1998 GMC Jimmy

FAILURE WAS INTERMITTENT. GAUGES WOULD FAIL,AND ALL DASH GAUGE LAMPS WOULD LIGHT UP. STOPPED AT DEALER AND ASKED IF THEY KNEW OF THE PROBLEM. I WAS TOLD ITS A KNOWN PROBLEM BUT IF IT WASN'T FIXED AT ANY TIME IT COULD GO,AND I WOULD BE STUCK. WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO SHIFT THE TRANSMISSION, IT WOULD FAIL TO START AND ALL THE GAUGES WOULD FAIL. THE PROBLEM IS WITH A BAD GROUND IN THE ELECTRICAL ASM BEHIND THE KEYLOCK AND IT WOULD COST AROUND $500 TO FIX. I THINK THIS SHOULD BE A CALL BACK.I WAS TOLD THE PART WAS HARD TO COME BY BECAUSE THEY HAD TO PURGE INVENTORY OF THE OLD PART.IF THE NEW UPGRADED PART IS SO HARD TO GET I WOULD SUSPECT THAT THE PROBLEM IS LARGER THAN IS BEING LET ON.AT THIS POINT I HAVE A RENTAL, WAITING FOR THE CAR TO BE FIXED.THIS IS SIMILAR TO THE FORD RECALL WITH THE IGNITION SWITCHES THAT CAUSED FIRES ONLY THEY SAY THIS PROBLEM WON'T CAUSE A FIRE. BUT WHAT HAPPENS IF IT GOES WHILE DRIVING AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS,OR ANY SPEED AT THAT MATTER?

TRANSMISSION WOULD NOT SHIFT OUT OF PARK WHEN VEHICLE WAS PARKED IN DRIVEWAY. VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO DEALERSHIP. DEALER SAYS THAT SOME STICKY SUBSTANCE WAS SPILLED IN THE CONSOLE BY THE AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION SHIFTER AND CAUSED THE TRANSMISSION SHIFT ASSY TO LOCK UP. THE ONLY THING THAT WAS SPILLED IN THAT AREA WAS A COVERED CUP FILLED WITH SWEET TEA THAT TIPPED OVER THE CUP HOLDER. I DON'T KNOW HOW THE LIQUID COULD'VE LEAKED UNDERNEATH THE CONSOLE AND CAUSE MY TRANSMISSION TO FREEZE UP. PEOPLE DRINK IN CARS ALL THE TIME, AND THIS SHOULD NOT HAPPEN. THIS IS A DEFAULT WITH THE TRANSMISSION CONSOLE. BECAUSE IT LOCKED UP MY TRANSMISSION, MY VEHICLE WAS INOPERABLE AND COULD HAVE PUT ME IN A SERIOUS RISK WHILE I WAS DRIVING ON THE ROAD OR PARKED IN AN UNSAFE AREA. FORTUNATELY THE INCIDENT OCCURRED AT MY PARENTS HOUSE AND THERE WERE NO INCIDENTS. *AK

