GM Speedometer lawsuit filed

kingdvb

The problem is with the step motors that drive the guages behind the display cluster. The step motor receives an electrical signal from the different vehicle systems (speed, rpm, gas gauge, etc) and the step motor moves the needle in proportion. The step motor design was apparently faulty in these later model vehicles and randomly fail. GM had a silent recall in 2007 for vehicle less than 7yr/70K miles for specific production VIN's. Now only option is to pay high priced dealer($300-$600), find a local shop ($$??) or go to the online repair web site and send your instrument cluster to them for repair (~$100-$250). I will probably try http://www.instrumentclusters.com. Quote I got for my 2004 Z71 was $235 if I removed it and sent it to them. They have a guarentee with their work.

Good Luck

kingdvb

Thanks for the heads up on Auto & Truck Electronics Rogersville, TN. I did some checking and they sound like they have a pretty good deal. I also found them on EBAY offering the service at even better price but you have to pay shipping one way. They ship back free via UPS ground. I guess you would have to pay for faster shipping. http://stores.ebay.com/ABS-ECU-ECM-EBCM-COMPUTER-REBUILD. Was your $149 quote including shipping BOTH ways and was it 1 or 2 day shipping?

Once I take my cluster out, my tahoe is dead until I get the cluster back.

hdgal3

The $149 was for shipping back.I have not had mine taken out yet . Gonna call back and check for certain how many days. :shades:

cybersailor

I have a 2004 SSR with 44k miles that has the same problem. On the SSR Fanatics site there are other owners that also have the problem.

I call GM customer Service and was told that yes there are other recalls but the SSR is not included and I will have to pay $1028 to have it repaired.

Is is possible for SSR to be included in the law suit? If so how can this be done.

Thanks.

randj

Beware sending your unit to Auto & Truck Electronics in Rogersville, TN. I sent them my unit and they damaged the information center under the speedometer. I sent the unit back and they could not fix it and refused a refund. Basically I got screwed out of $100 and 4 weeks of use of my vehicle and had to buy a new cluster in the end anyway.

cybersailor

I took my SSR to Lauderdale Speedometer in Ft. Lauderdale on Monday and they replaced all the stepper motors. Saved me $600 over the dealer price. So far everything works great. All they do is work with gauges. I found them in a post on the SSR Fanantic site.

hdgal3

Thank you , guess I won't be sending mine there !!! :mad:

rougraff

I am currently trying to get my 2004 Chevy Suburban fixed. The speedometer sporadically acted up for about a year...worse in the winter and on long trips...But now is all over the place, but never where it belongs. Sometimes the speedometer says I am going 120+mph, sometimes under 10mph. It is fairly unnerving, not knowing your speed!!
So.... Now my gas gauge is apparently acting up, too. I ran out of gas last week, and the gauge was not even in the red area near empty!! (my low fuel light has never worked) When I filled the tank, the needle went way beyond full, to the far bottom of the gauge. The local Chevy dealer quoted us $658 for the repair. I remember receiving a recall notice regarding the dash gauges about 3 years ago, soon after we bought the car, but of course there were no problems with the gauges at the time. Now that I have the problem, the recall is apparently no longer effective. Any suggestions for a mom from Indiana?????

kingdvb

The GM recall is good for up to 7yr or 80,000 miles. So if you are less than these trigger points the dealer should fix your 2004. Mine was at 83000 and they would not fix it. I still have not fixed it and using my GPS for speed indicator.

If not under recall, some local repair shops can fix them. Just call around to some reputable shops. They typically will take the instrument panel cluster out and send it out for repair. Cost is typically about 60% of the dealer. Or you can take the cluster out yourself and send it to one of the shops that have ads on the internet and mentioned in several of the previous posts. Cost is about 40-50% of the dealer by the time you pay shipping back and forth. Do some research on the business first and only choose a site with a good BBB reputation. Always call them before you do business with them and look them up on Google Map Street view to get an idea of the type of operation they run.

No matter what process you take, have the repair center replace all of the cluster step motors on the cluster panel (speed, tachometer, gas, temperature, etc). Apparently this chronic GM Problem is on all of the indicator gauges on these cluster panels.

