Out of the frying pan....

1. Did you purchase this truck from a GM dealer? If so, ask them for a printout of the warranty repairs done on the vehicle before you purchased it.

 

I did purchase it from a dealer. It was a Chevrolet Certified Used Vehicle. I have a warranty, along with 2 years of free oil changes.

When I took the truck in last time for the def issues, I asked the service writer if this was a past problem and if that might be the reason why the original purchaser traded it back in. He pulled it up on his computer and told me that they only thing he sees is routine maintenance.

I am beginning to believe that this must be routine maintenance for this year truck.

 

Why weren't you offered a loaner?

 

I did get a loaner. But since I run the lower 48 states, and all Canada with my semi truck, if I were to go to work, it may be anywhere from a couple weeks to three months before I get back home. I go where the money takes me when working.

 

I'm going to have to call BS (on the service advisor). Next time you see him, ask him for that service history printout.

 

Update on my truck.

I took the truck back into the dealer today. They ran tests on the truck. They came back saying if failed. They are now going to replace the muffler tailpipe section and the three sensors attached to it. After these parts are replaced, they will have replaced every part that has anything to do with the DEF system. Of course these parts have to be ordered and will not be in until Wednesday or Thursday. This means I can not use my truck for at least another week and it will be another two weeks before I get back from Texas and able to go back to work. Just another 10 to 15 thousand dollars I will be loosing by not working, but GM does not care!

As far as GM CUSTOMER SERVICE GOES, IT SUCKS!!!
I called the customer service who is assigned to my case number Friday, Saturday, and again this morning (Monday). I left messages each day for her to call me. NEVER HAPPENED!!
I did, however, not stop there. I called back each time and requested to speak with someone, who after explaining everything to them, basically told me they would note it and my customer I are person would contact me. This afternoon after getting a run around and being hung up on by one customer care person I demanded to speak to a CEO. Of course that did not happen, however I did get my case raised to the "next level", as they call it, and now my case is being handled by a lady in the "executive office", who will be "investigating" my case and calling me within 48 hours.
I wonder what their answer will be after they have replaced every part of the DEF and the check light comes on again???

 

Hello LDSMITH1956,

I am sorry to hear of the frustrations you have experienced with your vehicle as well as the customer care department. It is of utmost importance to General Motors to provide the highest level of customer service. The agent you will be working with is in the best position to assist you at this time. You are welcome to send your case number through a private message at any time so we may check on the status of your case.

Jessica G.
GM Customer Care

 

I have the 2011 duramax and love the truck but I bought from a dealer in another state because they had all the options I wanted in stock. The dealer here in Reno NV (Champion Chevrolet) gives me the runaround when I call to schedule service for an ongoing Recall notice. First they ask if I bought the truck from them and I tell them that I didn't and then they tell me they don't have any openings and to call back in a few weeks. Now the engine light is on so I'm forced to call GM direct for help. Has anyone else ever called for Chevy service anywhere and told to call back later? This has been going on for a while but now it has gone too far!!!! Hopefully I can get resolution from GM on this Recall. They keep sending me notices and I have to just laugh. I have been getting messages from Onstar too! It seems everyone wants the truck fixed except for the dealer who asks if I bought the truck from them. Are you listening GM? There are dealers out there that ask if a vehicle was bought from them. So if you move from one state to another and take your Chevy with you then you might be out of luck when it comes to recall or warranty service.
I shouldn't have to ask for service managers or have to call GM headquarters to get this handled once and for all. The Champion Chevrolet service center should schedule an appointment on the spot with no questions asked. They hear Duramax recall and then immediately ask if the vehicle was purchased from them and if it's not they tell you to call back later. Just call them and see 775-786-3111. I would like to deal with someone else other than Champion Chevrolet if I could please?

 

Why not go to Carson city and have the recall done there. I mean if it was not to much trouble to go out of town to buy it take it out of town to service it.

 

Linton23, this is basically what the Chevy dealer told me. Do you know them? Instead of saying no they just say call back in a few weeks or try someone out of town. My Chevy recall notice says to call Champion Chevrolet and not someone in another town.

 

No I work at a small town dealer and one thing many people dont know is our recalls and warranty repair allowances is based on our sales. So if we do a lot of tranny repair or engine repairs to vehicles we didnt sale GM can give us a hard time so we tend to favor our customers. In our case had you been a customer that had moved here yeah we would have helped you out but being a resident that drove a distance to buy a truck they could have ordered or let the dealer find for you. If you read the manual in your truck it GM says" We ask you to return to your selling dealer".

 

I didn't read anywhere in your comments that you're actually going to repair his GM truck?

