Reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers, shown in full
Data refreshed
Complaints on fileComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
14
Latest Jan 26, 2004
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
2
Filed in the last 12 monthsReports filed with NHTSA in the trailing 365 days. Recent volume reflects attention and vehicle age as much as anything else.
0
Reports on file since Mar 16, 1995
What this page shows
Our database holds 14 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 1993 Suzuki Sidekick. Each one is a report filed by an owner or driver and published by NHTSA without most of them being verified. A complaint is not a confirmed defect, not a recall and not a manufacturer bulletin. Narratives are shown exactly as filed.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Complaints, most recent first
Showing 1–14 of 14
Driver assistance
Filed Jan 26, 2004
APPROXIMATELY. 14 MO. AFTER PURCHASE, SPEEDOMETER CABLE ASSEMBLY BEGAN MAKING NOISE, GOT WORSE (INTERMITTENTLY), AND CULMINATED 7 YRS. LATER IN A "FROZEN" SPEEDOMETER PLUS EXTREMELY LOUD SCREECHING (STUCK CABLE HEAD) AT SPEEDS OVER 20 MPH. REPLACEMENT OF COMPLETE SPEEDOMETER/ODOMETER ASSEMBLY BY INDEPENDENT AUTO REPAIR SHOP WAS COMPLICATED BY LACK OF AVAILABLE USED UNITS (WE LOOKED UNSUCCESSFULLY FOR OVER 8 MOS.). USED UNIT FINALLY FOUND BUT NOT CORRECTLY DIGITIZED (5 SETTINGS INSTEAD OF MANUFACTURED 6 SETTINGS). ONLY OPTION OFFERED BY DEALER WAS NEW UNIT AT COST OF $700. I PAID $300 TO INSTALL USED (AND INCORRECTLY DIGITIZED) REPLACEMENT. THIS PROBLEM WAS REPORTED TO DEALER WITHIN FIRST 14 MONTHS OF OWNERSHIP, AND WAS REPEATEDLY BROUGHT TO THEIR ATTENTION EVERY YEAR AS NOISE GREW WORSE. DEALER WAS NON-RESPONSIVE EVERY TIME. HOWEVER, I NOW UNDERSTAND FROM THREE DIFFERENT AUTO REPAIR SHOPS THAT THIS PROBLEM WAS VERY COMMON TO 1993 - 1995 VEHICLES OF MY MAKE AND MODEL, WHICH IS WHY NO CORRECT USED UNITS WERE AVAILABLE TO ME FOR REPLACEMENT. IT APPEARS THAT SUZUKI HAS EITHER NEVER ACKNOWLEDGED THIS DEFECT, OR NEVER NOTIFIED OWNERS OF A FIX. *LA
NHTSA ID
10054881
Incident
Oct 5, 1994
Mileage
12,000 mi
Interior & seats
Filed Jan 26, 2004
AT APPROX. 90,000 MI., TURN SIGNAL STEM BEGAN MAKING LOUD BUZZING NOISE INTERMITTENTLY WHEN MOVED UPWARD (RIGHT BLINK). PROBLEM INCREASED SO THAT BY 138,000 MI. BUZZING HAPPENED WHENEVER STEM WAS MOVED UPWARD OR DOWNWARD (RIGHT OR LEFT BLINK). BY 140,000 MI. BUZZING WAS CONSTANT, WHETHER TURN SIGNAL STEM WAS ENGAGED OR NOT. THIS PROBLEM WAS BROUGHT TO ATTENTION OF DEALER FROM 1997 - 1999. DEALER WAS NON-RESPONSIVE, SAYING THEY COULD NOT DUPLICATE PROBLEM. WIRING WAS REPAIRED BY INDEPENDENT AUTO SHOP, COSTING OVER $200. PROBLEM IS BEGINNING INTERMITTENTLY AGAIN LESS THAN 500 MILES LATER. THERE APPEARS TO BE FAULTY OEM WIRING INSIDE STEERING COLUMN AND DASHBOARD. VEHICLE (ORIGINAL OWNER) HAS NEVER BEEN ROUGHLY USED OR IN ANY TYPE OF ACCIDENT. *JB
NHTSA ID
10019830
Incident
Aug 5, 1997
Mileage
90,000 mi
Tires & wheels
Filed Aug 11, 2000
AS MY WIFE WAS DRIVING ON THE FREEWAY AT APPROX. 60 MPH, THE LEFT REAR TIRE TREAD PEELED OFF A CHUNCK OF TREAD. SHE WAS ABLE TO PULL OFF THE FREEWAY, WHERE I WAS CALLED TO CHANGE IT WITH MY SPARE, WHICH IS A BRIDGESTONE( DOT NUMBER: 19681 TIRE SIZE: P20575R15 )
NHTSA ID
727637
Incident
Jul 31, 2000
Electrical
Filed Oct 3, 1999
POWER PASSENGER WINDOW WILL NOT ROLL UP DUE TO REGULATOR GOING OUT. POSSIBLE SHORTING OUT AND WINDOW ROLLING DOWN BY ITSELF. VEHICLE WAS SECURED WHEN LEFT, AND WHEN RETURNED PASSENGER WINDOW WAS DOWN. ESTIMATED COST OF REPAIRS: 350.00 BECAUSE SUZUKI DOES NOT MAKE REGULATOR'S WITHOUT A WHOLE NEW MOTOR.
