2002 Chevrolet Astro

DT*: THE CONTACT STATED WHILE APPLYING BRAKE PRESSURE AT VARIOUS LOW SPEEDS, THERE WAS AN INCREASED STOPPING DISTANCE, AND THE ANTILOCK BRAKES ACTIVATED WITHOUT WARNING. THERE WAS A NHTSA RECALL, # 05V379000, REGARDING THE ANTILOCK BRAKES. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL DUE TO THE VIN. THE DEALER AND MANUFACTURER WERE ALERTED. UPDATED 12/15/2006 - THE DEALER TOLD THE CONSUMER THAT THE ASTRO WAS BUILD ON THE SAME FRAME AS THE SILVERADO WHICH WAS BEING RECALLED. *NM

I BEGAN HAVING A SITUATION WHERE MY ANTI-LOCK BRAKE SYSTEM WOULD ACTIVATE AT SLOW SPEEDS <10 MPH SUCH AS WHEN PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE - THIS RESULTS IN THE VEHICLE GOING FORWARD FARTHER THAN IT NORMALLY WOULD - PLEASE NOTE THAT I DID NOT HAVE ANY ACCIDENTS. I TOOK IT TO THE DEALER WHICH INDICATED THAT IT WAS A COMMON PROBLEM AND THEY MAY BE ABLE TO CLEAN THE SENSORS OF CORROSION (THEY DID NOTE THAT THE SENSORS ARE LIGHTLY BUILT AND COULD BREAK REQUIRING REPLACEMENT DURING THE CLEANING PROCESS - WHICH THEY DID). I VOICED MY CONCERN TO GM VIA THERE CUSTOMER SERVICE SYSTEM THAT THIS FAILURE OCCURRED AT 42000 MILES ON A SAFETY RELATED SYSTEM (3 YEARS FROM IN SERVICE DATE - 6000 MILES OUT OF WARRANT). I CLEARLY INDICATED THAT I FELT THIS WAS A FLAW ON WHAT I CONSIDER TO BE A CRITICAL COMPONENT. AS OF THIS POINT - 1 WEEK LATER - GM'S ONLY RESPONSE WAS THAT MY CONCERN WOULD BE MADE KNOWN TO THE MANAGEMENT OF THE COMPANY. NO ACTION TO INFORM ME OF THE RECALL THAT I HAVE RECENTLY READ ABOUT WAS MADE, NOR WAS ANY ACTION TO COVER THE APPROXIMATELY $500 BILL. NOTE THAT THE RECALL THAT HAS BEEN IN THE NEWS DID NOT MENTION CHEVY ASTROS WHICH MY VEHICLE IS - HOWEVER THE PROBLEM SOUNDS IDENTICAL AND MY VEHICLE IS A TRUCK BASED GM VEHICLE WITH ALL WHEEL DRIVE AND ANTILOCK BRAKES - SIMILIAR TO ALL THE MODELS MENTIONED IN THE RECALL. *NM

THE CONSUMER'S ANTI-LOCK BRAKES DON'T WORK PROPERLY WHEN PULLING INTO A PARKING SPACE OR UNDER 10 MPH. THE CONSUMER HAD TO PUMP THE BRAKES IN ORDER TO GET VEHICLE TO STOP OR FOR WARNING BEFORE SLOWING DOWN. THE VEHICLE HAS ALL WHEEL DRIVE. THE CONSUMER PULLED FUSE FOR ANTI-LOCK BRAKE MANY TIMES, AND IT WORKED FINE WITHOUT THE FUSE. *AK *SB PULLING THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKE FUSE DEACTIVATED THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKES CAPABILITY. WITH THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKE FUSE IN, THE CONSUMER NEARLY RUNS INTO THE BACK OF VEHICLES WHEN STOPPING. THE CONSUMER STATED THAT THE INCIDENTS HAPPENS ONLY WHEN THE FUSE IS IN AND OCCURED THREE TIMES AT LOW SPEED FOR NO REASON.*SB *NM

DT: SHIFT INDICATOR WAS INDICATING THE WRONG GEAR. WHILE DRIVING THE ROAD THE INDICATOR WAS MOVING, BUT THE SHIFTER ITSELF. EVERY TIME I DROVE THE VEHICLE THIS HAPPENED. IT WAS TAKEN TO DEALER TO FIX AND STATED THERE WERE A LOT OF COMPLAINT. THIS OCCURRED ABOUT A MONTH AGO ANTILOCK BRAKES ARE APPLYING WHEN DRY. WHEN GOING ABOUT 3-4 MPH THE ANTILOCK BRAKES WILL ENGAGED. THIS PROBLEM WAS RANDOM. HAVE NOT TAKEN FOR REPAIRS. *NM

