front end noise

[fleetfeat]

I have a 2000 sierra with a 5.3. I have a front end noise that I thought was balljoints. I had them checked and they were fine. The dull "clunking" is felt in the steering wheel. Any thoughts?

[macktoschool]

I also have a 2000 Sierra 5.3. Mine is a 4x4, and I have heard the same thing since it was new. I was told it is just the same backlash "clunk" that you hear from the rearend. I have almost 90,000 on mine and haven't had any issues with it so far. Let me know if you find out anything different.

[GMCTech]

It sounds like you may have steering "chuckle". Do you notice a very slight "rattle" in the steering wheel especially on slight turns at lower speeds. (May be a little more pronounced over small bumps)

If so, bring it to the dealership, there is a bulletin out (actually 2 now) about steering "chuckle". The repair is easy and involves removing the intermediate steering shaft and greasing the inside splines. (The looseness you feel is mostly just from lack of grease.) You can do this job yourself, just be careful not to turn the steering wheel too far with it separated from the steering shaft. (You can hold it in place with a bungee cord or similar.) The kit to grease it is available over the counter, and comes with instructions.

The second bulletin is only a week or so old and involves replacing the shaft with a redesigned one, but we have yet to try it.

Hope this helps.

[Frozen001]

Originally Posted by GMCTech

It sounds like you may have steering "chuckle". Do you notice a very slight "rattle" in the steering wheel especially on slight turns at lower speeds. (May be a little more pronounced over small bumps)

If so, bring it to the dealership, there is a bulletin out (actually 2 now) about steering "chuckle". The repair is easy and involves removing the intermediate steering shaft and greasing the inside splines. (The looseness you feel is mostly just from lack of grease.) You can do this job yourself, just be careful not to turn the steering wheel too far with it separated from the steering shaft. (You can hold it in place with a bungee cord or similar.) The kit to grease it is available over the counter, and comes with instructions.

The second bulletin is only a week or so old and involves replacing the shaft with a redesigned one, but we have yet to try it.

Hope this helps.

Do you have the TSB #'s. My truck has same problem and would like to see what my dealer can to to fix the problem.

[oneusa]

I have a 2001 Denali which has had this steering/front end noise in the past. Not always but sometimes when you are parking and have the wheel turned about 3/4 of the way it starts a bad sounding noise. Almost sounds like knobby tires (mine aren't) are rubbing.

I took it to the GM dealer and they lubricated the intermediate shaft which temporarily fixed it. Well the noise is back with a vengence. I called the dealer today and he said there is a new part coming out (could be a week could be two months) to fix this matter. He said I could take it in to lube it again but he didn't know how long that would fix it. He also said it will not hurt anything to use it as is for a while.

I would like to hear from anyone who gets this new part. Hopefully it fixes it for good.