IllustrationMY SPEEDOMETER ON MY 2003 SUBURBAN DOESN'T WORK. CONCERNED ABOUT DRIVING NOT KNOWING THE SPEED I AM GOING. IT STOPPED WORKING SEVERAL MONTHS AFTER I BOUGHT IT USED, COULDN'T AFFORD TO GET IF FIXED THEN. AFTER RECALL OBTAINED RECENTLY, I TOOK IT TO DEALERSHIP AND THEY SAID IT WAS OVER MILEAGE CLAIMED IN RECALL. *TR
2003 Chevrolet Suburban 1500
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Suburban 1500 years
Owner complaints for the 2003 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 are substantially higher than the model-year median of 53.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Suburban 1500 years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
40–25K
1825–50K
3450–75K
3375–100K
37100–150K
25150K+
151 reports with mileage · 24 unknown
NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.
What to inspect
Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.
- Electrical System. Review the 60 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes. Review the 42 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 18 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
6 crash reports1 fire reports3 injury reports
What owners actually said
175 reportsLIFT GATE GLASS HINGES BROKE; CATASTROPHIC FAILURE WOULD HAVE OCCURRED IF I HAD NOT NOTICED A GAP IN THE BACK AS I WAS PULLING OUT OF PARKING LOT. *TR
BASED ON NHTSA #05V379000, OUR 2003 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN HAS EXHIBITED THE SAME PROBLEM OF ENGAGING THE ABS SYSTEM WHEN COMING TO A STOP AT A LIGHT OR INTERSECTION. THIS ONLY HAPPENS ON A SLOW STOP. THE REFERENCED RECALL DOES NOT INCLUDE YEAR 2003 AND CHEVROLET WILL NOT REPAIR AT NO CHARGE. THIS PROBLEM HAPPENS INTERMITTENTLY, SO…
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BASED ON NHTSA #05V379000, OUR 2003 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN HAS EXHIBITED THE SAME PROBLEM OF ENGAGING THE ABS SYSTEM WHEN COMING TO A STOP AT A LIGHT OR INTERSECTION. THIS ONLY HAPPENS ON A SLOW STOP. THE REFERENCED RECALL DOES NOT INCLUDE YEAR 2003 AND CHEVROLET WILL NOT REPAIR AT NO CHARGE. THIS PROBLEM HAPPENS INTERMITTENTLY, SOMETIMES THREE TIMES IN ONE DAY AND THEN NOT AT ALL FOR A COUPLE OF DAYS. MY AUTO MECHANIC HAS CONFIRMED THE PROBLEM IS A CORROSION OF FRONT WHEEL SPEED SENSOR. *TR
SPEEDOMETER READING INCORRECT WHEN IDLE OR MOVING. REGISTERS OVER 120 MPH WHILE TRAVELING APPROX 40 MPH. DEALER MADE RECALL BUT LIMITED TO UNDER 60,000 MILES. I PUT ON ALMOST THAT AMOUNT OF MILES IN THE FIRST YEAR OF OWNERSHIP. CHEVY SHOULD JUST RECALL & REPAIR PERIOD. *TR
SPEEDOMETER ON OUR 2003 SUBURBAN QUIT WORKING BACK IN MARCH 2008 WITH APPROXIMATELY 106,000 MILES ON IT. (IT NOW HAS 110,000 MILES) THE SPEEDOMETER WENT UP TO 120 WHEN WE WERE GOING APPROX. 40 MPH AND THEN IT STUCK DOWN PAST 160 AND HAS NET MOVED SINCE. SO FAR I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO FIND A RECALL NOTICE FROM CHEVROLET/GM. WE…
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SPEEDOMETER ON OUR 2003 SUBURBAN QUIT WORKING BACK IN MARCH 2008 WITH APPROXIMATELY 106,000 MILES ON IT. (IT NOW HAS 110,000 MILES) THE SPEEDOMETER WENT UP TO 120 WHEN WE WERE GOING APPROX. 40 MPH AND THEN IT STUCK DOWN PAST 160 AND HAS NET MOVED SINCE. SO FAR I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO FIND A RECALL NOTICE FROM CHEVROLET/GM. WE HAVE OWNED MANY DIFFERENT MAKES OF CARS ALONG WITH ANOTHER SUBURBAN WITH MANY MORE MILES THAN THIS ONE AND THE SPEEDOMETERS NEVER STOPPED WORKING. I WAS TOLD IT WOULD COST OVER $600 TO FIX AND HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO COME UP WITH THE MONEY YET. SEARCHING ON-LINE, THIS IS OBVIOUSLY A PROBLEM THAT GM IS NOT WILLING TO FIX AS MANY, MANY OTHER PEOPLE HAVE REPORTED THIS SAME PROBLEM. *TR
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE MOVED SLIGHTLY WHILE PLACED IN THE PARK POSITION. SHE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT THIS WAS A NORMAL CHARACTERISTIC OF THE VEHICLE AND IT COULD NOT BE REPAIRED. THE CONTACT IS EXPECTING A CALL FROM THE MANUFACTURER T…
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TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE MOVED SLIGHTLY WHILE PLACED IN THE PARK POSITION. SHE TOOK THE VEHICLE TO THE DEALER AND THEY STATED THAT THIS WAS A NORMAL CHARACTERISTIC OF THE VEHICLE AND IT COULD NOT BE REPAIRED. THE CONTACT IS EXPECTING A CALL FROM THE MANUFACTURER TO ANSWER HER QUESTIONS. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 110,000.
MY SPEEDOMETER DISPLAYS INCORRECT MPH, CREATING A DRIVING HAZARD. I WOULD LIKE GM TO FIX THIS PROBLEM THAT SO MANY OTHERS LIKE ME HAVE HAD. *TR
2003 CHEVY SUBURBAN IS HAVING THE SAME ABS PROBLEMS THAT LED TO THE RECALL OF 99-2002 SUBURBANS IN THE "SALT BELT". I HAVE TALKED TO THE DEALER AS WELL AS GM, BUT TO NO AVAIL. THE 2003 NEEDS TO BE RECALLED AS WELL. THANK YOU. *TR
SPEEDOMETER STICKS IN EXCESS OF 120 MPH OR IS VERY ERRATIC. FLUCTUATES BETWEEN 30 MPH (WHILE STOPPED) TO >120 MPH. *TR
I HAVE A 2003 SUBURBAN WITH 72K MILES. ABOUT 12 MONTHS AGO, THE REAR WINDOW BEGAN MAKING A WHISTLING NOISE WHILE DRIVING. WHEN I INSPECTED IT I FOUND THAT THE HINGE ON THE PASSENGER SIDE HAD SEPARATED FROM THE WINDOW. I HAVE TRIED TO GO THROUGH GM WITH NO AVAIL. THEIR ANSWER IS "IT SHOULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED", BUT THEY ARE NOT GOIN…
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I HAVE A 2003 SUBURBAN WITH 72K MILES. ABOUT 12 MONTHS AGO, THE REAR WINDOW BEGAN MAKING A WHISTLING NOISE WHILE DRIVING. WHEN I INSPECTED IT I FOUND THAT THE HINGE ON THE PASSENGER SIDE HAD SEPARATED FROM THE WINDOW. I HAVE TRIED TO GO THROUGH GM WITH NO AVAIL. THEIR ANSWER IS "IT SHOULDN'T HAVE HAPPENED", BUT THEY ARE NOT GOING TO DO ANYTHING ABOUT IT. *TR
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗
NHTSA investigations
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.