2004 Chevrolet Venture

WE BOUGHT THE VAN USED FROM A DEALERSHIP ABOUT A YEAR AGO. THE VAN WAS FINE AT FIRST BUT A COUPLE OF MONTHS AFTER WE BOUGHT THE VAN THE FUEL GAUGE FLUCTUATED. THE FUEL GAUGE WAS AT HALF, IT WENT TO EMPTY THEN FULL AND BACK TO HALF, ALL IN ONE MOTION. I THOUGHT IT WAS ODD BUT NEVER HAD A FUEL GAUGE DO THAT TO ME BEFORE. AFTER THAT THE FUEL GAUGE WOULD FLUCTUATE PERIODICALLY BUT WOULD ALWAYS GO BACK TO WERE IT WAS BEFORE IT FLUCTUATED. WE FIGURED AS LONG AS IT WENT BACK TO WERE IT WAS BEFORE IT FLUCTUATED THEN WE WOULD JUST DEAL WITH IT. BOY, WERE WE STUPID FOR THINKING THAT IT WASN'T GOING TO GET WORSE. IT EVENTUALLY GOT WORSE AND NOW IT READS FULL(BUT ITS NOT) AND JUST OUT OF NOWHERE GOES TO EMPTY AND THE FUEL LIGHT COMES ON. JUST LAST WEEK THE FUEL GAUGE READ EMPTY, WE PUT $50 WORTH OF FUEL IN THE VAN. THE GAUGE READ FULL, WE DID SOME RUNNING AROUND TOWN(WE LIVE IN A SMALL TOWN) SO WE COULDN'T HAVE USED MUCH FUEL. WE WENT HOME AND WAS GOING TO LEAVE AGAIN A FEW HOURS LATER AND WHEN WE STARTED THE VAN AND GOT DOWN THE ROAD, THE FUEL GAUGE WENT TO EMPTY IMMEDIATELY. ITS FRUSTRATING THAT THE FUEL GAUGE DOESN'T DISPLAY CORRECTLY. MY WIFE USUALLY DRIVES THE VAN AND I DON'T WANT HER TO RUN OUT OF GAS AND GET STRANDED SOMEWHERE. I'VE BEEN READING A LOT ABOUT THIS PROBLEM ON THE INTERNET AND I WAS JUST WONDERING HOW MANY PEOPLE DOES IT HAVE TO AFFECT TO WARRANT A RECALL BY GM? DOES SOMEONE HAVE TO GET HURT OR KILLED BEFORE SOMETHING GETS DONE? HAVE ALWAYS BOUGHT GM VEHICLES(NEVER HAD ANY ISSUES) BUT IT DOESN'T MAKE ANY SENSE IF GM KNEW ABOUT THE PROBLEM AND DECIDED TO DO NOTHING. NOW WERE STUCK PAYING 3 MORE YEARS ON A VAN THAT DOESN'T OPERATE PROPERLY. WE DON'T HAVE THE MONEY TO TRADE IT IN FOR SOMETHING ELSE AND DON'T HAVE THE MONEY TO GET IT FIXED. VERY FRUSTRATING! *TR

THE SPEEDOMETER STARTED ACTING SPORADIC NOT REGISTERING SPEED ACCURATELY THEN STOPPED WORKING ALL TOGETHER ALSO THE GAS GAUGE DOES NOT REGISTER AT ALL SINCE THE PROBLEM BEGAN .THE LOW FUEL LIGHT DOES OPERATE AS OF RIGHT NOW.I HAVE READ THAT ALOT OF VENTURE OWNERS HAVE THIS PROBLEM IT IS AVERY EXPENSIVE REPAIR 500 JUST FOR THE PARTS. *TR

WE HAVE A 2004 VENTURE. THE SPEEDOMETER STARTED BEING ERRATIC FOR A TIME, FOLLOWED BY THE TEMPERATURE GAUGE, AND THE GAS GAUGE. NOW NONE OF THEM WORK. THE SPEEDOMETER IS STUCK ON 45 MPH, THE GAS IS OVER FULL (STRAIGHT DOWN) BUT SOMETIMES MOVES AROUND AT THE BOTTOM, BUT IT GENERALLY HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH WHETHER OR NOT I HAVE PUT GAS INTO THE VAN. THE TEMPERATURE GAUGE POINTS DOWN AND TO THE LEFT. NONE OF THE CLUSTER HAS WORKED IN OVER 2 YEARS. I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHY THIS HAS NOT BEEN RECALLED CONSIDERING THE AMOUNT OF PEOPLE THAT I HAVE HEARD HAD THE SAME ISSUE. *TR

