Consumer Complaints


Fail datemilesoccurencesPurchase date
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES
06/15/200390000
 1999 chevrolet suburban - locks on all doors freeze up and won't lock manually or with power lock button. this affects all doors including rear doors. feel this is a safety issue due to fact the locks can't be locked from driver's seat - potential problem for someone to enter vehicle while driving or stopped. also a theft issue. vehicle only has 116,000 miles. we also have a 2009 chevy impala having the same issues. only one lock on this car locks with the power lock. rest have to be manually locked/unlocked. seems gm has a problem with their locking mechanisms. lots of time is spent manually locking and unlocking doors and remembering to always check all doors. very aggravating for this is to be happening on such an expensive vehicle. no quality here!
06/27/201057000
 I purchased my 1999 suburban in march 2010 with 56,000 original miles. it currently has 60,000 original miles. the steering wheel will randomly jerk/pull when going around a curve. it does not happen every time but it happens often enough that it is a concern of mine. after a thorough check of fluids and steering components there is nothing wrong with the vehicle. it does not matter if i am driving at a lower speed or a higher speed just that i am going around a bend or curve in the road. i have grazed a curb once. i also have lots of problems with the locks/latches and doors opening.
05/03/200578000
 Door latches on the passenger side are malfunctioning. it is difficult to close the door, it has to be slammed or the latch on the side of the door has to be manually altered (clicking it open while pulling on the door handle). also passengers sometimes have to roll down the window to open the door from the outside in order to get out, which can be a potential safety hazard in case of an accident. the rear right passenger door continuously comes off the hinges and i have to hammer the bolts in, in order to close the door.
01/18/20101
 Driver side and passenger side door handles on inside break or fall off hinge mechanism within the door. this poses a big safety issue if there was a need to get out of the car quickly. now, we roll the windows down on both sides to get out of the vehicle. we have paid to have the driver side fixed before including buying a new inside door handle. same issue again, the door handles just hang there on the inside of the doors. *tr
10/13/200501512/19/2001
 The problem started with the passenger front door the lock or closing mechanism didn't seem to engage the door would just fly open when making a turn. then the inside handle broke and the window works only sporadically. now the driver side door is having similar problems the door does not close completely and the inside door handle broke. fortunately nobody has fallen out of the car . i also have at least 3 friends who own 1999 suburbans and are having similar problems with their doors. *nm
05/05/20011
 Broken interior door handles on my 1999 chevrolet suburban. (front driver and passenger) also, the electric door locking on all doors does not work. *la
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES - DOORS - LATCH
05/14/2007150000
 Tl*the contact owns a 1999 chevrolet suburban. the contact stated that the passenger inside handle and driver side handle did not work and he had to roll down the window to open the door from the outside. the contact called the dealership and was told that there was no recall for the vehicle. the vin was unavailable when the complaint was filed. the vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. the failure mileage was approximately 150,000. the current mileage was approximately 200,000.
11/02/2007210/12/2006
 Latch/locks on inside of driver door were tough to open one day and then the next day the entire handle snapped off when trying to exit. now that i've been using the outside handle to exit from the inside and outside of the car, the outside handle is breaking off too. *tr
06/01/2001400005
 Tl* the contact owns a 1999 chevrolet suburban. the contact stated that the security indicator light illuminated intermittently and causes the vehicle not to start. when this failure occurred the vehicle had to be towed. the dealer replaced the ignition cylinder , and the driver's side door lock, but the failure persisted. the contact has the repair invoice. the current mileage is 120,000, and failure mileage was 40,000. *ak
11/01/2004720002003/26/1999
 Left and right rear door locks are often immobilized in the locked position, preventing the doors from being opened from either inside or outside the vehicle. it is not related to temperature. the left rear door failed first, and now can rarely be opened. the driver's door is also showing signs of failure. this is a design and a manufacturing defect. it's a manufacturing defect because the doors are failing in large numbers, and it's a design defect because the doors can't be unlocked manually when the power locks fail. the dealer said the door actuators and latch assemblies must be replaced. chevrolet customer assistance said the vehicle is out of warranty, and the problem is not a safety defect, so i am responsible for the repair, approximately $300 per door. this clearly is a safety defect since it is probable that up to six passengers would have to climb over seats to exit the vehicle in an emergency.*ak
