NHTSA — Electrical System Problems

2006 Hummer H3 (Page 3 of 5)

10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
0 / 18
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
74,785 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.

2006 Hummer H3 electrical problems

electrical problem

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2006 Hummer H3 Owner Comments (Page 3 of 5)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #49

Sep 232013

H3 5-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 126,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2006 Hummer H3. The contact stated while attempting to turn the vehicle off, the key became lodged in the ignition. Also, the contact mentioned that the air bag warning light illuminated. The vehicle was not taken to a mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure.. the failure mileage was 126,000 and the current mileage was 136,000. Updated 9/18/14

- Alma, MI, USA

problem #48

Jan 012008

H3

  • 40,000 miles
The contact owns a 2006 Hummer H3. The contact stated that the fan motor and the on star system failed due to an electrical issue. The contact stated that the body wiring harness was replaced four times. However, the failure was not corrected. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 40,000 and the current mileage 154,000.

- Turlock , CA, USA

problem #47

Jun 022014

H3 5-cyl

  • 96,500 miles
Was traveling through a parking lot, noticed a glow from the corner of my eye, and something drip from under the passenger glovebox. There was a funny smell. I immediately stopped, and told my passenger to get out, and noticed a fire under the passenger glovebox. I tried pouring milk and juice on the fire to put it out under the dash but it didn't put the fire completely out. Bystanders helped with fire extinguishers but it didn't help much either, the fire moved through the firewall and was under the hood. The car quickly went up in flames and the fire department was called to put out the fire. Once the fire started, the doors didn't automatically unlock when I shut off the car. I was not able to get the back doors open since there is no key entry and it's all electronic. If I had children or passengers in the back seat when this happened, I would not have been able to get them out through the back doors - they would not open. The fire started under the passenger side glovebox seemed to be related to the resistor and wiring harness tied to the A/C. this should be a recall, and GM should recoup everyone who has had a total loss related to this incident. I will never buy american car again, this one was a mistake since I purchased it with constant issues and now this at less than 100K miles. Unbelievable! GM should be accountable for these incidents.

- Phoenix, AZ, USA

problem #46

Mar 242014

H3

  • 65,000 miles

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

The contact owns a 2006 Hummer H3. The contact stated that the key continued to become stuck in the ignition and the instrument panel constantly illuminated. The failure was recurring for three months. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who stated that the ignition switch needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 65,000.

- Bloomington, MN, USA

problem #45

Jul 022013

H3 6-cyl

  • 66,104 miles
While driving at 45mph all systems shut off. No power steering nothing. The car would not restart. This happened multiple times with out warning.

- Seminole , FL, USA

problem #44

Mar 032014

H3

  • 120,000 miles
I was traveling to work on a residential street at 5am when I noticed a smell and saw a glow coming from under my dashboard. When I could stop I noticed it was a fire. The fire did put itself out but the fire department was called and they advised me not to driver the vehicle. I did report this to GM and they advised me they could not help me with the repairs and there is currently not a recall.

- Hackettstown, NJ, USA

problem #43

Oct 012013

H3 5-cyl

  • 89,000 miles

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

Car has been spontaneously stalling while driving at high speeds. Engine cuts out, power brakes and steering fail, no radio, etc. Vehicle loses all power. It is terrifying. Has happened at least 3 dozen times now. Several visits to dealer could not pinpoint problem. Dealers unable to duplicate stalling, although it has happened to me regularly for months - ie, every time I drive the car (with my two babies) for an extended period on the highway.

- Cotuit, MA, USA

problem #42

Jan 272014

H3

  • 108,000 miles
The contact owns a 2006 Hummer H3. The contact stated while driving in reverse she smelled a strong smoke odor and saw flames releasing from the glove compartment that spread to the engine. The fire department advised her that fire was caused by an electrical failure. The vehicle was destroyed. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure and current mileage were 108,000.

