NHTSA Complaint #734818 — 1999 CHEVROLET SILVERADO

I WAS A VICTIM OF THE MAY 1999 TORNADOS. MY HOME AND PREVIOUS AUTO WERE COMPLETELY DESTROYED BY THE STORM. SMICKLAS CHEVROLET KNEW I WAS DESPERATE WHEN I BOUGHT THIS TRUCK NEW ON MAY 12, 1999. THE TRUCK WAS A DEMONSTRATOR, WITH 3585 MILES ON IT. AFTER I HAD IT ABOUT TWO AND = MONTHS, AND HAD DRIVEN IT LESS THAN 4,500 MILES, A SERIOUS VIBRATION APPEARED IN THE STEERING WHENEVER THE TRUCK REACHED ABOUT 60 MILES/HOUR. THE SHIMMY IS PRESENT ALL THE TIME AT HIGHWAY SPEED, AND SOMETIMES THE TRUCK ALSO PULLS TO THE RIGHT. BETWEEN JULY OF 1999 AND JULY OF 2000, I BROUGHT THE TRUCK BACK TO SMICKLAS SEVEN TIMES TO HAVE THE STEERING DEFECT CORRECTED. I HAVE SERVICE RECORDS FOR THOSE OCCASIONS (7/31/99, 8/21/99, 8/24/99, 9/28/99, 10/20/99, 11/17/99 AND 7/17/00). SMICKLAS JUST KEPT FOOLING WITH THE TIRES AND WHEEL ALIGNMENT, EVEN THOUGH IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN OBVIOUS AFTER THE FIRST THREE TRIES THAT THIS WAS NOT THE PROBLEM. THE STEERING DEFECT IS STILL THERE.