Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN | |||||
| 990730016A | 10/01/2002 | 990730016B | 10007838 | Diagnostic information for intermittent transmission downshift, slip, busy/cycling tcc or noisy cooling fan. *tt | 07/12/2004 |
| 01410 | 11/18/2003 | 10004214 | Poor performance from a stop in 2wd, auto or 4wd hi. 2003, 2003 cadillac ext also included. *tt | 11/21/2003 | |
| POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE | |||||
| 3300 | 3300A | 10013572 | 4wd models with noise, vibration on dry pavement. *eh | 04/21/2005 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| POWER TRAIN | |||
| 08/15/2003 | 65900 | ||
| Transmission: i believe the part is called the reverse drum in the transmission. the car would not reverse and had a difficult time shifting from 1rst to 2nd. the first transmission went out at 32,700 miles and replaced by gm (under warranty) with rebuilt transmission from factory per gm, for same problem, shifting and reverse. since car manufactured in 1997 this is it's third transmission and it has less than 66k miles on it and is used 99% of the time for open road trips only. when i had this problem again i was driving on an open highway (road trip). per repair shop mechanic: reverse drum was defective, cheaply built and constructed to fail. also, my vehicle transmission was the mechanic's 16th chevrolet transmission repair for the same problem on chevrolet vehicles in the last couple of years. he knew what the problem was when i explained what had happened re: noises, and how it drove, reverse etc... and he verified same by the transmission check and work performed. he saved the part for me, which i have in my possession. gm would not participate in any of the cost of repairs since i decided not to let them tear the transmission down @ $300.00 cost to me to determine the problem, and , if i decided i wanted someone else to do the work, they would have to come pick the broken down transmission and haul it away to work on it. in the event i would have the dealer do the work, then it would have cost me approx. $3,000.00 worst case scenario, and maybe gm would assist but not sure if they would help or not or at what level. since they repaired the first transmission and it went out at approx. 32k miles after that, i did not have a comfort level that they would do a good job or that it would be repaired. i was stuck on a road in the early evening with my elderly mother and my sister in the vehicle with me upon our return from a day and evening trip to ruidoso nm, located approx. 2.5 hours from my residence when the transmission went out. | |||
| 03/15/2000 | 38000 | ||
| Transmission started to shift real hard from 1st to 2nd and 2nd to 3rd gears after driving on highway for 30 minutes. drove this way for 3 years. had trans rebuilt june 2003 at 68k miles and went on road trip 900 miles and problems started while on my vacation trip. had to have the valvebody replaced at the cost of $400 while on vacation. i was told that was why my transmission burned up time. brakes started when the dealer replaced a leaking master cylinder. i brought it back for a spongy / low pedal and was told there was nothing wrong and there was nothing gm would do about it. still stuck with spongy / low pedal | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION | |||
| 08/13/2007 | 126000 | 1 | 01/01/2007 |
| Have a 1997 tahoe two door 4x4 with 126,000 miles... transmission housing cracked yesterday. upon investigation i see that chevrolet has known about this problem for over ten years and have yet to correct the problem. i am very disappointed with chevy. and their quality of workmanship. i hope something will be done about this for the american consumer. should have bought a toyota like my friends said ha ha. seriously, quality should come before profit!!!!. *jb | |||
| 01/11/2003 | 125000 | 1 | 06/15/1999 |
| Automatic transmission failure. extremely common to my 97 chevy tahoe. required complete rebuild and lots of money. i called probably a dozen transmission repair facilities and almost all said i was lucky i made it to so many miles before this happened as it is very common in this transmission. all say it comes from a structurally flawed in design piece in the trans that breaks and of course completely contaminates the trans with metal and destroys the majority of the remaining parts.*jb | |||
| 06/20/2004 | 97254 | 15 | |
| Normal driving conditions: light traffic, non-towing, non-four-wheel drive | |||
| 10/08/2004 | 228000 | 2 | 11/10/1997 |
