GM service has had my Vette for 3 weeks - help!
03-13-2014, 05:31 PM
#1
Intermediate
Thread Starter
Member Since: Nov 2005
Posts: 38
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
GM service has had my Vette for 3 weeks - help!
My C6 has been in the GM shop for 3 weeks and appears no closer to being fixed.
The car initially went into the shop when on-board diagnostics miss-read that the car when shut down was not placed in neutral (manual transmission C-6), hence my battery drained and would not shut down on-board eletronics.
The shop has "replaced" the ECM and BCM, and left door switch/module but the car now nick-named "Christine" decides when its wants to start or not, and when it does start, will start with-out depressing the clutch.
The GM dealer has asked for engineer help (Detroit), but it does not appear (from a remote location) are any more effective at solving the issues with the car.
Any recommendations or insite would be greatly appreciated>
The car initially went into the shop when on-board diagnostics miss-read that the car when shut down was not placed in neutral (manual transmission C-6), hence my battery drained and would not shut down on-board eletronics.
The shop has "replaced" the ECM and BCM, and left door switch/module but the car now nick-named "Christine" decides when its wants to start or not, and when it does start, will start with-out depressing the clutch.
The GM dealer has asked for engineer help (Detroit), but it does not appear (from a remote location) are any more effective at solving the issues with the car.
Any recommendations or insite would be greatly appreciated>
03-13-2014, 05:39 PM
#2
My C6 has been in the GM shop for 3 weeks and appears no closer to being fixed.
The car initially went into the shop when on-board diagnostics miss-read that the car when shut down was not placed in neutral (manual transmission C-6), hence my battery drained and would not shut down on-board eletronics.
The shop has "replaced" the ECM and BCM, and left door switch/module but the car now nick-named "Christine" decides when its wants to start or not, and when it does start, will start with-out depressing the clutch.
The GM dealer has asked for engineer help (Detroit), but it does not appear (from a remote location) are any more effective at solving the issues with the car.
Any recommendations or insite would be greatly appreciated>
The car initially went into the shop when on-board diagnostics miss-read that the car when shut down was not placed in neutral (manual transmission C-6), hence my battery drained and would not shut down on-board eletronics.
The shop has "replaced" the ECM and BCM, and left door switch/module but the car now nick-named "Christine" decides when its wants to start or not, and when it does start, will start with-out depressing the clutch.
The GM dealer has asked for engineer help (Detroit), but it does not appear (from a remote location) are any more effective at solving the issues with the car.
Any recommendations or insite would be greatly appreciated>
03-13-2014, 05:46 PM
#3
Team Owner
Member Since: Jun 2005
Location: Northern, VA
Posts: 46,117
Received 2,487 Likes
on
1,949 Posts
St. Jude Donor '15
"In honor of jpee"
WADR. how can anyone recommend anything? If you provide more info on the car itself prior to going in, it might help. My specific wants would be what is NOT stock on the car? Especially, any electrical stuff incl. LEDs, nav, hardwire radar, etc. Town it's located in?
03-13-2014, 05:52 PM
#4
2005? sounds like the steering column lock module.
Mine had to go through 2 BCM, multiple checks ok'd, etc. before dealer finally looked at the part# I got from this forum years back and it's been fixed/starting fine since, lol.
Mine had to go through 2 BCM, multiple checks ok'd, etc. before dealer finally looked at the part# I got from this forum years back and it's been fixed/starting fine since, lol.
03-14-2014, 04:52 PM
#7
Intermediate
Thread Starter
Member Since: Nov 2005
Posts: 38
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Just spoke with the GM Shop manager, they've swapped out another BCM on the vehicle and are now unable to get the car to fire up. He'd also indicated that they are talking about a "fair exchange value" for the car.
Amazing that between GM engineers and local dealership that we're now moving to "a fair exchange value".
Dissappointment in GM as a manufacturer, you bet.
Amazing that between GM engineers and local dealership that we're now moving to "a fair exchange value".
Dissappointment in GM as a manufacturer, you bet.