- Battle Creek , MI, USA

problem #41

Apr 152012

H3 5-cyl

  • 62,500 miles
Smelled burning smell intermittently, then one day blower just quit blowing any type air, did research found the problem to be the blower motor resistor, resistor and harness had melted so replaced it and worked fine but never really worked on the number 1 setting again. Has now happened again January 29, 2014, burning smell and just quit working again. Thankfully not expecting 0 degree temps again before I can get the parts and get it fixed again. Ordered the blower motor, wiring harness and resistor this time. With the number of complaints on this particular item I certainly hope they issue a recall before someone has a fatal incident.

- Lebanon, TN, USA

problem #40

Dec 302013

H3 5-cyl

  • 101,000 miles
I left my house to pickup my stepson from practice. While driving to the school I began to smell an odor of melting plastic, pulling into my stepson's school, I began to smell and see smoke. When I got closer to the parking area, sparks began to fall from underneath the right passenger dash. I immediately parked the car and ran around to the right passenger side and opened the door. I told the kids to move back and placed a coffee cup underneath to catch the flames dripping from under the dashboard which was quickly spreading and burning the carpet. I told my stepson to call the fire dept. I took his phone and got through to collin county. And they switched me to the local fire dept. Before the fire dept arrived, my car was engulfed in flames and a total loss. The fire report concurs where the fire began. I have searched online and found that this is a common reoccurring problem with Hummer and there are many reports similar to my experience. As a matter of fact, I have had to replaced that same harness about six months after I purchased the car because we smelled smoke and realized the very same part had burned. Many other Hummer owners have replaced this part multiple times do to this defective blower motor fan harness. The problem is Hummer knows the part is defective and the replacement is also defective. Also, that part is a dealer item. This problem needs to fixed with a national public recall before something terrible occurs. When my car caught on fire, I was in front of a school with children around and need I restate I was in the car when the fire began.

- Allen, TX, USA

problem #39

Dec 032013

H3 5-cyl

  • 122,000 miles

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

After I started my vehicle inside my garage I turned the heat on. The truck was still in park. After I turned on the heat I went into the house to get my coat. When I came back out to the truck to prepare to leave I noticed smoke inside the vehicle. I immediately turned the vehicle off and removed the keys. I opened all four doors to let the smoke out, the garage door was already open. The time from when I started my truck to when I saw the smoke was about 15 seconds. I let the truck sit for about an hour before I started looking for what could have caused the smoke. I remembered that the smoke didn't start until after I turned on the heater so I immediately checked all relevant fuses and relays which were good...none were blown. I then set about checking the fan, and as I removed the resistor from the fan housing under the dash and unplugged it I saw that it (the resistor) was burned at one of the blades.with some plastic around it and scorch marks at another blade. This prompted me to inspect the resistor female receptacle on the wiring harness. I began inspecting the receptacle. I found a burned up female blade receptacle. I don't know if the resistor shorted out or the wiring harness shorted out. I went to the auto parts store and bought another resistor because I needed heat in my vehicle so I plugged in and reinstalled the new resistor and started up the truck and observed the resistor. No smoke. I then turned on the heat (fan) and it wouldn't come on so I juggled the wiring harness and it came on. But now I cant select recirculate on the instrument panel. When I do all three lights on all the environmental control knobs just blink about 5 times then stop.. any assistance you can give me in this matter will be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

- Fort Wayne, IN, USA

problem #38

Dec 072013

H3

  • 112,000 miles
The contact owns a 2006 Hummer H3. The contact stated that while driving approximately 35 mph, the dashboard caught on fire from the passenger's side of the heater. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who diagnosed that the harness, resister fan motor, replay, heater hoses and baffle fan needed to be replaced. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was made aware of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 112,000.

- Swartuzcreek, MI, USA

problem #37

Sep 202013

H3 5-cyl

  • 120,000 miles
Blower motor quit working. Took to dealer said needed motor wiring harness and resitor. They said the wiring harness caught fire and fused together. Cost of $300 to fix. Fire hazard.

- Lexington, KY, USA

problem #36

Jun 032013

H3

  • 80,000 miles
The ventilation system stopping blowing air. I went online and did some research about this and found that many others had the same complaint and how to diagnose it. I opened up the area under the glove compartment and found that a resistor was burnt up. This appears it could have been a very dangerous situation if it had caught fire.

