NHTSA Complaint #10643445 — 2011 CHEVROLET SILVERADO

ON OCT 4TH, 2014 I WAS TRAVELING FROM SAN ANGELO, TX TO SAN ANTONIO, TX, IN MY 2011 3500 CHEVROLET DIESEL PICKUP, PULLING OUR 5TH WHEEL CAMPER. WHEN I NEARED JUNCTION, TX I COULD SMELL AN ODOR OF FUEL. ON I-10 EB MILE 456, I NOTICED THAT MY FUEL GAUGE WAS RAPIDLY DROPPING. WHEN I LEFT JUNCTION, THE GAUGE READ HALF FULL. AT MILE MARKER 497, I PULLED INTO A REST STOP, BECAUSE THE FUEL GAUGE HAD DROPPED TO THE EMPTY MARK. I GOT OUT OF THE TRUCK AND COULD SEE THE DIESEL POURING OFF THE BOTTOM OF THE MOTOR. WHEN THE DRIPPING STOPPED I ATTEMPTED TO START THE TRUCK, BUT IT WOULD NOT START. THE STARTER MOTOR WAS RUNNING, BUT THE FUEL TANK WAS COMPLETELY EMPTY. IN THAT DISTANCE THE TRUCK SHOULD HAVE USED FIVE GALLONS OF DIESEL PULLING THE TRAILER. WHICH MEANS THAT ABOUT 14 GALLONS WERE DUMPED ONTO THE HIGHWAY WITHIN 40 MILES. MY TRUCK WAS TOWED TO CECIL ATKISSION CHEVROLET IN KERRVILLE, TX. THE DIESEL TECHNICIAN THERE TOLD ME THAT MINE WOULD BE THE 4TH DIESEL HE RECENTLY WORKED ON WITH A SIMILAR ISSUE. HE EVEN SHOWED ME ANOTHER DIESEL TRUCK THAT HE WAS CURRENTLY WORKING ON, ALSO WITH A FUEL LEAK. *TR