CarComplaints.com Notes: The Trailblazer emerged from an "upscale trim line" of the Blazer, but there's nothing upscale about its transmission problems or its wonky, unpredictable headlights.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
6 / 10
Injuries / Deaths:
6 / 0
Average Mileage:
65,091 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 contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds, the low beam lights failed and the driver's side window failed to open. No warning lights illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the dealer. The technician diagnosed that the instrument cluster needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 87,000.
When I start my vehicle, the ABS and brakes lights go on, security light, and radio shuts off, or is on with no sound, the 4 wheel drive light flashes back and fourth between 4 wheel and 2 wheel drive, engine shuts off, while driving, then turns back on, this is the same problem all the recalled GM cars are having why is the 2002 Trailblazer not part of the recall?
I was coming to a stop light my brakes did not want to work, then they did. I stopped my vehicle, my lights in my dash went out within a few seconds smoke started to roll from under my hood and cover my windshield. I immediately got out of the vehicle, and called 911. The vehicle was not running at this time, it stopped running. A bystander stopped to assist, he looked from the passenger front tire view and stated he seen flames that appeared to be blue. He wanted to lift the hood but I advised him not to do so, due to my job training I knew oxygen promotes fire. We got away from the vehicle, saint albans fire arrived on scene, the flames were out by the time they arrived, the car continues to smoke. The vehicle was moved to a lot, the key was put in the ignition by the fire department the dash lights did not work even with just turning the battery on. Triple H towing, towed the vehicle to davis smith's auto body. Geico is my insurer, I had full coverage however they will not cover stating it was mechanical failure. I have no without a vehicle, and no insurance funds to replace the vehicle. I have read online this is a common problem with this vehicle, I just do not want anyone to get hurt in a vehicle fire. Thank you for your time.
- Saint Albans, WV, USA
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I approached a stop light. As I stopped, the whole car shut down. I turned the ignition "off", put the car in "park", and turned the "ignition switch" to restart the vehicle. It did start. A couple days later the same thing happened. I took it to my dealer on Sept. 15 2008.they asked if I had a lot of stuff hanging on the key ring, I did not. They replaced the ignition switch. On Jan. 21, 2011, I was driving, and, after stopping, the car was running but would not engage (move). Had the car towed to dealership. They again replaced the ignition switch and another switch. On Feb. 11, 2011, I was at a "drive-up" window, my car just quit running. I had to push it off to the side and have it towed to the dealer. This time they again replaced the "ignition switch" along with a transfer case switch and a transfer case module. They said they had to replace all of them since there was no way to know for sure if it was still related to the "ignition switch". I feel all my issues were relate to the "ignition switch", and all repairs should have been paid by GM.they new they had an issue, or the dealer would not have asked about "excess weight hanging on the key fob".. I believe the "ignition switch issue" goes back farther, and affects even more models, than they are currently owning up to. I still have all paperwork pertaining to my repairs.
I was driving my '02 Chevy Trailblazer on the interstate. The vehicle slipped and fishtailed a bit and I pressed the brakes to bring the vehicle to a stop. When the vehicle came to a stop, I tried to accelerate forward, but it would not move. The vehicle had not turned off on its own. I manually shut off the engine and restarted the vehicle and proceeded to move onto the shoulder of the interstate. I then noticed smoke and a small flame coming from under the hood near the front passenger tire/wheelhouse. The flames got bigger and soon it spread to the entire engine. The flames started near the right passenger wheelhouse and moved to the left driver wheelhouse. In about 20 minutes the entire vehicle was engulfed in flames. I have no idea how or why a fire started. I looked at forums online and many vehicles like mine have caught on fire while driving.
My 02 Trailblazer I bought used 4 days after I bought it the right turn signal would flash quick if I hit the brake but would be normal without pushing break. Than my brake lights started flickering and stopped working except for the middle one. Now when I turn my right turn signal on my reverse lights come on left turn signal flickers almost all the taillights flicker when on. I did research and found a recall for that problem and was wondering if my vehicle is one that was recalled the number is- GM recall no. 04087.
GM ignition switch recall needs to be expanded. My mother purchased a 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer new. Approximately 5,000 miles into ownership, the car would "drop" various electrical components while driving down the road. For instance, while driving, the engine would continue to run, but the wipers would stop working, HVAC would turn off, air bag and ABS warning lights would illuminate, etc. Dealer had no idea how to fix. Eventually they replaced the ignition switch and the problem was solved. To my knowledge, GM never issued a recall, but I'm sure the issue is not isolated. These switches were unreliable across several vehicle lines, please investigate gmt 360 platform well.