| Noticed a humming vibration under acceleration. had transmission serviced but problem persisted. then while traveling at highway speed (70) with cruise control engaged the vehicle suddenly lost power and rpms jumped way up. vehicle was then towed to a local transmission shop where it was found that the transmission cases was cracked. the crack occured due to the u-joint breaking. the u-joint could have been repaired for under $100 but now to fix the truck will cost $1700. bad design in my opinion.*ak | |||
| 09/12/2004 | 95000 | 1 | 04/05/2004 |
| My 1997 chevrolet tahoe transmission just failed. have no 2nd, 4th or reverse gears, always worked perfect until now. after a web search found out this problem is happening very much. sun gear shell breaking on 4l60e transmissions. there is a big defect and gm has done nothing to fix the problems to all the gm owners. seems they cut back a little much on quality control this time and don't seem to care about it from what i have seen. you probably heard about it before. please help us get this problem recalled. i have not had any repairs done yet. keep hearing $2000 to $2500 t0 fix this $40 part. dealers want to replace transmission with new one just of this porblem. does it seem right to you?*ak | |||
| 03/01/2004 | 95000 | ||
| At about 95,000 miles the service engine light comes on intermiittenly after the truck has been driven 20 to 30 miles, after coming to a stop, the auto transmission shifts from 1st to second so hard, it feels like it is going to come out of the truck. once the truck is put in park and turned off, it is good again until it has been running for 20 to 30 miles. upon doing some online reseach, calling a dealer and local mechanic, i have fount that it can be one of three things: 1) a sticking shift valve 2) accumulator piston or 3) a servo. no one can tell what it is without tearing the transmission apart. i have also found this is all too commom a problem for this transmission. should be a recall, wiilll keep me from ever buying another gm product. *ak | |||
| 04/28/2004 | 50000 | 8 | 12/31/1996 |
| The failures initiated back in june (27th) 2001. an hour on the nys thruway from buffalo going towards penn stateline. the transmission blew, throwing fluids everywhere. towed to continental transmission. paid for the transmission to be replaced. within the end of the 1 year warranty, the transission began slipping and bumping after 2nd gear before going into 3rd. this would occur after the truck was warmed up and following thruway driving. once you exited the thruway, came to a stop; it started immediatelyand consistently. seeing as i drove the thruway everyday, the problem occurred everyday. took tahoe back to continental transmission. they initally didn't see anything wrong and asked that we advise in the future if it got worse. we took it back and forth, losing use of the vehical for weeks at a time. finally, in jan 2004, the tranny just stopped altogether and we had to tow to continental. the truck supposedly had another tranny replacememt, as well as replacement of the computer. once again, we were without the truck for 4+ weeks. we picked it up and the the next day, fluid all over the garage floor (of a newly built home!). took it back, another week went by. picked it up, within another month, tranny was not kicking into 3rd...again. took the tahoe back to continental, supposedly all new parts were put into the tahoe. yesterday, same problem, tranny not kicking into 3rd, when it tries, the rpm skyrocket to 6000 and you don't accelerate. brought it back to continental this morning. they called to tell me that they don't know what to do. they can't get us a new tranny, maybe a remanufactured tranny, but they will let me know after they contact the dealer. am i the only owner of a 1997 chevy tahoe that has experienced these extensive defects with a gm automatic transmission? this is a travesty! please followup with continental transmission, their number is 716-828-1121, ask for pat, the owner. he is just as frustrated over this as i am! | |||
| 03/03/2004 | 1 | ||
| Proud owners of 1997 tahoe. in the past year we have: replaced rear axle seals twice, replaced the fuel pump and filter, replaced the 4x4 motor, repaired the radiator,replaced 4x4 actuator, replaced fuel injector (third time), replaced the upper intake gasket, had the transfer case rebuilt, replaced the alternator twice, replaced the manifold gasket and a fuel nozzle. car has had recurring problem of coolant disappearing from reserve tank while no leaks could be found. when this happens and level gets low the vehicle will shift very hard from first to second almost jumping when you hit ten mph. when you stop and add coolant this stops. the last time it happened the engine light came on. the leak has finally been located in a very small hose but now i'm being told that the transmission is going out quickly and must be replaced. great vehicle!*ak | |||
