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Faded bubbles water warranty problems replacement of cargo panels bed covers etc

NIGHTSHARK, thanks for the info. I will try to treat the panels, but I also have the "ZEBRA" stripes on the top of sail panels from one side to another. Perhaps is was not rinsed well whenever it was washed and driven around with the excess soap being blown back causing the streaks. I would hope if there is any permanent damage or discoloration that was caused while on the dealer's lot that GM would correct the problem -- even if that meant replacing the top of the wing and bed panels.
 
I would get the knuckle brush out and mix up some Dawn with a bucket of water and go to work. You all know Dawn will cut through the wax and probley what ever else has been put on the panals. See if it "stripes" after a good cleaning. Might next try a little Trim Shine to see it that helps, then back to the dealer if that fails...........GOOD LUCK!

Butch
 
When I picked up the Av the service writer wouldn't tell me what they were going to do about the fading he said I'ld have to speak to the service manager. After waiting 45 minutes for the punk service manager to take time out of his valuable schedule at AUTOWAY CHEVROLET in Tampa FL, he finally came out with a real attitude problem. He said he spoke to the Regional manager and they decided it was a maintenance problem and they weren't going to do anything about it. When I responded with "if its a maintenance problem why are only the sail panels and cargo covers effected?" His response was that they were manufactured from a different material. Exactly, obviously the wrong material!
I called GM customer assistance yesterday and spoke with Annette Ross. She tried to contact the the service manager at AUTOWAY CHEVROLET but of course he wouldn't come to the phone. She said she didn't believe it was maintenance problem but rather an environmental problem because the weather in Florida is so harsh. My response was that yes it is worse than other areas of he country, But if you can't build a product that can withstand it for a year you shouldn't be selling them here. Anyway, she is supposed to contact me Friday afternoon.
I'll keep you posted
 
SWEET!!! ;D

I just spoke to my Chevy Dealership about my faded panels. The converstation went like this:

"Hi this is Byron. I bought a AV from you about a year ago. Its a 02 with 14,000 miles on it. The hard tops are badly faded. Is Chevrolet doing anything about this? I've heard different stories."

His response:
"Sure... you are under warranty. We'll just tell them the panels are warped and get you new ones. Do you want to drop it off in the morning?"

That just ROCKS!!!
 
byron said:
SWEET!!! ;D

I just spoke to my Chevy Dealership about my faded panels. The converstation went like this:

"Hi this is Byron. I bought a AV from you about a year ago. Its a 02 with 14,000 miles on it. The hard tops are badly faded. Is Chevrolet doing anything about this? I've heard different stories."

His response:
"Sure... you are under warranty. We'll just tell them the panels are warped and get you new ones. Do you want to drop it off in the morning?"

That just ROCKS!!!
Click to expand...

if they would only let you keep them..... you could try and paint that TX flag you want!
 
I had panel 1 & 2 replaced a few months ago due to fading. Panel 3 eventually was replaced since there was a change in mid-production for '02's panels-raised vs flush numbers

Anyway, the fade on my originals was not a wax, residue, or poor maintenance issue. Plastic is going to fade. At least the plastic on these Av's. You can slather it up with all the 303 you want, but when it gets washed off, you'll see. The top surface on my sail panel has the zebra stripes, but I'm not addressing that one now. I'll wait till the warranty is about to run out.

Don't get me wrong-303 is a good product, as well as many others. I just feel these mask the inevitable fade the plastic is going to have.
 
tjcdmc, thanks for the reply...I hope they call you back. My last 'experience' with Chevroloet customer service was awful. I had 3 different reps and NONE of them ever called me back.
This was for a vibration issue on A '02 Silverado.
I'm over by Daytona, and my sail panels and cargo covers are striped/faded big time. I'm taking it in next week.
This should be interesting... :rolleyes:
 
FSUGUY said:
byron said:
His response:
"Sure... you are under warranty. We'll just tell them the panels are warped and get you new ones. Do you want to drop it off in the morning?"
Click to expand...

if they would only let you keep them..... you could try and paint that TX flag you want!
Click to expand...

Life would not be that kind to me. But if they would let me I definitely would be all over it. I'll paint the flag on there when these panels fade.
 
Wow, This looks like a lot of people with an excuse to get they're cladding painted. My cladding is looking pretty good right now, but then again, it has not been exposed for that long. It will be nice to be able to tell my wife that there is nothing else to do but to either get it painted or replace it. I wonder what the cost difference is between painting or replacing?

