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Chevrolet Equinox Maintenance and Repair

1675 messages,  Last post on Apr 12, 2013 at 10:59 AM

You are in the Chevrolet Equinox Forum.

What is this discussion about? Chevrolet Equinox, Electrical, Engine, SUV

    
 
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Messages Page 24 of 168

#229 of 1675 Bad odor from the engine compartment by michigan99

Nov 25, 2004 (6:01 am)

I heard from different sources this week that the bad odor problem related to the coolant will have a solution coming up very soon. GM is currently working on a TSB, and the NHTSA site lists the following:
 
Make : CHEVROLET Model : EQUINOX Year : 2005
Manufacturer : GENERAL MOTORS CORP.
Service Bulletin Num : 3169 Date of Bulletin: JAN 01, 2004
NHTSA Item Number: 10010166
Component: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING
Summary:
FOUL ODOR FROM HVAC AND/ OR ENGINE COOLANT. *TC
 
I can not explain why the "Date of bulletin" is indicated as "JAN 01, 2004". But perhaps this date is just a placeholder, or it was not available and it is a system default for a 2005 model.
 
Anyhow, for those having the problem the solution seems to be in sight.

#230 of 1675 Re: Cruse control cuts out [nova1] by jesa3

Nov 25, 2004 (7:24 pm)

Replying to: nova1 (Nov 14, 2004 4:58 am)
I had the same problem. After having the vehicle only 2 weeks. I thought I was going crazy. Kept trying to set it. It was an issue with the computer "communicating" with the cruise control. Anyway, they fixed it in one day and it has been fine. HOWEVER, my Nox has been in the shop for faulty CD player and wiper fluid pump. My biggest problem is with intermittant starting. Try and turn the car over and NOTHING. And of course, when I take it in, they can't "duplicate" the problem. I am now told there are 4 other Nox's on file with the same problem. It has been in the shop 4 times and it is there now a week. Supposedly, a GM specialist has flown in just to look my Nox. Have not heard from them. I have been stranded with my newborn twice and I am really irritated . Anyone else have intermittant starting issues?

#231 of 1675 Re: rear Differential Problem! [oveder] by rengle

Nov 26, 2004 (9:54 am)

Replying to: oveder (Oct 07, 2004 12:21 pm)
We have had our Equinox since August. No odor problem yet but we keep hearing a clun-clunk clunk sometimes more like a module or relay clicking in the rear of the car. May be differential may be under the rear floor. I don't know.

#232 of 1675 Equinox-ears pop when windows down by light

Nov 28, 2004 (9:43 am)

I can't believe there are no posts about the air pressure problem that occurs when all windows are down. Am I doomed to use the AC at all times?
Any solutions? Has anyone figured out a window configuration to solve this?
light

#233 of 1675 Random Acceleration by ohio05

Nov 29, 2004 (2:27 pm)

Has anyone had a problem with their Equinox randomly accelerating or failing to slow down. Purchased my Equinox in June and seemed fine at first, but the last couple months I have almost rear-ended people more than once because my car will just accelerate (without stepping on the accelerator). Happened in rush hour traffic, trying to brake and the car sped up for a second. Called GM and their response was essentially "it can't be duplicated so there is no problem" (had it to two dealerships and neither could find anything).
 
FYI, have the foul odor problem too, First dealership said this was "normal" and wouldn't do anything about

#234 of 1675 Re: Random Acceleration [ohio05] by npgmbr

Nov 29, 2004 (8:30 pm)

Replying to: ohio05 (Nov 29, 2004 2:27 pm)
If your Nox is accelerating unexpectedly I would bring it back and demand that the dealer keep the vehicle until it can be duplicated. This is a serious problem and you should not be driving it. Every time you get behind the weel you put the life your youself, your family and other drivers at risk. You must put your foot down and demand that they do something and if they don't be sure to get a written statement noting that they cannot duplicate the problem.

#235 of 1675 Strut Problem? by frankcoopers

Nov 29, 2004 (8:35 pm)

My sister and brother in law just purchased a brand new '05 Equinox LT 2 weeks ago. They are very happy with the car, until today, when the front end began to make HORRIBLE creaking noises at low speeds and during parking manuvers. This 'Nox was built in Ingersoll, Ontario, Canada on May 2004 according to the door jamb sticker.
 
I drove the vehicle today and at first I taught it was the electric power steering, then the brakes until driving slowly over some speed bumps the creaking noise also became evident and that's were I became suspicious of the front struts. The car has only 600 miles on it.
 
My Sister and brother in law traded a very problematic 2001 Chevy Impala base sedan on the '05 Equinox to get rid of WEEKLY dealer repair visits. Its been 2 weeks with the 'Nox AND HERE WE GO AGAIN!!!!!!
 