 

Im hoping this thread is still alive. I purchased a 2011 GMC 2500HD Denali Duramax back in January from a delearship in Upstate NY. It was a certified used vehicle, with about 58k miles. 2 months ago, the 'Exhaust fluid quality poor' light comes on, states to see owners manual. Owners manual tells you to go to dealer (thanks for the help there GM, glad we have an owners manual). After a bunch of testing, says it was the NOX sensor and replaced it. 4 weeks ago, before a 1200 mile round trip camping outing, the light comes on again. I made it back home, and took it to my local dealer. Now, its been there for 3 weeks. Its one thing after the next. Finally after 2 weeks, the dealer was able to give me a rental, a car. Now if a car would support my life, I would have bought a car, not a 65k truck. Today I called again, stated I needed a comparible vehicle to my truck and I get "I'll see where the tech is with your truck". I dont want a broken truck back, and to be honest, I dont know if I want another GM vehicle (even though every truck has been a GM for me) after this. I called GM Tech Support this morning, the nice lady on the phone listened to me rant and rave, then said someone else would call me back. Not only am I paying a big monthly payment for something I cant drive, but I dont think these people understand that trucks like these are bought by people who need them, not just want them. Help Please GM?!

 

I'm starting this problem right now on the 2011 I just purchased with 26,000 on it from my local chevy dealer. The Quality Poor warning came on the DIC when I was test driving it back in January. The dealer "fixed" it. Almost two months later I purchased the truck. I had about 150 miles on it when the same Quality Poor DIC came on, and after about 20 miles trying to get home, the message and light went off. I took it back to the dealer and went through a regen a couple times and finally replaced a NOX sensor. I' got about 100 miles on it and tonight the same Quality Poor DIC message came up. Again I was trying to get it home, when at 19.4 miles the DIC message went off and the light went off with it again. I purchased this truck to pull a 5th wheel camper, so I need to have some faith that it will perform. A question I have is when the DIC has the Quality Poor message, the 200 mile clock starts. When the DIC and the warning light go out, is the 200 mile clock still ticking?

 

Truck of my dreams became a nightmare! I custom ordered a $64,000 2011 Chevy 3500 HD crew cab LTZ loaded with a Duramax. When I ordered it in December of 2010 there was no mention of a DEF system-none at all. Had I been informed of the DEF being included, I would have gone to another brand. The “build your Chevy” website and dealer brochures at the time of my order did not mention that this would be on my truck-false advertisement/non-disclosure. When the truck arrived at the dealer it had a DEF system (new in the 2011). They already had my money and I thought that the good people/engineers at Chevy would have made sure that DEF was a proven system- BOY WAS I WRONG! I understand DEF is a EPA mandated system, but that does not let Chevy engineers of the hook for making a DEF system that has made the Duramax totally UNRELIABLE!

The DEF system has ruined several family vacations and made my Duramax truck UNRELIABLE for any trip longer than 100 miles from home. Why 100 miles you ask?
I will give you quotes directly from the Chevy link on DEF in the Duramax (see link).

https://www.chevrolet.com/content/d.../usa/nscwebsite/en/Home/Ownership/Manuals_and_Videos/02_pdf/SilveradoHD_DEF.pdf

Since my Duramax was less than 6 months old it began to have problems. First with dash warnings of “Exhaust Fluid Quality Poor See Owners Manual Now”. This occurred with the DEF tank 3/4 full with new factory Chevy DEF. The Chevy mechanics at the time didn't really understand the whole DEF system and had my truck for more than a week. They accused me of putting bad DEF in the tank when I hadn't even added any DEF yet (the DEF tank does not have a level guage—you must rely on the computer to give you dash warnings when the DEF is low). The local Chevy dealer then borrowed a DEF testing device from another local dealer to confirm that the DEF was actually OK. Then they replaced the DEF tank, tank sensors, NOX sensors, and forced the truck to go into regeneration mode to burn the soot out of the exhaust filter. The whole repair proved to be very temporary. I have had the “Exhaust Fluid Quality Poor” signal come on multiple times and have had the truck in for repair. Same similar repairs were done and the fault codes were cleared by the Chevy service department multiple times. It has ruined two vacations when the kids were on summer break and we loaded up the travel trailer. As we were driving out of town to go on an extended summer vacation the “Exhaust Fluid Quality Poor See Owners Manual Now” warning appeared on the dash. I did what the owners manual suggested and put 3 gallons of the recommended DEF “Only GM-approved DEF, or DEF fluid containing the API certified or ISO 22241 label, should be used.”. I continued to drive for 150 miles in hope the ““Exhaust Fluid Quality Poor See Owners Manual Now” warning would clear it self. I even turned the truck on and off several times at rest areas. It did not clear. And guess what happens when that warning wont clear?? This is per the owners manual (I couldn't make this up).