03-14-2014, 09:06 PM
#9
Team Owner
The '05 car required the shifter to be put in reverse when shutting down, not neutral. Usually when the battery is running down too soon, the procedure is to measure the drain and then start pulling fuses one at a time until the drain stops...indicating which circuit is causing the drain. Then that circuit can be repaired. Replacing ECMs and BCMs seems like something that would be done when the service people have no idea what to do so they just start throwing parts at the problem. 
03-16-2014, 05:03 PM
#10
Intermediate
Thread Starter
Member Since: Nov 2005
Posts: 38
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Spoke with the service manager on Friday, they now believe that the "Fuse Grid" is bad. Seems as if they are not really sure what to do and are eliminating potential issues one at a time (Ex: replacing the ECM, the BCM, etc).
What does diagnostics do if in 3 weeks the service techs can't seem to isolate the problem.
What does diagnostics do if in 3 weeks the service techs can't seem to isolate the problem.
03-16-2014, 09:59 PM
#12
Melting Slicks
if you looking for a fun ride and quality...keep looking. 
03-18-2014, 05:23 PM
#13
Intermediate
Thread Starter
Member Since: Nov 2005
Posts: 38
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Spoke with the GM Service manager again today, the fuse grid has been replaced, and the car still when shifted to reverse will not acknowledge that the car is in reverse and keeps all electronics on. (They'd also again swapped out the ECM and BCM, reset these modules with no luck)
The dealers shop vette technitions have tried all the recommended solutions that have been directed via various engineers (via phone and e-mail) and yet nothing seems to work. They've requested that GM send an engineer to the shop to assist, however, at this point GM does not seem interested in providing a solution, as this is after-all an '05 Vette and is no longer under warranty - their serive ratings are not affected.
Now coming into 4 weeks with the car in the shop and have at this point lost all faith in GM as a manufacturer, yes the car is older, but it would be nice to stand behind your product and provide a solution.
The dealers shop vette technitions have tried all the recommended solutions that have been directed via various engineers (via phone and e-mail) and yet nothing seems to work. They've requested that GM send an engineer to the shop to assist, however, at this point GM does not seem interested in providing a solution, as this is after-all an '05 Vette and is no longer under warranty - their serive ratings are not affected.
Now coming into 4 weeks with the car in the shop and have at this point lost all faith in GM as a manufacturer, yes the car is older, but it would be nice to stand behind your product and provide a solution.
03-18-2014, 06:31 PM
#15
Melting Slicks
My C6 has been in the GM shop for 3 weeks and appears no closer to being fixed.
The car initially went into the shop when on-board diagnostics miss-read that the car when shut down was not placed in neutral (manual transmission C-6), hence my battery drained and would not shut down on-board eletronics.
The shop has "replaced" the ECM and BCM, and left door switch/module but the car now nick-named "Christine" decides when its wants to start or not, and when it does start, will start with-out depressing the clutch.
The GM dealer has asked for engineer help (Detroit), but it does not appear (from a remote location) are any more effective at solving the issues with the car.
Any recommendations or insite would be greatly appreciated>
The car initially went into the shop when on-board diagnostics miss-read that the car when shut down was not placed in neutral (manual transmission C-6), hence my battery drained and would not shut down on-board eletronics.
The shop has "replaced" the ECM and BCM, and left door switch/module but the car now nick-named "Christine" decides when its wants to start or not, and when it does start, will start with-out depressing the clutch.
The GM dealer has asked for engineer help (Detroit), but it does not appear (from a remote location) are any more effective at solving the issues with the car.
Any recommendations or insite would be greatly appreciated>
03-19-2014, 11:24 AM
#16
Burning Brakes
Let's hear some vehicle history - years of ownership, crash and repair history, drivetrain repair - clutch, transmission, etc. Should be something simple like a loose connector or one with bent pins, crimped wire, etc. You need someone who can read electrical schematic diagrams. There must be someone in the Philly area who specializes in C6s ...
03-19-2014, 11:41 AM
#17
Tech Contributor
9 year old car, unknown history and usage. Yep, GM sucks as a manufacturer 
Ever think maybe the dealer mechanics aren't that great? Sounds like they're just throwing parts at it.
In that case so does my German car manufacturer since my 2014 has spent 2 of its first 4 weeks in the shop for a variety of issues vs my 2013 GS that has been trouble free for 17k miles, including multiple track days.
