Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | |||
| 07/05/2011 | 50000 | 1 | |
| Hvac system suddenly started blowing hot air while on ac position. the only way it could be stopped was to stop the truck, shut off engine & re-start engine. *tr | |||
| 07/05/2011 | 50000 | ||
| Hvac system suddenly started blowing hot air while on ac position. the only way it could be stopped was to stop the truck, shut off engine & re-start engine. | |||
| 04/15/2010 | 168000 | 1 | |
| I have a 2003 silverado that has been having rough idling issues. the truck doesn't idle rough everyday,but when it does the voltage fluxuates between 10-14 volts. before this started happening it stayed at a steady 14 volts. now the voltage is dropping and the rpm's are dropping to around 200-300 rpms then some times it will die in motion. i have replaced the alternator and had the battery tested they are good. there was low fuel pressure so i replaced the pump,still nothing is helping. i found a internet site (www.topix.com) there is 15 pages of people with the same problem. nobody can find a definite problem. there is people spending thousands on their vehicle to fix it and the parts don't always help. i have no warning lights coming on,so i don't even know where to start anymore. i'm broke. i feel that gm needs to do something for all the people affected by this. ## vin passed ## chevrolet silverado 1500 4x4 2003 ## *tr | |||
| 10/14/2011 | 137254 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet silverado 1500. the contact stated while driving 30 mph, smoke and flames were emitted from under of the dashboard into the cab of the vehicle. the contact mentioned that he was able merge to the side of the road and disconnect the wiring harness, which stopped the flames. the fire department was not contacted and no injuries were reported. the vehicle was taken to a local mechanic who diagnosed that the blower motor, blower motor resistor, wiring harness and temperature control switch needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance since the vehicle was not included in any recalls. the vehicle was repaired. the failure mileage was 137,254 and the current mileage was 138,620. | |||
| 10/14/2011 | 137254 | ||
| Tl - the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet silverado 1500. the contact stated while driving 30 mph, smoke and flames were emitted from under of the dashboard into the cab of the vehicle. the contact mentioned that he was able merge to the side of the road and disconnect the wiring harness, which stopped the flames. the fire department was not contacted and no injuries were reported. the vehicle was taken to a local mechanic who diagnosed that the blower motor, blower motor resistor, wiring harness and temperature control switch needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance since the vehicle was not included in any recalls. the vehicle was repaired. the failure mileage was 137,254 and the current mileage was 138,620. kmj | |||
| 10/14/2011 | 137254 | ||
| Tl - the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet silverado 1500. the contact stated while driving 30 mph smoke and flames were emitted from underneath of the dash board into the cab of the vehicle. the contact mentioned that he was able merge to the side of the road and disconnect the wiring harness which stop the flames. the fire department was not contacted and no injuries were reported. the vehicle was taken to a local shop who diagnosed that the blower motor, blower motor resistor, wiring harness and temperature control switch needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offered any assistance since the vehicle was not included on any recalls. the vehicle was repaired. the failure mileage was 137,254 and the current mileage was 138,620. pm | |||
| 07/30/2011 | |||
| 2003 silverado 1500 instrument cluster panel all gauges went out | |||
| 07/11/2011 | 54000 | ||
| Tl -the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet silverado 1500. the contact stated that the vehicle battery no charge lamp illuminated. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who was unable to diagnosed the failure but stated that the fuse blocked had melted and needed to be replaced. the manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offered any assistance. the vehicle was repaired. the failure and current mileage was 54,000. pm | |||
| 07/08/2006 | 60000 | ||
| Tl* the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet silverado 1500. the contact stated that the speedometer displayed an inaccurate reading of 180 mph while driving at lower speeds. the failure was intermittent and progressed whenever the vehicle was in motion. the contact was able to determine the speed rate with the tachometer and gps navigational system. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer who stated that the instrument cluster needed to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was not made aware of the defect. the approximate failure mileage was 60,000. | |||
| 07/08/2006 | 60000 | ||
| Tl-the contact owns a2003 chevrolet silverado 1500. while the contact was driving, he noticed the speed odometer displayed an inaccurate reading of 180 mph. the failure was intermittent and progressed to whenever the vehicle was in motion. the contact was able to determine the speed rate with the tachometer and gps navigation system. the vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where they informed that the instrument would need to be replaced. the vehicle was not repaired. the maufacurter was not made aware of the defect. the approximate failure mileage was 60,000. js | |||