TRANSMISSION MAKES LOUD ROARING NOISE USUALLY WHEN STARTING FROM A STOP (5-10 MPH) AND WON'T SHIFT INTO NEXT GEAR - HAVE TO DECELERATE AND TRY AGAIN AND SOMETIMES TAKES 3-5 ATTEMPTS BEFORE WILL SHIFT - HAD TO PULL TO SIDE OF ROAD ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS DURING RUSH HOUR. ALMOST IN ACCIDENT ON ONE OCCASION DUE TO THIS PROBLEM. OCCASIONALLY TRANSMISSION HAS ROARED WHEN TRAVELING 50 MPH AND HAD TO DECELERATE. NO TRANSMISSION LIGHT WARNING ME OF PROBLEM ILLUMINATES. HAD SERVICED TWICE AND STILL SAME PROBLEM AND DEALERSHIP FIXED OIL LEAK ON FIRST SERVICE (VEHICLE HAD TO BE TOWED TO DEALERSHIP) AND REPLACED PART 2ND SERVICE AND STILL IS A PROBLEM, LAST OCCURING ON 7/15/99, FOLLOWING 2ND SERVICE. I AM GOING TO REQUEST A 3RD SERVICE. DEALERSHIP HAS NOT HAD A TRANSMISSION SERVICE/REPAIR MAN ON STAFF THE LAST 3 ATTEMPTS TO GET REPAIR. BOTH SERVICES HAVE BEEN COMPLETED BY ADAMS CHEVROLET/GMC IN RAYTOWN, MO BECAUSE DAVE CROSS HAS NOT HAD A TRANSMISSION MAN. HOWEVER, FOR THE 2ND SERVICE (JULY 1999), DAVE CROSS ACCEPTED THE JIMMY FOR SERVICE BUT HAD ADAMS DO THE SERVICE. DAVE CROSS SERVICE MGR (I BELIEVE IS MGR) TOLD ME WHEN I PICKED UP JIMMY FOLLOWING 2ND REPAIR THAT THERE HAD BEEN A RECENT "BULLETIN" THAT REQUIRED A PIECE BE REPLACED WHICH THEY DID AND SUPPOSEDLY FIXED THE PROBLEM. HOWEVER, THE PROBLEM STILL EXISTS, SO I WILL HAVE TO TAKE THE JIMMY IN AGAIN. ALSO, I REQUESTED TO SEE THE BULLETIN AND THE MGR REFUSED. HE SAID IT WAS NOT FOR CUSTOMER USE. *AK

TRANSMISSION SLIPPED AND LOST POWER WHILE TOWING 4200 POUND RV, A UNIT WELL UNDER THE TOWING CAPACITY OF THE GMC JIMMY. TRANSMISSION GOT HOT AND SLIPPED WITH NOTICABLE LOSS OF POWER. ODD ODOR CAME FROM ENGINE COMPARTMENT, ALSO. "SERVICE ENGINE SOON" LIGHT CAME ON DURING FUEL STOP. WE THOUGHT IT WAS DUE TO FUEL CAP OR GASOLINE USED. CONTACTED DEALER UPON RETURN FROM TRIP AND HAD ITEM SCHEDULED FOR CHECK ON MON 6/7/1998. HAD TRANSMISSION OIL AND FILTER CHANGED AND MECHANIC NOTED OIL EXCESSIVELY BLACK. CHECK ENGINE LIGHT MONITOR INDICATED TRANMISSSION HAD OVERHEATED TWICE. RECOMMENDATION WAS TO DRIVE SLOWER, CHANGE OIL AND FILTER MORE OFTEN, GET A WIND RESISTANCE DEFLECTOR FOR TOWING VEHICLE. VEHICLE HAS TOWING PACKAGE WITH EXTRA TRANSMISSION OIL COLLER RATED AT OVER 10,000 POUNDS TOWING CAPACITY. SALESMAN, WHO WAS A PREVIOUS RV DEALER/SALESMAN, ASSURED US WHEN WE PURCHASED THE VEHICLE THAT IT WAS MORE THAN ADEQUATE TO HANDLE THE TOWING OF THE RV (26 FOOT DUTCHMAN LITE, RATED AT 4200 POUNDS). AFRAID THAT TRANSMISSION WILL FAIL AGAIN AND WE WILL BECOME STRANDED. WIFE, WHO DRIVES VEHICLE DAILY, ALSO NOTED THAT TRANSMISSION FELT LIKE IT WAS SLIPPING PERIODICALLY WHEN DRIVING WITHOUT ANY LOAD ATTACHED TO THE VEHEICLE. AM OVERLY CONCERNED NOW THAT I ALSO HAVE A 1998 GMC SONOMA WITH SAME ENGINE, TRNASMISSION, AND TOWING CAPACITY FOR ALTERNATE FOR TOWING RV, AND THAT IT'S TRANSMISSION MAY EXPERIENCE THE SAME SYMPTOMS. *AK