Taillight/Brake light/Electrical Problems
lhill
09-09-2004, 10:50 AM
Has anyone else had this type of problems?? Can anyone tell me what to do so I quit burning out taillight bulbs?? (Please see my story below) Thanks!!
I have a 2001 venture Warner Bros. and have had a lot of electrical problems. Taillights have been a problem from the word go. I originally noticed moisture in the housing and returned for warranty. Dealer replaced one of the assemblies and said it was a bad seal. Later I had moisture in the other side -- same story. Since then I had it back numerous times due to blown bulbs. I am told that this is a maintenance item, but it continues to happen. I have 92,000 on it now and have replaced both taillight bulbs at least 6 times counting when it was in the shop. I had it in just before the 36,000 mile mark for same problem and dealer said it was fixed. We were on a week long trip to Alabama from Texas and one of the lights was not working within miles from leaving the dealer (a friend was following me). When we got back home and got the vehicle back to the dealer it was around 37,000 miles and about 2 weeks since last service. Service manager refused to do anything about the problem because I was past warranty and I did not bring the vehicle back immediately. I almost decked the guy in his office, due to derogatory comments and total lack of respect for me or my wife, but I managed to restrain myself. Sometime around 40,000 the overhead information display (temp, compass, mileage, etc) stopped working. Says ICE during the summer in Texas. Now at 90,000 miles the doors are locking/unlocking at random. The horn blows mysteriously when driving down the road. Yesterday my wife put our 3 month old baby in the car and the doors locked her out. Fortunately, she was at home and was able to get the spare keys from inside the house. The problems are not huge, but the help from GM is AWFUL, TERRIBLE, NON-EXISTENT!!! This is the second GM vehicle I have bought with annoying problems and no help from GM. I will NOT buy a GM product again in the foreseeable future. (I have over $2,000 of credit on my GM Card toward the purchase of a GM vehicle and it is still not enough to change my mind.)
I have a 2001 venture Warner Bros. and have had a lot of electrical problems. Taillights have been a problem from the word go. I originally noticed moisture in the housing and returned for warranty. Dealer replaced one of the assemblies and said it was a bad seal. Later I had moisture in the other side -- same story. Since then I had it back numerous times due to blown bulbs. I am told that this is a maintenance item, but it continues to happen. I have 92,000 on it now and have replaced both taillight bulbs at least 6 times counting when it was in the shop. I had it in just before the 36,000 mile mark for same problem and dealer said it was fixed. We were on a week long trip to Alabama from Texas and one of the lights was not working within miles from leaving the dealer (a friend was following me). When we got back home and got the vehicle back to the dealer it was around 37,000 miles and about 2 weeks since last service. Service manager refused to do anything about the problem because I was past warranty and I did not bring the vehicle back immediately. I almost decked the guy in his office, due to derogatory comments and total lack of respect for me or my wife, but I managed to restrain myself. Sometime around 40,000 the overhead information display (temp, compass, mileage, etc) stopped working. Says ICE during the summer in Texas. Now at 90,000 miles the doors are locking/unlocking at random. The horn blows mysteriously when driving down the road. Yesterday my wife put our 3 month old baby in the car and the doors locked her out. Fortunately, she was at home and was able to get the spare keys from inside the house. The problems are not huge, but the help from GM is AWFUL, TERRIBLE, NON-EXISTENT!!! This is the second GM vehicle I have bought with annoying problems and no help from GM. I will NOT buy a GM product again in the foreseeable future. (I have over $2,000 of credit on my GM Card toward the purchase of a GM vehicle and it is still not enough to change my mind.)
umina
09-09-2004, 12:38 PM
You probably need to replace the harness due to corrosion. Take the bulb out and get a pocket knife and scrape the contact points inside the socket. Then put the bulb back in. If this doesn't work, you can get another harness from a junkyard and cut the old one off and splice the new one in. As for the compass displaying ice, its a $10 fix. Theres a sensor thats held to the front of the van with one little bolt. Its visibile right when you open the hood and mounted on the passenger side in front of the radiator to the vertical support. Its a little black sensor that has a point sticking up. Just order the sensor from the dealer parts dept. and install yourself, takes 3 minutes.
The door locks is caused by corrosion in the wires that run underneath the floor. You may also have noticed that the carpet gets wet on the passenger side when running the air. This is caused by a hose that is supposed to let the evaporate drain from the condensor but instead allows it to flow back through the firewall and under the carpet. There is an updated part for it, but I can't remember what it was called. Do a search of the forum for that info.
Anyways, if you pull up the carpet on the passenger side, you will see where all the wires run. This is a common problem where they get corroded and short out, causing the doors to lock and unlock, or the power windows not to work. Again, sorry but I don't recall which color wires you need to repair, but a search of the forum should turn that up. If not, let me know and i'll find out.
Don't let these few minor electrical problems turn you off on the van, these are good vehicles, they just have some flaws and dealer prices scare people away from the brand when must can be fixed in your garage for cheap.
The door locks is caused by corrosion in the wires that run underneath the floor. You may also have noticed that the carpet gets wet on the passenger side when running the air. This is caused by a hose that is supposed to let the evaporate drain from the condensor but instead allows it to flow back through the firewall and under the carpet. There is an updated part for it, but I can't remember what it was called. Do a search of the forum for that info.
Anyways, if you pull up the carpet on the passenger side, you will see where all the wires run. This is a common problem where they get corroded and short out, causing the doors to lock and unlock, or the power windows not to work. Again, sorry but I don't recall which color wires you need to repair, but a search of the forum should turn that up. If not, let me know and i'll find out.
Don't let these few minor electrical problems turn you off on the van, these are good vehicles, they just have some flaws and dealer prices scare people away from the brand when must can be fixed in your garage for cheap.
lhill
11-19-2004, 02:57 PM
I am sorry I have not checked this forum since I posted the first mail. It is obvious that the first reply to my post is a rep. of GM or has some interest in promoting GM products. None of his suggestions hold water. There is no moisture in the passenger floor. Both of the "boards" on the taillight assemblies have been replaced. The terminals on the taillights are making contact, but the bulbs are burning out. Nobody can explain why these bulbs are burning out so often. In addition, I have more problems since the last post. Now the power door has periodic problems and the fuel gauge is unreliable. Maybe everyone of these vans is not as bad as mine, but do you want to take a chance. Besides, after the way I was treated by GM (Ron Craft in Baytown), I will not be looking for any other Chevy product. There are better products available.
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