Harmonic balancer issues never ending
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 129
Likes: 5
From: La Puente California
Harmonic balancer issues never ending
I bought my 2000 C5 coupe in May 2016. I got a great price from a private seller and aside from one issue the car has giving me no problems
About two month into my ownwship I heard some squeaking coming from the engine bay so I automatically assumed it was the serpentine belt. I switched it out and the squeaking persisted. After taking a closer look I saw the harmonic balancer was wobbling. When I purchased the car the original owner had just switched the oil pressure sender unit so I took it back to the same shop that did that repair.
I got charged $1000 to replace it with an oem pulley and bolt. I know I got ripped off. I had read that these pulleys are known to continuously give out so I constantly checked it to make sure everything was good. Three months later the bolt was completely unscrewed and rebounding off the rack and pinion. Took it in since it was under warranty, I'm just finding out the idiots torqued down the same bolt back into the slot. The OEM bolts are meant to only be used once so within a month the bolt was coming loose when I noticed it. Again back to the shop and this time they replaced everything like the first time. About four months later I heard the same squeaking again and no surprise the pulley was wobbling AGAIN and AGAIN I go back to the shop for a warranty claim. I know I should have just counted my losses and gone with another shop better known for working on C5s but money is tight right now. The shop had just hired on a guy who worked as a GM mechanic for over 30 years. He checked my car, asked me what I paid for, and he asked the shop manager what was performed on my car. He straight up told me the shop f***** up and that they didn't transfer the weights from the old pulley to the new pulley!!! The GM mechanic told me about Fluidampr and that it's self leveling and that will fix my problem.
After getting into a huge argument with the shop managers about not having to pay anything for an upgraded pulley because had messed up from the begining they finally agreed to pay for everything even the new Fluidampr harmonic balancer which is $400. My question is I have read the LS1 is internally balanced so will upgrading the pulley actually solve my problem or will the problem continue to persist on?
I plan on pinning the pulley to the crank when I save up enough for a big cam upgrade because I don't trust this shop to do that right even though it's only the GM mechanic who is working on my car now. I just want this issue fixed and never have to return to that POS shop again. Any and all suggestions is much appreciated. Thank you
About two month into my ownwship I heard some squeaking coming from the engine bay so I automatically assumed it was the serpentine belt. I switched it out and the squeaking persisted. After taking a closer look I saw the harmonic balancer was wobbling. When I purchased the car the original owner had just switched the oil pressure sender unit so I took it back to the same shop that did that repair.
I got charged $1000 to replace it with an oem pulley and bolt. I know I got ripped off. I had read that these pulleys are known to continuously give out so I constantly checked it to make sure everything was good. Three months later the bolt was completely unscrewed and rebounding off the rack and pinion. Took it in since it was under warranty, I'm just finding out the idiots torqued down the same bolt back into the slot. The OEM bolts are meant to only be used once so within a month the bolt was coming loose when I noticed it. Again back to the shop and this time they replaced everything like the first time. About four months later I heard the same squeaking again and no surprise the pulley was wobbling AGAIN and AGAIN I go back to the shop for a warranty claim. I know I should have just counted my losses and gone with another shop better known for working on C5s but money is tight right now. The shop had just hired on a guy who worked as a GM mechanic for over 30 years. He checked my car, asked me what I paid for, and he asked the shop manager what was performed on my car. He straight up told me the shop f***** up and that they didn't transfer the weights from the old pulley to the new pulley!!! The GM mechanic told me about Fluidampr and that it's self leveling and that will fix my problem.
After getting into a huge argument with the shop managers about not having to pay anything for an upgraded pulley because had messed up from the begining they finally agreed to pay for everything even the new Fluidampr harmonic balancer which is $400. My question is I have read the LS1 is internally balanced so will upgrading the pulley actually solve my problem or will the problem continue to persist on?
I plan on pinning the pulley to the crank when I save up enough for a big cam upgrade because I don't trust this shop to do that right even though it's only the GM mechanic who is working on my car now. I just want this issue fixed and never have to return to that POS shop again. Any and all suggestions is much appreciated. Thank you
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Nov 2016
Posts: 129
Likes: 5
From: La Puente California
The last time everything was replaced including the bolt. This upcoming time again everything including the bolt will be replaced along with the upgraded pulley