Called Chevy customer service and opened a complaint file on the vehicle. We will bring it in for service tomorrow morning. Needless to say we are all extremely dissapointed at the LACK of quality control exhibited on GM products of late.
 
No foul smells yet, but since thier Equinox is an early build date, there is the likehood for this serious problem to develop.
 
Awesome vehicle but so-so quality control. We will ask for a repurchase/replacement.
 
We have ZERO tolerance for lousy quality.

#236 of 1675 Re: Strut Problem? [frankcoopers] by npgmbr

Nov 30, 2004 (10:33 am)

Replying to: frankcoopers (Nov 29, 2004 8:35 pm)
If I remember correctly GM has already issued a correction for this problem. Your dealer should already be aware of it.
 
Other owners in this forum have expressed the same problem and if I remember correctly, none have come back stating that the replacement strut didn't cure the problem.

#237 of 1675 Re: Strut Problem? [npgmbr] by frankcoopers

Nov 30, 2004 (6:32 pm)

Replying to: npgmbr (Nov 30, 2004 10:33 am)
I have spent a good part of the afternoon researching the strut problem in the 'Nox, which seems to be quite common in early build vehicles.
 
So far, I have been able to come up with two TSB numbers that address this particular issue:
 
04-03-08-008
 
And a later revision under TSB #04-03-08-012
 
I have seen the text on bulletin 008 but I have not been able to see a printout of follow up TSB 012.
 
The car was dropped off at the dealer this morning. The service manager (Which is a personal friend of ours and we have known him for many years now) took the vehicle for a test drive and was able to confirm and reproduce the loud creaking coming from the front end. He is looking into the TSBs and I assume have already contacted GM's technical support center.
 
We were given a '05 Pontiac Grand Prix GT as a loaner vehicle.
 
I have not been able to find any TSBs that confirm a permamnent fix for this problem. Some 'Nox owners are already in their second and third set of struts, because the noise keeps crepping back. I have the impression that GM does not yet have a definite fix at this time.
 
I am waiting to hear from the service manager at some point tomorrow. If GM does not have a fix for this issue, we will request a repurchase of the vehicle. The car is no more than 2 weeks old and they haven't even made the first payment yet on it.
 
In my opinion, GM has improved quality of its products but they still have a long way to go. Having suspension work done on a brand new car with only 600 miles is totally unacceptable and embarrasing. This puts a black mark on the new car enjoyment which after all is the main idea behind plunking hard earned cash for new metal: Peace of mind and reliability.
 
This is not our first quality incident with a new GM vehicle. This would be the third new Chevy purchased in the last 4 years with problems within the first 1K miles. The first one was repurchased and the second one was traded into the 'Nox just 2 weeks ago.
 
Why is this happening????

#238 of 1675 Re: Strut Problem? [frankcoopers] by michigan99

Nov 30, 2004 (7:17 pm)

Replying to: frankcoopers (Nov 30, 2004 6:32 pm)
Hi frankcoopers,
 
I can't answer your question with 100% confidence level. But I have some ideas on possible causes.
 
The Equinox is a pretty global vehicle. The engine is made in China, the transmission is made in Japan, the project is American and the car is assembled in Canada, not to mention other parts coming from various countries.
 
I do not have anything against the global approach to car manufacturing, but people need to understand that global sourcing of components is a very complex and difficult business. There are different cultures involved and various degrees of quality programs in place.
 
A company needs to be very nimble to react to identified problems right away, as the supply chain is very elaborate.
 
And I think this is the main problem with GM. Granted, the company made major strides in terms of quality and service to customers over the recent years. However, GM still lacks quicker responses to identified problems, especially considering that "global" vehicles are being manufactured.
 
The bad odor problem I had with two Equinoxes seems to be an indication of this type of situation. At this point it seems clear to me that there was a severe quality variation of the hoses used on the car (apparently some hoses are incompatible with the standard coolant GM uses), perhaps improper or incomplete validation of suppliers, and insufficient validation work on the globally supplied parts. To compound the whole situation, my impression was that GM did not react to the quality problem when there was very clear indication something was definitely wrong.
 
I can't say much about the strut problem, as neither of my Equinoxes presented the problem. As a matter of fact, I really liked the suspension and smooth ride of my Equinox.
 
My employer supplies products to different car manufacturers and years ago I was part of one of GM's programs to improve quality. The major concern at that time (by the way, that program took place overseas and not in the US) was to reduce "early failure" of components. The thought process was that customers will be very unhappy when a brand new car breaks down or needs service very early, which destroys the enjoyment of buying a new vehicle, as you mentioned.
 
I am pretty sure GM managers have been considering all these aspects as they develop their global supply base, and there is a long way to go for sure.
 
Does this make sense to you?

Messages Page 24 of 168

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