[HaloHead]

2019 w/28k miles. When I’m on a highway accelerating say from about 60mph to 80mph I can feel a drivetrain vibration that only happens when accelerating. If I’m cruising at 60-85mph there is no vibration. Zero vibration through the steering wheel. It only happens during heavy acceleration.
While I have not rotated and balanced the tires the scenario leads me to suspect they are not the cause. I have no climbed under to see if there is a loose axle shaft or CV joint or something.
Would appreciate any insights or guidance.
And of course the vehicle is about two months out of warranty. Figures…
Thanks in advance.

 

[ARCowboy]

2019 w/28k miles. When I’m on a highway accelerating say from about 60mph to 80mph I can feel a drivetrain vibration that only happens when accelerating. If I’m cruising at 60-85mph there is no vibration. Zero vibration through the steering wheel. It only happens during heavy acceleration.
While I have not rotated and balanced the tires the scenario leads me to suspect they are not the cause. I have no climbed under to see if there is a loose axle shaft or CV joint or something.
Would appreciate any insights or guidance.
And of course the vehicle is about two months out of warranty. Figures…
Thanks in advance.

When is the last time your tires were balanced (and rotated ?)

 

[GJETSON]

When is the last time your tires were balanced (and rotated ?)

Sounds like never, in 28K miles. I was coming up on my 4th rotation by then.

 

[Passing Lane]

2019 w/28k miles. When I’m on a highway accelerating say from about 60mph to 80mph I can feel a drivetrain vibration that only happens when accelerating. If I’m cruising at 60-85mph there is no vibration. Zero vibration through the steering wheel. It only happens during heavy acceleration.
While I have not rotated and balanced the tires the scenario leads me to suspect they are not the cause. I have no climbed under to see if there is a loose axle shaft or CV joint or something.
Would appreciate any insights or guidance.
And of course the vehicle is about two months out of warranty. Figures…
Thanks in advance.

Out of balance tires or bent rims would produce vibrations at all times, not just under acceleration. This sounds like a CV joint or a failing motor mount (yes you have them!). A failing mount would allow greater movement of the motor/transmission and would cause vibrations to be felt when acceleration or deceleration pushed the assembly against the mount frame but not at steady speeds.

 

[Sean Nelson]

Tire problems can also cause vibrations. I was once convinced that I had a CV joint issue due to vibration at certain speeds but it turned out to be a broken steel belt in the tire. That sort of damage can result from bad potholes, etc.

 

[tradosaurus]

I would have the tires rotated and balanced first.

 

[HaloHead]

I can get the tires rotated and balanced. But with zero vibrations at any speed I find it incredibly doubtful that’s the issue. I’m much more included towards @Passing Lane’s suggestion of a motor mount or CV joint. I did quite a bit of testing on the highway yesterday. From a near stop to about 65mph it does not vibrate. On the highway at 70mph cruising and then applying full power (throttle?!) acceleration up to about 80/85mph repeatedly Brings the vibration. As soon as I stop accelerating the vibration stops. And it never appears when cruising at an constant speed.

Any suggestions on motor mount examinations or how best to diagnose a bad CV joint, other than removal and disassembly?

 

[BobBolt]

If it was me at 28K and only 2 months out of warranty I would be chatting with the concierge and service manager at my dealership. Sounds like it would qualify for some goodwill.

 

[ahowedaddy]

Any update? I have the same issue. Thanks

 

[wbizreh]

Same problem here.. Did you figure out what the problem is?

 

[HaloHead]

My apologies for never posting "the rest of the story..."
1. Balance the tires.
I went to my local Costco where I get all of my tires (free rotate/balance!) and paid to have the tires balanced. This produced no change in the vibration at high speed/high acceleration.

2. Hello Chevy?
GM's Bolt concierge service immediately disavowed any responsibility. "Oh so sorry...you need to call Michelin." This felt like the start of the "not me" run-around.

3. Hey Michelin Man...
After some effort I finally reached someone at Michelin who was kind enough but said, understandably, that I had to bring the car into an "official" dealer to get it diagnosed. And despite how many Michelin tires Costco sells, Costco didn't seem to count.

4. Return to the Local Chevy Dealer
Michelin pointed me to my local Chevy dealer. They did a "road force balance" test, which I admittedly had not heard of. The service manager said they had a very expensive tire balancing machine (that apparently few shops have because it's $$$) that adds a simulated road force onto the tire as the machine tries to balance it. The machine also gives a rating of how "good" the tire is or is not. And FYI: Getting tires balanced on this machine was >2x a traditional tire shop (e.g. Discount Tire, etc.)
The dealer's conclusion: "You have four bad tires. They all failed the road force test. There must be something wrong with the internal construction." Well, at 28k miles (I think the life of these Michelins is supposed to be 50k, but someone can correct my guess) that's beyond disappointing.

5. Okay Michelin, Now What?
Michelin said they would replace my tires under a pro-rated warranty. What I found really odd about that is the fact that the dealer's report of "remaining tire tread depth" ignored the fact that the tires were not on track to meet the OEM stated mileage warranty. I think Michelin said they'd give me about 35% off of a new set of tires. But the catch was that I had to buy them within two weeks. Now things got interesting.

