Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| UNKNOWN OR OTHER | |||
| 10/25/2012 | 72997 | ||
| The upper tailgate spoiler flew off. this is not an added accessory.this is a heavy body component. there was no impact that caused it. fortunately, to my knowledge, no one behind me was injured.i had no idea it was missing until i discovered it days later. i just went out one morning and noticed it was gone. i have read on line where others have had the same problem. it is dangerous and i feel it needs to be corrected by the manufacturer. the same problem exist on the chevy equinox and perhaps more vehicles from the manufacturer. | |||
| 10/22/2012 | 57000 | 1 | |
| Blender door broken, hvac, heating & cooling only blows cold air, no defrost!!! *tr | |||
| 10/22/2012 | 57000 | ||
| Blendor door broken, hvac, heating & cooling only blows cold air, no defrost!!! | |||
| 11/20/2010 | 65000 | ||
| The heater and the defroster stopped working. i found that there are a lot of people experiencing this problem. this is a safety issue during the winter time because the defrost does not work. everyone online says the repair is around $1200.00 because of how hard it is to get to the part. please issue a recall! | |||
| 10/11/2011 | 43000 | ||
| This is an issue with the actuator that moves the flap in the heater/ac case. this causes the heat not to be released into the car, just cold air. this issue is all over the internet with serveral people having the same issue. i believe that gm needs to see this issue as a fault of the part. the repair for this unit requires complete removal of the dash board. i have gotten quotes from 900-1500 to repair this part and they do not say that its not going to happen again. | |||
| 04/01/2012 | 56000 | ||
| The acuator that operates the heater blend door - overextends and breaks the heater blend door. this causes the heater to not work at all. the actuators are defective and the heater doors are defective because they break due to a manufacturers defect. if the heat doesn't work the windows won't defrost so this is a visiblity hazard. i also listed it as an electrical and unknow hazard. there are thousands of complaints out on the internet for the 2006 pontiac torrents & chevy equinox's and all of them have the same problem and most of them are around the 50,000 mile mark. gm will not pay for it if it is past the warranty because they say there isn't a recall for this. these 2 parts should be recalled because it is a hazard to drive your vehicle if you can't defrost your windows. it is approximately $900-$1200 to fix because they need to take apart the entire dash board to get at the actuator and the blend door. gm should stand behind this and fix this so that people can drive safely and be able to see out their windows. | |||
| 03/22/2012 | 95000 | ||
| On 2 occasions my car died on me in the middle of the road while im driving with my newborn. first time i got gas. half mile down the road car dies.they say its fuel pump. spent 3 days at shop on third day with no work done car starts runs fine for 2 weeks with mutiple gas fill ups in between. three days ago i get gas drive 1/2 block park car, half hour later get in car start driving, try to put windows down but they wont come down. im now 1/2 mile into my drive on busy road with my baby in the car and i barely made it off the road before being slammed into by a semi. i spent an hour in 80 degree weather in my car with my baby with no way to put windows down. i called a tow truck. by the time the tow got there my car started. i had it towed anyway for fear of having this happen again. tow it to a dealership nothing wrong with it. so this is twice now they have found nothing. i bought this car when i had my child because i was driving a 92 toyota and i just felt i needed something newer and more reliable but appearantly i should have stuck with my toyota it never in the time i had it broke down and it had 192,000 miles on it. if this isnt a safety issue i dont know what it is. does it seriously have to be a fatal accident before something is done about this because it just about happened 3 days ago to an infant and myself. please address this issue in a timley manor. | |||
| 11/08/2010 | |||
| The blend door for heater is broken and only cold air is allowed to flow through. this has been documented to break in many torrents. the door is designed to only move 60 degrees but the actuator is designed to move 180 degrees causing the door to break. when i called to talk to several body shops to discuss this issue, they explained to me that this happens in many torrents and gm will not recall the part and it is my responsibility to get it fixed which could cost me between $1000 and $1500 for labor and parts. | |||
| 12/23/2011 | |||
| The heat in my truck stopped working in the middle of winter. it was determined that the plastic connection shaft on the air temperature blend door was broken which is a common problem for the 2006 pontiac torrent. | |||
| 10/30/2010 | |||
| The heater stopped working and cold air blows through the vents. | |||
| 10/19/2011 | 82000 | ||
| Heater blend door is broken - confirmed by two mechanics. from reading online, this appears to be a very common (and expensive) problem in the 2006 torrent and 2006 chevy equinox due to a design flaw. the dealer quoted us $1100-$1200 to repair. reading online, i am not confident that this problem will not reoccur. living in ny, we cannot function without a working heater and defroster. we are very disappointed that gm has not issued a recall for this apparently common defect. | |||
