2003 Chevrolet Suburban fuel system problems

FUEL/PROPULSION SYSTEM

I PURCHASED THIS SUBURBAN NEW IN 2003. IN MAY OF 20011, I SUDDENLY HAD NO BRAKES WHEN BACKING UP AND GOING FORWARD IN PARKING LOT AFTER DRIVING FROM HOME TO STORE. TOOK THE SUBURBAN TO OLYMPIA, WASHINGTON CHEVROLET DEALER WHO SAID CAUSE OF THE BRAKE FAILURE WAS DUE TO RUSTING OF BRAKE LINES THAT WERE LEAKING AND RECOMMENDED REPLACING ALL BRAKE LINES. IN THE PREVIOUS WEEKS, I HAD DRIVEN THE SUBURBAN ON MOUNTAIN ROADS IN NATIONAL FORESTS IN THE AREA THAT WERE UNPAVED AND HAD STEEP INCLINES, WAS LUCKY NOT TO HAVE HAD A FAILURE ON THOSE ROADS OR ON PAVED HIGHWAY AT HIGH SPEEDS ON THE TRIP HOME. ALL BREAK LINES WERE REPLACED. THIS REQUIRED REMOVAL OF THE FUEL TANK. A FEW WEEKS LATER THE SERVICE ENGINE CHECK LIGHT CAME ON I TOOK THE SUBURBAN BACK TO THE DEALER WHO DETERMINED THAT THE PROBLEM WAS THE FRONT FUEL TANK VENT THAT WAS ALSO RUSTED AND WAS NOT FUNCTIONING PROPERLY. THIS REQUIRED REPLACING THE FUEL TANK SINCE THE VENT WAS NOT SOLD SEPARATELY!! THE NEW TANK WITH VENT COST $829 DOLLARS BRINGING THE TOTAL COST OVER $3,000 DOLLARS. NOTE, I ALSO PURCHASED A 2003 HONDA ACCORD NEW, WHICH I STILL HAVE, AND HAVE DRIVEN IT FOR OVER 70,000 MILES AND IN THE SAME ENVIRONMENT AS THE 2003 SUBURBAN, AND IT HAS NO SIGNS OF RUST ON THE BRAKE LINES OR FUEL LINES. THIS SEEMS TO BE A COMMON PROBLEM WITH SUBURBANS OF OTHER MODEL YEARS AND IT IS A LIFE ENDANGERING FAILURE. I FEEL I SHOULD BE COMPENSATED BY CHEVROLET FOR THESE REPAIRS AND A RECALL ISSUED ALL SUBURBANS TO CHECK FOR THIS RUSTING OF THE BRAKE AND FUEL LINES TO AVOID LOSS OF BRAKES THAT COULD CAUSE AN ACCIDENT AND LOSS OF LIFE.

NHTSA complaint #10490272 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP

THE FUEL PUMP ON MY 2003 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN HAS FAILED. IT SEEMS THAT THIS HAS BEEN A PROBLEM WITH THESE VEHICLES IN THE PAST. I WISH I HAD KNOWN BEFORE. I BOUGHT THE CAR USED IN 2005, WITH APPROXIMATELY 32,000 MILES ON IT. THE "THROTTLE BODY MODULE", "STEERING GEAR", DASH CLUSTER, AND NOW FUEL PUMP HAVE ALL FAILED! THIS HAS MADE ME VERY UPSET WITH THE MANUFACTURER. THE VEHICLE NOW HAS 72,000 MILES ON IT. I THOUGHT BUYING AMERICAN WAS THE RIGHT THING TO DO. NOW I'M WORRIED ABOUT MY 2004 GMC SIERRA.