I ONLY DRIVE THIS 2002 CHEVROLET ASTRO VAN IN OUR SMALL TOWN BECAUSE I AM TERRIFIED TO DRIVE IT ON EXPRESSWAYS OR IN HEAVY TRAFFIC BECAUSE THE DISTRIBUTOR CAP COLLECTED MOISTURE AND THE ENGINE STOPPED IN HEAVY TRAFFIC ALMOST CAUSING TERRIBLE ACCIDENTS THREE TIMES IN THE PAST 8 MONTHS. LAST WEEK I DROVE THE VAN INTO TOWN. I KEEP A CLOSE WATCH ON ALL THE GAUGES BECAUSE OF THE PREVIOUS PROBLEMS. WHEN I LEFT THE HOUSE ALL THE GAUGES ON THE DASH WERE WORKING AND THE BATTERY WAS BETWEEN 12-14 VOLTS. I NOTICED WITHIN 5 MILES THE BATTERY VOLTS WERE DECREASING SO I HEADED FOR HOME. BY THE TIME I REACHED HOME (10 MILES ALL TOTAL), THE VOLT METER WAS IN THE RED ZONE, ALL THE GAUGES (EXCEPT FOR OIL PRESSURE) AND SPEEDOMETER WERE NOT WORKING AND, I BELIEVE, THE HEADLIGHTS WERE OUT. I PULLED THE VAN INTO THE DRIVE AND SHUT IT OFF. I HAD DIFFICULTY OPENING THE DOOR (POWER LOCKS) TO GET OUT. THE VAN WOULD NOT START AGAIN. THE VAN IS UNDER WARRANTY SO I CALLED COURTESY CHEVROLET WHO HAD THE VAN TOWED IN FOR SERVICE. THEY CALLED ME THE FOLLOWING MONDAY TO TELL ME THEY REPLACED THE ALTERNATOR, COMPUTER AND BATTERY AND THE VAN WAS READY BUT THEY HAD BROKEN THE RADIO AND WOULD REPLACE IT ON TUESDAY. I SAID FINE AND I WOULD PICK IT UP ON WEDNESDAY (FEBRUARY 9, 2005). COURTESY CHEVROLET CALLED ME ON TUESDAY AND TOLD ME NOT TO COME ON WEDNESDAY BECAUSE THE VOLTAGE PROBLEM WAS NOT CORRECTED AND THEY WOULD CALL ME WHEN THE VAN WAS READY. THEY CALLED ON FEBRUARY 10, 2005 TO SAY THE ALTERNATOR WAS BAD AND HAD BEEN REPLACED A SECOND TIME. *AK

I ATTEMPTED TO MAKE A LEFT HAND TURN ACROSS TWO LANES OF ON COMING TRAFFIC (SPEED LIMIT 55 MPH). I PUSH DOWN ON THE ACCELERATOR, THE VAN MOVED INTO THE ON COMING TRAFFIC LANES AND THE ENGINE DIED. CARS HAD TO QUICKLY APPLY BREAKS TO AVOID HITTING MY VAN. IT TOOK ABOUT 20 SECONDS TO GET THE VAN STARTED AND OUT OF THE INTERSECTION. THE VAN WAS TOWED INTO COURTESY CHEVROLET AND THE DISTRIBUTOR CAP AND ROTATOR WERE REPLACE. I WAS TOLD EVERYTHING WAS CORRECTED. THIS WAS NOT THE CASE AS THE SAME PROBLEM HAPPENED TWO ADDITIONAL TIMES (OCTOBER 24, 2004 AND DECEMBER 16, 2004) WITH THE SAME TERRIFYING CONSEQUENCES WITH ON COMING TRAFFIC. I WAS FORTUNATE NOT TO BE KILLED OR KILL SOMEONE ELSE WITH THIS VEHICLE STALLING IN ON COMING TRAFFIC.*AK

WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS STARTED IN THE MORNING, THE BRAKES MADE A GRINDING NOISE WHEN DEPRESSED. THE VEHICLE WAS SERVICED BY THE DEALERSHIP TWICE AND THEY REPLACED THE BRAKE DISC, ROTORS AND SHOES. WHILE DRIVING DOWN A HILL WITH THE BRAKE PEDAL DEPRESSED, THE BRAKE SYSTEM OVERHEATED, AND A BURNING ODOR FILLED THE CABIN OF THE VEHICLE. *AK THE BRAKES STARTED TO PULSATE AGAIN WHILE GOING DOWN A MOUNTAIN, A NOISE WAS HEARD COMING FROM THE DRIVELINE BETWEEN SHIFTS AND WAS UNABLE TO BE DUPLICATED, THE TRANSMISSION SLIPPED AND SHIFTED ERRATICALLY, THE ENGINE WOULD BREAK UP ON A SLIGHT ACCELERATION DUE TO THE DISTRIBUTOR CAP AND THE ROTOR BEING CORRODED. *SC *JB

2002 CHEVROLET ASTRO VAN. AMONGST MANY OTHER PROBLEMS WITH THIS BRAND-NEW VEHICLE, WE EXPERIENCED THE FOLLOWING TWICE: WHEN TRAVELLING OR SHIFTING FROM NEUTRAL, THE TRANSMISSION MAKES A LOUD GRINDING NOISE, AND THE ENGINE REVS, BUT THERE IS NOT POWER. IN OTHER WORDS, THE TRANSMISSION ACTS AS THOUGH IT SHIFTED ITSELF INTO NEUTRAL. HAVE COMPLAINED SINCE THE FIRST WEEK OF OWNERSHIP ABOUT NOISY TRANSMISSION (SOUNDS LIKE PUMP); HOWEVER, DEALER CAN NEVER FIND ANYTHING WRONG. LATEST INCIDENT OCCURRED YESTERDAY, WHILE 1200 MILES FROM HOME, TOOK IT TO DEALER IN WA, WHO CLAIM TO HAVE FOUND NOTHING WRONG. AM NOW AFRAID TO DRIVE VEHICLE.