| 06/05/2003 | 1 | ||
| The brakes abs system activates at every stop when the car downshifts from 2nd to 1st gear and when parking. speed sensors have been replaced twice at dealership and still a problem. *la | |||
| 32000 | 1 | ||
| While driving at highway speed consumer heard a grinding noise. the oil and rpm needles started fluctuating back and front . also, when this occurred consumer pulled over to investigate. when vehicle was put into reverse it failed to go backwards, hesitated, then jerked into first gear. prior this incident,transmission was replaced for this same issue.*ak | |||
| 04/11/2003 | 1 | ||
| The automatic transmission failed. *jb | |||
| 01/18/2003 | 65600 | 1 | 11/09/1997 |
| After driving 30 miles at highway speed, i stopped to exit the highway. when i began to turn left, i heard a loud clank in the rear of the vehicle. i continued for about 5 more miles and parked the vehicle. after allowing the vehicle to rest for approx. 8 hours, i backed the vehicle out and began driving home. the drive was approx. 30 miles at 75-80 mph. iafter stopping to exit the highway, the transmission made a loud whinning noies as though it was slipping, the engine reved to about 3000rpm befor ethe transmission would shift. this happen ever time i excellerated from a stop or from slow coasting (3 more times in 6 miles). when i arrived home, i checked the fluid level, it was fine and there was no discoloration of the oil or any abnormal smell. when i attempted to back the vehicle, it would not go into reverse, i would drive forward, but the slipping continued when it was road tested by the repair shop. i loaded the vehicle on a trailer and trailered it to a repair shop. the following was found to have failed. the sunshell failed causing debris to be circulated through the transmission. the reverse gear did not function anymore, the torque converter was contaminated with debris and had to be replaced as it could not be cleaned locally. sprage and numerous gears and bands were damaged as a result. total cost of repair with labor and tax....$2453.17. there was no warning or condition that lead up to the failure. the vehicle only has 65,600 miles on it. pretty sad performance for a tranmission designed for this type vehicle. | |||
| 07/17/2002 | 1 | 06/01/2099 | |
| Engine starving, engine check light on. had fuel injectors cleaned in august 2001. this time #6 fuel injector failure. car is not old, not abused and many items failing ie: parts of transmission. in the past year have had many major repaires.*ak | |||
| 07/19/2002 | 4 | ||
| Vehicle will not go in reverse, it jerks and changes over slowly and grinds. transmission has failed for the fourth time . dealer has been putting in new transmissions. transmission seems to fail every 15,000 miles. dealer was notified. *ak *yh | |||
| 06/13/2001 | 1 | 03/01/2000 | |
| After driving for 20 to 25 miles then coming to a stop. when you take off again car slams into gear from 1st to 2nd. we currently have $1,100. in service bills and still have not been able to have the problem fixed. in doing research found many other gmc owners have the exact same problem. we feel this should be investigated and hopefully recalled as a factory defect.*ak | |||
| The drives seat bolts i believe are broken/gears get stuck in park constantly/right side head gasket had to be replaced due to massive leak of coolant/sound system makes whinnin gnoise on rear speakers and cd is inoperative/defective*ak | |||
| 02/13/2002 | |||
| While putting vehicle in park rear end fell apart. gears broke and axle released. vehicle started to roll backward and could not be stopped. dealer contacted. please add vin. *ak | |||
| 01/02/2002 | |||
| While driving at 65 mph, and without warning, vehicle started to lose speed. rpms went higher than normal. all gears, except 1st and 2nd, failed to work. please provide further information.*ak | |||
| 06/10/2000 | 1 | 10/01/1997 | |
| Transmissions problems common on chevrolet tahoes 1996-1998. *ak | |||
| 10 | 07/01/2001 | ||
| While driving on the interstate at 65 mph rpm went up to 3000 and the vehicle started to slow down,pulled to the side of the road you could smell something that was burnt i made it to a garage had it checked out i was told that the converter was burnt it got hot and blew trans fluid out the overflow and that at the least the converter would need replaced. *ak | |||
| 08/17/2001 | 10/01/2000 | ||
| No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak | |||
| 06/04/2001 | 1 | 01/01/2001 | |
| No summary listed for above vehicles. *ak | |||
| 07/21/2000 | 3 | 10/01/1997 | |