NHTSA complaint #10258288 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

FUEL SYSTEM, OTHER:STORAGE:FUEL GAUGE SYSTEM

PERIODICALLY OUR CAR'S GAS GAUGE AND SPEEDOMETER STICK. IT IS INTERMITTENT AND WE CANNOT FIND A CONNECTION AS TO WHEN/WHERE. WE RECENTLY RECEIVED A LETTER FROM CHEVY RECOGNIZING THERE IS A DEFECT IN THEIR MANUFACTURING BUT ALSO INCLUDES A REFUSAL TO FIX OUR SUBURBAN BECAUSE IT HAS MORE THAN 70,000 MILES ON IT. THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND SHOULD FALL UNDER A MANDATORY RECALL. CARS HAVE TO BE ABLE TO KNOW HOW FAST THEY ARE GOING AND IF THEY HAVE ENOUGH FUEL TO GET THERE.

NHTSA complaint #10214773 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP

2003 CHEVY SUBURBAN STALLED TWICE ON THE HIGHWAY AT HIGH SPEEDS. CONSUMER STATES THAT THE VEHICLE HAD THE FUEL PUMP REPLACED. AFTER THE FUEL PUMP WAS REPLACED CONSUMER NOTICED GASOLINE ALL OVER THE GARAGE FLOOR.

NHTSA complaint #10209448 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:STORAGE:TANK ASSEMBLY

DT: THE CONTACT STATED THE FUEL TANK COLLAPSED, CRUSHING THE FUEL PUMP, WHICH HAS BEEN REPLACED TWICE. THE FUEL TANK WAS PLASTIC. THE VENT TO THE FUEL TANK WAS BLOCKED AND CAUSED A VACUUM WHICH CRUSHED THE FUEL PUMP. THE FIRST TIME, THE VEHICLE WAS DRIVEN AT 45 MPH, IT SHUT DOWN WITHOUT WARNING AND WOULD NOT RESTART. AN INDICATOR LIGHT ILLUMINATED, STATING THE COMPUTER SHUT DOWN THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP, AND THE FUEL PUMP WAS REPLACED. LESS THAN THREE MONTHS LATER WHILE DRIVING, THE PROBLEM RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP. THE FUEL PUMP WAS REPLACED A SECOND TIME, AND THE VENT FOR THE FUEL TANK WAS RETRO FITTED TO THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT HAD ANY MORE PROBLEMS.

NHTSA complaint #10146180 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP

DT: THE CONTACT STATED THE FUEL TANK COLLAPSED, CRUSHING THE FUEL PUMP, WHICH HAS BEEN REPLACED TWICE. THE FUEL TANK WAS PLASTIC. THE VENT TO THE FUEL TANK WAS BLOCKED AND CAUSED A VACUUM WHICH CRUSHED THE FUEL PUMP. THE FIRST TIME, THE VEHICLE WAS DRIVEN AT 45 MPH, IT SHUT DOWN WITHOUT WARNING AND WOULD NOT RESTART. AN INDICATOR LIGHT ILLUMINATED, STATING THE COMPUTER SHUT DOWN THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP, AND THE FUEL PUMP WAS REPLACED. LESS THAN THREE MONTHS LATER WHILE DRIVING, THE PROBLEM RECURRED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN BACK TO THE DEALERSHIP. THE FUEL PUMP WAS REPLACED A SECOND TIME, AND THE VENT FOR THE FUEL TANK WAS RETRO FITTED TO THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT HAD ANY MORE PROBLEMS.

NHTSA complaint #10146180 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP

BEFORE COMPLETE FAILURE, OVER A PERIOD OF A MONTH THE CAR FAILED TO START/TURNOVER. AFTER 5 MINUTES & REPEATED ATTEMPTS CAR WOULD FINALLY START. ON FINAL FAILURE DATE, THE CAR WOULD NOT START EVEN WITH PERIODIC ATTEMPTS OVER 2 DAYS. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO DEALER. DEALER REPLACED FUEL PUMP & FUEL FILTER WHICH SEEMS TO HAVE FIXED THE PROBLEM.

