2005 Chevrolet Suburban Electrical Problems

This defect pertains to gear indicator on the instrument panel. During the daylight hours the light indicating the gear the car is in (park, neutral, drive, etc.) is impossible to read. At night you can just barely read the gear indicators. The dimness of the lights behind this gear indicator gauge is a safety hazard because you cannot tell what gear you are in during the day. It is an expensive repair because the instrument panel needs to be removed to fix the problem.

NHTSA ID

11490846

Incident

Jan 2, 2020

Started with driver side heated seat randomly turning on and off. Going from high, medium, low. No way to turn it off just comes back on. Can hear clicking coming from under dash. Lift gate wiring that goes into body, ground wire burnt. (Replaced) but ground wire has power. (Wiring issue) so rear wiper doesn’t work. “Reading” Lamps only work when door is open. After replacing life gate connector, says lift gate open. Started the repair, which leads to more wiring issues! Needs a recall! Unsafe

NHTSA ID

11469495

Incident

Jun 1, 2022

Heated seats randomly turn on and off and goes thorugh the diffeent levels of heat and then off and then back on repeat for hours while driving and is very distracting as have to turn off every 10 sec and have almost crashed multiple times taking me eyes off the road but have to turn off as heat is too much in summer months, this is a known issue in almost ever suburban 01 to 05, how is this not a recall yet, there is massive amount of documentation of this issue online.

NHTSA ID

11422855

Incident

Jun 29, 2021

THE WIRING FOR THE LIGHTERS, POWER PORTS AND COMPUTER LINK MELTED. IT'S ALL PART OF THE UNDER-DASH WIRING HARNESS.

NHTSA ID

11396677

Incident

Sep 15, 2020

Mileage

200,000 mi

DRIVER SIDE SEAT HEATER RANDOMLY COMES ON AND GOES OFF. MAJORITY OF THE TIME THE HEATER STAYS ON CONSTANTLY AND BECOMES UNCOMFORTABLE. THIS HAPPENS MORE ESPECIALLY IN WET CONDITIONS AND WHEN YOU ATTEMPT TO TURN THE HEATED SEAT OFF, THE CONTROLS WON'T WORK. THIS ISSUE HAPPENS WHEN THE SUV IS STARTED, CONTINUES WHILE IDLING AND WHILE DRIVING. SOME DAYS IT IS HOURS BEFORE IT WILL GO OFF. OTHER DAYS IT WILL NOT GO OFF. THE SCARY THING IS YOU CAN HEAR THE DASHBOARD CLICKING WHEN THE HEATER TURNS ON AND OFF, CONSTANTLY CYCLING THOUGH HIGH TO LOW, BACK OF SEAT TO BOTTOM OF THE SEAT. ADJUSTING THE SEAT IN ANY WAY DOES NOT HELP. I THINK THIS IS A CONCERN DUE TO THE FACT THAT IT TURNS OFF AND ON AND YOU CAN HEAR IT CYCLE THROUGH. IT'S ALSO A MAJOR CONCERN BECAUSE THE HEAT STAYS ON WITHOUT ANY WAY TO TURN IT OFF. THIS STARTED A WEEK AFTER I PURCHASED THIS VEHICLE AND HAS CONTINUED SINCE OCTOBER 2016.

NHTSA ID

11084513

Incident

Oct 11, 2016

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN. THE CONTACT STATED THAT AFTER STARTING THE VEHICLE, THE TWO WHEEL OR FOUR WHEEL DRIVE LIGHT FAILED TO ILLUMINATE. THE FAILURE PREVENTED THE CONTACT OF KNOWING WHICH GEAR THE VEHICLE WAS IN. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED OR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS UNKNOWN.