10/01/2004980001
 The plastic door handles broke from the inside compartment. the only way to exit the vehicle is by rolling down the windows, and lifting the handle from the outside. dealer was aware of this problem, and stated because the part was plastic it broke. *ak if the brakes get wet from either standing water or excessive rain, the abs brakes become extremely sensitive to pedal application. the brakes will lock up. the cause has not been determined at this time. please provide details
11/23/200489000210/27/2004
 Driver's door electric door lock actuator failed and left door completely disabled. unable to manually release, key fob non-functional, door key would not unlock the door. locksmith was forced to disconnect the actuator through window channel by forcing attached rod out of actuator. the passengers side door lock also became inoperable (locking portion) when the drivers door failed. factory service shop tested both actuators and has determined they are defective. i understand that parts fail but something should be done to insure that if the actuator fails it reverts to the unlocked position.*ak
10/25/2002250001009/25/2002
 1999 chevrolet suburban. as of 4/28/04 with only 47k miles, a/c compressor defective & dealer will not replace in spite of several attempts to repair before warranty expired, as soon as 3 months after purchase in october of 2002. replaced brakes 3 times at our expense. dealer (bob neill pontiac in winston-salem, nc refused to repair under warranty), steering problems, attempted repair, again at our expense. replaced door locks and window mechanism's at our cost. total piece of junk. will never buy from bob neill pontiac in winston-salem, nc again & will never buy another gm product. just bought entire fleet (6 trucks) from chevy. dealer n kernersville, nc). waiting with baited breath for the entire lot to break down. completely disgusted with gm.
05/01/2001512/31/1999
 My vehicle is equipped with power locks on all doors. the power locks have failed on all of the doors (passenger and rear doors). the problem seems worse in hot weather, however this past winter (2002), 3 out of the 5 locks did not work. i feel this is a safety risk to the occupants of the vehicle, especially during an emergency situation. i have spoken with several owners of the same vehicle who also have the same problem with their automatic locks. please, do something about this situation. thank you.*ak
04/15/200209/09/2001
 This complaint is for the electrical system for my vehicle. my vehicle is equipped with power door locks and 4 of the 5 door locks failed to operate automatically over a 3 week time span. the part that failed is called an actuator, which moves the door locks up and down. my total bill was $900 and each part costs $100. the local parts dealers and auto dealers have said there is a design flaw in the original equipment and the new actuators are being sold as fast as they arrive. i have spoken with gm recently and so far no service bulletins have been filed. i believe there is an inherent safety risk with this type of problem and i would like to see one posted. please research this and i thank you for your time. *nlm
05/27/20032
 The driver and passenger side rear door latches did not work properly. the dealer fixed it on two occasions but the problem recurred. *nlm...*ak
03/01/2001
 Door can not close properly. consumer was driving when door came open. contacted dealer.*ak mr. mccarthy is a mediator for the better business bureau, a hearing was held in regards to complaint and the door latches were found to be unsafe, this problem happened with 3 out of 4 doors, mr. mccarthy ordered vehicle off the road immediately. *slc
06/13/20000
 Vehicle was made without a child safety lock. this defect enabled consumer's child to unlatch seatbelt/open rear driver's side door, and fall out. child sustained minor injuries. *ak
 When opening the door the latch locks so that the door cannot be shut. owner has to take a screw driver to flip the latch down in order to close the door. dealer has seen vehicle. *ak
 To trigger the locking mechenisim on the driver's door consumer has to stick finger in the lock latch before entering or exiting the vehicle. dealer has been contacted. *ak
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES - HATCHBACK/LIFTGATE - LOCK
11/30/1999211/01/1999
 Three days after purchasing vehicle, and after using the lighter, power locks stopped working. rear hatch would not open nor would the lighter work. dealership was notified and the problem was fixed. it was supposedly a short in the wiring. approximately 1 month later the same problem occurred after the lighter was used, this will be the second attempt to repair the vehicle. *ak
LATCHES/LOCKS/LINKAGES - TAILGATE - LATCH
01/25/2004111/20/1999
 Rear tailgate latch not working. can't open tailgate at all. had been catching for a few months before becomming inoperable.*ak
04/28/2001102/01/1999
 The latch that keeps the right rear tailgate door open broke. this prevents the door from remaining open while you are adding or removing items from the trunk space. *ak