| While driving transmission began to slip and engine check light came on vehicle slowed down in highway traffic had to coast to nearest service station and had vehicle towed to dealership was told that transmission needed to be replaced. also, fuel pump had failed simultaneously since incident fuel pump has been replaced 3 times and counting.*ak | |||
| 11/01/2000 | |||
| Consumer slowed down at a light, and when trying to go vehicle started to jolt/ and made a loud noise. contacted dealer, and dealer wanted to replace transmission.*ak | |||
| 01/01/2001 | 1 | 05/01/1997 | |
| Suddendly and without warning driver heard a loud bang, after driving a few hundred more feet the vehicle would not shift into second gear or into reverse, vehicle towed to dealership for transmission failure. *cj | |||
| 01/01/2001 | 1 | 05/01/1997 | |
| Failure of sunshell and 2-4 band assembly. *ak | |||
| 01/01/1999 | 1 | 07/01/1998 | |
| No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak | |||
| 10/20/2000 | 1 | 01/01/1997 | |
| Transmission failure, no foward or reverse, with no previous warning.*ak | |||
| 05/17/1997 | 1 | 11/01/1996 | |
| The abs system would kick in for no reason and didn't matter what the road surface was. the vehicle would pull excesively to the crown of the road, if you took your hands off the sterring wheel, you would end up in a ditch in less than two seconds. the cruise control would work when it wanted to, same as the horn. the brakes would pulsate. it went through one of the front pads every ten thousand miles; the other three padshad over 50% left. the transmission would shift way to early from first to second; causing the vehicle to alomost quit accelerating because of the lack of power. | |||
| While traveling notice vehicle shifting hard with noise. dealer has repair three times, but problem returns. please provide further information.*ak | |||
| 06/01/1999 | 4 | 09/01/1997 | |
| Reported clunking noises for the past year, on our 2nd transmission is 2 1/2 mos. *ak | |||
| 11/18/1998 | 1 | 11/28/1996 | |
| Transmission--replaced. | |||
| 01/13/1999 | |||
| When putting vehicle into neutral the vehicle will be in drive, and when putting it in reverse it will be in neutral. when putting the vehicle in park, the vehicle will be in drive.the rpm meter works, and the consumer can see when shifting while driving. *ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - GEAR POSITION INDICATION (PRNDL) | |||
| 12/25/1997 | |||
| While vehicle was in motion, the gear shift hit by passenger and went completey back to park. this caused the rear differential to lock up and driver lost control of vehicle. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION - PARK/NEUTRAL START SWITCH | |||
| 07/12/2002 | 11/01/2097 | ||
| On or about 7/6/02, my wife was loading our three children into the tahoe (which was parked and running with the ac on due to the heat). after putting the three year old and the four year old in the car, but before securing them in the car seats, the 3 year old went to the drivers seat. he then shifted the car from park to drive without depressing the brake (he is 2 feet tall and can not reach them). the car moved forward striking a retaining wall, causing minor cosmetic damage. fortunatly, no one in or out of the car was injured, although this could have easily not been the case. i am very concerned about this, and would like it looked into. i have been able to duplicate this event (shifting without depressing the brake) every time i have attempted it since the crash incident. i reported the incident to tom, the service manager at tate chevy in annapolis, md, who advised that he was aware of this happening once or twice a year with chevy vehicles. he advised me to have the car checked during our next routine service, or to bring it in to specifically have this problem looked at. i plan to do this as soon as possible, but certainly would prefer chevyrolet to comp the cost of this safety repair. thank you for your help.*ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AXLE ASSEMBLY | |||
| 02/13/2002 | |||
| While putting vehicle in park rear end fell apart. gears broke and axle released. vehicle started to roll backward and could not be stopped. dealer contacted. please add vin. *ak | |||
| 01/03/2001 | 08/01/1998 | ||
| No summary listed for above vehicle. *ak | |||
| 09/14/2000 | 12 | 03/01/1997 | |
| Ongoing problem with slip yoke since vehicle was purchased, gm claims common characteristic but has no means of repair at current time(3 yrs now) claims that it is safe. today, the rear axle went out luckily i had just gotten off the freeway, and only going about 5 mph.pleade advise on any other cases. | |||
| 2 | 11/01/1997 | ||
