Pontiac Torrent door wiring harness problem

vice86vice86 Member Posts: 5
edited August 2016 in Pontiac
Anyone else experience this?....the wires that run from the door into the car that controls the windows, locks, side view and all that...a few of the wires actually came apart! Seems that a the whole harness was getting pinched as the door would be opened and closed until some of them actually broke apart. I soldered them back together and everything works fine now...but I've never seen that happen in any car before.

Started out with my lock not working...then my side view mirrors wouldn't go side to side, then a tweeter was out until I finally looked into it after the radio wouldn't turn off once you opened the door and wouldn't hear the warning chimes.

Comments

  • Canuck30Canuck30 Member Posts: 1
    We had that same thing with our '06. Our driver window stopped going up and down and they found that the wires were breaking like you described. They said the harness was installed too tightly. They replaced our whole harness for free. We were just glad it stopped working when the window was up!
  • vice86vice86 Member Posts: 5
    Dang...you got lucky then that it was under warranty...as for "installed too tightly"...that sounds like a problem from the factory that should be fixed if a lot of people are having the problem. My dad ended up ordering the harness BEFORE taking the door apart and realizing he could fix by himself....and getting stuck with a 195.00 harness that can't be refunded...D'OH.
  • wbechardwbechard Member Posts: 2
    I had this same problem, power window on the driver's side stopped working.

    I was under warranty and had the harness replaced on my 2007 Torrent.
  • caubreycaubrey Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2006 torrent and my door lock quit about a month ago, and now my power window quit. I read your tip about checking the wiring going onto the door and BINGO i had 3 wires completely broke and 2 more on their way. Reconnected them and everything came back.

    Should'nt this be a recalled item? it sure is a design flaw

    Cliff
  • jcherewykjcherewyk Member Posts: 2
    I also have a 2006 Pontiac Torrent, which has only had an oil pump require replacement (while still on warranty) to date and I have 103,000km, so it has been a great vehicle for me!

    My issue started the same as described above - driver side door lock and the radio wouldn't shut off when driver door was opened (what I thought was the driver door sensor). The kicker is that after these problems started in March of this year, I took it to the dealership for an inspection at which point they informed me that the driver door lock didn't work but didn't investigate as to why or explain that this could be a much bigger problem so as far as I knew it was just a simple inconvenience. Sure enough last week during -40 (celcius) weather, all my door locks and windows stopped working!

    I was very excited to find this post and to find that the problem was the same cause (snapped wires), unfortunately there was not enough give in the wire that we could fix it ourselves. So off to the dealership I went. Turns out that 8 wires were snapped completely, another 8 badly damaged and 2 fuses were blown, so they repaired it for a mere $504. I asked if the harness was installed to tightly but they of course said no, it was caused by opening the door in cold weather - I don't know, do people get sick days for their car? I don't think I'd be able to get away with that one - sorry boss, it's too cold for my car to come to work today!
  • tcsd26tcsd26 Member Posts: 1
    where exactly are the wires breaking?
  • jcherewykjcherewyk Member Posts: 2
    Sorry, this answer may be a little late for you! The wires are in between the door and the vehicle - there is a black accordian like conduit, slide it over to one side to expose the wires.
  • gb21914gb21914 Member Posts: 5
    Yeah, we ran into this item.

    $700 later, with a new wiring harness / labour we will be submitting a letter to GM requesting an answer as to how this would occur under regular conditions. Seems to me a door opening and closing would be something that they would account for in their engineering.

    This is the 3rd major item we have had with this vehicle in the past months...and we were less than enthused that this was not a warranty item.

    That being said...until this year it has been nothing less than stellar.

