Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant)

/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #1  

PA hayseed

Platinum Member
Joined
Jun 29, 2007
Messages
793
Location
The real central PA
Tractor
nx5010 hst cab
I've owned chevy pickups for about 25 years, from s-10s to 2500's. I have generally liked them, but can't buy another. I went to the dealership to get my truck looked at (was still under warranty 3/36). They told me that my truck needed new rotors and discs all the way around, that they were completely shot. The truck had about 32,000 miles on it, and not driven hard. I said no problem, go ahead, it is under warranty. Shockingly they said it isn't covered (bumper to bumper), and that it would be over $1,000. I said hold on a second, all four discs and rotors are completely shot in under 36,000 miles, and you wan't over 1k to fix, no thank you. I thought I would just be on my merry way, nope. I had to pay them over $100 for their inspection. I called my buddy who runs the Ford garage and asked him how much rotors and disks would cost, and he told me like $600. I said I want someone other than me to do this so if this goes further they can't say harry the homeowner did something wrong. Drove there and he said yeah, they are all completely shot, and he was shocked that they charged me and that they wanted over 1K and it wasn't covered under a warranty (maybe not parts but labor as a dealer). So now I am mad, so I call chevy customer service....

Told customer service what happened, what the prices were, what the charges were, mileage yada yada yada. They said they needed to get back in contact with me. A couple of days later they asked me some more questions, like do I drive in snow (Yeah I live in the north), do I ever trailer anything (yeah truck specifically built for trailering), do they use salt on the road in winter? I am not getting a good feeling.

I get called again a couple of days later, dealer said that the salt on the road deteriorated the brakes, and that I trailer, so that this isn't covered. I told the chevy person, I said how can I own a truck with a hitch, that I ordered with trailering options, and not drive it year round? Salt on the road, are you fn kiddin me? They spread that from November to April every year. So, if I didn't drive my truck int he winter, and didn't trailer it, i would be covered under warranty? I told her you have got to be kidding me. In her defense she did sound like she understood I was getting shafted here. So I still had to pay the inspection, and it wasn't covered. I asked her why the chevy dealership was over 1k for the brakes and the Ford dealership was $600 (no special prices from my buddy). Answer OEM.?!?

Ok, I'm salty, but can get over it. About 1 week later I get a letter in the mail from chevy. I'm thinking, maybe someone reconsidered, or some junk coupon for "future service". No, it was notice from Chevrolet that some brakes fail on their vehicles and have issues. If your brakes fail and you die be sure to take your truck into the dealership to have them fixed (obviously not their words).

So, Chevy customer care knew that a brake issue was known for my vehicle, the dealership knew it too, and they both lied and stuck me with the bill. Not going to do it again, once bitten twice shy. I'll let someone new lie to me next time.

FYI - my grandfather (now deceased) was a GM retiree. My entire family owned chevy's.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #2  
My question is how often do you tow and does your trailer have brakes? If you tow a lot and no trailer brakes, I don't think its Chevy's fault. If you don't tow often and don't drive the truck hard, that's pretty early for needing brakes. The back ones are really surprising they usually last much longer .
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #3  
I've owned chevy pickups for about 25 years, from s-10s to 2500's. I have generally liked them, but can't buy another. I went to the dealership to get my truck looked at (was still under warranty 3/36). They told me that my truck needed new rotors and discs all the way around, that they were completely shot. The truck had about 32,000 miles on it, and not driven hard. I said no problem, go ahead, it is under warranty. Shockingly they said it isn't covered (bumper to bumper), and that it would be over $1,000. I said hold on a second, all four discs and rotors are completely shot in under 36,000 miles, and you wan't over 1k to fix, no thank you. I thought I would just be on my merry way, nope. I had to pay them over $100 for their inspection. I called my buddy who runs the Ford garage and asked him how much rotors and disks would cost, and he told me like $600. I said I want someone other than me to do this so if this goes further they can't say harry the homeowner did something wrong. Drove there and he said yeah, they are all completely shot, and he was shocked that they charged me and that they wanted over 1K and it wasn't covered under a warranty (maybe not parts but labor as a dealer). So now I am mad, so I call chevy customer service....

