2006 Chevrolet Equinox

MY 2006 CHEVY EQUINOX STARTED BLOWING OUT COLD AIR WHEN I TURNED THE HEAT ON BACK IN MAY OF 2010. WE DECIDED TO LET IT GO SINCE IT WAS GETTING WARMER OUT AND NOW THAT IT'S GETTING COLDER HERE IN MI, WE DECIDED TO GET THE PROBLEM FIXED BECAUSE THE DEFROSTER WON'T WORK. MY HUSBAND IS A MECHANIC AND WE STARTED LOOKING ONLINE TO SEE WHAT THE PROBLEM MIGHT BE AND CAME ACROSS THOUSANDS OF POSTS FROM PEOPLE THAT HAVE THE SAME ISSUE. THE BLEND DOOR IS MORE THAN LIKELY BROKEN, THE DASH HAS TO BE TAKEN APART TO FIX IT AND WE CAN'T AFFORD TO PAY SOMEONE OVER $1000 TO FIX IT. THE CAR ONLY HAS 48000 MILES ON IT AND I'VE NEVER HAD ANY PROBLEMS WITH GM CARS IN THE PAST SO WE DECIDED NOT TO GET THE EXTENDED WARRANTY. I WILL RETHINK THIS IN THE FUTURE BECAUSE OF THE CHEAP WAY VEHICLES ARE BEING MADE NOW. MAKES ME SICK WE HAVE TO DO ALL THIS WORK FOR A CHEAP PART THAT NEEDS TO BE REPLACED. *TR

2006 CHEVY EQUINOX "NO HEAT" - THIS VEHICLE HAS A PROBLEM WITH THE BLEND DOOR BREAKING. MY OPINION, IT IS A BAD DESIGN. MANY EQUINOX OWNERS ARE EXPERIENCING THE SAME FAILURE. IT IS UNSAFE BECAUSE THE DEFROST WILL NOT WORK. MY FAILURE HAPPENED AT 72,000 MILES. THIS IS A KNOWN PROBLEM WITH THE EQUINOX AS WELL AS THE PONTIAC TORRENT. I THINK GM SHOULD BE FORCED TO RECALL THIS AT ONCE. IT SEEMS THE PARTS ARE ONLY AVAILABLE FROM THE DEALER AT A COST OF $65 - $200, HOWEVER THE LABOR IS $600 - $1200, NO CUSTOMER SHOULD HAVE TO SPEND THAT ON AN OBVIOUS DESIGN FLAW. *TR

I WAS LUCKY AND FOUND OUT WHEN IT WAS SUMMER TIME AND NOT COLD OUT... MY MECHANICS HAVE REPLACED 2 DIFFERENT PARTS THE TEMP SWITCH AND VALVE THAT THEY WERE TOLD COULD BE THE PROBLEM AND STILL NO HEAT .. AND I HAVE DONE MORE RESEARCH ON THE PROBLEM IT TURNS OUT TO BE THE HEAT DOOR ARM IS BROKE AND TAKE 7-8 HOURS TO REMOVE THE DASH. MANY EQUINOX HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM WITH OUT HEAT AND DEFROST YOU CANT SEE TO USE THE CAR DURING COLD WEATHER THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE DURING THE WINTER. *TR

HEATER DOES NOT WORK ON 2006 CHEVY EQUINOX DUE TO AN AIR TEMPERATURE BLEND DOOR BEHIND THE DASH. THIS APPEARS TO BE A LARGE SPREAD PROBLEM WITH CHEVY EQUINOX. ANY GOOGLE SEARCH WITH THE KEYWORDS "CHEVY EQUINOX HEATER PROBLEM" WILL PROVE THIS. THIS IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE IN THE WINTER MONTHS. THE WINDOW WILL NOT DEFROST MAKING IT IMPOSSIBLE TO SEE OUT OF THE FRONT WINDOW. MY RESEARCH SHOWS THAT CHEVY WILL NOT MAKE A RECALL ON THIS BECAUSE THEY FEEL IT IS NOT A SAFETY ISSUE. I WOULD GUESS THIS IS NOT THE FIRST COMPLAINT. *TR

2006 CHEVY EQUINOX - THERE IS A DEFECT IN THE HEATER ACTUATOR OCCURRING ON MANY VEHICLES. I DIDN'T REALIZE THE PROBLEM UNTIL SEARCHING ALL THE COMPLAINTS ON THE WEB AND TALKING WITH THE DEALERSHIP. THE FAILURE OF THE HEATER ACTUATOR CAUSED ONLY COLD AIR TO BLOW. THIS PREVENTS WARM AIR FROM BEING DIRECTED TO THE FRONT WINDSHIELD TO PREVENT BUILDUP OF FROST. DEPENDING ON WEATHER FRONTS PASSING THROUGH AND TIME OF DAY, THIS IS BECOMING A SERIOUS SAFETY ISSUE FOR ME. ONE WOULD ASK: WHY NOT GET IT FIXED? I HAVE TAKEN THIS TO THE DEALER AND THE RELATIVELY CHEAP REPLACEMENT PART REQUIRES $1200.00+ TO HAVE THE ENTIRE DASHBOARD REMOVED. IT IS NOT PRACTICAL IN MOST CASES TO PAY THIS AMOUNT FOR A SIMPLE PART REPAIR, AND IN MOST CASED TO COMPLEX FOR A DO-IT-YOURSELF MECHANIC. HUNDREDS OF CAR PART FAILURES ARE OCCURRING, AS APPARENT FROM COMPLAINTS ON THE WEB. A FATAL ACCIDENT IS BOUND TO HAPPEN IF IT HASN'T ALREADY. THERE ARE SOME REPORTS THAT GM AS RECOGNIZED THE POORLY DESIGNED PART AND THE HIGH POTENTIAL FOR ACCIDENTS SO THEY ARE QUIETLY TRYING TO DESIGN A NEW PART. THIS HAS GOT REQUIRE A RECALL. *TR