| 01/07/2011 | 92000 | ||
| 2003 chevrolet suburban and the speedometer is stuck on 65 when stopped and will travel upwards as i drive faster. for example in a 35 mph zone, when i guestamate my speed, i am driving according to my speedometer 110 mph! | |||
| 11/15/2010 | 50000 | ||
| My 2003 chevrolet silverado 1500's gauges on the instrument panel are malfunctioning. while on the interstate the speedometer reading started showing speeds of over 100 mph while cruising at 70 mph. when i turned the truck of the gauge did not drop below 75. since i first noticed this issue the gauge has continued to read an improper speed. the misreading has fluctuated from 20 to 75 mph off of the correct speed. the rpm gauge has also been doing the same thing. | |||
| 09/06/2007 | 90000 | ||
| Tl- the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet silverado. the contact stated that the speedometer on the vehicle does not work. the contact stated that the dealer said there was a recall for the speedometer, but the recall had expired. there was no recall listed for the dashboard or speedometer at the time of the complaint. the vin was not available at the time of the complaint. the failure mileage was 90000 and the current mileage was 128000.rl | |||
| 01/01/2010 | 75000 | ||
| Left turn signal causes the turn signals to act as hazard signals preventing other drivers from knowing the truck is turning left. it is sporadic, but often hear a buzz under steering column when it occurs. see it is an often reported problem with a failed hazard lamp flasher module whose contacts fail due to moisture. must be replaced with a sealed module. chevy claims there is no recall on faulty part (called 4/8/10). | |||
| 01/18/2010 | 120000 | 1 | |
| Speedo failed. needle stuck at various speeds. contacted gm. not helpful at all. guess somebody has to die before they will take any action. *tr | |||
| 01/20/2010 | 98000 | 1 | |
| Speedometer started working sporadically. sometimes sticks below 0, sometimes moves sporadically and does not indicate correct speed. internet search shows this is a very common problem. gm is aware of this problem and has issued a service bulletin, but is it only valid for vehicles under 80k miles. this is a safety hazard in that the driver does not accurately know the vehicle speed and does not know if he/she is traveling at a safe speed. when the speedometer reads lower than the actual speed (it may read 5 or 10 mph below the actual speed, or may be much lower, as the indicated speed is unreliable), the driver may be going faster than he/she realizes into a curve or turn, which might lead to a crash, possibly injury or death. chevrolet advertises that they build the longest lasting trucks. isn't it reasonable to expect something as basic as a speedometer to work properly for more than 80k miles? dealer said a new instrument cluster is needed to repair this defect. since the vehicle is beyond 80k miles, this would cost the owner approximately $500. *tr | |||
| 12/10/2009 | 45000 | 1 | |
| Erratic speedometer, engine trouble / check abs lights always on. no specific event, just started registering very high speeds or very low speeds that did not match actual speed of vehicle. changes every time vehicle is turned off and turned back on or when stopped. unable to gauge and maintain speed prudent for weather conditions in our area, which is usually snow, sleet, rain, or all three at once. dangerous condition not knowing speed and causes anxiety from worry and possibility of speeding ticket. cannot concentrate on road ahead trying to determine speed from passing objects. trouble lights just came on and stayed on. unable to remedy. *tr | |||
| 12/31/2009 | 74000 | 1 | |
| The left daylight running light burned out. upon removing the bulb the socket was brown and the electrical contacts looked charred. this was the original bulb installed at the factory. cleaned contacts with sandpaper and installed new 4114 bulb as was removed. i still have the burned out bulb. *tr | |||
| 11/27/2009 | 0 | 1 | |
| I have a 2003 chevy silverado 1500 and i want to report the defects i've noticed with my truck. first of all, the seat belt tends to jam for no reason. i was sitting at the intersection when i tried to lean over and the seatbelt was jammed. i could not move at all. this has happened several times to me and some friends. another problem is the a/c system. my truck has dual control system and the drivers side will blow hot air while the passengers side blows sold air all while the settings are both in cold air. turning off the ignition and restarting seems to temporarily fix the problem but within 20 minutes i am back to square one. this problem is extremely common as i have heard many other people complain of the exact same problem. finally, the other issue is the speedometer. the speedometer seems to work only when it wants too. i had this problem about 2 yrs after i bought it and i experience this more often now. sometimes other gauges will not work either such as the battery and rpm gauge. *tr | |||
| 09/02/2009 | 129500 | 1 | |
| 2003 chevy silverado speedometer reading inaccurately. ascending to 120mph and staying while doing posted speedlimit. *tr | |||
| 03/16/2009 | 86000 | 1 | |
| My 2003 silverado speedometer is stuck to the far right. the information center changes from english, french, and spanish by its self. the temperature control for the divers side will go to max heat by its self. the service department said that it would cast $600 dollars to fix the speedometer. *tr | |||
| 05/19/2009 | 62313 | 1 | |
