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CarComplaints.com Notes: The 2002-2007 Chevrolet Trailblazer is known for many things, but perhaps it is most famous for its faulty fuel gauge.

This gauge flip-flops more than a politician during election season. Some report that the gauge says "empty" after a fill-up, while others report the gauge says "full" when they're running on fumes. Either way, there's one thing everyone seems to agree on: the darn thing is just wrong.

Following hundreds of complaints and a few accidents allegedly caused by the malfunction, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) opened an investigation into the issue in May 2011. Unfortunately for frustrated owners, no recall has been announced.

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
3 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
0 / 0
Average Mileage:
73,575 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.

2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer engine problems

engine problem

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2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer Owner Comments (Page 3 of 4)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #32

Nov 092010

Trailblazer

  • 60,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Just one day we got in the car to head to the grocery store and as we were heading there I looked down and the speedometer was at 20 when I was clearly doing 55. I pulled up to a stop light and shut the car off then restarted hoping it would fix itself and nothing. I has never worked right since then. I went to the local Chevy dealer and asked to see if there were any recalls on this issue and they told me that there are recalls on every Chevy SUV and truck except Trailblazer and told me to input a complaint to see if they would recall this issue. I asked them how to do that and they said to contact Chevy. They were not helpful. The bull**** thing is that every Chevy truck and SUV from 2003 to 2007 use the same instrument panel so you can't tell me that this paticular vehicle is not like the Tahoe, suberban, or Silverado that has the same issue as I am having. I am pissed that I have to pay for a faulty part that Chevy knows is an issue.

- Springfield, IL, USA

problem #31

Sep 192011

Trailblazer 4WD 6-cyl

  • 75,000 miles
While driving this morning on the highway, my speedometer stopped working. Now the gauge is point down and will not register.

- Worcester , MA, USA

problem #30

Mar 192011

Trailblazer 4WD 6-cyl

  • 95,500 miles
My 2005 Chevy Trailblazer speedometer quit working. On March 19, 2011, while at a stop light I looked down at the speedometer and it was reading 80 mph standing still. The speedometer reads 120+ while traveling down the highway. I have no idea how fast I am going, I just keep up with the traffic. This is my wife's car and I feel this is very unsafe. I looked on the web to see how I could repair this problem and found there are several people that own Chevy Trailblazers with this same problem. It seems Chevy doesn't see this as a problem for some reason. Is there a recall out for this problem with the Chevy Trailblazer?

- Joliet, IL, USA

problem #29

Mar 032011

Trailblazer

  • 62,173 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Traffic was horrible bumper to bumper, I was driving and realized not to rush so I stood in the first lane, as I was driving bumper to bumper I always drive within one car lengths in case I get rear ended. As I am driving bumper to bumper all for a sudden next thing you know my car just suddenly accelerated at incredible speed I manage to swerve into the emergency lane to avoid causing a multiple car pileup my car died instantly I started it up again and it just wanted to take off as it did before I turned the car off thinking to myself my god what just happened and what is going on, I am trying to calm my 12 year old child because it was the most frightening thing I am my family ever went thru. I press the break and just relax for a second and started the car up and it was fine. However, my nerves were pretty much shaken, I had taken the car to jj auto shop in hayward who is ase certified he did a diagnostic on the vehicle he said he could not verify what I was saying, no error lights and the history was clean. He also mentioned the computer at times does not pick up a split of a second acceleration. He believes my story and said everything is done thru computer so there is no finding as of the moment. I was not sold on that but he also recommend I could change the body throttle @ $700 but he said I just dont want you to buy the part so you could just drive in the slow lane and if it happens again to shift the car into neutral and turn it off asap> my thing is since cars are computerize this should have why is it they could not verify my situation and also body throttle what he was looking at and what Chevy thinks it was! so my complaint is for Chevy did they overwrite software to overlook sudden acceleration? the only major issue I had had with my vehicle was when the speedometer went crazy as I was driving 110 but was really going 35mph

- Union City, CA, USA

problem #28

Dec 172009

Trailblazer

  • 64,900 miles
My speedometer dropped to zero as I was crossing railroad tracks, and my cd player stopped accepting cd's during that same time period for no apparent reason. The gauge later stuck at first 20 - 15 mph, and then to 10 mph when the SUV is stopped. After about 2 months, it corrected itself. The gas gauge then went out. It would register the tank as empty no matter if it was filled. This began 2/2010. I, a disabled driver, have run out of gas on a deserted road 12:15 a.M. in the winter due to having to calculate miles driven with the tachometer to determine approximate gas consumption. Unfortunately, that calculation doesn't account for engine idling in traffic jams. I sat in the middle of the road in my cold SUV praying no one came around the curve and slammed into me since I ran out of gas in the middle of a dark rural road. I was terrified in this situation and rarely drive at night if I can help it because of the manufacturer's known defect and negligence. I have paid over $500 to repair these manufactures defects, only to have them malfunction again within 1 week of repair. I was told by the mechanic that he would not attempt to fix it a second time. Once again, my speedometer is no longer registering the correct speed, and I have been pulled over by a police officer for speeding. I showed the officer my speedometer, and to my surprise he let me off with a warning and told me that he has pulled over other Trailblazer drivers for speeding who in turn had the same or similar issues with their speedometers. I have had interior lights malfunction, and driver side head light malfunctions where the light keeps going out. The headlight was checked by a mechanic and was not deemed loose or blown.

- Clarksville, TN, USA

problem #27

Dec 302010

Trailblazer 4WD 6-cyl

  • 56,361 miles
Speedometer on 2005 Trailblazer is misleading. You can be doing 70mph and it will only register 50 mph. Sometimes you can be doing 20 mph and it will register 120 mph. This just started happening and the vehicle only has 56,361 miles on it.