| Abs brakes lock up when making a right turn. also replaced ring and pinion gear and front drive axle. | |||
| 07/09/1997 | 1 | ||
| Rear axle failed, due to overheating, causing grinding noise. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AXLE ASSEMBLY - AXLE SHAFT - SEAL | |||
| 12/20/2000 | 0 | ||
| Consumer had seen vehicle leaking oil. took vehicle for repairs and technician found out that oil leakage was coming from rear axle, and could not be sealed. *ak | |||
| 09/11/1997 | |||
| While driving the truck and come to a stop sign the truck wouldn't stop, got out to check the truck and noticed that the rear axle fluids were leaking on the brakes, and the vehicle had to be towed to a mechanic. *ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - AXLE HUBS | |||
| 04/20/1999 | 51000 | 10 | 06/12/1997 |
| Abs system comes on at low speeds without brake pressed-vehicle then is hard to stop and pulls to the right. i have replaced all pads and calipers.machine bled system and replaced left frt speed sensor. took to dealer and was told that the front hubs are exposed and most of the time tear apart and cleaning solves. am upset the dealer charged a diagnostic fee for something he could have told me on the phone!*ak | |||
| 11/01/1999 | |||
| 4-wheel drive: on dry conditions and at slow speeds, abs braking system activated, causing extended stopping distance which may result in a crash. dealer said the problem was due to the front hubs wearing out which caused the abs brakes to malfunction. *ak | |||
| POWER TRAIN - CLUTCH ASSEMBLY - PEDAL/LINKAGE | |||
| 09/01/1998 | 3 | 12/01/1996 | |
| On three occasions the transmission experienced linkage slipping. *yc | |||
| POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE | |||
| 09/14/2000 | 12 | 03/01/1997 | |
| Ongoing problem with slip yoke since vehicle was purchased, gm claims common characteristic but has no means of repair at current time(3 yrs now) claims that it is safe. today, the rear axle went out luckily i had just gotten off the freeway, and only going about 5 mph.pleade advise on any other cases. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE - CONSTANT VELOCITY JOINT | |||
| 06/01/1997 | |||
| U joints break, causing the muffler to crack and break which may result in loss of control. dealer replaced 2 sets of u joints and 4 exhausts. dlr cannot determine the problem. please provide further information. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE - DIFFERENTIAL UNIT | |||
| 11/11/2000 | 1 | 04/01/2000 | |
| Rear differential/spider gears came apart during normal driving, parts shot out of transmission case, major rupture, has happenned on numerous other tahoes, astro vans, s10s, etc, that all have the same rear end | |||
| 12/27/1998 | 11/01/1996 | ||
| The turn signals quit working at the dealer and they never did pin-point it. the 4wd system engaged on it's own at 75 mph and the trans, cut out resulting in no power and then it returned but the 4wd system was gone. the barkes failed and then started working ok. the parking brake was in need of adjustment every 2000 miles. the abs would kick in for no reason. | |||
| 1 | 02/01/1997 | ||
| Differential made grinding noise when the vehicle came to a stop. | |||
| 2 | 11/01/1997 | ||
| Abs brakes lock up when making a right turn. also replaced ring and pinion gear and front drive axle. | |||
| 07/04/1997 | 1 | ||
| Pinion gear seal failed, causing oil leak. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - DRIVELINE - DRIVESHAFT | |||
| 03/16/1999 | 1 | 01/01/1997 | |
| Front brake components and u-joints failed at less than 50,000 miles | |||
| 2 | 05/07/1997 | ||
| Intermittently when driving at various speeds steering wheel will turn to the left, sharp and fast. dealer has not been notified. the slip yolk went dry, causing vehicle to lurch forward after stopping. *slc | |||
| 1 | 02/07/1997 | ||
| Vehicle experiencing noise in driveshaft, not able to be rectified. *yc | |||
| Rear wheels shake and shimmy. dealer has replaced driveshaft twice which did not correct problem. also, dealer packed driveshaft with grease which also did not correct problem. | |||
| 04/11/1997 | 3 | 04/01/1997 | |
| Drive shaft clinks. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - MANUAL TRANSMISSION | |||
| 1 | |||
| Consumer experienced premature transmission failure. *jb | |||
| 06/01/1997 | |||
| The stick shift comes out of gear with brake pedal depressed. two year old child was able to vehicle in gear almost running over another child. | |||
| POWER TRAIN - TRANSFER CASE (4-WHEEL DRIVE) | |||
| 01/29/2003 | |||
| While driving and without warning the 4-wheel drive would intermittently shut on and off. dealer notified. ts | |||