| 11/01/2011 | |||
| I own a 06 pontiac torrent and just recently the heater and defroster quit working. after having it fixed and paying 200 and driving it 5 miles, i woke up the next day to go to work to have no heat or defrost again to have it diagnosed again and be told that the heater blend door was broken and it would cost around $600 to be fixed. after much research i have found that there are thousands of torrent owners with the same problem, as well as chevrolet equinox owners. this is a serious visibility issue, with no way to clear our windows of fog and frost in these colder months. although i have not heard of any deaths or injuries resulting from this obvious design flaw, i believe it is just a matter of time. please help!!!! | |||
| 11/13/2011 | 80000 | ||
| Failure of the hvac blend door (verified by gm dealership after paying $135) has made defrosting the forward windshield in cold temperatures impossible. this is a safety issue because of the limiting of visibility and in violation of standard 103 (http://www.nhtsa.gov/cars/rules/import/fmvss/index.html#sn103) from the u.s. department of transportation. gm has admitted a design flaw in the hvac blend door actuator in that a dealer replacement uses an updated hvac blend door actuator which more accurately limits the rotational travel. the failure of the hvac blend door occurs because the original faultily designed hvac blend door actuator travels too far causing structural stress on the blend door which eventually leads to premature failure of the blend door. this results in vent air not passing over the heat core, therefore making defrosting of the windshield not possible in cold conditions. | |||
| 11/01/2011 | |||
| I own a 06 pontiac torrent and just recently the heater and defroster quit working. after having it fixed and paying 200 and driving it 5 miles, i woke up the next day to go to work to have no heat or defrost again to have it diagnosed again and be told that the heater blend door was broken and it would cost around $600 to be fixed. after much research i have found that there are thousands of torrent owners with the same problem, as well as chevrolet equinox owners. this is a serious visibility issue, with no way to clear our windows of fog and frost in these colder months. although i have not heard of any deaths or injuries resulting from this obvious design flaw, i believe it is just a matter of time. please help!!!! | |||
| 11/13/2011 | 80000 | ||
| Failure of the hvac blend door (verified by gm dealership after paying $135) has made defrosting the forward windshield in cold temperatures impossible. this is a safety issue because of the limiting of visibility and in violation of standard 103 (http://www.nhtsa.gov/cars/rules/import/fmvss/index.html#sn103) from the u.s. department of transportation. gm has admitted a design flaw in the hvac blend door actuator in that a dealer replacement uses an updated hvac blend door actuator which more accurately limits the rotational travel. the failure of the hvac blend door occurs because the original faultily designed hvac blend door actuator travels too far causing structural stress on the blend door which eventually leads to premature failure of the blend door. this results in vent air not passing over the heat core, therefore making defrosting of the windshield not possible in cold conditions. | |||
| 11/01/2011 | |||
| I own a 06 pontiac torrent and just recently the heater and defroster quit working. after having it fixed and paying 200 and driving it 5 miles, i woke up the next day to go to work to have no heat or defrost again to have it diagnosed again and be told that the heater blend door was broken and it would cost around $600 to be fixed. after much research i have found that there are thousands of torrent owners with the same problem, as well as chevrolet equinox owners. this is a serious visibility issue, with no way to clear our windows of fog and frost in these colder months. although i have not heard of any deaths or injuries resulting from this obvious design flaw, i believe it is just a matter of time. please help!!!! | |||
| 11/13/2011 | 80000 | ||
| Failure of the hvac blend door (verified by gm dealership after paying $135) has made defrosting the forward windshield in cold temperatures impossible. this is a safety issue because of the limiting of visibility and in violation of standard 103 (http://www.nhtsa.gov/cars/rules/import/fmvss/index.html#sn103) from the u.s. department of transportation. gm has admitted a design flaw in the hvac blend door actuator in that a dealer replacement uses an updated hvac blend door actuator which more accurately limits the rotational travel. the failure of the hvac blend door occurs because the original faultily designed hvac blend door actuator travels too far causing structural stress on the blend door which eventually leads to premature failure of the blend door. this results in vent air not passing over the heat core, therefore making defrosting of the windshield not possible in cold conditions. | |||
| 11/01/2011 | |||
| I own a 06 pontiac torrent and just recently the heater and defroster quit working. after having it fixed and paying 200 and driving it 5 miles, i woke up the next day to go to work to have no heat or defrost again to have it diagnosed again and be told that the heater blend door was broken and it would cost around $600 to be fixed. after much research i have found that there are thousands of torrent owners with the same problem, as well as chevrolet equinox owners. this is a serious visibility issue, with no way to clear our windows of fog and frost in these colder months. although i have not heard of any deaths or injuries resulting from this obvious design flaw, i believe it is just a matter of time. please help!!!! | |||