Now that Government Motors Corp belongs to all of us tax payers, aren't you proud? :lemon:

Good Luck and God Bless

melzim40

My '03 Avalanche has just started acting up. First the dials stuck at zero about a week ago. Eventually they started working again, but now when I drive, my truck will shut off right in the middle of the road. Since I then don't have any brakes or steering, I have to drift to the side of the road. Once I turn the ignition off, it will start right back up again. Has anyone experienced this?

lp4ever

I have a 2004 Tahoe and in 2006 the speedometer went out. In 2009 the oil gauge went out. Now my RPM and gas gauge are going out. In 2006 I got the recall notice but I was 10,000 miles over the millage for free repair and Chevy wouldn't fix it. I love Chevy cars but this is rediculous. I was told to trade it in for a Toyota cuz they don't have these kind of problems.....

clintb812

I had similar discussions w/ GM yesterday (2-25-10) and they were very hesitate and skirted giving any website or "investigation" information, other than that the NHTSA & GM had settled an "investigation" titled "instrumental panel cluster guage needle function". The reason for my inquiry is that i have 3 2004 Chevy's in my company fleet that are all having this problem. 2 of my employees received speeding tickets, 2 each, 1 received 2 on the same day-boy did he feel stupid. We have already paid out of pocket for the replacement of the cluster on that Silverado. I still have an Impala and another Silverado that we have yet to fix. The GM lady told me that only my remaining Silverado falls under the proper parameters to meet the "extended warranty agreement" but that this extended warranty only covers to 80k miles. The parameters or reasons for risk are categorized under the vehicles VIN number. All 3 of the vehicles are over 130k miles. However, I asked why was i not informed that this was a possible risk, therefore allowing me to have the clusters fixed prior to reaching 80k miles and she said this was because "not all vehicles are experiencing this problem." (I have 3 2004 GMC/Chevys and all 3 are having the problem-however, they all started having the problem this past fall 2009 and were at or over 130K). Very convenient and very coincidental. I am 50 years old and have probably owned 40-50 vehicles in my life and have never had a speedometer problem until now I have 3 at the same time and they all are 2004 Chevys. I am not done dealing with this. PS: The lady asked, after our long and apparently useless conversation, "if there was anything else she could help me with", which I responded, "you haven't helped me w/ anything so far so I guess not." So she said, "Thank you for being a Chevy customer." and I responded "No, you mean, thank you for being a PAST Chevy customer." And we wonder why we have over 10% unemployment and have to bail out our mega-corporations.

rougraff

I was told that if you take the car in during the warrenty/recall period, but there is no problem with the speedometer, etc, at the time you take it in, they will not replace anything. So, it seems unfair that when you do later have the problem, (which seems to be what's happening to most of us) the 70,000 mile limit allows them to once again deny responsibility. Somehow, Chevy is getting around taking care of this for most people experiencing the problem, because of all the loopholes they have created for themselves!! My car has 90,000 miles now. I did go ahead and have the problem fixed at my own expense. Couldn't stand not knowing how fast I was going...and even more annoying, running out of gas, because I had no idea when I was getting low on fuel. After the 3rd time, I was done!! Bad Chevy!!

harleydog

I am 54 years old and have owned Chevy all my life, new & used.I now have a 2004 silverado 1500 the speedometer went out.The oil gauge went out. And now the RPM gauge is going out.I am currently trying to get my 04 silverato fixed. That is around $500.00.dollars. Will that go out to?

kiawah

Read the forum for URL's of repair shops, which will fix your dash much cheaper than your 500 bucks.

I know one has a U-tube video of how to pop the dash out, takes just a couple minutes and is easy.

RON112470

For $40 bucks on Ebay, you can get the 6 stepper motors you need to fix gauges. I did just that but I only fixed the Speedometer gauge, and now my Oil guage is messed up and my volts has been acting up too. So now I am going to take it apart which is easier than I thought it would be. Just need to know how it comes apart. So if there is a video of it, It will be very simple for you to do. Just must be careful when sodering because there are circuits close to the sodering location. A nice fine point on your gun is needed.

kingdvb

Yes, you can repair them yourself if you have the proper equipment and correct type solder. To me its not worth the chance of messing up a $300 IPC board. I have researched many online and local repair centers. I found one today near my home. Brian's Speedometer Repair in Muldrow OK. I also found his store on EBAY as well- See the link below or search ebay for that name.

http://stores.ebay.com/BRIANS-SPEEDODOMETER-REPAIR-CENTER_CLUSTER-REPAIR-SERVICE- - _W0QQ_fsubZ616645015QQ_sidZ288060575QQ_trksidZp4634Q2ec0Q2em322

It is extremely easy to remove the cluster unit from the dash. If you can use a butter knife and a socket, it takes about 5 minutes to remove the cluster from the dash (Follow the Video on Youtube or at Southern Electronics Web site :
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tjvTdTHdTP8

You need a flat butter knife from your silverware drawer in the kitchen to pop the trim cover off and a 7mm socket with a 6" extension to remove the 4 screws. pull the cluster out, unhook the electrical cable and the cluster can be removed.

Take the entire unit (or mail it) to the repair center of your choice. It is that easy.

I just got back from Brian's shop in Muldrow and he fixed my entire cluster on my 2004 Tahoe for $80 (since I brought it in). Took about 20 minutes for a complete rebuild, calibration and electronic verification check. He did it while I waited. He even fixed a burned out dash light on the cluster. He actually replaces all of the cluster lights. Everything is backed with a lifetime warranty.