Told customer service what happened, what the prices were, what the charges were, mileage yada yada yada. They said they needed to get back in contact with me. A couple of days later they asked me some more questions, like do I drive in snow (Yeah I live in the north), do I ever trailer anything (yeah truck specifically built for trailering), do they use salt on the road in winter? I am not getting a good feeling.

I get called again a couple of days later, dealer said that the salt on the road deteriorated the brakes, and that I trailer, so that this isn't covered. I told the chevy person, I said how can I own a truck with a hitch, that I ordered with trailering options, and not drive it year round? Salt on the road, are you fn kiddin me? They spread that from November to April every year. So, if I didn't drive my truck int he winter, and didn't trailer it, i would be covered under warranty? I told her you have got to be kidding me. In her defense she did sound like she understood I was getting shafted here. So I still had to pay the inspection, and it wasn't covered. I asked her why the chevy dealership was over 1k for the brakes and the Ford dealership was $600 (no special prices from my buddy). Answer OEM.?!?

Ok, I'm salty, but can get over it. About 1 week later I get a letter in the mail from chevy. I'm thinking, maybe someone reconsidered, or some junk coupon for "future service". No, it was notice from Chevrolet that some brakes fail on their vehicles and have issues. If your brakes fail and you die be sure to take your truck into the dealership to have them fixed (obviously not their words).

So, Chevy customer care knew that a brake issue was known for my vehicle, the dealership knew it too, and they both lied and stuck me with the bill. Not going to do it again, once bitten twice shy. I'll let someone new lie to me next time.

FYI - my grandfather (now deceased) was a GM retiree. My entire family owned chevy's.

Sure am glad I spend winters in Florida.
Suburban stays stored in warm dry building in the North.
K2500 4x4 Suburban brakes would also probably cost $1000 to replace,.... if I drove it in Winter.
I will be very careful to NEVER drive my GM vehicle in Winter!
Thanks!
I was not aware, just how very helpful (?) a GM/Chevy dealer could be.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #4  
But 36,000 miles seems to quick unless drove in salt water and let it sit for an extended period of time.

At 90,000 my GMC dually needed new rotors and surprisingly the pads seemed fail, but I had them changed anyway. The rotors were all rusted. The fix for me was to make sure the brakes get hit hard now and then if not towing monthly at least just to keep the rotors clean from rust.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #5  
Google Magnesium Chloride as a road pre-treat chemical.
Nasty stuff.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #6  
My Olds Bravada (which I recently gave to my daughter) has over 120K on original brake pads and discs and still has plenty of pad on them. It spent the first 2 years in Canada and was driven year round. My Chevy truck has a bit over 50K, never driven in the salt and brakes are still good. I have pulled trailers with it all its life although nothing heavy that didn't have trailer brakes.
I doubt that your next Ford will be any different. My neighbor had to have a complete brake job on his Ford F 150 at less than 30K and he never pulls trailers and never stops hard (at least when I have been riding with him). I think he had to have brake pads changed again at 50K. SO Fords dont seem to be any different, sometimes you just get one that wears the brakes faster than others.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #7  
I could write almost the same rant about my Dodge, I'll NEVER own another one!! PEROID!

Then there's the dead Ford 350 that's sitting here AGAIN!

I guess that's what makes the world go around!

SR
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #8  
..I'm certainly not a GM fan...IMO they have been on a steady quality decline for several years. But that being said, I had a 2016 F450 dump truck that really saw very little use other than pushing snow and spreading salt.. at about 3000 miles, it needed all new rotors, pads and caliipers .....at 3,000 miles ! The mag chloride absolutely clobbered them and letting it sit after plowing was not any good forit. Dealer replaced it all under warranty, no charge at all. ...on a side note...as the mechanic was driving it in and out of his bay for the road test..he noticed drops of oil on the ground.....the oil filter was also rotted almost all the way through.... The crap they pre treat the road s with is brutally harsh on all things metal... 2-3 year old trucks up here look like they have been in salt water for 20 years.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #9  
GM = Government Motors.....:laughing:

Having posted that, my wife just bought a Suburban.....:laughing:



I do 95% of my own stuff and get my parts from Rock Auto or 1A Auto or Autozone if in a pinch. I can rebrake any of my 4 buggies for about 400 bucks, with everything new, including brake hoses and a fluid change. The ONLY time a dealer sees me is if there is a recall.