| The climate control fan speed module has shorted out causing the wiring harness to melt. the module overheated to a point that caused smoke and almost ignited will could have resulted in a fire under the dashboard. *tr | |||
| 05/16/2009 | 108000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet silverado 1500. while driving 30 mph, the speedometer became stuck and then increased to 80 mph. currently, the speedometer is stuck at 78 mph and does not move. the vehicle is parked in the contact's driveway. he had to use his gps to control his miles per hour while driving. the dealer informed him of a class action lawsuit and that they extended the mileage failure regarding the lawsuit. however, the contact would be responsible for the cost to repair his vehicle. the manufacturer is aware of the failure and the contact feels that they should pay for the repair. the failure mileage was 108,000. | |||
| 10/01/2008 | 78000 | 1 | |
| Problem is internal gauge cluster defect. in other words, the speedometer doesn't work. for the last 6 months, the gauge has a mind of its own. mostly much higher than the actual speed. i called puritain of cape cod to fix and they said vehicle has over the 70,000 miles. they since have gone out of business. *tr | |||
| 12/21/2003 | 102000 | 1 | |
| On december 21, 2008, my speedometer began to malfunction. the speedometer can intermittently read anything from zero (when i am actually doing more than 50 mph) to 110 (when i am actually doing about 60 mph). when the symptoms began to occur, i called my local gm dealer to see about repairs, and i was told my vehicle was outside of the repair window for the courtesy repair, and when i asked how much it would cost to repair it on my own, i was told about $500. since the problem is (so far) very intermittent and unpredictable, and since i don't happen to have a spare $500 to spend on a serious safety problem which gm has apparently known about for some time and refuses to address beyond a very limited scope, i elected to wait and see. but in the meantime, i have no accurate speedometer reading, and must attempt to gauge my speed by that of the other vehicles surrounding me at any given time. this is hardly an acceptable situation. i have owned many vehicles over my lifetime (i am 60 years old), and i have never had any with instrument cluster failures. *tr | |||
| 12/15/2008 | 90000 | 1 | |
| The speedometer on my 2003 silverado started acting erratic. at first the vehicle speeds were highly inaccurate, i.e. while driving 60 mph on the highway using a gps unit the speedometer showed between 100 and 110 mph. shortly after the hand went to bottom horizontal position and rendered the speedometer useless. i understand from discussion forums on the internet that this is a common problem that is resolved through the replacement of the instrument cluster. possibility of inadvertent wrong choice of speed could become dangerous for vehicle operator and bystanders. *tr | |||
| 01/16/2009 | 79000 | 1 | |
| I started my 2003 chevy to let it warm up and went back in the house then came back out find the wiring for the heater under the passenger dash was on fire. the damage to the vehicle is still undetermined. *tr | |||
| 01/14/2009 | 130000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet silverado 1500. the contact stated that some of the instrument panel indicators were not illuminated. only the mileage and gear shifter areas were illuminated. the rpm, speedometer, gasoline, and battery gauges were all malfunctioning. all of the lights failed to illuminate when the vehicle was started. the manufacturer stated that there was a recall for this failure; however, the vehicle exceeded the mileage requirement. the manufacturer further stated that they would not be responsible for the repair. the vehicle is currently parked in the driveway and has not been repaired. he believes that the vehicle is unable to be driven because he cannot determine what speed he is traveling. the current and failure mileages were 130,000. | |||
| 12/31/2007 | 56000 | ||
| Tl*the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet silverado 1500. the contact noticed that the instrument panel gauges malfunction and display inaccurate readings. the dealer replaced the oil semi-unit. immediately after the repair, the failure recurred. the vehicle was taken back to the dealer and they stated that the instrument cluster needed to be replaced at the cost of over $500. the manufacturer did not assist. the vehicle has not been repaired. the failure mileage was 56,000 and current mileage was 107,000. | |||
| 11/21/2008 | 90000 | ||
| Tl -the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet surburban 1500. he states that while driving the whole instrument panel stop working.pulled over shut the vehicle off and then the instrument worked. the dealer has not been contacted yet there are plenty complaints about this component on the vehicle. the failure mileage 90000 and current was 91000. | |||
| 03/01/2007 | 70000 | 1 | |
| The dash instrument cluster panel on my 2003 chevy silverado went out. none of my gauges a functional. not even the gas gauge. i'm afraid if i run out of gas in heavy traffic, there could be a serious injury. i got a letter from gm, they say its a known problem, but wont recall the part. they only fix it for you if you are under 70,000. mine went out at 70,000 so they will not recall or repair. if its a known problem, it should be recalled. please help me & probably many others get this recalled. *tr | |||
| 12/01/2007 | 75000 | 1 | |
| Speedometer / tachometer intermittent failures - wrong speeds shown. *tr | |||
| 01/03/2006 | 63000 | 1 | |
