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I did a quick Google search and up popped TSB 08-05-25-004. This TSB seems to cover every GM model made in the past 5 years from Vettes to GMC trucks to Caddys. Wonderful GM. So you have a faulty wiring setup on the ABS sensors on all of your late model cars and trucks and you don't do anything about except release a TSB. And shame on the NHTSA for not mandating a recall because the ABS system isn't considered a mandatory safety system. This issue is listed with the NHTSA BTW.
Google that TSB...you'll see.
Now I am going to have to spend hours of my time tracking down phantom wiring issues with a broken leg and spend money on a replacement harness more than likely. Thanks for the kick in the nards again GM!
One of my previous GM vehicles had ABS problems. After $3,000+ in troubleshooting and wire tracing repairs, the problem still wasn't resolved. My local mechanic hinted that if ABS cannot be fixed for "reasonable" repair cost, then perhaps its fuse should be pulled. I pulled its fused (drove it like a non-ABS / non-TCS vehicle - like my many previous 60-70-early 80 vehicles) and it ran great afterwards. Actually, that GM vehicle suddenly had better brakes then its factory "electronic over loaded" braking system. Even on bad winter roads.
Not suggesting you should pull its ABS fuse (liability thing) but.... Worked great for my previous GM vehicle....
BTW: Did I mention that some GM vehicles are base configuration "without" ABS system? For example, 2007 GM Saturn IONs and the 2003 Buick Rendezvous. With no-ABS in its base configuration, it makes me believe that ABS is "optional" - not mandatory in any vehicle. Something to think about as well...
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Was wondering - do any of you with the Relay (or sister) who have the steel wheel/plastic wheel cover have a lot of noise as the wheel turns and rubs the plastic cover?
Mine has always made noise and I've heard rumors Saturn addressed this with a shim or washer that holds the cover 1/4" from the wheel and keeps the edges from rubbing. Local dealer says he's heard nothing about it. Any suggestions?
111K miles
Relay 3 AWD
We were running about 75mph on the interstate and started up a steep, but short, hill. The van kicked down from OD to 2nd gear, rev'd to around 5500rpm and kicked off my cruise control and kicked ON my check engine light.
In addition, I just had an alignment/rotate/balance completed. The shop suggested the both front wheel bearings needed changed. I haven't noticed any grinding or any other noise coming from the front hubs. Is this a common issue with these vehicles?
The only thing I had to do is replace the factory tires (they were absolute junk) and change all of the fluids at the 30,000 mile point. I went in for an oil change and the service manager showed me samples of my other fluids and it was time. So, thats it. Fluids and tires, plus little things like windshield whiper blades. I do have the AM radio problem, which makes it hard to listen to the road side warning messages (AM 1610 or 530), but I listen to XM radio most of the time so I live with it, and I did have to replace the battery once at the 36,000 mile point, but, I think it is more in the line of being a consumable.
Oh, and I did put in upgraded headlight bulbs. I read another post where one gentleman stated that the H11 bulbs were too dim and he put in H9's, which required a mod. I agree. I found some H11 bulbs on the internet by Nokya that list their output at 7,000 Kelvin (Blue/Violet) vs. the stock H11's that list 2,500 Kelvin (warm yellow/white). The Nokya's are much brighter, although they are also blue in hue. They are called Artic Blue bulbs.
Mark
I really do think they're the best-looking vans out there, but mine has had issues. I will say that the dealer has gone out of his way to assist, even after warranty, so the cost of ownership has been pretty low. Of course, since they're discontinued, the resale value is awfully low. But I plan on holding on to mine. You always hear how the Honda Odyssey is such a wonderful minivan, but look at their forum in vans. Trans and other issues all over the place.
I am from GM Customer Service. Can you please email me with more information about your situation so I can look into it further? You can get my email by clicking on my name. Thank you,
Mariah GM Customer Service
We bought our new Uplander LT 3.5 liter in May 2005, so it's now 5 years old. In terms of repairs, the cost of ownership has been low. Outside of warranty, I've spent a total of $86 on non-maintenance or normal wear items, the repairs were to replace a release handle on the third row seat and to replace two stabilizer links in the front. We have 93K miles on the van and it's still mechanically very reliable.