NHTSA ID

10639002

Incident

Jul 15, 2014

2005 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN. CONSUMER WRITES IN REGARDS TO VEHICLE ODOMETER PROBLEMS. *SMD THE CONSUMER BEGAN HAVING PROBLEMS WITH THE SPEEDOMETER APPROXIMATELY 2 YEARS AGO. INTERMITTENTLY, THE NEEDLE ON THE ODOMETER WOULD CLIMB ABOVE THE ACTUAL SPEED HE WAS TRAVELING, THEN MOVE UP AND DOWN TENS OF MILES ABOVE THE ACTUAL SPEED, AT TIMES, IT WOULD RISE TO 120 AND REMAIN THERE. WHEN HE TURNED THE VEHICLE OFF AND ON AGAIN, IT WORKED FINE, UNTIL THE NEXT TIME. *JP

NHTSA ID

10577692

Incident

Apr 1, 2014

SPEEDOMETER STAYED AT SPEED I WAS DRIVING WHEN I STOPPED THE CAR. WHEN I RESTARTED THE CAR IT DID NOT RETURN TO ZERO BUT STARTED AT LAST SPEED I WAS DRIVING, THEN INCREASE FROM THERE. SPEEDOMETER FINALLY STAYED AT 100 MPH, IT DID NOT RETURN TO ZERO AND I WAS UNABLE TO DETERMINE SPEED OF CAR WHEN DRIVING. RPM ALSO MALFUNCTION, IT STAYED AT 1.5 WHEN DRIVING AND DIDN'T VARY WHEN I INCREASED OR DECREASED MY SPEED. HAD TO HAVE IT REPLACED AS I COULD NOT DETERMINE SPEED I WAS DRIVING. NO OFFICIAL RECALL, ONLY A CLASS ACTION SUIT. MY MAKE/MODEL/YEAR WAS PART OF THE CARS AFFECTED IN THE SUIT, ONLY I DIDN'T QUALIFY FOR REIMBURSEMENT OF REPAIR BECAUSE THE PROBLEM OCCURRED OUTSIDE OF THE 7 YEAR 80,000 MILE PARAMETER GM SET UP FOR REIMBURSEMENT. *TR

NHTSA ID

10560286

Incident

Jan 16, 2014

Mileage

110,000 mi

AT APPROXIMATELY 4 YEARS AND 45,000 MILES AFTER PURCHASE OF MY 2005 SUBURBAN, THE TACHOMETER BEGAN FAILING WITH INTERMITTENT LOW READINGS OR NO READING. SINCE THE VEHICLE WAS OUT OF WARRANTY AND THE TACHOMETER ISN'T REALLY VERY USEFUL FOR AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION VEHICLE, I WAS NOT OVERLY CONCERNED AND I DID NOT BRING THE VEHICLE IN FOR REPAIR DUE TO THE ANTICIPATED HIGH EXPENSE. SHORTLY AFTER THE TACHOMETER FAILURE (ABOUT 55,000 MILES) THE GAS GAUGE BEGAN FAILING WITH ERRATIC READINGS. ULTIMATELY THE BEHAVIOR DEGRADED TO A PEGGED COUNTER CLOCKWISE CONDITION WHERE THE READING NOW STAYS AT ALL TIMES. ALTHOUGH INCONVENIENT, THE 'MILES TO EMPTY' INFORMATION DISPLAY SEEMED TO CONTINUE TO WORK NORMALLY AND I DECIDED I COULD USE THAT METHOD INSTEAD OF HAVING A REPAIR PERFORMED. I'VE BEEN USING THAT METHOD EVER SINCE WITHOUT ANY ISSUES, BUT I TEND TO BE CONSERVATIVE AND FILL UP BEFORE I COME CLOSE TO BEING EMPTY. WITHIN THE NEXT SIX MONTHS AFTER THE GAS GAUGE FAILED (ABOUT 60,000 MILES), THE VOLT METER BEGAN GIVING ERRONEOUSLY HIGH READINGS OF ABOUT 20 VOLTS. IT WAS A PRETTY RARE EVENT. WHEN IT SHOWED THIS OVER VOLTAGE CONDITION, I CHECKED THE CHARGING VOLTAGE AT SEVERAL LOCATIONS AND FOUND THE VOLTAGE TO BE NORMAL. WHEN I DETERMINED THAT THERE WASN'T AN ACTUAL OVER-VOLTAGE CONDITION, I WASN'T TOO CONCERNED ABOUT THIS INFREQUENT ISSUE. SEVERAL MONTHS AFTER THE GAS GAUGE FAILURE, THE SPEEDOMETER BEGAN FAILING WITH LOW OR NO READINGS. IT STARTED OUT TO BE A VERY RARE OCCURRENCE. THE ISSUE NOW SEEMS TO BE OCCURRING WITH GREATER FREQUENCY. THE INCREASED FAILURE RATE CONCERNS ME SINCE IT CAN RESULT IN A SAFETY HAZARD AS WELL AS COULD RESULT IN A COSTLY SPEEDING TICKET. I WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF ANY OF THE GM CAMPAIGNS FOR THIS ISSUE ON THE SAME MODEL VEHICLE ON DIFFERENT VINS. GM'S POSITION IS ANY REPAIR WILL BE AT MY FULL EXPENSE (APPROX $600). *TR

