2015 Gmc Yukon Denali on 2040-cars

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GM under fire from safety advocates over braking problem caused by recall fix

Safety experts are lambasting General Motors over what they say is the automaker’s slow notification of owners of certain 2019 sedans and trucks that a recall fix could cause power braking to fail and increase the risk of a crash, the Detroit Free Press reports.  GMÂ’s original recall in December targeted about 550,000 Cadillac CT6 sedans and Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 pickups, all from the 2019 model year, over potentially defective electronic stability control and antilock brakes. In that case, GM said the errors would not show up as a diagnostic warning on the instrument cluster. But after GM had done recall work on 162,000 vehicles, about 1,700 owner have complained that their power brakes didnÂ’t work after they had the recall done and then used the OnStar app to start their vehicle. GM then issued a supplemental fix for customers whoÂ’d already had their vehicles serviced. In this case, a diagnostic warning should illuminate saying either “Service Brake Assist” or “Service ECS,” which GM says is a signal that a customer should not drive the vehicle and instead call their dealer, which will tow the vehicle and have it repaired. Safety advocates say the automaker hasnÂ’t gone far enough to protect customers. “The fact that you could potentially start a vehicle and not have brakes is a pretty risky proposition,” Sean Kane, president of the Safety Research and Strategies, which works on auto issues for plaintiffs and governmental organizations, told the Freep. “The fact that they wouldnÂ’t notify owners (sooner) is pretty stunning.” GM told the Freep it was required to notify the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and file paperwork before it notified customers about the original recall, which was made Dec. 12. It then had to investigate and resolve the problem created by its original recall fix before alerting customers. GMÂ’s call center and dealers are contacting the remaining 900 customers who havenÂ’t yet had the update made to the original recall repair. GM also hired a vendor to send recall letters to the 550,000 customers affected by the original recall notifying them about the update. There are no known injuries or deaths related to the problem. Read the Freep story here.

GM tells 2021 Chevy Express and GMC Savana owners to park vans outside due to fire risk

GM is telling owners of certain 2021 Chevrolet Express and 2021 GMC Savana work vans to park them outside and away from other vehicles and structures due to a fire risk. Additionally, the company is recalling 10,154 of the vans it believes to be at risk of catching fire. The breakout is 7,891 for Chevy and 2,223 for GMC.  Only vehicles equipped with the 6.6-liter V8 (the new-for-2021 engine option) are included in the recall, and it’s limited to vans produced on or prior to December 7, 2020. The problem stems from some anti-rotation tabs on the positive battery terminal that are too close to a fuse block assembly attachment post. This lack of clearance could cause the tabs to come into contact with the fuse block, causing a short circuit. GM points out that a short-circuit of this nature could cause battery drain or lead to a fire under the hood. Your warning for the time being will come in the form of a low battery voltage warning, or you might just wake up with an unexpected dead battery. GM says that it first opened an investigation into this problem on January 26 this year after it was notified of an underhood battery fire on a 2021 Express. The investigation found three other underhood fires and concluded that these fires were originating from the positive battery cable attachment near the fuse. This recall was officially posted on March 11 this year, and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration just sent a notification out to the media yesterday. The fix is a relatively simple one. Dealers are going to remove a portion of the anti-rotation tab on both positive battery cable terminals near the fuse block assembly attachments. This increases the clearance and eliminates the risk of fire, GM says. The job will be done under warranty, and GM says it will begin contacting owners for recall work on May 3 this year. Recalls Chevrolet GMC Safety Minivan/Van Commercial Vehicles

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.