1997 Gmc K1500 Suburban Sle Sport Utility 4-door 5.7l on 2040-cars

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Fullsize GM SUVs have a problem that's making owners sick

Some fullsize SUV owners are getting sick, thanks to a buffeting and vibration problem in 2015 model year examples of the Chevy Tahoe and Suburban, Cadillac Escalade, and GMC Yukon. According to owners' complaints to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, the issue can vary from an annoying vibration inside the cabin to an experience so severe that it leads to dizziness and headaches. General Motors is aware of the complaints, but the fix isn't so simple. According to spokesperson Tom Wilkinson to Autoblog, the company "has been tracking this issue for a while." The problem has a fairly low incidence rate, but when it does occur the issue can be "uncomfortable and annoying for owners." There's no precise cause for the issue, Wilkinson claims, and in some cases, simply balancing the tires or changing the door seals can make it go away. However, not all of the fixes are so simple. AutoGuide dug deep into the problem and discovered a GM preliminary information bulletin that advised dealers to remove the headliner and to check the roof's bonds to the bows that go across the vehicle. However, that document included a note that the solution might not entirely eliminate things. According to AutoGuide, adding Dynamat insulation to the roof sometimes helped the problem. A GM spokesperson also told AutoGuide the company fixed the problem at the end of the 2015 model year, and didn't go into any more detail. This roof issue seems linked to some of the worst droning in these SUVs. According to one complaint from a 2015 Suburban owner to NHTSA: "Roof will not remain attached to the roof bows. This causes the buffeting similar to a window being down when all are up. The results span from annoying to painful." A 2015 Yukon owner claims to have another alleged cause for the problem in a NHTSA complaint from February 2015. This person brought their SUV to the dealer seven times over the course of four weeks for vibrations. The dealer replaced the driveshaft, suspension components, and more, but nothing worked. According to an engineer to the service adviser: "In an effort to prevent roll overs, they designed the frame and body mounts too stiff. There are 40 engineers working on issues, they have no solutions that work across the board." Wilkinson told Autoblog that GM is working with customers on an individual basis to rectify things. Since these are newer vehicles, dealers should also fix the problem under warranty.

Elvis Presley owned this GMC pickup. Now you can, too

Befitting his status as America's first rock star, Elvis Presley lived large. Among his many excesses, Elvis was well known for his prolific new-car purchases. Mostly, it seems the King favored Cadillacs and Lincolns — although, during his Army stint in Europe, he picked up a BMW 507 roadster. Here we have something different from the Elvis Presley canon: a 1967 GMC pickup. And this GMC will be crossing the block at the GAA Classic Cars auction on February 27. This GMC is one of three that Elvis purchased from Guy Caldwell Motors in Senatobia, Mississippi, almost exactly 54 years ago: on February 7, 1967. He bought a red one, a blue one, and this green one for use on his Circle G Ranch in Horn Lake, Mississippi. According to a badge on the glovebox door, this pickup is a GMC Cheyenne Super, which sounds like a fancy-pants trim level, although the truck still looks pretty bare-bones to our eyes. The steel wheels have dog-dish hubcaps, and the grille and bumpers are painted white rather than chrome. It's a standard-bed half-ton pickup and is powered by a six-cylinder engine with a three-on-the-tree column-shift manual transmission. The truck spent just over a year on the ranch before being sold off. It then went through a series of owners and several museum stints. Among the paperwork included with a sale is a letter from Elvis Presley Enterprises confirming that a GMC pickup with this VIN number was bought new by Elvis. It has now been restored, so there shouldn't be a whole lotta shakin' going on. The truck has been repainted green, although the side mirrors are different than what's shown in a vintage photo, and the chrome trim along the sides is missing. More notably, we'd like to see the "Circle G Ranch" logo it once wore on its doors be added. No pre-sale estimate is given. The final hammer price for this GMC will depend on the degree to which bidders are all shook up at the prospect of owning one of the more unusual Elvis Presley vehicles.

GM profit dips on truck changeover, but beats estimates

DETROIT — General Motors on Thursday reported a higher-than-expected quarterly profit despite a drop in production of high-margin pickup trucks, as it gears up for new models that are expected to boost profits next year. Like rivals Ford and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, GM is banking on highly-profitable Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra pickup trucks to lift profits, as consumers shift away from traditional passenger cars in favor of these larger, more comfortable trucks, SUVs and crossovers. During the first quarter, the process of changing over to GM's new pickups resulted in a drop in production of 47,000 units. GM Chief Financial Officer Chuck Stevens said the production drop had resulted in a drop in pre-tax profit of up to $800 million. Earlier this year, GM said its 2018 profits would be flat compared with 2017, but expected its all-new pickup trucks would boost margins starting in 2019. On Thursday, GM reiterated its full-year 2018 forecast for adjusted earnings in a range from $6.30 to $6.60 per share. The automaker said capital expenditures were more than $500 million higher in the quarter because of investments its new pickup trucks and a family of low-cost vehicles under development with Chinese partner SAIC Motor Corp. On Wednesday, rival Ford said it would stop investing in most traditional passenger sedans in North America. CFO Stevens told reporters on Thursday that GM has "already indicated that we will make significantly lower investments on a go-forward basis" in sedans. 2019 GMC Sierra View 21 Photos GM benefited from a lower effective tax rate in the quarter, but adjusted pre-tax margin fell to 7.2 percent from 9.5 percent a year earlier. Stevens said the company's profit margin should hit 10 percent or higher in the second quarter and for the full year. GM said material costs were $700 million higher in the first quarter, and it expects those costs to continue rising. The automaker said it would counter those increases with cost cutting measures. "It is a more difficult environment than it was three or four months ago," Stevens said when asked about rising commodity prices from potential steel and aluminum tariffs announced by the Trump administration. "But we are confident we can continue to offset that." The company reported quarterly net income of $1.05 billion or $1.43 per share, a drop of nearly 60 percent from $2.61 billion or $1.75 per share a year earlier. Analysts had on average expected earnings per share of $1.24.