NHTSA complaint #10145210 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE

ON BOTH MY 2003 CHEVY SUBURBAN, AND 2002 CHEVY K2500 TRUCK, THE GAS GAUGE READS ERRONEOUSLY. TENDS TO GET HUNG UP AT 1/4 TANK, THEN LATER GOES TO EMPTY...AT WHICH TIME I'VE RUN OUT OF GAS! CHEVY REPLACED THE BURB FUEL SENSOR TWICE, AND THE TRUCK ONCE...UNDER WARRANTY. PAST WARRANTY THEY WILL NOT HELP. SAFETY ISSUE: I RAN OUT OF GAS IN DOWNTOWN ATLANTA, INTERSTATE TRAFFIC DURING RUSH HOUR, HAD TO WEAVE MY DEAD TRUCK THROUGH 70 MPH TRAFFIC TO THE LEFT SHOULDER. VERY DANGEROUS MOVE...LUCKILY WAS NOT REAR-ENDED! HAVE FRIENDS W/ SAME TRUCK...SAME PROBLEM.

NHTSA complaint #10138024 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP

DT: CONSUMER OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN. HE TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALER AT LEAST SEVEN TIMES SINCE APRIL. WHEN THE VEHICLE TURNS OVER IT JUST DOES NOT START. HE CAME BACK FROM MYRTLE BEACH, AND WHILE DRIVING ON THE INTERSTATE AT 80 MPH WHEN THE VEHICLE SHUT DOWN AND STALLED. HE MANAGED TO COAST OFF THE INTERSTATE, IT THEN STARTED BACK UP WITH ONE ATTEMPT. HE TRAVELED ABOUT 150 MILES AND THE VEHICLE STALLED AGAIN AND IT STARTED BACK, THIS TIME IT STARTED AND WAS RUNNING A LITTLE ROUGH. THE CONSUMER TOOK VEHICLE TO THE NEXT EXIT AND FOUND A DEALER WHO TOLD HIM THAT HE COULD MAKE IT BACK TO OHIO IF HE DID NOT DRIVE IT VERY FAST. THE DEALER TOLD HIM THAT IT WAS THE FUEL FILTER THAT WAS NOT ABLE TO HANDLE THE PRESSURE. HE DROVE BACK AT 55 MPH, AND THE VEHICLE DID NOT SHUT DOWN. THE NEXT MORNING HE TOOK VEHICLE TO DEALER IN FARRIS OHIO WHERE HE BOUGHT THE VEHICLE. THE DEALER CHANGED THE IGNITION SWITCH, THE FUEL PUMP, AND SOMETHING HE THINKS IS CALLED A UBECK. HE WAS FRUSTRATED THAT HE SEEMED TO SPEND TOO MUCH TIME AT THE DEALER INSTEAD AT HOME.

NHTSA complaint #10133246 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP

THE VEHICLE HAS GOING TO THE SHOP 8+ TIMES FOR SIMILAR PROBLEM. VEHICLE LOSES POWER AND DIES OUT. SOME TIMES IT WILL RESTART AFTER 5 MINUTES, AND SOME TIMES IT WILL NOT RESTART. THE DEALER HAS REPLACED THE FUEL PUMP 3 TIMES, ALONG WITH THE MODULE. THEY ALSO HAVE REPLACED THE FUEL SENDER, RELAY, CRANKSHAFT POSITION SENSOR, AND FUEL FILTER. THE DEALER HAS FAILED TO FIND THE PROBLEM.

NHTSA complaint #10110340 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:FUEL PUMP

THE VEHICLE CUT OFF. THE FUEL PUMP WAS REPLACED. THE VEHICLE STILL CUT OFF ON THE HIGHWAY, HOWEVER, THE DEALER COULD NOT FIND ANY DEFECT.

NHTSA complaint #10099283 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE:DELIVERY:HOSES, LINES/PIPING, AND FITTINGS

WHILE DRIVING CONSUMER SMELLED GAS ODOR. TECHNICIAN INDICATED THE FUEL LINE SYSTEM WAS LEAKING GASOLINE, CAUSING STALLING. DEALERSHIP WAS NOTIFIED.

NHTSA complaint #10083894 — an unverified report by a vehicle owner.