IllustrationMY 2004 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN WITH 88,000 MILES HAS A FAULTY SPEEDOMETER AND I AM UNABLE TO TELL WHAT SPEED I AM GOING AT ALL TIMES! I HAVE A 4 YEAR OLD AND A 6 YEAR OLD IN THE CAR WITH ME OFTEN AND THIS CAUSES ME GREAT CONCERN OVER THE SAFETY OF MY FAMILY AND I. *TR
2004 Chevrolet Suburban 1500
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Suburban 1500 years
Owner complaints for the 2004 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
60–25K
1925–50K
4050–75K
5075–100K
31100–150K
21150K+
167 reports with mileage · 15 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 84 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes. Review the 27 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Steering. Review the 13 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
2 crash reports4 fire reports2 injury reports
Electrical System complaints
84 reports2004 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN SPEEDOMETER READING IS INACCURATE, READING ANYWHERE FROM 20 TO 50 MPH TOO HIGH. THIS IS A HAZARD WHILE DRIVING DUE TO INABILITY TO ACCURATELY GAUGE SPEED, CAUSING TENDENCY TO DRIVE TOO SLOWLY. RUN RISK OF TRAFFIC TICKET. CHEVY DEALERSHIP ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THIS IS COMMON PROBLEM BUT ONLY PROVIDES SPECIA…
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2004 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN SPEEDOMETER READING IS INACCURATE, READING ANYWHERE FROM 20 TO 50 MPH TOO HIGH. THIS IS A HAZARD WHILE DRIVING DUE TO INABILITY TO ACCURATELY GAUGE SPEED, CAUSING TENDENCY TO DRIVE TOO SLOWLY. RUN RISK OF TRAFFIC TICKET. CHEVY DEALERSHIP ACKNOWLEDGES THAT THIS IS COMMON PROBLEM BUT ONLY PROVIDES SPECIAL ISSUE SERVICE FOR VEHICLES BETWEEN 70,000 TO 80,000 MILES ON ODOMETER. *TR
SPEEDOMETER DOES NOT WORK. UNSURE OF MY SPEED VERY UNSAFE. *TR
BOUGHT MY 2004 CHEVY SUBURBAN IN FEB. 2008. IT HAD 75,000 MILES ON IT. DROVE IT FOR A MONTH AND THE SPEEDOMETER WOULD FLUCTUATE 3-4 MPH AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS AND THE WORK FINE FOR A WEEK OR SO BEFORE ACTING UP. AT 92,000 MILES SPEEDOMETER WENT TOTALLY OUT, READING 0 ONE MINUTE AND BOUNCING TO 120 THE NEXT. NOW IT JUST SITS ON ZERO F…
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BOUGHT MY 2004 CHEVY SUBURBAN IN FEB. 2008. IT HAD 75,000 MILES ON IT. DROVE IT FOR A MONTH AND THE SPEEDOMETER WOULD FLUCTUATE 3-4 MPH AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS AND THE WORK FINE FOR A WEEK OR SO BEFORE ACTING UP. AT 92,000 MILES SPEEDOMETER WENT TOTALLY OUT, READING 0 ONE MINUTE AND BOUNCING TO 120 THE NEXT. NOW IT JUST SITS ON ZERO FOR MOST OF THE TIME. WOULD NOT KNOW IF IT EVER READ THE CORRECT MPH IF IT WASN'T FOR THE GPS. HAVE NOT REPLACED ANYTHING YET. BUT WILL HAVE TO SHORTLY BECAUSE THE TEXAS SAFETY INSPECTION IS DUE IN NOVEMBER. I THINK THIS IS WHY THE PREVIOUS OWNER TRADED IT IN AND DIDN'T TELL ANY ONE. *TR
THE SPEEDOMETER ON MY '04 CHEVY SUBURBAN HAS BECOME ERRATIC, AND PROGRESSIVELY GETS "FASTER" AND FASTER UNTIL IT REGISTERS 120MPH SETTING STILL. REPEATEDLY TURNING THE CAR ON AND OFF WILL RESET THE SPEEDOMETER, BUT IT RECURS WITHIN A FEW DAYS. *TR
I NOTICED WHILE I WAS DRIVING THAT THE SPEEDOMETER SEEMED A LITTLE OFF AND I WAS CORRECT IT STARTS AT 10MPH AND WHILE DRIVING ITS ABOUT 13 MPH OFF. *TR
2004 CHEVY SUBURBAN SPEEDOMETER FAILS SPORADICALLY. WILL STICK AT ANYTIME WITHOUT NOTICE. SHOWING UP TO 120 MILER PER HOUR WHILE PARKED. CANNOT ASCERTAIN EXACT OF SPEED OF VEHICLE. WPER HAPS EFFECTS ODOMETER AND HOUR METER. *TR
SPEEDOMETER STOPPED WORKING WHEN ODOMETER READ 76,000 MILES. DOES NOT WORK AT ALL. CURRENTLY READ 120 MPH. DEALER WILL NOT FIX AS WARRANTY HAS EXPIRED. SPEEDOMETER STOPPED WORKING DUE TO POOR QUALITY, NOT IMPROPER USE. *TR
INSTRUMENT CLUSTER WENT DEAD NO SPEEDOMETER NOTHING. *TR
SPEEDOMETER QUIT WORKING ON 2004 SUBURBAN. *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.