It did spend quite a bit of time in the shop the first year as GM worked out the typical first year bugs-new alternator for flickering lights, door molding, rattle in airbag fixed, horn springs replaced to make it easier to engage. If you are looking at an '05 model, then confirm that these things have been addressed before you buy. Also a recall to re torque a bolt in the engine. These were all comon complaints for the 2005 model year and I classify all of these as design issues that were rectified by GM, free of charge. I'm not saying that I enjoyed the hassle, but given that I paid 23,800 for a vehicle that listed for 30,500 it was worth it. I got the discount through GM card points and a 2k rebate. Our van is Silver with DVD system, XM, remote start, and power sliding doors.
What do I like about it? Favorite features are the DVD player and wireless headphones that have worked perfectly from day 1, and with 4 kids that's a miracle. The sliding doors have worked flawlessly and are also a must with lots of kids. I also like the rear backup sensors and narrowness of the van. It's plenty big inside and easier to park than others. I think it has a soft ride with reasonable handling and is a great interstate cruiser. Mileage averages 20 around town and 24 on the road. I've always liked the look of the wheels as well and the rear 115v plug is a useful feature at times to charge batteries. The dash and front materials are also upscale and nicely designed. I also like the fact that it has a timing chain, so no $1,000 expense at 70K like the Honda's. GM has also resolved the intake gasket issue on these motors, so no leaks to worry about and still no oil burning on ours. I also like that our vehicle does not have Stabilitrack or traction control. There have been several complaints about those systems on this forum, I'd look for an '05 model without those systems.
What do I not like about it? For 99% of the hauling, the fold-down seats are fine, but they are really heavy and difficult to remove, should you need to completely remove them. However, there is a ton of room if you remove them all. For daily driving the power is ok, but under a heavy load (vacation) the engine struggles a bit to stay at high speed on the iinterstate, mainly under hilly terraine. In 2006, the bigger engine was and option, then standard in '07 and '08. I also don't like the fact that the fuse box has to be removed to get the battery out. I messed it up, which cost me a trip to the dealer. Be careful when you are replacing the battery and don't take the fuse box completely apart, just remove it. It's also a bummer that curtain airbags in the rear seats are not offered.
In summary, after 5 years and 93K miles I would definitely make the same purchase. With no engine, major electrical or transmission problems at all, we plan to keep it another couple of years. And why not? Look at all of the issues on the Honda site, not $200 items, but 4,000 transmissions. Sure, those vans may have some nice features, but for my money this van was and still is a no-brainer since we planned to drive it long-term. We're getting ready to confidently drive it on a summer vaction of about 1,300 miles. I'll report back when we return. A/C is still cold and it will need to be where we're going (along with a gas mask). I'm sorry that GM is out of the van business. People in my situation will be buying a new one soon from someone.
Bought new July 1, 2005. Currently has 81K miles.
It had the usual teething issues (side moldings needing reapplied a few times; dimming headlights) but those were corrected under warranty. I haven't really had many sliding door issues, like others. I keep the gold contacts clean (using rubber eraser or sometimes an SOS pad) and the door works fine 99% of the time.
I have had two steering racks (both warranty), both front wheel hubs/bearings/speed sensors (left one under warranty), rear wiper motor (out of pocket), cruise control (out of pocket), broken CHMSL resulting in water leak in rear compartment (out of pocket), sway bar links (three times; last time out of pocket), wears tires, pads, and rotors prematurely; driver's seat has multiple tears on the vinyl, not even on a seam; trans pressure control solenoid replaced under warranty due to harsh shifts when hot; horn quit working and was replaced under warranty; now, fuel gauge doesn't work and I'm told by the dealer (whom I like) that this is a $750 repair.
All this in under five years' ownership from new. It was built in June '05 at Doraville.
This is unacceptable stuff. I was told in the brochure I was buying a quality vehicle. I think no one would say this is normal stuff.
