2000 Chevrolet Corvette

MY SON PURCHASED THIS CAR IN MAY 2012 AND WRECKED IT IN JUNE 2012 WHILE DRIVING TO WORK IN THE RAIN. THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY DESPITE HIS HITTING A LAMP POST AND A TREE. HE WAS NOT INJURED AND NO OTHER CARS WERE INVOLVED. WE ALWAYS WONDERED WHY THE AIR BAGS DID NOT DEPLOY BUT DIDN'T PURSUE THAT BECAUSE WE WERE JUST GLAD NO ONE GOT HURT. MY SON NEVER QUITE UNDERSTOOD HOW THE WRECK HAPPENED AND NOW THAT WE HAVE LEARNED OF PROBLEMS WITH AIR BAGS NOT DEPLOYING IN SOME GM CARS, WE WONDER IF THERE MIGHT BE A PROBLEM THAT SHOULD BE INVESTIGATED WITH REGARD TO CORVETTES AS WELL. WE GOT A CARFAX REPORT ON THE CAR BEFORE WE PURCHASED IT AND THERE WAS NO INDICATION THAT IT HAD BEEN INVOLVED IN ANY KIND OF INCIDENT THAT WOULD HAVE IMPACTED THE AIR BAGS. *TR

AFTER THE CAR WAS STARTED AND I BEGAN TO DRIVE ,IT WOULD SHUT OFF THE MOTOR AND LOCK THE STEERING WHEEL. ALL THE LIGHTS WOULD WORK FINE,BUT THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED UNTIL I CAME TO A STOP AND WOULD TURN OFF THE MOTOR AND RESTART THE ENGINE. IT WAS VERY SCARY BECAUSE I COULD NOT PULL OVER TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD AND RESTART THE MOTOR. I WOULD HAVE TO STOP IN THE MIDDLE OF THE ROAD AND START IT. WHEN I TOOK THE CAR INTO THE DEALER THEY SAID IT WAS THE KEY AND KEY FOB THAT WAS PULLING THE KEY OUT OF THE IGNITION AND HAD TO REPLACE THE ENTIRE KEY SWITCH. THIS COST ME $341.28 . I ASKED ABOUT ANY RECALLS OR OTHER PEOPLE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM AND THE REPORTED TO ME THAT IT IS A COMMON OCCURRENCE IN THE CORVETTE. SOUNDS LIKE WHAT WAS AND IS GOING ON NOW AND I THINK I SHOULD BE PAID BACK THE MONEY I SPENT BY GM. *TR

WAS GETTING IN VEHICLE TOO DRIVE N STEERING WHEEL LOCKED UP AFTER ENGINE WAS CRANKED N RUNNING. VEHICLE HAS A RECALL FROM NHTSA 04V060000 DEALERSHIP SAID RECALL HAS BEEN FIXED BEFORE, N THEY HAVE TOO CHARGE ME 600 DOLLARS TO FIX PROBLEM AGAIN. JUST WANTING TOO LET SOMEONE KNOW GM IS STILL HAVING ISSUES WITH STEERING WHEEL LOCKING UP WHEN VEHICLE WILL CRANK UP N RUN N YOU CANT STEER VEHICLE, MAY CAUSE DEATH OR INJURY IF IT KEEPS UP NOT FIXING PROBLEM. *TR

COMPUTER MESSAGE: SERVICE ACTIVE HANDLING. PER GM NEED PART #26058286 STEERING POSITION SENSOR WHICH IS DISCONTINUED FOR 1999/2000 CORVETTES. THEY STILL MAKE THIS PART FOR ALL OTHER MODEL YEARS INCLUDING FOR 1997-98 CORVETTES. THIS COULD CAUSE THE TRACTION CONTROL SYSTEM TO APPLY THE BRAKES AND/OR PERFORM OTHER FUNCTIONS, WHEN IT SHOULDN'T, CAUSING ERRATIC UNSAFE DRIVING CONDITIONS. I AM AFRAID TO DRIVE IT AND CANNOT SELL IT AS IS. *TR

I WAS LEAVING MY HOUSE TO GO TO WORK AND WHEN I GOT TO THE BUSY STREET, THERE WAS COMPLETE AND TOTAL BRAKE FAILURE. I ENDED UP RUNNING OVER A CURB AND HITTING SOME TREES TO STOP MY CAR. I HAD AAA TOW MY CAR TO A MECHANIC'S SHOP AND HE TRIED WORKING ON IT FOR ABOUT A WEEK TO TEN DAYS AND COULD NOT FIGURE OUT WHY I HAD NO BRAKES AT ALL. HE SAID THE ABS SYSTEM SEEMS TO BE MALFUNCTIONING, BUT IT SHOULDN'T LEAVE ME WITHOUT ANY BRAKES. HE SAID HE THOUGHT IT WAS A SAFETY ISSUE AND THAT GM WOULD NEED TO BE NOTIFIED ABOUT THIS AND HE URGED ME TO SEND MY CAR TO A GM DEALERSHIP TO TAKE CARE OF THE ISSUE. I HAD AAA TOW MY CAR TO BOB STALL CHEVROLET IN LA MESA, CA AND THEY VERIFIED THAT THE ABS SYSTEM WAS FRIED AND THAT I WOULD NEED TO REPLACE THE UNIT. WHEN I ASKED IF GM WOULD HELP WITH THE COST OF THE REPLACEMENT SINCE IT WAS A SAFETY ISSUE, THEY SAID I WOULD HAVE TO CALL GM CUSTOMER SERVICE. I DID AND THEY SAID THEY WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO ASSIST BECAUSE THE DEALERSHIP WAS TELLING THEM THAT THE CAR HAD BRAKES AND WORKED FINE WHEN THEY GOT IT. NOW I AM SERIOUSLY CONCERNED WITH THE SAFETY OF MY CAR AND THE BRAKES AND THE FACT THAT IF THE ABS GOES OUT OR FRIES, THAT I MIGHT POSSIBLY NOT HAVE BRAKES AT ALL. MY CAR HAS BEEN AT THE DEALERSHIP FOR ALMOST A MONTH NOW AND THEY STILL HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO FIX IT YET. *TR