6. Oh Where Oh Where Can My New Tires Be?
The folks at Michelin first said "...and find a local Michelin dealer to buy your replacement set of tires." Off I went to Costco, Discount Tires, the Chevy dealer, etc. Not one had any tires in stock nor did they have line of sight as to when they would be available. Even Michelin could not give me any answer as to when I would be able to find and buy a replacement set of tires. This set up the ridiculous scenario of "Yes, we will honor the pro-rated warranty" combined with "...you buy the tires within two weeks of now..." and finally "...and the tires are not for sale anywhere over the next two weeks."
I was effectively stuck in a lose/lose situation with Michelin unwilling to actually make good on their issue. It's a pretty sad reflection on their brand.

7. After All That, What Did I Do?
In the end I decided to just live with the vibration. I've since put another 5k miles on the car and tires. And I suspect that I'll run them down to the wear bar indicators. At this point in time I'm hoping someone will have a few recommendations on the lowest rolling resistance tires on the market for Bolts. Please send along your suggestions now!

The good news was that it didn't turn out to be anything wrong with the Bolt itself. No bad wheel bearing, bad CV join, bad axle, etc.
The bad news was the complete lack of tire availability. The Chevy dealer offered me a set of Bridgestones, but of course Michelin was not going to help fund those. I left the experience exasperated and unlikely to buy a set of Michelins in the future. Of course "never say never" as the time will come and I'll have to choose. Until then I'll just keep driving what I have today.

 

[MichBolt]

Would you consider different Michelins? The Cross Climate 2's come recommended on the forum. You lose a little range and the self seal, but gain much better traction in both dry and wet weather.

 

[Passing Lane]

My apologies for never posting "the rest of the story..."
1. Balance the tires.
I went to my local Costco where I get all of my tires (free rotate/balance!) and paid to have the tires balanced. This produced no change in the vibration at high speed/high acceleration.

2. Hello Chevy?
GM's Bolt concierge service immediately disavowed any responsibility. "Oh so sorry...you need to call Michelin." This felt like the start of the "not me" run-around.

3. Hey Michelin Man...
After some effort I finally reached someone at Michelin who was kind enough but said, understandably, that I had to bring the car into an "official" dealer to get it diagnosed. And despite how many Michelin tires Costco sells, Costco didn't seem to count.

4. Return to the Local Chevy Dealer
Michelin pointed me to my local Chevy dealer. They did a "road force balance" test, which I admittedly had not heard of. The service manager said they had a very expensive tire balancing machine (that apparently few shops have because it's $$$) that adds a simulated road force onto the tire as the machine tries to balance it. The machine also gives a rating of how "good" the tire is or is not. And FYI: Getting tires balanced on this machine was >2x a traditional tire shop (e.g. Discount Tire, etc.)
The dealer's conclusion: "You have four bad tires. They all failed the road force test. There must be something wrong with the internal construction." Well, at 28k miles (I think the life of these Michelins is supposed to be 50k, but someone can correct my guess) that's beyond disappointing.

5. Okay Michelin, Now What?
Michelin said they would replace my tires under a pro-rated warranty. What I found really odd about that is the fact that the dealer's report of "remaining tire tread depth" ignored the fact that the tires were not on track to meet the OEM stated mileage warranty. I think Michelin said they'd give me about 35% off of a new set of tires. But the catch was that I had to buy them within two weeks. Now things got interesting.

6. Oh Where Oh Where Can My New Tires Be?
The folks at Michelin first said "...and find a local Michelin dealer to buy your replacement set of tires." Off I went to Costco, Discount Tires, the Chevy dealer, etc. Not one had any tires in stock nor did they have line of sight as to when they would be available. Even Michelin could not give me any answer as to when I would be able to find and buy a replacement set of tires. This set up the ridiculous scenario of "Yes, we will honor the pro-rated warranty" combined with "...you buy the tires within two weeks of now..." and finally "...and the tires are not for sale anywhere over the next two weeks."
I was effectively stuck in a lose/lose situation with Michelin unwilling to actually make good on their issue. It's a pretty sad reflection on their brand.

7. After All That, What Did I Do?
In the end I decided to just live with the vibration. I've since put another 5k miles on the car and tires. And I suspect that I'll run them down to the wear bar indicators. At this point in time I'm hoping someone will have a few recommendations on the lowest rolling resistance tires on the market for Bolts. Please send along your suggestions now!

The good news was that it didn't turn out to be anything wrong with the Bolt itself. No bad wheel bearing, bad CV join, bad axle, etc.
The bad news was the complete lack of tire availability. The Chevy dealer offered me a set of Bridgestones, but of course Michelin was not going to help fund those. I left the experience exasperated and unlikely to buy a set of Michelins in the future. Of course "never say never" as the time will come and I'll have to choose. Until then I'll just keep driving what I have today.

Thanks for that update. It really helps the rest of us chasing gremlins and arguing with service people. Too bad about not finding tires. I would definitely look at another brand after that encounter with Michelin.