If wondering, my local transmission specialists recommends the install of ATF aux transmission cooler - rated for attached 3,500 lbs trailer in all GM mini-vans. Especially if one lives in hilly &.or hot temp region (like I do). And if one does trailering (even light weight utility trailers), do install the ATF aux transmission cooler rated for attached 5,000 lbs trailer (even if only pulling a max of 3.500 lbs). This LPD (Low Pressure Drop) ATF aux cooler will keep the vehicle's ATF cooler - even if van is only used as typical "soccer parent" mini-van. If wondering, I installed ATF LPD Hayden brand aux cooler in my wife's GM mini-van. The van has been running great every since. For me, well worth installing the Hayden cooler @ http://www.transmissioncoolers.us/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Product_Cod- e=1678&Category_Code=hayden-transaver-cooler&Product_Count=2
Regarding your van's transmission shifting problem, may I suggest you read all info within: http://www.tripleedgeperformance.com/4T65E_Transmission_Info.php
If answer cannot be found within this URL, do contact Dave@tripleedgeperformance.com @ 260-437-8912. I know he can answer your question and if the transmission needs a re-build.
Good luck!!!
thanks.
Even with the HD cooling option and Dex6, heat is their worst enemy.
I've heard the door chime comes through the front stereo speakers and am considering disconnecting the speakers so I won't hear the chime. Does anyone know what other warning signals I will be missing if I do this? Since the backup warning sensor is the same tone, I know I'll lose that. And, I think I'll have to cancel my Onstar subscription since I think that just goes through the front speakers.
Is there a problem and thats why its making the noise? Or is this just the door ajar chime? I look forward to your response.
Christina
GM Customer Service
It's really frustrating that Buick has not provided a solution to the dealers to make their repair last. My preschool age daughter gets scared when she has to hear the door chimes.
As I said before, my Buick is still under the GM Bumper to Bumper extended warranty I purchased for the van - until December 2011. Is there anything Buick can do for me to get my door issues resolved? I don't feel like I have been made whole since I paid $2,353.84 extra for an extended warranty and I know the sliding door issues will still be here after the warranty expires. It frightens my preschool age child to have to drvie around town hearing a warning chime. I know I can go back to the dealer for a repair, but I am not confident the repair will last.
6/26/2007 Passenger sliding door would not close – chimed & reversed. Dealer adjusted sliding door cable.
7/6/2007 Passenger sliding door does not close and reverses. Dealer indicated contacts were not aligned. R-R contacts to clean and resecure and also realign door.
2/29/2008 Sliding door would not close under power – had to use close manually. Dealer adjusted front and rear of driver's side slider, cleaned contacts, adjusted cables.
12/29/2009 Driver-side sliding door does not fully close. Chime sounds continuously when driving. Dealer re-programmed sliding door modules. Also, replaced pivot on driver-side sliding door at owner's expense due to corrosion.
6/10/2010 Driver-side sliding door chimes when all doors are closed. Dealer indicated that they got chime to stop and door was working properly.
6/16/2010 – 8/4/2010 Driver side sliding door does not close causing chime. Took to different dealer. After multiple returns to dealer, code was registered indicating driver's side sliding door lock actuator faulty. Replaced driver's side sliding door lock actuator. After driver's side door was repaired the passenger sliding door would not fully close. The door lock actuator on the passenger sliding door was also replaced and re-learned.
10/20/2010 Passenger sliding door would not close. Dealer replaced door lock harness and contact.
10/29/2010 Driver side sliding door chimed constantly with doors closed. Dealer ordered door lock harness and contact and replaced slider door wiring and plunger on 10/11/2010.
A week after the 10/29/2010 repair, the passenger sliding door would not close under power and reversed and started chiming again. Since it's such a hassle getting the car to the dealer, we opted to stop using the passenger sliding door. I tried using the door today 2/5/2011 and when it closed, the door chimed constantly when I put the car into gear. It it took 3 times of opening and closing the door in order to get the chime to stop. The driver slide sliding door also had a couple of times today where it reversed upon closing, but I was able to get it to close after a couple of tries. So we are back to not using the passenger sliding door.
Many thanks for posting a thread about GM mini-van power sliding door problems. Back in early 2009, I surfed the net for a new GM mini-van and stumbled across many threads about "bad power sliding doors". Its definitely a "bad pattern" across many different GM mini-van forums. When I bought our new 2009 Montana van, I purposely bought it "without" power sliding doors. And, I purposely bought it "without" electronic load levelling system either (but that's a topic for a different thread).
Today, my family has a 2009 GM mini-van with "manual" sliding doors. They work and work great. Never had a problem with them. Although, I wished they locked open when van in one a hill - like the dodge mini-van doors do. With this in mind, I need to thank you and many others - for validating my choice in purposely picking manual sliding doors on my GM mini-van.