- Mount Joy, PA, USA

problem #35

Aug 252013

H3

  • 91,000 miles
Blower motor for HVAC stopped working. A/C compressor kicks on, but no air flow or fan noise. Found resistor and wiring harness behind glove box burned out and melted. Part numbers affected: 12059296 and 10397098 resistor. This is a fire hazard!! come on, GM!!

- Pensacola, FL, USA

problem #34

Feb 122013

H3 5-cyl

  • 86,000 miles
Driving down the interstate when the heat stopped working. It was particularly cold, but that was not the issue. The blower stopped working and the windows started fogging up. The blower does not work on any speed, useless for defrost, heat, or A/C. I was out of the country for work for a few months, confirmed the issue still exists. Looked into it online, evidently 2006/07 Hummer, colorados, and other GM heavy duty trucks this is a common issue. Took it to the dealership who confirmed they have to replace the resistor pack in these types of vehicles all the time due to shoddy wiring. They wanted $200 dollars to fix this. If this is so common, how is there no recall!"!"

- Schaumburg, IL, USA

problem #33

Jan 112012

H3 5-cyl

  • 65,021 miles
This is the second time the blower resistor/harness has caught fire [1st time 1/11/12 2nd time 7/3/13] the orange wire going into the harness seems to over heat and melt/catch fire the last time it filled cab with smoke had stop vehicle and exit because of fire -smoke.

- Challis, ID, USA

problem #32

Jun 022013

H3 5-cyl

  • 89,000 miles
Vehicle had heater blower harness and resistor fail and catch fire for the second time. Repaired replaced once before. This particular problem occurs due to a design defect and replacement parts do not correct the underlying problem and it will fail again. It is just a matter of time. The circuits should be fuse protected so this will not burn. Part numbers have been changed to upgrade this connection to newer design, but these parts also fail. This is a serious failure of the electrical system. In addition, the ground terminal to the chassis (by the intake filter in the engine compartment) is suspect as well. Overall this is an incredibly negligently designed circuit. One can also find numerous reported failures in related vehicles using the same parts.

- San Ramon, CA, USA

problem #31

Mar 072013

H3

  • 120,000 miles
The contact owns a 2006 Hummer H3. The contact stated that while driving approximately 10 mph, a burning odor was smelled and smoke emitted from the glove compartment. The contact maneuvered the vehicle to a safe location and extinguished the flames. The vehicle was able to be driven after the incident occurred. The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The vehicle was not repaired. The approximate failure mileage was 120,000.

- Glendale, AZ, USA

problem #30

Jan 192006

H3

  • 1,000 miles
We have battling the problem of the sunroof leaking on our Hummer. There is drain tubes in the corners of the sunroof this water is supposed to go do these tubes then on the ground. How ever this is not the case. In most cases the water leaks down the pillars in the trucks dash compartment and soaks the carpet on both sides and the head liner. We have had it to the dealership on several accessions and they just say they were stop up but they just leak the next day like nothing has even been done. They charge 300 dollars to do this. I have the technician tell me that nothing he has done will fix this off the record..when the water is pouring in there is nothing you can do the onstar goes off and your lights on the inside go dim we have had the cpu short out due to water the blower controller both front speakers and behind the dash all the metal parts are covered in rust. When the electrical parts shorted out the wires were burnt and we were driving when this happened on one occasion and had to have it towed. We have tried everything taken it the dealership did not help. The truck is always damp inside. Then of course the smell of the carpets. I even have contacted GM and just said take to the dealership and they are gonna charge the same thing. I am scared for my wife and family to drive this truck. We will not even leave in the garage due the risk of fire. If you google this problem there is over 60K topics on this and forum after forum about it. And every is saying this. It is obvious that this is a design flaw and GM is not going to stand behind this. I think something should done about this before something very bad happens to someone in these trucks. I just want it fixed nothing else.

- Winston-Salem, NC, USA

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