I re-installed and everything works great. I wish I had found Brian 6 months back. It is much better than using a GPS - ha ha.

:mad: Don't get screwed by the GM dealers. It is disgraceful how they are ripping people off to fix the problem they created. This will be my last GM vehicle I ever own.

Good Luck
dale

momtofour

Thank you so much for this post. I have a 2003 Suburban and have been experiencing random speedometer problems. I just squeaked by with all the requirements to have my Instrument Cluster replaced for free by our GM dealer.

I took it in today so that they could hook it up to a computer and verify that there was an "error code/number" associated with the Instrument Cluster.

They are ordering the part today and should be able to install it towards the end of the week. I will also be getting my second row center seat belt loop fixed (clipped/sewn shut) due to another recall notice I apparently missed receiving:

Recall ID 2005037
Second Row Center Seat Belt Loop

Anyway, THANK YOU!!!! You saved us money that we cannot afford to part with these days.

imacargirl

I have a 2004 Tahoe that now has a little over 100,000 miles on it. The speedometer went out around 90,000. I've been afraid to go have it fixed because of the cost and now in reading the posts I see there's been a recall. Even though I've not changed addresses since I bought the car, I didn't not receive a notification of a recall. I am going to call our dealer and see what they have to say about it.

hdgal3

I live in Kentucky and need to know if anyone knows of a reputable place to get my speedo fixed.I need all gauges replaced.

kiawah

Read back thru these Edmund forums, a number of individuals have posted their success with different mail away repair locations.

I know a while ago there was a posting, where there was a video on the vendors website which actually showed the process to remove the cluster, and install the repaired cluster. Appears to be fairly simple and straighforward process.

whitetiger

I have 2004 silverado 2500hd bought it 3 years ago right after I got it I got A letter about some of them having problems with the speedometer if you had over 70,000 miles it wouldnt be covered well I had over that as I bought it used and speedometer was okay till the following year now it works when ever it wants I called the dealership and they informed me it would cost me over 800 to fix it I dont make that kind of money so im still driving it that way after 2 years I think they should issue a recall and fix them

kingdvb

All,
I know it feels good to vent about GM (Government Motors). As you can see from my previous posts, I did my share. But forget about GM from taking responsibility. They would not even pay off their direct debtors. They are so many billions in debt, they will be avoiding responsibility for many years to come I assure you. :lemon:

If you refer to my post #280, you will find a reference to a repair shop that took care of my speedometer for less than $100. He replaced all of the gauges and gauge lights - not just the speedometer gauge. You can find his business on ebay if you want to send in the unit, or you can take it by is shop if you live in the Muldrow, OK area. Honest guy making an honest living. Unlike most of the GM dealerships who charge $500-$900 to make this 20 minute repair.

It is shameful what GM is doing to loyal customers such as those on these post. This is why I am switching all of my business over to Ford. At least Ford pays their bills, accept their responsibility and make money the old fashioned way - they earn it.

dominic9

tach and speedometer stuck, is this a recall? and is it hard to repair if i do it myself

kingdvb

See reply #280 and some of my previous other posts. It is a "silent" recall if you have certain VIN# and meet mileage requirements. GM is making millions off of the problem they created charging customers $500-800 for a job with parts/labor <$100.

It is very easy to remove (see post #280 for a how to video). to fix the gauge, find a local speed shop or use the guy I recommend on Ebay.

gmcustsvc

dominic9,
Please e-mail me with your VIN and I will look into recalls for you.
Christina
GM Customer Service

cepak

It would have been really nice to have GM include the Trailblazer in this recall. I've been a loyal GM customer since I purchased my first new pickup in 1981 (at 17.5% financing). And every car my wife and I have ever purchased have been GM. Here is a list, just to show how much my wife and I have supported GM over the years.

1981 Chevrolet Scottsdale pickup
1984 Chevrolet Camaro Berlinetta
1991 Chevrolet Geo Storm GSI
1993 Buick Regal Gran Sport Sedan, fully loaded
1996 Pontiac Sunfire, fully loaded
1998 Chevrolet S-10 pickup
2003 Chevrolet Trailblazer Ext, V8, fully loaded (70,000 miles)
2009 Cadillac CTS, fully loaded
I even own a 1963 Chevrolet Corvair Monza Convertible.

Now show me a little loyalty and fix my instrument cluster.

rrko1975

I recentley had this problem, I located ' Digital guy "on Ebay under automotive suburban cluster repair., he's based in Minn, and has 11,000 customer's took about 2 weeks he did a great job replaces everything in your cluster.

rrko1975

I have a 2003 with a 5.3 flex fuel it has 130 k. When is a good time to have the timing chain done?> No symptoms yet run's great just wondering. Ive done a timing belt how much harder is doing a chain?

stever

Please don't post phone numbers on the forum. They change and we get complaints. Company names and URLs are fine. Thanks.