With this in mind, would you convert your current "power sliding doors" mini-van to manual sliding door system? If so, will GM do this for you - for free? Sounds drastic but from 1st hand experience, the manual sliding doors work great. Not a single problem with them - on my van...
Hope this helps - some how....
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Sounds like it might be a good option if possible, but don't know about what Buick would offer to do. Sounds like a good question to Christina of GM customer service with the "free" part of your suggestion being key to the proposal.
That being said, our Venture sliding doors stayed open when facing downhill and they have the exact same mechanism soooo...I took the "stopper" apart and found that all I had to do was bend the stop spring a little bit and now ours stay open on hills. The stop spring was a little different shape on the Venture - it had a bigger hump in it to keep the door open. Once I bent it and put the hump in the spring I got our Uplander's doors to stay open too.
I mentioned the doors to the dealer once and they told me that they're all like that, so I took matters into my own hands. It takes a while to get them right but once you go they're great!
Appreciate if you can take a digital picture of your van's modified manual sliding door stopper. Please post the picture on www.photobuck.com and link to this site, If I can see a "visual" of your van's modification, I will clone the fix on my wife's van. Thus, reducing the risk of hurting others with our van's door sliding shut (when parked on a small incline) as well. I tried to send you my email id (to obtain your future digital picture) but your profile shows your email id as private. Thus, hoping you can link to a future digital picture instead.
As a side note... I wonder why GM removed this safety feature on the Uplander / Montana product line. If it worked on their previous Venture van and works on other mini-vans (like Dodge line), I wonder why they removed this safety feature from their newer mini-van line? Very strange...
Many thanks for posting this tip (and future picture - to give us a visual). Great work!!! The less people (espeically our kids) exiting the rear seats who are getting accidentally hurt, the better.
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Your response sounded like GM Customer Service might be interested in helping with my problem, but I haven't heard anything after I answered your questions. I look forward to your response.
I looked at the manual sliding door on my wife's 09 Montana van. As you know, its connected to the van's chassis via 3 connect points. One at the top / front door, one in the middle / rear door and one at the bottom / front door. Just wondering where you modified your doors - to allow it to remain open on a slight incline. re: Top, bottom or rear of the door. Viewing a digital picture of your door's mod would be great as well. re: Visual picture to allow me to better understand how to modify my wife's manual sliding doors - to reduce the future risk of hurting my kids again.
Many thanks.
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Sorry for the late reply, been quite a week!
Anyway....
I'll post a picture later today of the door stop for you. In the meantime:
The stop is located in the channel at the bottom of the door, towards the rear. I'll mark it on the picture and give you better details.
442
Sorry to hear you had a "bad week" - last week. Hopefully, this week is going much better for you. When "up for some air", appreciate your future picture. I'm sure maddog appreciates your future diginal picture as well.
thanks.
Here's the link to the pic: link title
I noted where the spring is as well as the only bolt that holds the thing on. I couldn't take it apart for the pic so I'll do my best to explain the picture.
The sliding door is completely open in the pic (open is to the left in this pic), you can see the roller to the left of the photo. The stop only has 1 bolt and is kind of a sandwich of parts. Open and close the door a couple of times and watch where the INSIDE roller contacts the spring on the INSIDE. What should happen is that when the inside roller reaches a certain point, it should roll over the hump in the spring and be caught between the end and the hump in the spring, keeping the door open unless you give it a good pull. Open and close it a few times and watch the spring...even when it doesn't work, you'll see the spring flex a bit as the inside roller goes past the hump.
BTW - Don't go looking for a coil spring in there, you won't find one...its a "wave spring". Basically a piece of spring steel about 4 inches long and maybe 1/2" wide. The outside piece is NOT the spring, its in the middle of the sandwich.
The problem is...the hump in the spring is too small to hold back the door. So your goal is to bend the spring to make the hump bigger!
To do this you need to remove the stop. There's only 1 bolt holding it on. Look and the whole thing carefully before you take the bolt out as one you take it out, the whole thing will likely fall apart - if it doesn't, wiggle it a little bit. To remove it, close the door till the roller is out of the stop assembly and then remove the bolt. The assembly will come apart in 2 pieces: the piece in the photo and the spring behind it. Once you get the spring out, put just the spring in a vise and use pliers and increase the bend in the hump. (You may come up with a better way, that's just how I did it) Then you put it back together and you're done. Be patient, it may take you a couple of tries to get it just right and its a pain to get back in. That;s why its important to take a good look at it BEFORE you take it apart.