NHTSA ID

10519383

Incident

Nov 20, 2009

Mileage

45,000 mi

ATTEMPTED TO LOCK THE VEHICLE USING THE KEY FOB - ALL FOUR DOORS LOCKED - THE REAR HATCH DID NOT - TRIED THE KEY FOB SEVERAL MORE TIMES WITH THE SAME RESULT - OPENED THE DRIVER'S DOOR AND USED THE MANUAL LOCK BUTTON - GOT THE SAME RESULT, THE FOUR DOORS LOCKED BUT NOT THE REAR HATCH - FOR MY 2005 MODEL, AND FOR SEVERAL MODEL YEARS OTHER THAN MY 2005, I READ MANY COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE SAME PROBLEM ON THIS WEBSITE PRIOR TO SENDING THIS - AND MANY COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE OPPOSITE PROBLEM, NAMELY, THE REAR HATCH DOOR LOCKS AND CANNOT BE OPENED - THERE IS NO KEY HOLE IN THE DOOR, ONLY THE KEY FOB OPERATES LOCKING AND UNLOCKING THE DOOR - OBVIOUSLY A DESIGN PROBLEM THAT YOU OUGHT TO ISSUE A RECALL ON - AND, READ MANY, MANY COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER OVER MANY MODEL YEARS - AGAIN, OBVIOUSLY A DESIGN PROBLEM - WHY DON'T YOU FOLKS MAKE GM FIX THESE FAULTS ? - THEY ARE NOT FEW IN NUMBER - THEY ARE NOT ISOLATED - THEY CERTAINLY ARE NOT OWNER GENERATED - MAKE GM FIX THEM - ISN'T THAT YOUR JOB? THANKS FOR YOUR HELP AND GOOD LUCK, WAITING TO SEE IN ALABAMA *TR

NHTSA ID

10508947

Incident

Apr 20, 2013

Mileage

189,233 mi

MY SPEEDOMETER RECENTLY STARTED MALFUNCTIONING. IT READ 20MPH WHEN I WAS DRIVING AT LEAST 50MPH, THEN IT READ 90+MPH WHEN I WAS ACTUALLY DRIVING 30MPH. FINALLY, MY SPEEDOMETER GAVE OUT AND IS "STUCK" IN THE 120+MPH POSITION. THANKFULLY, I HAVE A GPS NAVIGATION SYSTEM THAT HAS A GAUGE ON IT SO I KNOW MY RATE OF SPEED. I CONTACTED GM AND THEY REFUSED TO REMEDY THIS "WIDESPREAD" PROBLEM. THEY SAID THAT MY "SPECIAL COVERAGE" HAS ENDED (REFERRING TO THE 2008 CLASS ACTION SUIT THAT PROMPTED IT). I AM VERY UPSET! I HAVE READ MANY, MANY FORUMS AND FOUND THAT THIS IS A VERY COMMON ISSUE. MY MECHANIC SAYS THEY REPLACE THEM "ALL THE TIME" AND CHARGES $700-$1,000 TO FIX IT. IN MY OPINION, THERE SHOULD BE A RECALL ON THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER PANEL. I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY GM WON'T STEP UP AND FIX IT FREE OF CHARGE. *TR

