general problems of the 2003 Chevrolet Silverado

On 2 separate occasions I had flat tires with my 2003 chevy 2500hd 4x4 truck with aluminum wheels. Fortunately in both cases it was on my driveway rather than on a public road. The aluminum wheels appear to have electro-chemically welded themselves to the wheel hubs. I could not remove them (after removing all lug nuts of course) with a 12 pound sledge hammer & wood block. My local chevy dealer informed me they use a 20 pound sledge hammer. I requested some form of anti-seize material be applied to the wheel/hub interface but was told this is normal for this vehicle. I even drove the vehicle for a few feet with no lug nuts installed to break the wheel free to no avail. I called chevy roadside service who facilitated the tire change. This is ridiculous had this failure been on a highway my life would have been endangered by having to work under the vehicle while only supported by the manufacturer supplied jack; while traffic passed nearby.

: the contact stated while attempting low speed turns, the rear wheels turn left. The dealer replaced the rear wheel sensors, which remedied the problem.

Passenger side wheel cracked. I was not near the dealer and took off the wheel and had it welded at shop that specializes in cracked wheels.

Center hub caps will not stay tight. Have had a loosening problem since new. Dealer provided a bag of new plastic nuts. On last trip the left front hub center cam off and ended up in the north rim of the grand canyon. Dealer installed a new center hub cap and another bag of nuts. Some of the new nuts wouldn't tighten and had to be moved around to different locations to tighten. I believe the problem is due to the stainless over-lay spot welded to the steel wheel, thus limiting the thread contact with the lug nuts. The plastic nuts only grab the steel lug nut by 1 or 2 threads. My window sticker says chrome style steel wheels. This statement is mis-leading. They are a steel wheel with a stainless hub cap welded to the wheel and a plastic center hub with plastic nuts. The service manager was suppose to check on this problem but never heard back from him. Please note: I am a mechanic. I know how to install these type of centers. I do not over tighten them and they are installed by hand. I noticed the problem when the truck was new and I drove it home. I waxed the wheels and noticed the loose centers. These could be dangerous to a pedestrian if one flew off struck them.

While driving 40 mph the front passenger side wheel separated from the vehicle. As a result, the driver lost control, and drove into a embankment. Driver sustained injuries to both legs and left arm.