| 11/13/2011 | 80000 | ||
| Failure of the hvac blend door (verified by gm dealership after paying $135) has made defrosting the forward windshield in cold temperatures impossible. this is a safety issue because of the limiting of visibility and in violation of standard 103 (http://www.nhtsa.gov/cars/rules/import/fmvss/index.html#sn103) from the u.s. department of transportation. gm has admitted a design flaw in the hvac blend door actuator in that a dealer replacement uses an updated hvac blend door actuator which more accurately limits the rotational travel. the failure of the hvac blend door occurs because the original faultily designed hvac blend door actuator travels too far causing structural stress on the blend door which eventually leads to premature failure of the blend door. this results in vent air not passing over the heat core, therefore making defrosting of the windshield not possible in cold conditions. | |||
| 10/20/2010 | 80000 | ||
| I own a 06 pontiac torrent and just recently the heater and defroster quit working. after having it diagnosed i was told that the heater blend door was broken and it would cost around $1000 to be fixed. after much research i have found that there are thousands of torrent owners with the same problem, as well as chevrolet equinox owners. this is a serious visibility issue, with no way to clear our windows of fog and frost in these colder months. although i have not heard of any deaths or injuries resulting from this obvious design flaw, i believe it is just a matter of time. please help!!!! | |||
| 10/07/2011 | 70000 | ||
| No heat in vehicle. only blowing cold air. happened suddenly and without warning. this is causing me to be unable to defrost my windshield at all. it frosts up and obstructs my view while i'm driving my car. so far everything i've had done has not corrected the problem. had thermostat replaced, heater core checked several times, coolant flushed. still no heat. several diagnostic assessments were done on my vehicle and all three came up with same diagnostic. i was told that something was wrong with the blend box and it would cost $1000 or more to be repaired. it can not be driven without the heater working because you can not defrost the windshield which is a safety issue. i realize the government now owns gm but this needs to be recalled and fixed or maybe a class action suit of some kind needs to be filed there are hundreds of people with this exact problem. | |||
| 10/20/2010 | 80000 | ||
| I own a 06 pontiac torrent and just recently the heater and defroster quit working. after having it diagnosed i was told that the heater blend door was broken and it would cost around $1000 to be fixed. after much research i have found that there are thousands of torrent owners with the same problem, as well as chevrolet equinox owners. this is a serious visibility issue, with no way to clear our windows of fog and frost in these colder months. although i have not heard of any deaths or injuries resulting from this obvious design flaw, i believe it is just a matter of time. please help!!!! | |||
| 10/07/2011 | 70000 | ||
| No heat in vehicle. only blowing cold air. happened suddenly and without warning. this is causing me to be unable to defrost my windshield at all. it frosts up and obstructs my view while i'm driving my car. so far everything i've had done has not corrected the problem. had thermostat replaced, heater core checked several times, coolant flushed. still no heat. several diagnostic assessments were done on my vehicle and all three came up with same diagnostic. i was told that something was wrong with the blend box and it would cost $1000 or more to be repaired. it can not be driven without the heater working because you can not defrost the windshield which is a safety issue. i realize the government now owns gm but this needs to be recalled and fixed or maybe a class action suit of some kind needs to be filed there are hundreds of people with this exact problem. | |||
| 10/20/2010 | 80000 | ||
| I own a 06 pontiac torrent and just recently the heater and defroster quit working. after having it diagnosed i was told that the heater blend door was broken and it would cost around $1000 to be fixed. after much research i have found that there are thousands of torrent owners with the same problem, as well as chevrolet equinox owners. this is a serious visibility issue, with no way to clear our windows of fog and frost in these colder months. although i have not heard of any deaths or injuries resulting from this obvious design flaw, i believe it is just a matter of time. please help!!!! | |||
| 10/07/2011 | 70000 | ||
| No heat in vehicle. only blowing cold air. happened suddenly and without warning. this is causing me to be unable to defrost my windshield at all. it frosts up and obstructs my view while i'm driving my car. so far everything i've had done has not corrected the problem. had thermostat replaced, heater core checked several times, coolant flushed. still no heat. several diagnostic assessments were done on my vehicle and all three came up with same diagnostic. i was told that something was wrong with the blend box and it would cost $1000 or more to be repaired. it can not be driven without the heater working because you can not defrost the windshield which is a safety issue. i realize the government now owns gm but this needs to be recalled and fixed or maybe a class action suit of some kind needs to be filed there are hundreds of people with this exact problem. | |||