NHTSA ID

10496541

Incident

Dec 3, 2012

Mileage

100,000 mi

OUR SPEEDOMETER JUST ALL OF A SUDDEN STOPPED WORKING,FROM TIME TO TIME IT LOOKS LIKE IT IS WORKING BUT IT IS NOT GOING THE SPEED THAT IT SAYS. SINCE THIS STARTED OUR OIL GAUGE,AND NOW FUEL GAUGE HAS STOPPED WORKING. *TR

NHTSA ID

10493635

Incident

Jan 14, 2013

Mileage

100,000 mi

ON AUGUST 3RD, 2012 MY 2005 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN 1500 FIRST SHOWED SIGNS OF THE INSTRUMENT PANEL CLUSTER FAILING. THE TACHOMETER SHOWED A READING OF 5,000 RPMS WITH THE ENGINE IDLING. THIS CONTINUED FOR A FEW DAYS AND THEN SEEMED TO GO BACK TO NORMAL. ABOUT A WEEK LATER THE SPEEDOMETER BEGAN TO INDICATE INCORRECT READINGS. BY SEPTEMBER 6TH, 2012 I HAD NOTICED IT WOULD SOMETIMES SHOW A SPEED OF 120 MPH WHILE GOING AN ACTUAL SPEED 50 MPH OR SOMETIMES SHOW 29 MPH WHILE GOING 50 MPH. FOR A WHILE IT WAS MOVING THE NEEDLE BELOW 0MPH. I CAN NO LONGER RELY ON THE GAUGES OF THIS VEHICLE WITH ONLY 65,000 MILES ON IT. *TR

NHTSA ID

10487265

Incident

Sep 6, 2012

Mileage

61,545 mi

HEATING, VENTILATION, AND AIR CONDITIONING BLOWER NOT FULLY FUNCTIONAL ON ALL BLOWER SPEEDS, RUNS CONTINUOUSLY WITH THE IGNITION OFF. DISCHARGES BATTERY WITH IGNITION KEYS REMOVED, AND HAS A BURNING SMELL. *TR

NHTSA ID

10460802

Incident

Jun 5, 2012

Mileage

102,800 mi

I WENT TO WASHINGTON AUTO SHOW TODAY 2/4/2012 AND ONE OF YOUR REP GAVE ME A CARD ABOUT YOUR SERVICE. I CAME HOME AND CHECK OUT YOUR WEBSITE AND FOUND OUT YOU HAVE BEEN RECEIVING COMPLAINTS ABOUT INSTRUMENT PANEL OF CHEVY SUBURBAN. I BOUGHT A 2005 CHEVY SUBURBAN IN MARCH 2005 FROM WIN KELLY CHEVORLET IN CLARKSVILLE, MD. ABOUT MIDDLE OF LAST YEAR I NOTICED THAT MY SPEEDOMETER IS ALWAYS STUCK, RUNNING HIGH THAN THE SPEED I AM DRIVING AND JUST EXACTLY AS BEING DESCRIBED BY OTHER OWNERS OF THESE VEHICLES. WHAT IS THE DEPARTMENT DOING TO HELP WITH THIS MANUFACTURER'S DEFECT AND HAVE IT CORRECTED RATHER THAN WE CONSUMERS BEING SADDLED WITH UNEXPECTED REPAIR COST? *KB

NHTSA ID

10446689

Incident

May 21, 2011

Mileage

95,000 mi

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN.THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 45 MPH AND NOTICED THE SPEEDOMETER, FUEL AND OIL GAUGES FAILED TO OPERATE. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC FOR DIAGNOSIS. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 69,000.

