CarComplaints.com Notes: It didn't take long for the cladding to fade, discolor, and in some cases crack. Cladding is the protective plastic piece that runs along the outside of vehicles, and exposure to both heat and UV rays give the Avalanche's cladding a chalky, faded appearance.
Owners have said the problem is especially bad on the panels near the cargo bed. Eventually, GM agreed to a one-time treatment of ArmorDillo, a protective treatment similar to what you find in any auto shop. Unfortunately, that would only help for 6 months (on average).
Eventually, GM offered another coating solution for owners within the 3 year / 36,000 mile original warranty under TSB:04-08-111-001C.
2.8
hardly worth mentioning
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
50,754 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
The speedometer sticks at a speed and will drop to the 6 O'clock position. This is a know issue among owners but GM nor the dealerships are willing to acknowledge or fix it. This is the second issue with my vehicle that GM is not willing to fix or take responsibility. I will never purchase another GM vehicle again.
The speedometer does not track with the speed of the vehicle properly. It does not reset to zero when the truck stops, and can have the needle exceed the maximum speed shown.
The speedometer stopped working at approximately 85000 miles. This is a known problem with 2005 Avalanche but for some reason this VIN was not included in the recall.
Speedometer stopped working completely. It had been working fine when I last drove it. But when I started driving within the next 3-4 hours I noticed it was not reading the speed at all. All the other gauges on the cluster were working properly. When talking to the dealership about this problem they stated it wasn't a simple fix and could cost me above $500, they couldn't give me an estimate of how much it would cost..after reviewing the complaints listed on this website, this seems to be a manufacturers defect. Many other owners of this same vehicle have had the same complaint and its rare that it functions properly in any of the vehicles. Even though my vehicle is over the warranty period I believe that the manufacturer should stand behind their work and correct this problem. A recall is definitely in order.
I own a 2005 Chevy Avalanche. At about 125K miles on the odometer I noticed that my speedometer would start to gradually lose track of the speed after driving for approximately 40 - 60 miles. So, when traveling at a consistent rate of speed of, say, 60 mph the speedometer would slow down gradually to zero over the course of 5 - 10 miles. When the vehicle was turned off for a period of time the speedometer would reset itself. Once reset it may start having the same problem immediately or it might be another week or two before this problem presented itself again. I took the vehicle and was told that the "cluster" would need to be replaced for approx. $600. Judging from the other complaints registered here, I believe this should be fixed by the manufacturer at no charge to the owner regardless of the mileage.
2005 Chevy Avalanche speedometer malfunction. While driving 30 mph the speedometer raced to 120 mph and is now stuck. I am unable to verify my speed while driving. Odometer reads 62K miles.
My 2005 Avalanche 1500 speedometer is not working it fails to record the correct speed it stay on 0 most of the time. Think GM should have recall this problem too many 05 Chevy Avalanche owners are having this trouble.
My 2005 Chevy Avalanche 1500 speedometer is having problems. The gauge will read faster then what I am drive. Then it will stick at over 60 mph, the arrow will point completely down. If I turn on and off engine the gauge will reset it self backwards 5 mph each time I do this. It will work for two days after that then the problem happen all over again!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500. The contact stated that the speedometer would intermittently become stuck on one speed and would also display the inaccurate speed traveled. The speedometer would indicate that the contact was driving 30 mph, become stuck and would then immediately increase to 60 mph regardless of the actual speed driven. The contact would have to shut off the engine and restart it in order for the speedometer to reset itself. The dealer stated that the instrument panel cluster gauge was failing and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 51,000 and the current mileage was 53,000.
The contact owns a 2005 Chevy Avalanche. The contact was driving at approximately 30 mph when he noticed that the speedometer was giving an incorrect reading of 130 mph. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for a diagnostic test. The dealer told that the contact the vehicle was not included in any recalls and therefore, he would have to assume all repair costs. The vehicle had not been repaired at the time of the complaint. The failure mileage was approximately 54,800. The current mileage was 55,434. Updated 05/06/10. Updated 05/10/10
The contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Avalanche. While traveling 55 mph the contact noticed that the speedometer suddenly stopped functioning. The contact stated that the manufacturer sent recall information regarding the failure to the dealers and not the consumers; therefore, he was unable to get the remedy repaired at no charge. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer but no repairs were made when the complaint was filed. The failure mileage was 65000 and the current mileage was 103285.
The contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500. The contact stated that the speedometer and tachometer failed; the components would not go back down to zero. She had not noticed any prior issues with those components. She had not taken the vehicle to the dealer or the manufacturer. The vehicle had not been repaired to-date. The current and failure mileages were 55,582.
I own a 2005 Chevrolet Avalanche and the speedometer stopped working. The truck has 51K miles and not been modified. This is a danger to my family and the cost of repair is expensive. This is a know issue and should be a recall.
While traveling on the interstate in my 2005 Chevy Avalanche I noticed that my speedometer read 90mph vs. 40/45mph. I pulled off the highway and placed the vehicle in "park" and the speedometer read 50mph while the vehicle was stopped. GM states that my vehicles VIN do not fall within the range of their "bulletin for recalls.
The contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Avalanche. The contact stated that the speedometer does not work correctly and the instrument panel is not in english. While making left turns at low speeds, the contact heard a noise under the steering shaft. The vehicle was taken to the dealer and they stated that there was nothing to worry about because it would not affect the vehicle. Mileages 85279 updated 04-14-09 updated 04/15/09.
Speedometer is not working and due to research on internet it is a common problem with this make and model vehicle. Dealer will not rectify problem as a recall.
At about 65K miles, speedometer stopped registering accurately. Now about 75K on the vehicle if odometer accurate. When stopped speedometer reads anywhere from 60 to 100mph and when driving reads anywhere from 90 to off the scale (6 O'clock position on the speedometer where no speed is listed). In short, wildly inaccurate. Researched the problem and it appears Chevy is replacing the instrument cluster for this problem on up to 2004 vehicles but not 2005 although it appears the problem is rampant among Avalanche owners. Request NHTSA implement a recall on this widespread problem.
Speedometer continually goes haywire; it appears you are driving 50+ mph when you are in park; when you actually do start moving you have no idea how fast you are going; max out at 120 mph when you are flowing with traffic in a 70 mph zone. Occurs intermittently with increasing frequency; I have not had an assessment of the cost associated with this repair done yet.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Castle Rock, CO, USA