back to go buy a Dodge Ram or a Toyota Tacoma..

[AVGWarhawk]

Originally Posted by Webster

if anyone is surprised by hearing this stuff, google 2014 Silverado vibration issues and you will see this is a huge widespread problem yet nothing is said about it on the news at all

This is fairly common among all manufacturers. However, if you think 500,000 units are sold and 50,000 have this issue...doing it by the number it is not as widespread as you would think. It only becomes news when several people get injured or worse...dead. Like the ignition switch problem GM hid for a decade.

What is the LEMON LAW in your state? Some states have a law stating that a new vehicle with the same issue is addressed 3 times and not resolved the manufacturer takes the vehicle back and replaces with another and or the down payment is returned with loan paid off.

[AVGWarhawk]

Originally Posted by Webster

I will start out with mine:

2014 Silverado 1500 2WT
regular cab short bed
5.3L v8
3.08 gear ratio
mfg date 5/14
came with 4 miles on the truck
came with bridgestone dueler ht 684II tires 255/70R17
steel rims with the "chrome look" ss hubcaps
bought 8/27/14


I first noticed it on the ride home but put 230 miles to see if it was a flat spot tire before i went to dealer when it didn't go away.

dealer confirmed they felt the vibration and stated the tires had gflat spots that needed to be worked out and chevy policy was the truck needed to have 500 miles on it before they would replace the tires. they also agreed to comp me a full tank of gas to go run the truck to reach 500 miles. I think he lied to me but he claimed they would replace all 4 tires with new ones and check the front end alignment at that time. I think he lied because from what I read they only replace one tire at a time until its decent enough to claim they no longer feel the vibration that people dsay it still has with thos dealer tires on it.

in researching I see the bridgstone dueler ht tires and the goodyear tires have many complaints about vibration issues just from buying them unrelated to the vehicle they go on so its safe to say stock tires are crap either way even if they aren't the main issue.

Webster,

The Bridgestone Dueler HT tires are ok tires and likely not your issue. We never experienced flat spots or vibration issues. Furthermore, flat spots are really a thing of the past and mostly affects bias ply tires. The newer radial design is far superior. These tires would have to sit for years to really develop a flat spot. However, as the Duelers wear the sipes are no longer useful at the edge of the tread face and they become dangerous in the rain. Hydoplane is a problem with these crap tires. I had a set on my wife's truck. It was all over the road when the tread sipes on the shoulder were worn enough to not allow water to channel off. I dropped them like a bad habit and installed a set of Cooper's. Damn fine tire. As far as the tire balance..if the "mechanic' is worth his weight he should be able to find and fix any lateral run out the tire if there is any present. Also, sometimes a tire requires to be spun 180 degrees on the wheel to help set the bead evenly and prevent run out. All of this sounds great but I suspect the tires are not the issue.

Ok, the vibration issue. GM is famous for letting their cars and trucks leave the factory without a balance on the drums and or rotors. These items do spin and require to be balanced. I spent 2 years chasing a vibration that would shake the passenger seat at 45mph. I replaced the rims and tires. I worked at Goodyear at the time and did the work myself. Therefore the balance was dead on! The vibration persisted. After many miles and baffled I narrowed it down to the right rear wheel assembly. Removal of the wheel and checking for balance found no issue. Further inspection of the drum revealed no balance weight on the drum. The drum was replaced by GM and the vibration was gone.

Try to pin point the location of the vibration. Hard to do but after many miles of you butt shaking you can pin point it.

And a final note....the GM product of mine that vibrated like 25 cent whore house bed was the last GM product that I purchased. The vehicle was a disgrace.

Sorry you got stuck with this GM problem. I can understand you frustration. I was very frustrated with mine. Don't get me started on the VW Passat I had.

update: GM mediator said flat spots on tires are not a warranty issue so they wont buy the truck back WTF flat spots?????????? she never even read the service tickets apparently because she has no clue what has or hasn't been done to the truck and just repeated what a service manager said about it on the phone and apparently he never read any of the service tickets either because they said rioht on them in the service dept own inspection that the problem was not flat spotted tires. it would be funny if this wasn't so serious.

anyway I did two videos to document the vibrations as I prepare to get a lawyer to take them to court and force them to buy it back.

[Jimbuna]

Great videos, should help in bringing about a successful outcome

UPDATE:

I got a lawyer and filed lemon law in civil court now that all required attempts to go through BBB without a resolution have been done. it will be 6-8 months before I expect to hear from anyone about the truck.

I bought a 1999 Tacoma truck that I love and am very happy with it. the chevy vibrating POS is parked collecting bird poop.

all BBB is there for is to get you a trade-in for another replacement vehicle, which will also be a vibrator so they arent there to get you your money back, that's what lawyers are for. I know a guy just did the trade in thing and had to go through 23 trucks before he finally found one that doesn't vibrate. I am also aware of some guys who have done the trade in only to have the new truck start vibrating after a few thousand miles and one guy is on his 5th truck, first replacement truck started vibrating at 8k miles, the second one at 10k miles and the third was at 12k miles so he thought he was making progress until the 4th one started vibrating at 5k miles. all 4 of his replacement trucks had no vibrations when he first got them and he changed nothing on them, they just all started vibrating after several thousands miles.

[Aktungbby]

Just delivered my daughter to her new landlord in Santa Barbara and he is a just retired multi-shopowner mechanic of the first magnitude. I described your problem and showed the water cup videos to him and his response was swift and direct. The problem is NOT normal and lies in the 'gel isolator' (No one uses rubber) motor-mounts on the engine subframe as a manufacturing defect which needs to be addressed by a recall notice. Essentially the isolator(s) (motor mount) flaw has misaligned the engine, causing the vibration. The engine mounts need to be loosened; the mounts reformed or replaced, and the engine 'rejigged' to alleviate the slight but excruciating misalignment.. He said your being screwed by the dealer and he is the man to know.

[Wolferz]

Originally Posted by Neal Stevens

Sorry to hear about your truck problems. My B-in-law just bought a Chevy/GM truck, I'll have to see if he is having these issues.

Did he buy a short wheel base?