NHTSA ID

10418107

Incident

May 6, 2011

Mileage

69,000 mi

INSTRUMENT PANEL - CLUSTER DEVICE -- PANEL/ SPEEDOMETER WENT DEAD. GM SERVICE DEALER TOLD US, " THE ENTIRE TRUCK COULD DIE AND STOP WORKING AS A RESULT. " *TR

NHTSA ID

10402534

Incident

Apr 30, 2011

Mileage

85,000 mi

MY 2005 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN HAS 79,985 MILES AND THIS WEEK WHILE DRIVING ROUTE 95 (70 MPH HIGHWAY IN THE SOUTH) FROM NEW JERSEY TO SOUTH CAROLINA MY SPEEDOMETER STARTED SHOWING A MUCH HIGHER SPEED THEN I WAS TRAVELING. I WAS USING MY GPS AT THE TIME AND IT SAID I WAS DOING 69 MPH WHILE MY GAUGE SHOWED A CONSTANT CLIMB TILL IT REACHED 120 MPH AND FLAT LINED BEYOND THAT POINT. THIS WAS A 1600 MILE ROUND TRIP AND IF I HAD NOT HAD MY GPS WITH ME I WOULD NOT KNOW HOW FAST OR SLOW I WAS GOING. I WAS WAITING FOR SOMETHING ELSE TO GO WRONG. WHILE IN SOUTH CAROLINA I WENT TO RECALLS ON THE INTERNET WITH 2005 GM SUV'S AND FOUND A WHOLE BUNCH OF SIMILAR COMPLAINTS, YET GM (CHEVROLET) HAS NOT DONE ANYTHING THAT I COULD FIND. I RETURNED HOME TODAY AND CALLED MY LOCAL CHEVROLET DEALER AND EXPLAINED TO THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT WHAT HAD HAPPENED AND THEY SAID THEY NEVER HEARD OF THIS AND GAVE ME AN APPOINTMENT FOR NEXT MONDAY 1/3/2011 TO BRING IN THE SUV. SINCE THIS CAR IS OUT OF SERVICE I AM HOLDING MY BREATH AS TO WHAT THE BILL COULD BE. THIS IS A VERY DANGEROUS THING, I COULD BE NOT LOOKING AT THE GAUGE AND BE RUNNING RIGHT INTO A HIGH SPEED ERROR AND PUTTING MY FAMILY IN HARMS WAY. CAN ANYONE HELP? *TR

NHTSA ID

10373504

Incident

Dec 27, 2010

Mileage

79,750 mi

2005 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN. CONSUMER STATES DEFECTIVE SPEEDOMETER. *TGW CONSUMER SENT IN DUPLICATE LETTER ON 3/25/2010. *KB THE CONSUMER STATED THE SPEEDOMETER WAS STUCK AT 120 MPH. THE CONSUMER WAS INFORMED HER VEHICLE WAS NOT A PART OF THE RECALL, AS HER VEHICLE IDENTIFICATION DID NOT FALL WITHIN THE RANGE. THE SECOND PROBLEM WITH THE VEHICLE WAS THE TRANSMISSION. THE CONSUMER STATED THE VEHICLE HAD TO BE TOWED TO THE DEALER, DUE TO THE INTERAL FAILURE OF THE TRANSMISSION. *JB UPDATED 04/12/10.*JB

NHTSA ID

10323111

Incident

Jan 1, 1901

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY BETWEEN 55-60 MPH, THE SPEEDOMETER DISPLAYED INACCURATE READINGS. WHILE TRAVELING AT ANY GIVEN SPEED THE FAILURE OCCURRED WITHOUT WARNING. THE AUTHORIZED DEALER STATED THAT THE INSTRUMENT CLUSTER REQUIRED REPLACEMENT. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED AT THIS TIME. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 55,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE. THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 56,000. UPDATED 11/16/10. *LJ

NHTSA ID

10316659

Incident

Dec 1, 2009

Mileage

55,000 mi

IN ,MAY 2009 MY SPEEDO WAS OUT OF WHACK SAYS IM DRIVING 100MPH DOWN STREET, BURIED AT 120MPH ON HIGHWAY. CAME BACK TO LIFE LATER BUT NOW ITS HIT OR MISS IF IT WORKS. I HAVE TO USE MY MAGELLAN FOR SPEEDO NOW AND CHEVY DEALER SAID IF I WAS UNDER 70K THEY COULD FIX IT FOR FREE BUT SINCE IM AT 85K AND THEY SAY I HAVE TO PAY IN FULL (APPROX $750.00) AND CHEVY NEVER TOLD ME ABOUT THIS I LEARNED OF THE PROBLEM FROM A FRIEND. *TR