“To meet federal and state requirements, the electronic onboard warning system is designed to automatically monitor DEF quality. If poor-quality fluid is detected, the system will alert the driver. If poor-quality fluid is not replaced within 200 miles, the vehicle speed will be limited to 55 mph at the next vehicle start. If the system’s warnings continue to be ignored, vehicle speed will ultimately be limited to 4 mph in accordance with federal and state requirements.”

So guess what I did. I turned around and went home and parked my new $35,000 travel trailer and $64,000 Duramax truck and we ended up flying, renting a car, and hotel to enjoy a family reunion with our family. That was last year story too. Right now 5-19-2015 my truck is in the garage going through the same routine at 38,000 miles. My Chevy zero $ deductible extended warranty that I purchased from Chevy, when I bought the truck, doesn't cover the exhaust? Haven't gotten the full story on the repair yet. I am confident that they will replace a Nox sensor and run it through a REGEN cycle, clear the codes and I will be on my way for a week or a month. Who is to know when the DEF system designed by chevy engineers will ruin my next trip? I cant bring my camper back- I will have to sell it at a huge loss. I cannot risk my family being stuck away from home more than 100 miles because round trip of 200 miles could put me at 55 mph and upon engine restart limited to 4 mph. Can you imagine being on an interstate going 55 mph or 4 mph with your family and a 30 foot travel trailer. I wonder how many people have been killed by that safety feature of limiting your speed to 55 mph and 4 mph. Its against the law to go too slow! I honestly am scared to drive this vehicle and am writing to warn others to look at other alternatives. Do a web search “Duramax DEF” and you will find hundreds of complaints.

I will also add that the so called regeneration cycle that the truck goes through on its own to clear the exhaust is not something you can make happen or program on your own. The truck will NOT give you ANY notice it is happening or it needs to happen. When one of the many sensors like the NOX sensor detects the Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) (that captures soot) is clogged, it will cause the truck to burn extra fuel for 30-45 minutes to get the exhaust to an extreme temp to burn the soot out. Makes sense right ? Well you cannot manually put the truck into REGEN mode nor will the truck tell you ( no alert or warning) that it is going into REGEN mode or that a REGEN is needed. So say your on your way to work and without your control and unknown to you your truck goes REGEN mode and you only live 15 minutes down the road…it wont burn the soot out. You head back home and the REGEN mode starts again by putting more diesel into the exhaust…it could never get hot enough to burn the soot out…bad system. If I knew that it needed to be run for 30-45 minutes I could at least take it out on a highway trip and clean it out, but the Chevy engineers didn't think that one through either. Lastly, another quote from the Chevy DEF instruction manual:

“DEF shelf life is typically at least one year, depending on the storage temperature. It is best stored out of direct sunlight between 12oF and 86oF.” A full tank of DEF provides a driving range of about 5,000 miles (8,000 kilometers).”

The DEF is held in a 5.3 gallon tank under the hood in an uninsulated container. Do you think that the DEF stays under the recommended 86 degrees F ? Under the hood next to the engine 86 degrees F in Florida? The New 2015 Duramax trucks have the DEF under the passenger floor (you can see the big black tank for the DEF hanging there away from the engine heat.
The whole DEF system is flawed and you will only get a temporary bandaid repair at the dealership. The DURAMAX is UNRELIABLE. IN MY OPINION IT IS ALSO UNSAFE AT THE REDUCED SPEED OF 55 MPH THEN 4 MPH. IT MAY BE A GOVERNMENT MANDATE, BUT IT IS A CHEVY DESIGN. I hope I have informed others of what pain and problems I have had. The chevy dealer said they would give me $35,000 trade in on a new gas engine truck for $58,000. Pretty sad a Duramax with 38,000 miles and I will probably have to trade down to a gas guzzler plus throw away another $ 23,000. Im beyond mad and disappointed- I've lost faith in folks doing the right thing.

Best Regards,
JL

 

read my post. You probably got a 2011 like the one I will trade in soon. Some poor soul will get my truck with the same problems that you are having. Its good to inform folks about this problem. When the word gets out people won't want a Chevy Duramax any more. Unload it. At least you didn't pay full price.
JL

 

I had a '14 Duramax. I put 11,000 miles on it with zero issues with the DEF system. My buddy has a '13 with 40,000 trouble free miles. These issues were limited to the 2011 model year and are easily remedied by just deleting the DEF and DPF. Assuming you don't live in the peoples republic of commiefornia, you shouldn't have many issues running without it. You'll spend some money to buy the delete kit and tuner to remove codes, but it'll be far cheaper than trading it off.

 

I have had a few calls with people passing through with issues but a majority can be tracked back to people who dont drive the truck often. It seems like the fluid is not as stable as we are told. People that drive them all the time no issue the guys that have the diesel for the summer road trip and fire it up just a few times a year still have issues.