I hope my explanation as well as the accompanying pic help it make sense. Remember...when you're putting it back together, make sure that you have the door 1/2 way closed, just like when you took it apart. Now that you know where the stop is and what it looks like, I think you'll be able to look at it and figure out how to fix it. Good luck - feel free to post questions. :shades:
Many thanks for providing a picture and in text format, describing the process to appply this mod - to other 2007+ uplander / montana vans with manual sliding doors.
Your statement of "the hump in the spring is too small to hold back the door. So your goal is to bend the spring to make the hump bigger!" is RIGHT ON.
Tonight, I removed the protection cover plate and removed the spring (which is a flat small ruler shape piece of steel with a small hump in its middle). As instructed, I used my bench vice and hand held vice grips and created a larger hump (like 1/3 moon shape) in the spring. Re-installed both parts (spring and protection cover) and it works great. The larger hump holds the door open - when van is parked on a slight incline. WOW!!! Such a simple fix. Actually, it's such a simple fix, anyone with a 10mm or 3/8" box socket with 2" extension could implement themselves.
Many, many thanks for advising how I can apply this mod - to our 2009 Montana's manual sliding doors. And my wife thanks you as well. As she loads / unloads our disabled child, she'll no longer get accidentally nailed by our van's manual sliding doors (that have very poor factory door stop settings).
We owe both of you for this factory improvement mod...
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All the best!
Should that screw be there?
Could the screw or the rotars be causing the vibration while driving?
Has anyone else had this vibration that seems incurable?
Please give me feedback.
In my experience, vibration at higher driving speeds has usually been from tires that are out of balance, especially on front wheel drive vehicles.
Also, sometimes tires become scalloped (uneven tread wear around the circumference) from lack of proper rotation. The only fix for this is to replace the scalloped tires and then rotate as shown in your manual.
The screw that you refer to is not the source of your problem...you actually don't even have to replace it when you do the brake job. The lug nuts hold the rotor in place, the little screw is likely there to hold things together while it goes down the assembly line.
Bad Rotors only typically cause vibration when you are braking. you don't mention mileage, but I'd be suspect that a strut was bad and your wheel is bouncing..
As as suggestion, do get the tires inspected / re-balanced. If tires are ok, then get its brake rotors detailed inspected as well...
Good luck...
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That was about 6 months ago. Then about 2 weeks ago the cable was hanging out again, but after hitting the door close button a few times it went back into the door. But this time when you push the button to open/close the door you just hear one small click sound and then nothing happens. So I have a manual door and I would actually be fine with that if it weren't for the infernal door chime. For a week or so after we saw the cable, I had the door closed and it was fine, we just used the driver side door. However this week, my daughter accidentally opened the bad door and now it is a constant ding, ding, ding....
The door chime continues even after the engine is off and the key is removed from the ignition. It will stop if you open the bad door though. So at least I figured that out so it didn't drain my battery while I try to find a solution. Also of note, there is no message in the dash regarding the door being open, just the dinging of the chime.
I took it to the dealer again and they charged me $100 just to tell me that it had a bad module that was going to cost another $500 to fix. I can't afford to keep throwing money at the car. I don't mind the manual door if I can just stop the door chime. I don't even mind losing the warning chimes for all the sensors if it will just SHUT UP. HELP!!!
I would like to set up a case with GM Customer Assistance. In order to start the process I will need your complete contact information (including full name, mailing address and phone number), VIN, current mileage and the involved dealership sent to me in an email. Also, could you please provide a brief description of the problems you are experiencing as well as your screen name used on the forum?
You can get my email by clicking on gmcustsvc.
Thank you,
Caron, GM Customer Service
I read somewhere that the pins may not be hitting the sensor in the middle and that could be causing the problem so you need to just move the pins down or the sensor up to fix it i look into that on Monday.
Let me know if you've found any way to fix this issue, please. I have little kids and it's hard for them to shut the manual door so we really need the power door minus the infernal chiming.
Were you planning on taking the vehicle back to the dealership? Please keep me posted when the issue has been taken care of.
Thank you,
Caron, GM Customer Service