    Greg
  • coach03coach03 Member Posts: 1
    I am currently having issues with my door locks not working properly! I can unlock the driver's door with the key but once in the door lock button will not unlock any other doors! Also, once the vehicle is shut off and I open the door, the radio will not go off! And the interior light will not come on once the door is opened! What in the world could be the issue!? I am thinking the wiring harness in the door but my dealership says no way! But for 500.00 dollars they could possibly tell me the issue! Anyone havinig these same issues...and have you found the proper repair! I love this vehicle but hate the issues!
  • vice86vice86 Member Posts: 5
    Hey coach03...sounds like all the same stuff that happened with me. You could always take off your door trim and see if the wires are frayed. That's how I found out some of the wires were split. I eneded up ordered a new wire harness kit but never used it due to soldering the old ones..I don't have the Torrent anymore but still have the wire harness kit should you be interested in purchasing it off me if you find out that you need one. Still in the box never used. That was a waste of money since they wouldn't let me return it.
  • gmcustsvcgmcustsvc Member Posts: 4,252
    coach03,
    Thank you for taking the time to post your concerns. Can you please email me directly with your VIN, current mileage, and involved dealer? I would like to look into your concerns for you. I look forward to your email.
    Christina
    GM Customer Service
    SocialMedia@GM.com
  • yuleyule Member Posts: 1
    gmcustsvc,

    I have the same issue with my vehical, door lock doesn't work, door light doesn't work, now my window won't go up all the way all on the drivers side door.

    VIN 2CKDL73F166183726
    2006
    133,000 km

    I couldn't find your email directly.
    Thx
  • tedbj50tedbj50 Member Posts: 1
    Christina, me too. It just happened today. Driver's door power lock no longer actuates. Which wire do I need to splice? VIN: 2CKDL33F886053471, 2008, Sundance in Grand Ledge, MI. Approximately 47000 miles.
  • alexmartialexmarti Member Posts: 2
    :mad: My torrent is bucking between 45-50mph using my pedal,notice if i have my cruise contrl set to 60 and hit resume from the 25mph mark it will accelerate to 60 without bucking. Does anyone have any idea on possible causes?
  • gmcustsvcgmcustsvc Member Posts: 4,252
    Good morning yule,

    Our apologies - we're only able to assist United States drivers at this time. If you're writing from Canada, please contact GM of Canada at 800-263-3777 for further assistance (Hours: M-F 7:30am - 11:30pm, Sat 7:30am - 6:00 EST).

    All the best,
    Sarah
    GM Customer Service
  • gmcustsvcgmcustsvc Member Posts: 4,252
    Good morning tedbj50,

    Thank you for contacting us. We're unable to provide technical information like this as we're not certified mechanics, but if you had wanted to get this checked into at one of our dealerships we're available to help in that process. Please contact us at socialmedia@gm.com (include your name and contact information, the last 8 digits of your VIN, and a summary of the situation).

    Sarah, GM Customer Service
  • vancableguyvancableguy Member Posts: 1
    I'm probably a little late, came here trying to figure out my front door losing all power (locks and window). We had same problem with hesitating power. Changed all spark plug leads and it seemed to fix it (mostly). Was a pretty cheap fix considering I thought it was something with the fuel injection. This has got to be one if the worst designed vehicles I've ever owned!!
  • rspencer4rspencer4 Member Posts: 1
    This is happening to my 2008 Pontiac Torrent right now. Its funny how all of us experienced the same issues. My Drivers and front passengers door locks has to be unlocked/locked manually and once the car is off and locked the radio/DVD player does not shut off. I am concerned about the door locks mostly due to the safety issue. I have a case with GM Customer care and will take to the dealer August 1st. I would be nice if this was covered under warranty. My Case number is 71-1139088689.
  • gmcustsvcgmcustsvc Member Posts: 4,252
    Hi rspencer4,

    Glad to see that you're working with GM Customer Care for this issue. If you have any concerns about your case, or need us to contact your agent for you just let us know.

    Amber N.
    GM Customer Care
  • jkbaddleyjkbaddley Member Posts: 1

    Same issue, all my electronics stopped working. Called GM, they said that its not their problem. Anyway, I bought new wires, and are going to use butt connectors and heat shrinks and fix it myself. Here are some photos of my cars wires.

  • krystalelisekrystalelise Member Posts: 1

    Hi everyone. I have also been searching for a fix for the drivers side door window and lock/unlock switch. What exactly do I need to ask to have done to get these wires replaced?

    I also have had MANY other problems. I have gone to the dealership and paid for services that DIDN'T fix the issue.