| 10/28/2011 | 144000 | ||
| All the blowers are working but no heat will come out. continues to blow cold air no matter what control is selected. looks like the the blend door is broken, which is causing it to not flip over to the heat side. | |||
| 10/07/2011 | 70000 | ||
| No heat in vehicle. only blowing cold air. happened suddenly and without warning. this is causing me to be unable to defrost my windshield at all. it frosts up and obstructs my view while i'm driving my car. so far everything i've had done has not corrected the problem. had thermostat replaced, heater core checked several times, coolant flushed. still no heat. several diagnostic assessments were done on my vehicle and all three came up with same diagnostic. i was told that something was wrong with the blend box and it would cost $1000 or more to be repaired. it can not be driven without the heater working because you can not defrost the windshield which is a safety issue. i realize the government now owns gm but this needs to be recalled and fixed or maybe a class action suit of some kind needs to be filed there are hundreds of people with this exact problem. | |||
| 10/28/2011 | 144000 | ||
| All the blowers are working but no heat will come out. continues to blow cold air no matter what control is selected. looks like the the blend door is broken, which is causing it to not flip over to the heat side. | |||
| 10/07/2011 | 70000 | ||
| No heat in vehicle. only blowing cold air. happened suddenly and without warning. this is causing me to be unable to defrost my windshield at all. it frosts up and obstructs my view while i'm driving my car. so far everything i've had done has not corrected the problem. had thermostat replaced, heater core checked several times, coolant flushed. still no heat. several diagnostic assessments were done on my vehicle and all three came up with same diagnostic. i was told that something was wrong with the blend box and it would cost $1000 or more to be repaired. it can not be driven without the heater working because you can not defrost the windshield which is a safety issue. i realize the government now owns gm but this needs to be recalled and fixed or maybe a class action suit of some kind needs to be filed there are hundreds of people with this exact problem. | |||
| 10/28/2011 | 144000 | ||
| All the blowers are working but no heat will come out. continues to blow cold air no matter what control is selected. looks like the the blend door is broken, which is causing it to not flip over to the heat side. | |||
| 03/15/2011 | |||
| No heat; temperature control does not change from cold to hot. believe temperature blend door to be the problem, as this seems to be what the dealers (checked with 3 local gm dealers) all point to as a common problem on this model. this will affect visibility (no or poor defrosting) as well as comfort, both of which are safety hazards when facing the coming wisconsin winter. strongly believe this to be a manufacturing defect that should be recalled, as it involves a relatively low cost part but extensive labor to dismantle the dashboard and replace it. estimates have ranged from $800 to $1200 for the job. please take action on this, as it has been a safety and financial concern for me and my family, as well as numerous other pontiac torrent and chevrolet equinox owners. thank you. | |||
| 09/05/2011 | 62000 | ||
| No heat in 2006 pontiac torrent. broken valve door. hundreds of other people are having this problem. however, since the actually maintenance is so costly, gm has chosen to not recall it. ( http://m.topix.com/forum/autos/chevrolet-equinox/tnmhvcte76u9hgth4/p19 ) | |||
| 09/20/2010 | 66500 | ||
| Experienced no heat; fan worked. no heat means you can't defrost or de-fog your windshield. took to dealer for repair. from invoice -- temp actuator out of parameter. broken temp door...temp door does not move...defective temp actuator. does not respond....r&r temp actuator. found end of temp door broken off. temp actuator out of parameter due to broken door. need temp door....re-placed temp door and temp actuator as needed. cost including labor & parts ~$1550. general motors has not issued a recall to fix this safety issue gm has not even issued a technical service bulletin (tsb) about this problem to advise dealership service departments about the how's and why's of this malfunction. | |||
| 04/02/2011 | 23785 | ||
| Heat went out with out warning. upon researching online found it's a common problem and should be recalled. the actuator was the cause of the broken shaft on the blend door. the actuator had rotated too far, beyond its limits, and overpowered the plastic shaft on the door. this actuator isn't just a simple motor. as you know, an electric motor spins when power is applied. the actuator is a small electric motor connected to a gear-reduction unit, with a position-sensing device that is monitored by the body control module (bcm), which is a computer that controls a bunch of stuff not related to the engine or powertrain. when the position sensor indicates that the actuator is at the end of its range of travel, the bcm shuts off power to the motor. the output shaft on the actuator should never be able to reach the degree of rotation that is shown above. why did that