Dave D.
 
I had a problem with streaking on my front bumper on an 03 AV, not on any other panels. I tried Trim Shine 3 times and the streaking would come back after a few days. Finally it DAWNED on me the the dealer must have done it when he had the truck to paint the hood for stone chip damage. The body shop morons :8: must have washed the bumper or cleaned it with who knows what :E:.

I went out with a scrub brush and some Dawn and viola, nice clean streak free bumper ;D. I'd suggest a through cleaning with Dawn and some elbow grease and then some Trim Shine.
 
I got mine back from the shop today. I took it in with a wide variety of issues, 13 in all, one being the faded panels. Well to my suprise they are replacing any piece that has any fading on it. The service consultant said that the total GM cost including all the other stuff they have to fix came to total of $8,000. That about blew my mind :love: I tried to see if I could get the plastic replaced with 03 colored cladding but they didn't go for it.
 
I finally heard back from GM today. They said since there wasn't a recall they wouldn't do anything about it. I asked for an email address so I could send them all the complaints from this forum and the emails from people who have had their cladding replaced under warranty. I was told they don't have an email address.
I think the best thing we can do is gather up all the people who are having these problems and submit their complaints to the BBB and the Attorney General. If there are enough complaints we can file a class action lawsuit.
I'm really amazed at how unconcerned GM is. This Avalanche is deffinitely the last GM piece of crap I'll ever buy, and I'll tell anyone willing to listen why.
 
Well my dealer just called and while they did a great job on some of the other misc. small items that needed repair, the panels/cladding was a no go. He said it was due to sun fading...uh, what a revelation. I told the service writer to have the service mgr give me a call so we can 'discuss' the situation.
Looks like GM is playing hard ball on this issue. The top brake light panel is almost white in color on my truck.
:8:
 
GM has a lot of 2002 AVY out there....if they admit the fading is an issue...think of the costs they would incur for changing all of them over to 2003 cladding......................man that is a ton of money.......

A marketing exec nightmare really..........
 
I have a 03 Z71. I live in the desert between California and Arizona.
The summer temperatures average 105-115. I am having a problem with two out of three of the bed covers #2 and #3.
They are developing very large bubbles, about 7? in diameter.
When the temperature drops to about 95 they begin to deflate.
My AV is looking more like a camel developing humps.
Has anyone had this happen to their covers?
I went to the dealership, and they just looked at me, well you know the look.
(I am enclosing a picture below)
If it gets any worse, I may have to change the name to Camelanch....
 

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Man that sucks :eek: I understand that your having record breaking heat out there, guess I'd find a garage or a cover to keep the sun off :0:
 
When you say that the dealer gave you "that look", are they saying too bad, your problem?? Is your av still in the warranty period? Surely they cannot just brush you off with a significant problem like that.
 
Holy cow! I haven't seen anyone report that problem before. I've lived in California and have driven through your area in late July so I know how hot it gets and am not suprised to see that it's causing some trouble.

Definately make the dealer fix that one, there's no way that should be considered acceptable.

If this keeps happening I would ask them to throw in a soft bed cover... that would probably take the heat a little better. It'd help you get through the summer months once the warranty runs out, then you can swap back to the hard covers.

David
 
This is new...............but....question....Do you have water in the panels......Shake it and listen or remove them plastic pplugs on bottom to see if it will drain,.....Cause if it had water then the water could expand under the skin or something.....

Do you have Warranty left? if so they should replace them.....
 
I've seen this before.... look carefully at the seam... right about the rubber edge. Is it splitting.

Get them replaced. Your pics should be adiquate proof if they can't see them in action
 
I would assume you're talking about Direct Auto as your dealer.....from past experiences, when I used to live there in hell, I wouldn't even take a ford to Direct Auto for service.
 
Hey, I have this happening on my #3 on the passenger side..I live in Northern Cali and temps can get to the mid 90's

I would be interested to see if the dealer does anything, I really dont have the time to go to the dealer right now.

I will keep this issue on my radar...BTW, I did check and no water of break in the seals anywhere that I can see.

SMiG
 
I had 1 bubble about 4" across on #1 cover. The dealer replaced it no problem.
 
Any had any problems with the bed covers getting water in them? My rear most lid seems to attract water and when I take it off weights about twice what it should then leak water out when it is upright. It is under warrranty, but just curiuous if this is a common problem?

J

Subject made more descriptive by ShapeShifter
 
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