All Trailblazer Tahoe and Envoy have the problem when you disconnect the battery it causes theses actuators to slam open and shut breaking them. The dealership is telling me almost 2000 dollars to fix this safety issue. This is a safety issue because I live in Michigan and depend on the heat to unthaw my windshield. Considering this is a manufactures problem and any mechanic knows to disconnect the battery to work on the vehicle. So what is this crap? do I have to retain a lawyer for this issue if someone could please contact me at [xxx] my name is [xxx] I would like to resolve this issue with a recall. Heat in winter I would say is a safety issue that needs to be recalled. I will be persistent with this. Thank you information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
The contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer. The contact stated when the engine was started and the heat activated, the vehicle would stall. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic for diagnosis. The contact was informed that there was an electrical issue with the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the incident. The approximate failure mileage was 208,565. Updated 12/03/13
While driving I noticed a burning smell outside of my vehicle but assumed it was coming from the area around me not my car. When I got to my destination I noticed smoke coming from under the left side of the hood and above the drivers side tire. I raised my hood and noticed smoke coming from around my fuse box. I had the car towed and have been told by my mechanic my fuse box and wiring harness burned. He also stated there could be other damaged related to this fire. The mechanic also asked if I had problems out of my headlights because the problem seemed to have started with the headlights. I have researched this since being given this information and electrical problems seem have been a problem with Trailblazers. I found several instances on this site and also online related to electrical problems on the Trailblazers. Complaint #10487846 is identical to mine and its a shame nothing gets done about these mechanical failures until there is a tragedy.
Instrument cluster started to act erratically and then went out completely. No odometer, shift postion or gauges. Cruise control works fine. I have to use my gps to judge speed.
Above date & mileage is approximate. I am only able to activate driver's side window. No other windows operate from driver's door panel. I was told that there was a recall, but I never received any information about the recall. I have owned the car since around 2004.
The contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer. The contact stated that while driving 65 mph, the brakes failed without warning. The contact was able to safely pull over to the shoulder where the vehicle started to smoke and caught on fire. The fire was contained by the local fire department. A fire report was not filed. There were no injuries. The vehicle was destroyed and was not inspected for the cause of the fire. The approximate failure mileage was 170,000.
When driving the check gauges light illuminated and the oil pressure gauge was at zero. This occurred when I slowed and then stopped at a traffic light after having driven for about 20 minutes (the vehicle sounded as if it were about to turn off so I pulled over and turned it off). When looking at the instrumentation panel I then noticed the check battery light is dimly illuminated (battery is 6 mo old) and various readings are off (rpg is registering low and one RPM indicator starts at 5 when the ignition is turned on). Various Trailblazer forums are indicating owners are experiencing the same problem. Two Chevrolet dealerships have indicated that it is likely an instrumentation cluster problem (and indicate they have guidance from GM to run 2 checks to determine if it is an instrumentation cluster problem). Two independent repair shops have identified it as an instrumentation cluster problem that they have seen on many 2002 Trailblazers. The repair costs range as high as $750. GM customer assistance can only state this is not a recalled repair (applies to later models but not 2002); therefore, it is the customer's responsibility. My GM file # is [xxx]. GM did ask that I pay $80 for the diagnostics, while also saying they would not pay for the repairs. Adding an additional $80 to costs or paying a dealership more money than an independent shop is not practical nor an added expense I should assume. Most amazing is that GM can give dealerships instructions on diagnosing this problem, dealerships are repairing a far amount of vehicles with this problem, independent repair shops are aware of this problem because of the many customers who patronize them, yet GM takes no responsibility for correcting this known problem..this is dangerous, the car can stall anywhere and lead to an accident without customers having any idea of the problem. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
When driving the check gauges light illuminated and the oil pressure gauge was at zero. This occurred when I slowed and then stopped at a traffic light after having driven for about 20 minutes (the vehicle sounded as if it were about to turn off so I pulled over and turned it off). When looking at the instrumentation panel I then noticed the check battery light is dimly illuminated (battery is 6 mo old) and various readings are off (rpg is registering low and one RPM indicator starts at 5 when the ignition is turned on). Various Trailblazer forums are indicating owners are experiencing the same problem. Two Chevrolet dealerships have indicated that it is likely an instrumentation cluster problem (and indicate they have guidance from GM to run 2 checks to determine if it is an instrumentation cluster problem). Two independent repair shops have identified it as an instrumentation cluster problem that they have seen on many 2002 Trailblazers. The repair costs range as high as $750. GM customer assistance can only state this is not a recalled repair (applies to later models but not 2002); therefore, it is the customer's responsibility. My GM file # is [xxx]. GM did ask that I pay $80 for the diagnostics, while also saying they would not pay for the repairs. Adding an additional $80 to costs or paying a dealership more money than an independent shop is not practical nor an added expense I should assume. Most amazing is that GM can give dealerships instructions on diagnosing this problem, dealerships are repairing a far amount of vehicles with this problem, independent repair shops are aware of this problem because of the many customers who patronize them, yet GM takes no responsibility for correcting this known problem..this is dangerous, the car can stall anywhere and lead to an accident without customers having any idea of the problem. Information redacted pursuant to the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6).
The contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer. The contact stated that all of the warning lights and gauges on the instrument panel malfunctioned, preventing him from being able to determine any accurate readings. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure but did not offer any assistance since the vehicle was not included in any recalls. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 160,000 and the current mileage was 171,000.
The contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Trailblazer. The contact stated that the headlights did not automatically turn off when he exited the vehicle and smoke was emitted from under the hood. Upon inspection, it was found that the fuse box was smoking and the wiring harness had burned. The vehicle was towed to a private mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure and current mileage was 169,000.
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Tampa, FL, USA