    Other issues that I still have with my 2006 Pontiac Torrent iclude:

    -I have had to replace both catalytic converters for the Torrent, which I had done prior to the warranty expiring even though I was told they shouldn’t go bad so quickly
    -I have taken the Torrent to 3 different AC places on at least 6 different occasions and still have an issue with my AC. Unless I leave it on the highest fan setting, it stops blowing cold after about 5 minutes. No one can tell me what is wrong. They have replaced the fan, hoses and more. I took it to a dealership because I read on a blog that it could be fixed with a system recalibration. That didn’t work either but the dealership happily took my money.
    -My driver’s side window no longer works and after having the motor replaced because we were told that was the issue, it still does not work and they cannot seem to figure out what is wrong.
    -The lock/unlock switch on the driver’s side no longer works even after having it replaced.
    -I have had to rev the engine for about a year when starting it up in order for it to actually start. Otherwise it acts like it is going to start but immediately dies. Noone even knows what that is about except my check engine light just came on with a code of PO120.

    Has anyone else had these issues with their 2006 Pontiac Torrent?

    Thanks!

  • muchocarsmuchocars Member Posts: 1

    I also had this problem, first my driver's door lock did not work. I checked the switch, the relays in the instrument panel fuse box by swapping them, and they were all good. The door actuator for the door seemed unlikely, so I went to public info and found this post. Thanks, many of the wires under the rubber protective covering running from the door to the car body are cut in half or frayed. That is the issue. After reading this, I am going to splice them rather than buy a new wiring harness, which BTW will be difficult to install to the door lock actuator inside of the door anyway. The other harness locations would be simple for the windows, speakers, side mirror and door switch but that actuator is the reason the labor would cost so much to install it.

    In thanking you all for these posts, I submitted the following to the NHTSB, citing potential safety hazards due to the door not locking or unlocking when it should as the vehicle moves.

    Here is my complaint submission, which can also be found at
    http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/complaints/

    You can file your complaint at https://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/VehicleComplaint/index.xhtml

    The wiring harness between the body and the driver's door (and front passenger door) is too short, and subsequently stretches and frays and breaks the wires, resulting in failure of various door components including power door lock, power window, side mirror control, radio off when exiting vehicle after driving, door chime when key in ignition, door automatically locking when vehicle in drive position (safety hazard), door unlocking when in park position (exit vehicle safety hazard) and door stereo speakers. Since this is the least likely culprit when troubleshooting, it should become the first item when any door component fails on this vehicle. The passenger door has an identical issue, however, since the typical frequency of use of this door is much less, the issue occurs less frequently.

    There are numerous instances of this from hundreds of Pontiac Torrent owners, with pictures, on the Internet. This is how the problem solution is commonly found, the last thing one would think is bad wiring. Many owners of this vehicle had challenged GM to repair or recall, to no avail. GM social media bloggers often chimed in to contact GM, but when owners did so, nothing really happened regarding helping out owners with the issue nor the cost of repair. Many owners actually paid for or bought completely new wiring harnesses, which are very expensive for the part as well as expensive the in-door installation. Others spliced their own wires to effect a solution.

    This issue is on a 2006 Pontiac Torrent, however, it is possible that all years of that vehicle 2006-2009 as well as the similar Chevrolet Equinox 2005-2009 are all effected, since they all share many common components.

  • leeweber85leeweber85 Member Posts: 2

    7/28/14 - Same thing happening to me on a 2008 Torrent with 61,800 miles. My drivers side window would not roll down. I took off the door panel and was not getting any voltage to the motor. Did a quick google search and stumbled across this thread and identified the issue. Seems to be right around the 60k mark that everyone is having issues. 1 wire completely broken, and the rest are cracked with bare wire exposed. Seems very dangerous and a design flaw that should have been recalled. It was a cold winter, but this didn't happen until July and the weather is warm now. I store my vehicle in a heated garage during the winter. I'll be getting some crimps to reattach all the wires, but wish there was something I could do to prevent it from happening again. Thanks for everyone who chimed in ---saved me about $100 from having to purchase a new window motor. -Lee

  • ijfpijfp Member Posts: 2
    Same thing here. GM Dealer quoted $100 and two month wait just to look at it. The speaker and the rear view mirror motor where the cables that broke on mine and all the other cables look like they're about to go.


