Driving a 2018 2500 gas 4wd. Barely got stuck turning around down at the beach this weekend. Reverse, nothing. Back forward, BAM!!!. Busted the yoke on the front axle. Tied up the driveshaft and a Toyota pulled me out with no trouble. Instantly got onstar email errors for stabilitrack, emissions, and antilock brakes. Truck is running rough and downshifting really hard. Traction control and check engine lights are on. Truck is stock except 285/70/17 tires.

So, what's the chance the dealership will try to screw me on the warranty? Anything I should do or not do?

Make sure to powerwash all the sand out of every nook and cranny, tell them it happened backing slowly out of your driveway , lol.

Sounds like you were trying to rock it back and forth when it happened. Shifting from reverse to forward and back a little too fast?

Definitely was not trying to rock it by shifting too fast. I've got a lot of experience with 4wd trucks and I've never seen a hard part break with so little pressure on it. Even my dad, which babies his gear couldn't believe it broke.

My guess is, Your screwed. Hope not but I think you are..

do not say chit & I don't know why it broket & car wash before delivery to dealer

I must be missing something, why wouldn't the dealer honor the warranty and cover repairs?

if the mileage is still within factory warranty then they pretty much have to fix whatever broke. have it towed in, warranty should cover that as well.

there is a lemon law, google it for Tx. and read it before taking it in would be my suggestion.

https://www.nhtsa.gov/vehicle/2017/CHEVROLET/SILVERADO%2525202500/PU%25252FCC/4WD

I ran it through the car wash but it really didn't even get dirty enough to need it. Spoke to the dealership and they said they are getting in touch with GM to see if it will be covered. There was mention of it being caused by sand possibly getting in the U-joint and it not being covered. Supposed to let me know their verdict tomorrow.

Screw that. It's under warranty so they need to fix it.

Driving on the beach isn't abuse.

I agree. Who did you buy it from, where are you taking it?

Damage due to misuse, and the fact that everybody tries to get out of actually honoring a warranty.

X2.




I'm with those above that said driving on a beach isn't abuse/misuse.
Seriously, a 4 wheel drive pickup can't be used off road without the warranty coverage being in jeopardy...

Strange, I've never had a single problem with warranty repairs, I guess that's why which dealer(s) you use is important.

My dealer has always been great on getting me covered. Been in multiple GMs every few years for 20 years now and no issues (well, one with Sewell in the early 00s but no longer deal with them).

It would be covered but if the tires are bigger than original, No!

I don't see any reason why it wouldn't be covered from what you have said. Why do you think it wont be?

Not being covered wouldn't even enter my mind unless its out of time or miles on warranty, or I did something really dumb...… you didn't do something really dumb your not telling us did you?

So good news. Just got off the phone with them and they have decided to cover it. There was a GM rep at the dealership this morning that looked at it. His first response was it's not covered but the service manager said he asked he GM rep to say exactly why not or to prove why it failed and he couldn't so they agreed to cover it. Staying cordial while I could with the service manager may have paid off. The whole thing seems like weird BS to me but maybe they just don't see many of these things fail under warranty. Somebody with less knowledge might have been SOL.


Unfortunately, I now worry about it doing the same thing again since I didn't feel like I did anything that should be avoided. I still plan to take the kids back to the beach a few times each year. I bought a gas 3/4 ton because I thought it would be fairly worry free. Now considering getting rid of it to get a tundra even though I hate the way they look.

Dealers make tire upgrades and lifts to their trucks all the time before selling with no warranty concerns.

I say get it fixed and give it a little hell. You probably have nothing to worry about and if you dump a new truck just because your going to take a beating on it price wise.

I had a motor blow in a 1/2 ton chevy before its first oil change had it replaced and drove it to 260k + miles with no issues. Grandpa had a similar model truck that shelled out the trans at very low miles same for him it was replaced and my uncle drove it to well over 200k miles after grandpa passes and they only sold it because cash for clunkers gave them 2x what it was worth.

The dealer I bought my Yukon from tried to deny warranty coverage for a 4wd issue. Said I was using it wrong. Short story. I wasn't. Got it covered in the end.

Onstar alerts log would have ratted out exact location (gps) , so good thing they are covering!

Absolutely. I had problems every step of the way with the dealer in my saga. I also had problems with GM/GMC.

uhh-hmmmm, just sayin.

This

There's something called the Moss-Magnuson Act lobbied into law by the aftermarket industry (SEMA) to protect you specifically from this. A dealer/mfr. cannot deny warranty coverage simply due to the presence of a non-factory item. The Mfr has to prove the offending item caused the issue. Not saying in some cases you may not have your work cut out for you, but you do have protection.

https://www.sema.org/sema-enews/2011/01/ftc-validates-right-to-install-aftermarket-parts

https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0138-auto-warranties-routine-maintenance

This thread incident isn't making any sense to me. I can't see a dealer denying warranty coverage on a 4WD repair without something looking seriously out of whack.

Charlie