| I have a 1500 chevy, silverado. i was notified by ?? because the dealership i purchased the vehicle from has closed. the recall stated a problem with the instrument panel cluster. but, because we had more than 70,000 miles it was not covered. we had to pay over $300.00. we were not notified in a timely manner and should be reimbursed. in 2006 when the odometer and the temp gauges was sticking we did not have 70,000 miles. the air bag light is still stuck since 2006. *tr | |||
| 03/26/2007 | 53000 | 4 | 06/13/2003 |
| When operating turn signals intermittently turns on both signals, so other drivers can't tell what direction i'm turning or changing lanes nearly causing accidents. also had this problem corrected approximate year ago at joe panian chev dealership and problem started again about week ago. *jb | |||
| 11/30/2006 | 1 | ||
| 2003 chevy silverado, 56,8000 miles. speedometer was tacking at 50 mph. is now working backwards from 140 mph going only as far as 80 mph. called dealer, said no recall. said it would cost $600 to replace bundle. just went through many of the same complaints and i believe gm should step up! *nm | |||
| 11/29/2006 | 47750 | 4 | 11/29/2003 |
| The speedometer on my 03 chevrolet silverado randomly sticks. right now it is stuck at 80 mph and the truck is stationary and is not even started. this causes my speed to display wrong and i must use simple arithmetic to figure out how fast i'm going. however, at this point, i can only use that arithmetic to determine up to 40 mph as my speedometer only measures up to 120. after that, i don't know how fast i'm going. this is the fourth time this has happened -- it seems to eventually fix itself only to happen again. in checking internet chat rooms, this seems to be a common occurrence for chevy/gm vehicles in that production year. why has this been allowed to continue without a recall? my car is due for inspection. i can only hope that i get the speedometer back to 0 to have this inspection done as i don't have time to get the repair done nor do i feel i should have to spend a dime on something that is obviously a manufacturing problem. please do your job and issue a recall. otherwise, it's back to buying foreign vehicles! *nm | |||
| 02/10/2006 | 38000 | 100 | 10/25/2005 |
| I was driving down the road and started slowing down. while i was slowing down my speedometer wouldn't show my speed it just stuck at 60 mph. when i went to speed up the speedometer would speed up also speedometer would read 65 when really i was only going 5 mph. pulled the truck over and shut the engine down the restarted it until the speedometer was at 0 mph. then pulled back on the hwy, while speeding up to the traffic the speedometer would read 0 mph. took the truck to the dealer i bought it from and they told me that they were having problems whit other trucks like mine. the mechanic hooked up a tester and told me he didn't see any problem. after leaving the dealership the speedometer worked perfectly, for about 3 days now since then it is a guessing game weather or not the speedometer is telling me the right speed or if it is wrong. so i have been using my gps for the past few moths. i have talked to other people about this problem and also to chevy. chevy has quoted me anywhere from 600-1000 dollars to fix this problem. and others i have talked to have stated that it has cost them about that much also. | |||
| 07/01/2006 | 41200 | 1 | |
| Tachometer and speedometer needles swept full range and engine lost all power while driving on a highway. if this happens in a intersection during a start or while yielding, i fear an accident. no repair has been done because the power came back. it has not happened again. *nm | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - BATTERY | |||
| 07/14/2006 | 19000 | 1 | 11/16/2002 |
| Dt*: the contact stated, on july 14, 2006 the battery failed and leaked sulfuric acid onto the garage floor. to repair the problem, the dealer replaced the battery. | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - IGNITION | |||
| 06/29/2007 | 126000 | 1 | 06/01/2003 |
| Tl*the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet silverado 1500. while the vehicle was parked and with the keys in the ignition, a passenger turned the keys one notch. the vehicle was shifted out of the park position, which caused it to roll forward. the passenger did not have his foot on the brake pedal at any point. the service manager at the dealer stated that the vehicle is able to do that for towing purposes. the current and failure mileages were 126,000. the consumer stated when purchasing the vehicle he was informed you would have to push on the brake in order to transmission out of brake position and was alarmed to find that his vehicle was the only vehicle that has the defect. the consumer stated would like the dangerous defect investigate it as it is unsafe for not only him but also children that could easily get into the vehicle and move the it. updated 08/24/07 *tr | |||
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM - WIRING - INTERIOR/UNDER DASH | |||
| 10/10/2007 | 31208 | 1 | 09/17/2002 |
| (1) hot humid weather was apparently too much for my vehicle air conditioner. (2) the air conditioner blower motor resistor failed in addition to the associated electrical wiring going to the resistor. (3) the parts that were replaced cost $51.62, and the labor to replace the parts cost $445.00. the failure occurred with just over 31,000 miles on the vehicle. this failure could have just as easily resulted in a fire within the dashboard assembly in the passenger compartment of the vehicle. *tr | |||