NCblue

I'm the new second owner of an 02 Tahoe 2WD. Love it. I've had it a few months now. Within the last month I've noticed a popping or clunking type of sound when you turn left or right and when you drive over any kind of bump or abnormality on the roadway. This noise is located on the drivers side of the vehicle only. As this month as gone by, the noise is more frequent and a bit louder. Yes, you can hear it inside with the windows up and outside with the windows down. Since noticing this new "detail" about my used Tahoe, I've done some research with my local GM dealership based on the VIN. I was told that my vehicle began reporting similar problems in 04. At that time, another GM dealership replaced the intermediate steering shaft. The vehicle went in twice more since that timeframe and had the steering assembly lubricated. When I test drove this vehicle, overnight, I had my mechanic look it over. Nothing was out of place, other than a new front 1/4 panel from a minor accident that occured a few months prior to my purchase of this vehicle. There was no steering noise at that point. CLUE revealed less than 600.00 paid out for a May 07 bump up. (Obviously, the prior owner got rid of it right after the accident) The vehiclewas solid regardless. I have mentioned this steering noise to my local dealership and I am told that it would not be covered under warranty and that it's a "known issue". Tonight, I've done more research on the net and I've noticed there are a GREAT DEAL of02 Tahoe ownerswith this same steering noise. So many so that an official TSB number has been issued. There is even a new replacement part for this specific problem just recently issued. Obviously my Tahoe is out of warranty. Has anyone else noticed this same problem and if so, have you had any luck getting the dealership to cover it under any so called "secret warranty" or had them complete the repair without cost to you? It would be an incredible failure of customer service if GM did not offer to cover the cost of the new replacement part and the labor to install it after knowing about this issue since 2001. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

Scoper50

I also have had the exact same problem with my 03 Silverado. (The Silverado and the Tahoe are basically the same truck) Same guts anyway. Chevy has had this problem with all of it's full size trucks since 01 or 02. A friend of mine has an 06 silverado and it had the exact same problem.

I have done a lot of research on the topic, and this is the story. This was a widespread problem starting 5 or 6 years ago. It was happening to every single Chevy full size truck. GM had a shortage of upper intermediate steering shafts. So they came up with a TSB which involved taking the shaft apart, shooting lithium grease into it, and reinstalling it. This is what we in the automotive industry call a "band-aid" fix. It will fix the problem temporaraly, but the problem will always resurface. It's only a matter of time.

Sometime within the past few years Chevy had introduced a new revised version of the upper intermediate steering shaft. This was sopposed to be a permanent fix for the problem. But to everybodys dissappointment, it isn't. If you replace the shaft, it will fail within a couple years just like the last one did. Your best bet is to just save your money and lube the shaft until Chevy gets their ducks in a row and figures out a fix for this problem.

As far as a "secret warrenty" goes. There is no such thing. If somebody by chance gets this part replaced after the warrenty or extended warrenty runs out, it is most likely a good faith action taken by that individual dealership.

I used to work at a car dealership and I can tell you from first hand experience that car companys do not like paying warrenty claims. They try to get out of it as often as they can. They are ruthless and only care about making money. It's up to the dealerships themselves to make customers happy. GM could care less. If you are a frequent good customer at your dealership, they might cut you a break to keep you as a customer. But if you are new to the dealership don't expect any special treatment or deals.

NCblue

What can I expect to pay to have the I-shaft lubricated by the shop? I've resolved myself to this being the fix for the noise. It just sounds like something's going to fall off the thing or that something is broken. I know it's not broken, but that's what it sounds like. It's frustrating.
Thanks!

impalagal

Same thing with GM cars. My '02 Impala has been plagued with this from the start. Under warranty the 1st 2 times. After that I was on my own. Now I have my mechanic lube it every oil change (and he doesn't charge me any extra). Works for me. Haven't had the clunking in a while!