I'm not brand loyal except Kubota and that is because I have a stellar dealer.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #10  
If you live and drive in any area where chemicals are used to de-ice roads, no matter what they are, it's in your best interest to wash the underside of your buggy every chance you get. I wash mine as much as possible with a pressure washer with a wide spray tip installed. Glean on top don't mean squat really. Clean on the underside means everything. Clean and flushed off from chemicals / road salt residue. remember, almost everything under there is metal and metal corrodes (including aluminum).
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #11  
What model is the truck and what trailering options did you get? Also, what were you towing and what is the weight and brake setup of it.

Just curious.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #12  
I’ll never buy a new Chevy. I hate the square front ends. I’ll never buy an old ford or probably a new one either because I hate ford. I think the body style in the 2000s is the best American made vehicle ever built.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #13  
GM = Government Motors.....:laughing:

.

I see a guy driving a 7.3 Ford with that sticker on the back. Considering his vehicle was built way before that I think it’s kinda dumb.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #14  
I'm curious, what year and model Chevy is it?

I have a 2014 Sierra 1500 crew/4x4 and do a lot of towing (my trailers all have brakes) and last time I looked at the truck brakes at 40,000 miles they were in great shape. If this is the same generation as your Chevy then something doesn't make sense. I assume we have the same brake hardware.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #15  
In line with the original thread I don't tow much but do a bit and I've got 70,000 on my RAM with the original brakes.
My roads are brine pits all winter long, I do have an unlimited wash plan for the truck only problem is getting over to the wash locations, I try to go thru at least once a week in the winter compared to maybe once a month in the summer.

In a separate vein, I had been seriously contemplating getting a new Chevy 1500 when they get the 3.0 diesel out.
Then I started digging a bit deeper into the new Chevys, no way now will I buy one.
My complaint with the RAM was the transfer case having an electrically operated clutch with a computer deciding
how much and when to apply power to the front axle. Now I see Chevy is going that way and on top of that low range is an option that has to be ordered
to get it. At least with RAM it was only on the 1500s and with the higher trim packages Chevy is doing it to all of them.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #16  
I’m a ford guy and just bought my first GMC. I can tell you though every Ford truck I’ve ever owned has had either short lived brakes or like my last F250 a multitude of brake issues. It’s basically their Achilles heel. They use softer pads than GM which allows a little less brake pressure to stop but they can wear pads at a faster rate. In many cases the rotors will be fine when time to replace the pads. On GM trucks some get 100K plus on brakes but you need to replace everything when it’s time. I am very surprised you only got 30k plus on your first set. That is for sure not normal. If your towing and your trailer brakes are not functioning properly or there’s no trailer brakes at all then that is your issue. Otherwise I have no idea how you could possibly only have 30k unless all your doing is city driving and slamming your brakes often. Very strange for sure. By the way both GM and Ford make great trucks and each have there own issue. GM is actually known though as having much better brakes overall than Ford. Not sure on Ram as I have no experience personally nor have ever worked on them.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #17  
I live on back roads and this has played havoc on the brakes of every vehicle I have owned out here. Then some brainless idiots think Disk Brakes would be a good thing on the back of pickups!

Just had the front brakes done on my 08 GMC and had back brakes serviced. A week later brakes start pulsing and that has been getting worse and worse. I guess I have to take it in and spend yet more money!
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #18  
The crap they pre treat the road s with is brutally harsh on all things metal
Worst stuff ever invented IMHO, Brine is what they use here and I don't think it does a GD thing...other than rot whatever it comes in contact with. I can imagine what it costs for the equipment to spread it.
Then some brainless idiots think Disk Brakes would be a good thing on the back of pickups
Agree 100%.
My complaint with the RAM was the transfer case having an electrically operated clutch with a computer deciding
how much and when to apply power to the front axle.
Are you serious?? what a bunch of additional crap and for what reason?
As for the original post, I don't think any manufacturer covers friction parts, brakes or clutch.........Mike
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #19  
Friend just put a front bearing in an 09 GMC 2500. It almost touched a grand for the part alone! Really, because ten bucks of bearing had failed!

As long as WE put up with this crap, it will only get worse. I am sure, the fact that so few people pay outright for their vehicles has caused much of this.
 
/ Won't buy another chevy truck (kind of a rant) #20  
For some reason, parking a car over winter on a new slab of concrete will rust it like crazy. Chemicals from the concrete????
 

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