NHTSA ID
712712
Incident
Sep 29, 1999
Interior & seats
Filed Mar 30, 1999
THE SPRING WHICH CONTROLS THE REAR LIFTGATE GOT OUT OF ITS PLASTIC DUE TO WIRE MELTING THE PLASTIC, AND CAUSED THE REAR DOOR TO OPEN UNEXPECTEDLY WHICH MAY HAVE CAUSD INJURIES. THE REAR DOOR WILL NOT SHUT CLOSED. PLEASE PROVIDE FURTHER INFORMATION AND VIN#. *AK
NHTSA ID
836312
Incident
Mar 26, 1999
Electrical
Filed Jul 10, 1997
ELECTRICAL FIRE.
NHTSA ID
519331
Incident
Dec 4, 1996
Seat belts
Filed Jan 6, 1997
THE REAR PASSENGER'S SEAT BELT ON THE DRIVER SIDE LOCKS WHERE IT CAN NOT COME OUT OF ITS RETRACTOR AND IS UNABLE TO BE USED AT THIS TIME. PLEASE DESCRIBE DETAILS. *AK
NHTSA ID
807124
Visibility
Filed Oct 18, 1996
LACK OF GRILL OVER AIR VENTS ALLOWS RODENTS TO ENTER VENTILATION SYSTEM.
NHTSA ID
510212
Incident
May 28, 1996
Brakes
Filed Jul 12, 1996
CONTINUOUS WEAR ON THE FRONT BRAKE PADS AND DISC. DESCRIBE IN MORE DETAIL. *AK
NHTSA ID
986791
Incident
Dec 24, 1994
Fuel system
Filed Apr 8, 1996
Fire reported1 injury reported
WHILE UNSCREWING GAS CAP, FIRE BALL CAME OUT OF GAS TANK INTO DRIVER'S FACE, FIRE ENGULFED DRIVER'S HEAD; GAS TANK WAS NOT FULLY REMOVED. *AK
NHTSA ID
982428
Incident
Mar 28, 1996
Engine
Filed Mar 6, 1996
VEHICLE FIRE.
NHTSA ID
502301
Incident
Jan 8, 1996
Interior & seats
Filed Jan 3, 1996
Crash reported2 injuries reported
CONSUMER WAS IN AN ACCIDENT AND DRIVER SIDE SEAT FAILURE SEAT BROKE IN HALF. TT
NHTSA ID
977316
Incident
Dec 14, 1995
Engine
Filed Jun 6, 1995
WHILE DRIVING ENGINE FAILED/BLEW ESTIMATED SPEED 40 MPH DUE TO ROD FAILURE. PLEASE DESCRIBE DETAILS. TT
NHTSA ID
966464
Steering
Filed Mar 16, 1995
STEERING KNUCKLE BETWEEN STEERING COLUMN AND STEERING BOX WORE PREMATURELY AT 50,000 MILES. TT
NHTSA ID
962055
Incident
Mar 14, 1995
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.