RIGHT FRONT TIRE WENT FLAT SEVERAL TIMES. WHEELS ARE THE STANDARD 5 SPOKE POLISHED OEM (FACTORY) WHEELS. LEAK TESTING INDICATED HAIRLINE CRACK APPROXIMATELY 3/8" IN LENGTH ON EXTERNAL SURFACE NEAR WHERE SPOKE RADIATES FROM MAIN WHEEL RING TOWARDS CENTER OF WHEEL. IN OTHER WORDS, WHERE THE SPOKE IS ON THE WHEEL. DEALER DETERMINED THAT WHEEL WAS DEFECTIVE AND I PAID FOR NEW, REPLACEMENT WHEEL. AFTER MUCH RESEARCH, WHEEL DEFECTS AND CRACKS ARE PREVALENT IN THE 2000 - 2004 C5 CORVETTE MODELS. SOME CRACKS ARE DETECTED AS THE TIRE BEGINS TO LEAK AIR AND THE TPMS ALERTS DRIVER. OTHER CRACKS ARE VISIBLE TO THE NAKED EYE WHEN WASHING AND DETAILING IS PERFORMED. EVERY INTERNET POST ABOUT WHEELS STATE THAT THE WHEELS ARE NOT DAMAGED DUE TO POTHOLES OR HITTING CURBS OR OTHER OBSTACLES. OTHER THAN LOCAL CHEVROLET DEALER, I AM THE ONLY DRIVER AND THERE HAVE BEEN NO IMPACTS OR OTHER EXTERNAL DAMAGE TO THE WHEELS. SOME REPORT FAILURE AFTER REPLACEMENT OF THE ZERO PRESSURE OR RUN FLAT OR EMT TIRES. OTHERS HAVE HAD THREE SETS OF TIRES MOUNTED. IN MY CASE, I HAD NEW TIRES INSTALLED APPROXIMATELY 2000 MILES AGO. I HAD A SET INSTALLED APPROXIMATELY 35,000 AND HAD NO ISSUES. WHEEL CRACK MAY BE SUPERFICIAL. CHEVROLET/GM DOES NOT PROVIDE EXTENDED WARRANTY. NO INFORMATION AS TO WHETHER THE WHEELS ARE IMPREGNATED WITH A SEALER TO PREVENT AIR LOSS DUE TO MINUTE POROSITY IN THE CASTING. THIS IS A MAJOR CONCERN AND THE INCIDENTS ARE BECOMING MORE COMMON PLACE BASED ON INTERNET RESEARCH. *TR

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2000 CHEVROLET CORVETTE. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 65 MPH, THE CONTACT STATED THE REAR TIRES DISCONNECTED FROM THE VEHICLE CAUSING THE CONTACT TO LOSE CONTROL. THE CONTACT ALSO STATED THE TRACTION CONTROL AND THE ABS WARNING LIGHTS ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A DEALER FOR DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE TECHNICIAN STATED THE ABCM MODULE AND THE LEFT FRONT WHEEL BEARING NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED DUE TO THE ABCM MODULE NOT BEING AVAILABLE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGE WERE 12,000.

DRIVING DOWN RT 2 IN CT WITH CRUISE SET ON 65 WHEN A "ACTIVE HANDLING" FAILURE CODE JUST POPPED UP ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL (VERY FIRST TIME EVER) AND THEN THE BACK RIGHT BRAKE WAS ACTIVATED SKEWING THE CAR IMMEDIATELY TO THE RIGHT. I RECOVERED THE CAR AND SLOWLY DROVE IT HOME WITH THE CODE STILL DISPLAYED. I BROUGHT THE CAR TO THE CORVETTE CENTER AND THEY TOLD ME THAT THE STEERING WHEEL SENSOR FAILED AND SUGGESTED I DO NOT DRIVE THE CAR. THEY ALSO TOLD ME THAT GENERAL MOTORS DOES NOT MAKE A REPLACEMENT SENSOR NOR DO ANY AFTERMARKET COMPANIES! THEY ALSO TOLD ME THAT WITH THE STEERING WHEEL SENSOR FAILURE THE VEHICLES BRAKES, EITHER ALL OR INDIVIDUALLY, COULD BE APPLIED ANY TIME I DRIVE THE CAR BY THE CAR'S COMPUTER THUS CREATING A VARIOUS DANGEROUS CONDITION. I TELEPHONED GENERAL MOTORS CHEVROLET DIVISION AND THE REPRESENTATIVE I SPOKE WITH APOLOGIZED ABOUT THE VEHICLES BEHAVIOR AND THEN CONFIRMED THERE "WAS A PROBLEM" BUT COULDN'T HELP ME AS THERE ARE NO REPLACEMENT PARTS AVAILABLE TO REPAIR THE VEHICLE. IT IS TOTALLY RIDICULOUS TO DESIGN A VEHICLE THAT INCORPORATES AN INTERNAL COMPONENT THAT IS ABSOLUTELY CRUCIAL TO THE SAFETY OF THE VEHICLE, OCCUPANTS, AND ALL THOSE AROUND IT AND NOT SUPPLY A REPLACEMENT PART THUS RENDERING THE VEHICLE "GROUNDED" FOREVER. *TR