NHTSA ID

10311768

Incident

May 20, 2009

Mileage

70,000 mi

ERRATIC SPEEDOMETER...OFTEN THE NEEDLE STICKS AT 120 MPH WHEN ONLY GOING ABOUT 30...SOMETIMES AT 40 WHEN ACTUALLY NOT MOVING AT A STOPLIGHT. IT READS ERRATICALLY ALL OF THE TIME. STARTED ABOUT 2 YEARS AGO (75,000 MILES). VERY COSTLY TO REPAIR, SO I KEEP MY PORTABLE GPS RUNNING TO GET ACTUAL SPEED. *TR

NHTSA ID

10277083

Incident

Aug 17, 2007

Mileage

75,000 mi

AS I HAVE READ THIS IS A RECURRING PROBLEM. MY SPEEDOMETER ON OUR 2005 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN 67,000 MILES QUIT WORKING. ON A LONG TRIP IT WOULD ONLY SHOW 45-60 MPH. I KNOW I WAS GOING ALOT FASTER. WHEN I ACCELERATED IT WOULD SLOWLY JUMP UP TO SPEED. SEVERAL TIMES THE OIL PRESSURE GAUGE WAS AFFECTED ALSO. WE HAD THE CLUSTER REPLACED AT THE DEALERSHIP. LUCKILY WE HAD AN EXTENDED WARRANTY. IN MY OPINION THIS IS A SAFETY CONCERN FROM DEC 08 UNTIL MAY OF 09 IT HAPPENED 10 TIMES. *TR

NHTSA ID

10274278

Incident

Dec 23, 2008

Mileage

67,000 mi

ERRATIC SPEEDOMETER... SAYS THE VEHICLE IS MOVING 120 MPH WHEN IN A VILLAGE AND 30 ON THE HIGHWAY... IT READS ERRATICALLY ALL OF THE TIME. STARTED ABOUT 2 MONTHS AGO (78,000 MILES) THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY ISSUE. IS CHEVROLET GOING TO FIX THIS PROBLEM? I HAVE READ NUMEROUS SIMILAR COMPLAINTS. *TR

NHTSA ID

10269859

Incident

Mar 1, 2009

Mileage

78,000 mi

MY OIL PRESSURE GAUGE STARTED READING "0" IN NOVEMBER 2008 BUT THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH MY OIL. (MILEAGE APPROX. 49,000) I CHECK IT OFTEN AND HAVE THE OIL CHANGED REGULARLY. IN FEBRUARY 2009 MY SPEEDOMETER STARTED REGISTERING INACCURATELY. FIRST, IT WOULD SAY I WAS GOING 40 MPH AT A DEAD STOP. CURRENTLY, IT IS PAST THE 120 MPH MARK AND HOLDING. (MILEAGE 52,000) I TOOK IT TO A CHEVY DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC EVALUATION. I WAS TOLD IT WAS THE DASHBOARD CIRCUIT BOARD AND THAT IT WOULD BE $500 TO REPLACE IT. THE SERVICE MANAGER TOLD ME THAT THIS PART HAD BEEN RECALLED ON THE 2003-2004 MODELS BUT NOT THE 2005. THAT I COULD PAY FOR THE REPAIR AND IF IT WAS RECALLED I COULD BE REIMBURSED. THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY CONCERN ESPECIALLY WITH YOUNG TEENAGE DRIVERS. IT SEEMS OBVIOUS TO ME READING THROUGH ALL THE COMPLAINTS FOR THE 2005 MODEL AND THE RECALLS OF PREVIOUS YEARS THAT THE 2005 MODEL SHOULD BE RECALLED AS WELL. *TR

NHTSA ID

10263962

Incident

Nov 30, 2008

Mileage

49,000 mi