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TSB - Frame Rust - FIXED!!

rubiconguy2

Full Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2015
Messages
21
I had picked up a 2013 Avalanche LTZ that 9700 miles for the cool price of $42K...  The truck was actually in Minneapolis while I live in Tulsa, so I effectively purchased the truck just off pictures.  The truck was certified, no scratches, no door dings and practically immaculate.  The truck showed up exactly as advertised - beautiful.  EXCEPT, when I got underneath it.  The entire frame was rusting, worse than I had ever seen on a truck.  So, the research began.  That is when I found the TSB on 2013/2014 Avalanches, Suburbans, Tahoes and Sierras on frame rust.  Guys, I can't tell you how bad this was.  So, I gathered up the TSB and went to my local Chevrolet dealership.  I was fully expecting to get the run around.  "You didn't buy the truck here."  "It is only cosmetic." etc...  Really I was only wanting to get it docuemnted that is was under warranty if there was a recall.

To my surprise - the dealership made arrangements to get it taken care of - the correct way.  That is - take the fram off, take all the rust off by hand, resurface it and recoat it.  The process take over a week to do - and it was done.  The truck frame now looks better than new, with not one dollar spent by me to get it repaired.

Yes - I did go look at the frame before it was recoated, and they did an excellent job.  Although, it was a bit disconcerting having the entire cab and frame disassembled...

Anyway, didn;t want to give ut any plugs here (not sure what the rules are).  But from what I understand, with the rental car and everything, the bill was over $6000...

Just thought I would share a good story...
 
Glad to here a story with a happy ending...
 
Nice to read about a positive dealership actions......How about telling us who the dealership is so we can know about the good guys out there!

Glad they fixed your problem!
 
The dealership is Southpointe Chevrolet in Tulsa.  The actual work was done by Danny Myers body shop in Tulsa also.  I'll post pics when I get a chance.
 
They must have used some really good snot to undercoat my '13.....bought new and never submerged in a flood....two Winters in the rust belt and only rust was at the lift points used by the dealer......of course I always flush salt deposits off the chassis during the Winter months and never park it wet in a heated garage to accelerate rust.

No problem with the brake lines either......they are covered with a black plastic film on all lines from the master cylinder to the wheel calipers.

 
I had this TSB taken care of as well, this past January. However, the frame is already starting to peel again.

They didn't disassemble mine though, just scraped off what they could and shottily sprayed a coating back on....

We were in the midst of having major dealership issues and I didn't pursue it after it was done. Perhaps I should seek out a new dealer to take it too...
 
Hey guys!
I have an 09 Z71  with 47k I just purchased last year. I noticed the frame has quite a bit of rust starting and there seems to be almost no undercoating??? is this normal? and since I am the 2 owner , is there anything I can do? 
I traded in my 04 AV Z71 with 198k and there was NO sign of anything on the frame!

??? ??? ??? ??? ??? :help:
 
Install40,
You may want to take your AV to a dealer you trust, worst they can say is no coverage under warranty. Modern undercoating from the factory is more like a clearcoat from what I have read, not like the old days with the black,thick tar like stuff so it may not be visible to you depending on how close you looked.
I have also read where if rust is present you need to clean it off completely then put a heavy protectant on the metal otherwise you trap rust and moisture under the finish and it rust from inside. I don't know about some of the new undercoating products though and there may be some new product out that you don't have to remove rust first.
As far as the rust being normal, that is hard to say not knowing it's maintenance, driving and flood history. Was it driven in a flood? Was it exposed to lots of road salts?  Some now say having a vehicle in a garage while used as a daily driver in winter in snow belt areas can help speed up rusting if not cleaned off regularly even in winter months due to thawing and temp changes.
 
Thanks !  unfortunately there aren't too many dealers that I trust in NJ  LOL
The last time I went in they told me my brakes were fine after their "172 point check" ..... 1 week later Metal to Metal AND a sticking caliper!  go figure right! 

Anyway, I may take it to a performance guy that specializes in OFF ROAD stuff and let him take a quick look before I go the dealer route.  Or I may call GM first to start the ball rolling. I did that the last time with my TBA and they took care of the whole repair for $0  but not without me pushing back a little!

Thanks again VAEAGLEAV!
 
I hate to dig up an old thread but my 2013 is looking pretty bad.  I have tried searching TSB's but I cannot find what you all are talking about.

I want to go with with something in hand.

Can anyone give me a link or the number ???

Thanks
 
I have nothing to help, but saw this on Reddit the other day. Don't take it here
https://www.reddit.com/r/Justrolledintotheshop/comments/6pdcmd/yeah_were_going_to_need_to_keep_the_car_just_a/
 
GM trucks are the next Toyota's I predict.
It's going to take another 10 years before they finally admit to having bad frames under many trucks and agree to do what Toyota has.
Meanwhile, they could be fixing this problem now, instead of making people like me start to look at Honda or some other foreign car manufacturer after 40 years of exclusively buying from GM.
I just went under my 2013, and the paint is gone from half the frame. At the start of last year my truck only had 13,000 miles on it too.
This is so very disapointing...
 
HellHoof said:
I have nothing to help, but saw this on Reddit the other day. Don't take it here
https://www.reddit.com/r/Justrolledintotheshop/comments/6pdcmd/yeah_were_going_to_need_to_keep_the_car_just_a/

Looks like they did a great job on the frame.  :laugh:
 
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