FEBRUARY 2009 - BEGINNING OF INSTRUMENT CLUSTER PANEL FAILURE - GAS GAUGE NOT FUNCTIONING. HAVE DOCUMENTATION AT MILEAGE 72,512. CONSEQUENCE - FORCED TO FILL UP AT EVERY GAS PURCHASE AND TRACK MILEAGE UNTIL TIME FOR NEXT FILL UP FOR OVER TWO YEARS. NEVER KNEW FOR CERTAIN HOW MUCH GAS WAS IN THE TANK - VERY STRESSFUL. NOVEMBER 2010 - CONTINUING CLUSTER PANEL FAILURE - SPEEDOMETER MALFUNCTIONING UNTIL COMPLETELY OUT BY JANUARY 2011. CONSEQUENCE - UNABLE TO TELL SPEED - UNWILLING TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE LONG DISTANCES AND FULL CONCENTRATION REQUIRED TO JUDGE SPEEDS BY OTHER TRAFFIC. TAKEN IN MARCH 2011 TO LOCAL DEALER, [XXX], FOR REPLACEMENT OF CLUSTER PANEL AT MY EXPENSE OF OVER $550.00 - BEFORE I AGREED TO PAY FOR THE REPAIR THEY ASSURED ME THAT THEY WOULD FLAG THE OLD PANEL FOR DIAGNOSIS INTO THE REASON GAUGES FAILED AS THEY WOULD BE SENDING IT TO GM TO BE REBUILT AND RESOLD. THEY WOULD NOT GIVE THE OLD ONE TO ME UNLESS I PAID THEM FOR IT. THE REPORT THAT I WAS CONSEQUENTLY GIVEN OF THE CAUSE FOR GAUGE FAILURES WAS THAT THE SPEEDOMETER WAS STUCK AT 100 MPH AND GAS GAUGE WAS STUCK ON EMPTY. I WROTE A LETTER TO GM EXECUTIVE AND WAS ADVISED THAT THEY WOULD BE REIMBURSING ME FOR NO PART OF THE REPAIR COST. I WAS ALSO TOLD THAT THEY HAD NO WAY OF TRACKING MY OLD PANEL AS I WAS TOLD BY THE DEALER. I HAD DONE EXTENSIVE RESEARCH INTO DEFECTIVE STEPPER MOTORS AND CLASS ACTION LAWSUITS RESULTING IN PARTIAL RECALLS AND KNEW THAT THEY WERE PERFORMING A COVER UP OF OTHER MODELS THAT WERE EFFECTED. THAT IS WHY THEY WERE NOT COOPERATIVE IN DETERMINING THE CAUSE OF MY GAUGE FAILURES. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

2004 CHEVROLET VENTURE TEMPERATURE GAUGE SUDDENLY READS HOT. THE GAUGE WILL NOT RESET. THE ENGINE IS NOT HOT OR RUNNING HOT. NO HISTORY OF FRONT DAMAGE. VAN WAS PURCHASED NEW AND I AM THE ONLY OWNER. PROBLEM JUST STARTED 2 WEEKS AGO DURING A 5 HOUR TRIP. 96,479 MILES. WILL ALSO COMPLAIN ABOUT WATER IN THE HEAD LIGHTS. STARTED AROUND 45K. HAVE BURNT OUT SEVERAL BULBS. POOR DESIGN, BUT WILL KNOWN PROBLEM FOR GM. *LN

2004 CHEVROLET VENTURE. TEMPERATURE GAUGE STOPPED WORKING, WAS GIVING ERRATIC READINGS, THE NEEDLE DROPPED TO THE BOTTOM OF THE GUAGE. THE NEEDLE NOW OPERATES IN REVERSE, LIKE A MIRROR IMAGE IF IT WAS WORKING PROPERLY. ABOUT A MONTH LATER, THE SPEEDOMETER GAUGE STOPPED WORKING, THE NEEDLE DROPPED TO THE BOTTOM RIGHT AND STAYED THERE. CURRENTLY SPEED AND TEMP. GAUGE NOT WORKING. FUEL GAUGE IS STILL OPERATIONAL. *TR

THE DAY AFTER THANKSGIVING I GOT IN MY VAN AND DROVE TO PEORIA WHICH IS ABOUT 20 FROM THE CITY I LIVE IN. I WENT SHOPPING FOR A FEW HOURS AND WHEN I CAME BACK OUT I TURNED MY VAN ON AND IT WOULD NOT HEAT UP. I NOTICED THE TEMPERATURE GAUGE WAS PAST HALFWAY HEADING TOWARDS HOT. I SAT THERE FOR ABOUT 20 MINUTES WITH EVERYTHING TURNED OFF. I TURNED THE VAN ON AGAIN AND IT SEEMS THAT THE TEMPERATURE UNIT WAS STUCK AND HAD COME UNSTUCK. I WAS ABLE TO DRIVE HOME. TWO WEEKS LATER I WAS DRIVING HOME FROM WORK AND NOTICED THAT THE TEMPERATURE GAUGE WAS ALMOST TO HOT. I PULLED OVER AND COULD NOT GET IT TO GO DOWN. IN THE END I HAD TO HAVE IT TOWED AND WORKED ON. I HAD THE TEMPERATURE SENSOR CHANGED, THE WATER FILTER AND THE THERMOMETER. I GOT IN MY VAN LAST NIGHT TO FIND OUT THAT THE TEMPERATURE SENSOR IS STILL READING BEYOND HOT. I DROVE IT NOT EVEN A MILE AND IT WAS SAYING THE VAN WAS EXTREMELY HOT. I HAVE 3 LITTLE CHILDREN AND I'M ALSO A SINGLE MOM. WHAT IS GOING ON WITH THE TEMPERATURE GAUGE? HAS THERE BEEN A RECALL ON THIS? I'M STILL DRIVING MY VAN SINCE I HAVE TO WORK AND HAVE NO OTHER OPTIONS. I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW IF MY VAN IS ACTUALLY OVER HEATING OR NOT. HELP! *TR