    Then again they also told me that it would cost $210 to do my headlight bulb "because the entire bumper has to come off" not true BTW which took me five minutes at a $20 bill plus I got to keep the second bulb in the package.


  • ijfpijfp Member Posts: 2
    edited December 2014
    Oh sorry I should've mentioned that it's a 2009 Pontiac torrent so this problem is not limited to the 2006 torrent! Thank you everyone who contributed and continues to contribute to this thread.
  • kawoxfordkawoxford Member Posts: 1
    I have a similar problem: bought our 2006 Pontiac Torrent new, now have 176,000 miles on it. This is the best, most reliable vehicle I have ever owned. It does leak water into the front footwells in a heavy rain, but to my knowledge all Pontiacs do that, or many of them. The driver side interior door handle broke, so had to lower the window and reach outside to open the door from the inside for about a year. Finally opened up the door panel, bought a new handle from the dealer ($54.00), and voila, fixed it. However, the loudspeakers in the driver's door stopped working about a year ago or so also. While I had the door panel removed, I inspected the speaker wires from inside the door and they looked fine, so I started to think either the problem was under the dash or inside the radio (six disc cd). With this blog, thank you for it, I now believe the problem is more likely in the wiring harness, either just under the dash, driver's side of course, or maybe even in the door sill where the hinges are and will look there since y'all seem to be getting broken wires to the door!! Thanks. Jim Knox, MS
  • dhuskerdhusker Member Posts: 1
    I have some of the same problems. Rear view mirror did not work. And radio would not shut off when opening door and light did nto come on. I took door apart and found broken yellow wire. Fixing that fixed mirror but not others. Other wires are frayed but not broken. There are 5 wires that go to a junction near the door latch. Are these the ones that control the radio/lights? Any idea exactly which wire is suspect? When I open the passenger door, the radio goes off so I am sure this is a door wiring problem and not the common ignition switch issues. Thanks!
  • tracy9tracy9 Member Posts: 6
    I have the same problem with my Chevy Equinox 2009 my window won't work and the wire insulation is all broken. I'm afraid this could start a fire. The dealer Williams Chevrolet says it will cost me approximately $1000 for me to fix it and they are rude and said they have never heard of this problem. I told them to check the blogs - it's all over the place. Why won't GM replace all this bad wiring What can we do to make a formal complaint?
  • juliebean22juliebean22 Member Posts: 1
    I have a 2008 Pontiac Torrent & the problem started with my driver side not unlocking with key fob. Progressed to not locking, unless manually locked. Then my passenger door started this. Now I'm also having a problem starting it. I've had the battery checked out and it's not that. It will try to start & just takes a few seconds to do so. Of course it waits until it's fully paid for & out of warranty. I was hesitant to deal with the wiring harness although I've known that was the issue for over a year but I think I'm ready to tackle it now thanks to all the comments. How is this not a major issue with GM?!

  • jodivb4jodivb4 Member Posts: 1
    2008 Torrent with 60,000 Miles on. Problem started with rear passenger door not responding to locking attempts, progressed to front passenger door, and within a week the driver door can't be opened from the inside of the car. None of the locks work by remote or by door button activation. This seems to be a real problem for these vehicles. This is a dangerous problem! It's only been one day and I'm afraid to drive it even to the shop, scary to be unable to get out of your car.
  • leeweber85leeweber85 Member Posts: 2
    edited August 2016
    Here I am again almost 2 years later.  At around 70-75k miles 3 of the 4 automatic door locks have stopped working.  Have been noticing I get shocked when I get in/out of the vehicle. My bet is the wiring harness again. Anyone have any success with GM standing by their product?  This could be a safety issue!
  • nick_lerouxnick_leroux Member Posts: 1
    2007 torrent with 180000 Kms on it and the passenger door doesnt have any power functionality whatsoever. Doesnt unlock or lock, window doesnt work and speaker doesnt work anymore either. But for whatever reason the front lighting by the sunroof doesnt work anymore either... strange... this forum was a lot of help though.
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