- Owings Mills, MD, USA

problem #26

Jan 162011

Trailblazer

  • 93,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Driving home from out of state and filled up the tank and the gas guage still read empty and was all over the place. It is not accurate and jumps around. During the drive I was on a road going 50mph and slowed down in a town to 30mph and the speedometer got stuck at 35mph and would not go up or down. I had a 3 hour commute and did not know how fast I was going to 80% of it. Upon researching these issues, it appears to be a frequent issue in this vehicle and is rather expensive to fix, just to have it happen again a year later. This vehicle was previously owned by a family member and was well taken care of.

- Washingrton, DC, USA

problem #25

Jan 242010

Trailblazer

  • 100,000 miles
The contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer ls (na). The contact stated the cruise control as well as the fuel gauge no longer functioned. The vehicle was taken to an authorized dealer where the contact was told they do not know how to remedy the failures. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was 100,000 and the current mileage was 115,000.

- Big Stone Gap, VA, USA

problem #24

Jan 162011

Trailblazer 4WD 6-cyl

  • 93,112 miles
My wife was driving our vehicle with our two children in the car. She was traveling at highway speed with the cruise control set when the speedometer of our vehicle faulted. It started showing she was going 110 then 20mph then 50mph and so on and so on. She pulled over, phoned me and we called our insurance company to see if towing could be provided. It would have taken over 2hrs for towing assistance so she traveled the rest of the trip (approx 105miles) following another vehicle in hopes that they were traveling at a safe speed. The following day I research this issue, brougth my vehicle to a dealership and they explained it was a known issue with a 05 Trailblazer and the GM had a class action law suit for replacement of this part they state the instrument panel needed to be replaced. However, we later found out that our vehicle was not part of this litigation and we were stuck paying the bill. Not only does GM know this is a safety issue, they are unwilling to compensate or take corrective action for their customers. Needless to say I am very upset and frustrated for the safety of my family and the fact the GM has not offered any remorse.

- Saint Cloud, MN, USA

problem #23

Jan 052011

Trailblazer 4WD 6-cyl

  • 61,000 miles
The speedometer no longer works on my 2005 Trailblazer. It has 61K miles on it. Chevrolet has recalled the Avalanche, Silverado, Tahoe, and Suburban, but for some reason not the Trailblazer. The dealer charges $600 to fix it. This is a safety problem.

- Dallas, TX, USA

problem #22

Jul 022010

Trailblazer

  • 60,022 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Speedometer will sit at 0 miles per hour or will be 30 miles per hour lower. Speedometer will sit below 0 when idle. When I restart it, it may be fine or go back to below 0 to very low miles. I happens more when warmer and running a while. I see that is a problem for many Chevrolet Trailblazers.

- Carlisle, PA, USA

problem #21

Feb 102010

Trailblazer

  • 60,000 miles
No crash or injury, but am really afraid of something happening with my son in the SUV. My head lights flicker when I slow down and worried that one day they are going to shut off and not come back on. My gas gauge was the next thing that stopped working and now my speedometer is not working now. Just like others I thought that I was getting a quality vehicle, at least Toyota corrects their mistakes!!

- Madison , WI, USA

problem #20

Jun 072010

Trailblazer

  • 90,000 miles
Roughly about 6/7/10 my fuel gage quit working and now on 11/2/10 my speedometer gauge started acting up and is not working. This has something to do with the instrument cluster panel being bad.

- Ashley, OH, USA

problem #19

May 202009

Trailblazer

  • 75,000 miles
The speedometer has stopped working. The gas gauge does not work. Also the fuses for the power plug ins continue to blow. These are safety hazards for my wife and kids while traveling alone.

- Puryear, TN, USA

problem #18

May 082010

Trailblazer

  • 113,896 miles
The contact owned a 2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer. While sitting at a traffic stop with her foot depressing the brake pedal, the vehicle abnormally accelerated. The vehicle proceeded to crash into the vehicle ahead of her causing limited damage. The vehicle was not taken in for diagnostic testing. The contact stated the failure occurred once previously without incident. The failure and current mileages were 113,896.

- Dover, PA, USA

problem #17

Feb 082010

Trailblazer

  • 55,000 miles
Cruise control on 2005 Trailblazer when the resume is pushed it will go wide open until it gets back to speed, which could cause a crash if it was unexpected.

- Brush Creek, TN, USA

problem #16

Mar 292010

Trailblazer

  • 104,250 miles
Speedometer not working. 3/29/10: Indicated 0mph while car was moving. 3/30/10: Indicated 30mph while car was stationary, and an estimated 30mph over actual speed. 4/2/10: Dealership found that speed gage cluster assembly needs to be replaced. Ordered replacement. Estimated cost (parts+labor) = $550.

- Wheaton, IL, USA

problem #15

Mar 302010

Trailblazer

  • 66,000 miles
2005 Chevrolet Trailblazer ls. Instrument cluster failure. My speedometer is not working. My cruise control was intermittent for a while, but now no longer functions (fuse is fine).

- Cedar Rapids, IA, USA

problem #14

Dec 172009

Trailblazer

  • 50,000 miles
I have owned my 2005 Trailblazer for a little over a year and the last 4 months I have been having problems with my speedometer. Sometimes it works others it will show you are doing 4 X the speed limit. This is a real problem and needs to be fixed by GM.

- Tucson, AZ, USA

problem #13

Jan 202010

Trailblazer

  • 41,000 miles
I have a 2005 Chevrolet trail Blazer that the tachometer and speedometer fail to work. Doing research on the web this seems to be a common problem. Why is there not a recall for this safety hazard?

- Brandon, FL, USA

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