happen? did the bcm malfunction and apply power too long? i doubt it... because electronic circuits are less likely to malfunction than electro-mechanical devices. i'm going to have to assume that the actuator is faulty... that the position-sensing device (probably just a variable resistor) developed an open circuit, or an internal short circuit, or something. this kind of problem bugs me (and a lot of other people) because general motors has not issued a recall to fix what can be a safety problem... no heat means you can't defrost or de-fog your windshield. what's worse... gm has not even issued a technical service bulletin (tsb) about this problem to advise dealership service departments about the how's and why's of this malfunction. so i'm a bit concerned that the new actuator might malfunction just like the first one. if gm had issued a tsb, i'd be assured that the engineers had solved the faulty actuator problem, and that all the replacement parts had been revised and improved, and the heat would work just fine for years to come. but i don't have that confidence. recall needed. $915 to fix it. | |||
| 02/22/2011 | 106000 | ||
| 2006 pontiac torrent - heat stopped working without warning - only cold air blowing from heater and defroster/defogger. brought car in for service and had coolant, heater core, fuses and thermostat checked - all fine. told the problem is the blend door inside the dash and it will cost approximately $1000 in labor since the entire dashboard needs to be removed in order for the part to be replaced. this is a safety issue since without heat, the defroster does not clear the windshield or driver side and passenger side windows, affecting visability. after reading numerous complaints about this same issue i really think a recall is in order here. this is not a normal wear and tear issue, and is obviously a design flaw and faulty parts, please help. | |||
| 09/01/2010 | |||
| The heater stopped working on my 2006 pontiac torrent, cold air comes out of the vents however regardless of the setting hot/warm air does not come out. i live in a region of the country where it is essential to be able to use the defrost and the heater. we contacted the dealer and were told that it would take upwards of $1000 dollars to fix and 6-8 hours of labor, the actual part is under $100. the warranty doesn't cover it once the vehicle has gone over the mileage allotted by the manufacturer however i don't feel that this should be a factor for the heater as the number of miles driven does not affect the heating/cooling system. i don't feel that i should be responsible for replacing the part and paying for labor especially since this seems to be a common defect in both the torrent and the equinox. the amount alone is also something that many americans don't have, | |||
| 10/14/2010 | 42340 | ||
| Started car on a 20 degree morning, and discovered the heater would only blow cold air. no heat no defrost. after contacting our gm dealers service dept., we discovered there is an electric motor that controls the (air temperature blend door) that frequently malfunctions and opens the blend door beyond it's limits and breaks the plastic pins. the door then no longer opens,and of course no heat. the car cannot be driven in colder weather until this is repaired to the tune of $1100.00 to $1500.00. the entire dashboard and all components have to be removed to access this $55.00 part. gm should be responsible for this defective actuator (electric motor) and the labor to replace it as it has occurred many times (you can find many complaints about this on the internet) and it is a hazard. | |||
| 09/09/2010 | 43994 | ||
| I had visited the local dealer,chevrolet castriota in port richey florida for the second time in 18 months again.the battery was replaced at my cost ,not under factory warranty 24 months after purchasing the vehicle new and again today 18 months later.looks like a pattern of these batteries lasting 1- 2 years. my acdelco battery on my pontiac torrent has been replaced 3 times in 4 years. i had to pay for the second battery out of pocket since the original battery only carries limited warranty....even though the battery is now covered ,the labour each incident is not. so each time im in its costing money...what a racket....theres always have been history of problems with the acdelco batteries...i had similiar problems with acdelco over 10 years ago with other vehicles but expected them to be resolved by know.but we are guaranteed to visit the dealer and pay out of pocket for a product that carries 5 year warranty but lasts 1-2 years with labour charges.....,amazing....weres the class action guru's when you need them..heee | |||
| 03/14/2010 | |||
| The was no warning leading up the the incident, which can be a serious saftey hazard in cold weather. the 2006 pontiac torrent heating & a/c actuator and blend door has broken causing only cold air to flow through the vehicle. there are many service warning notifications that have published on this issue. the only answer that i have received from pontiac is that it is very labor intensive to fix (8-9 hours labor). this part is a major saftey hazard since there is no warning signs that will indicate that these parts are defective. i was driving the vehicle on a colder evening, when the heat stopped working, causing the windshield to fog and obstruct my vision of the roadway. thus nearly causing an accident. i had a service center look into the problem and notified me of the multitude of service warnings about this very issue. | |||