Ever think maybe the dealer mechanics aren't that great? Sounds like they're just throwing parts at it.In that case so does my German car manufacturer since my 2014 has spent 2 of its first 4 weeks in the shop for a variety of issues vs my 2013 GS that has been trouble free for 17k miles, including multiple track days.
Last edited by 96GS#007; 03-19-2014 at 11:44 AM.
03-20-2014, 09:13 PM
#18
When weird inexplicable things happen electrically, most times it can be traced back to bad grounds. Electricity takes the path of least resistance and when the ground is bad, electricity can take some strange paths, especially on these new computerized cars with their miles of wiring and electrical circuits. Weird stuff happened with our old cars from the sixties but the wiring was pretty basic and pretty easy to track down problems.
03-20-2014, 10:35 PM
#19
I have a 05, and here is the skinny.
The steering column lock has a very short life, even when replaced brand new. Also due to the voltage required by the lock, if the battery is any where near drawn down, it going to have fits not unlocking. Worst yet, when the lock will not fully unlock, it will not allow the car to start. The best thing here is to just use a steering column lock eliminator to bypass the lock completely (it around $80).
Next is the every fun, pinched wire problem that you pretty much have to start pulling the dash to track down. And no, it not just an 05 problem, but can happen on any Vet.
Lastly, the connectors can corrode as well, so although the pins may look good still, the wires to the pins inside the connectors could have corroded and causing the problem instead.
So on that note, give than they have already changed out the modules, and still have the same problem, time to start checking for pinched wires that are shorting out every once in a while, check the connectors and pins to wire connections, and double check the ground lugs, since the ground lugs/grounding points love to corrode and cause nothing but problems as well (read fiberglass body, so only a limit amount of points that are steel to use for grounding points.
The steering column lock has a very short life, even when replaced brand new. Also due to the voltage required by the lock, if the battery is any where near drawn down, it going to have fits not unlocking. Worst yet, when the lock will not fully unlock, it will not allow the car to start. The best thing here is to just use a steering column lock eliminator to bypass the lock completely (it around $80).
Next is the every fun, pinched wire problem that you pretty much have to start pulling the dash to track down. And no, it not just an 05 problem, but can happen on any Vet.
Lastly, the connectors can corrode as well, so although the pins may look good still, the wires to the pins inside the connectors could have corroded and causing the problem instead.
So on that note, give than they have already changed out the modules, and still have the same problem, time to start checking for pinched wires that are shorting out every once in a while, check the connectors and pins to wire connections, and double check the ground lugs, since the ground lugs/grounding points love to corrode and cause nothing but problems as well (read fiberglass body, so only a limit amount of points that are steel to use for grounding points.
03-21-2014, 07:46 AM
#20
Intermediate
Thread Starter
Member Since: Nov 2005
Posts: 38
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Briefly, the car has had no crashes, 42k miles. The steering column lock assembly was replaced in November (Dealer had the car 2 weeks to complete this).
Like some of the postings, I'm beginning to wonder about the technical knowledge of the "mechanichs/tech specialists" that are working on the car.
The ECM, BCM and Fuse grid have been swapped out to determine if these were the source of the problem (individually or otherwise), no dice.
The car when shifted into reverse, and shut down, does turn off, but all electronics still remain lit.
They've supposedly have chased down the idea that there could be a ground wire off, cracked or pinched wire. As of yesterday GM finallly agreed to send an engineer to check on the car.
Meanwhile, it's 4 weeks now that they've had the car. (though I have received a quote from the dealership to trade/buy the car).
Let's think about that...trade the car for another GM product??? Or is the problem the quality of the service department?
Like some of the postings, I'm beginning to wonder about the technical knowledge of the "mechanichs/tech specialists" that are working on the car.
The ECM, BCM and Fuse grid have been swapped out to determine if these were the source of the problem (individually or otherwise), no dice.
The car when shifted into reverse, and shut down, does turn off, but all electronics still remain lit.
They've supposedly have chased down the idea that there could be a ground wire off, cracked or pinched wire. As of yesterday GM finallly agreed to send an engineer to check on the car.
Meanwhile, it's 4 weeks now that they've had the car. (though I have received a quote from the dealership to trade/buy the car).
Let's think about that...trade the car for another GM product??? Or is the problem the quality of the service department?