1996 Chevrolet Suburban 1500

Routine

Owners filed 9 complaints about this vehicle with federal regulators, most often about the service brakes, hydraulic › foundation components › disc › rotor. No safety recall has been issued.

What fails
ComponentReportsCrashesFiresInjuries
Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Foundation Components › Disc › Rotor2
202
Service Brakes, Hydraulic2
000
Visibility1
000
Suspension1
000
Service Brakes1
000
Fuel System, Diesel1
000
Equipment1
000

What owners reported

Newest filings
Service Brakes
Filed Oct 14, 2018500 milesNY

IT KEEPS STALLING ON US. WE HAVE REPLACED ALL THE CENSORS, THE CONTROL MODULE AND WE EVEN REPLACED THE REAR END WE HAVE SPENT WELL OVERA THOUSAND DOLLARS AND THIS VEHICLE STILL WONT STAY RUNNING IT STALLS WON'T START WE HAVE FIXED EVERYTHING THE CODES ARE READING. THIS CONTINUES TO STALL IT SHUTS DOWN BY ITS SELF IT ALMOST KILLED MY WIFE AND KIDS A FEW TIMES I WANT THIS VEHICLE FULLY REPAIRED FOR FREE. I HABE ONE INCOME AND I CANT EVEN CATCH UP ON MY BILLS AS WE HAVE SPENT MORE ON HER VEHICLE TO STILL CAUSE PROBLEMS AND ME ALMOST LOOKING MY FAMILY MULTIPLE TIMES IN THIS VEHICLE. THIS VEHICLE WAS IN MOTION AND DRIVING DOWN A ROAD AND ALL OF A SUDDEN IT STALLED IT HAS DONE THIS MULTIPLE TIMES THIS YEAR.

Suspension
Filed Nov 22, 2015261,000 milesVA

DISCOVERED WHILE REPLACING THE REAR AXLE ASSEMBLY, THE U BOLTS THAT CONNECT THE REAR AXLE HOUSING TO THE LEAF SPRINGS HAD ALMOST RUSTED THRU. THIS PROBLEM IS NOT EASILY RECOGNIZABLE AS THE CONFIGURATION OF LOWER PLATE THAT THE U BOLTS GO THRU CONCEALS THE RUSTED PORTIONS OF THE U BOLT. ALSO, THE CONFIGURATION OF THE ABOVE-MENTIONED PLATE CAPTURES ROAD SALT, CORRODING THE U BOLTS. IF THESE BOLTS FAILED, THE REAR AXLE WOULD DISLODGE FROM THE VEHICLE WITH DISASTROUS RESULTS.

Fuel System, Diesel
Filed Sep 24, 2010180,000 milesNC

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 1996 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN 1500 DIESEL 6.5. THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 40 MPH WHEN THE VEHICLE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. SHE WAS ABLE TO RESTART THE VEHICLE WITHIN A FEW MOMENTS. THE CONTACT STATED THAT SHE HAD EXPERIENCED THE FAILURE AT LEAST FIFTEEN TIMES. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A LOCAL MECHANIC AND THE CONTACT WAS ADVISED THAT THE VEHICLE INJECTION PUMP WOULD NEED REPLACING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE VEHICLE WAS PREVIOUSLY REPAIRED WITH THE REPLACEMENT OF THE FUEL SENDING UNIT, FUEL FILTER AND THE TURBO CHARGER WASTE GATE SOLENOID TO NO AVAIL. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT FURTHER REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 180,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 187,000.

Visibility
Filed Aug 14, 2009CT

THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS AND FLUID WORK INTERMITTENTLY WHEN ON. CALLED CHEVY AND WAS TOLD NO RECALLS ON MY VEHICLE. IT HAS BEEN A WHILE SINCE THIS HAS STARTED. *TR

Service Brakes, Hydraulic
Filed Nov 18, 2008150,000 milesMI

THE ABS BRAKING SYSTEM ON THIS TRUCK HAS BEEN VERY POOR SINCE IT WAS BUILT. I HAVE TALKED TO MANY OTHER OWNERS AND COLLISION SHOPS WHO SAY THAT THE FAILURE OF THE ABS TO WORK PROPERLY HAS CAUSED THEIR ACCIDENTS. I MYSELF HAD A VERY CLOSE CALL THE OTHER DAY BECAUSE AS I WAS STOPPING, ONE WHEEL HIT A WET SPOT AND ALL FOUR WHEELS STOPPED THEIR BRAKING ACTION AND THE VEHICLE DID NOT RECOVER THE BRAKING FUNCTION FOR OVER 3 SECONDS. THIS IS VERY DANGEROUS. MY LOCAL CHEVROLET DEALER TOLD ME THIS IS A COMMON COMPLAINT/PROBLEM. AND, ALTHOUGH HE COMPLETELY CHECKED OUT MY ENTIRE BRAKE SYSTEM, HE SAID THERE NOTHING WAS WRONG. HE SAID THAT SOME 96 SUBURBANS HAD A RUST PROBLEM WITH SOME BRAKE COMPONENTS BUT THAT MINE WAS NOT RUSTY. THIS IS VERY VERY DANGEROUS AND HAS UNDOUBTEDLY CAUSED SOME SERIOUS IF NOT FATAL ACCIDENTS!!!!! *TR

Service Brakes, Hydraulic
Filed Aug 3, 2008149,500 milesNY

1996 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN 1500 - MILEAGE 149,000 - PROFESSIONALLY MAINTAINED & CLEANED. RECENTLY THE VEHICLE ABS SYSTEM ACTIVATES AT LOW SPEEDS UNDER ALL EXCEPT VERY LIGHT BRAKE APPLICATIONS. ABS WILL ACTIVATE AT VEHICLE SPEEDS OF LESS THAN APPROXIMATELY 10 MPH DURING BRAKING. THIS UNNECESSARY ACTIVATION CAUSES VEHICLE STOPPING DISTANCES TO INCREASE AND HAS CAUSED ONE "NEAR MISS" AT A CONTROLLED INTERSECTION WHEN THE VEHICLE BRAKES RELEASED DUE TO THE ABS APPLICATION. I UNDERSTAND THAT THERE IS AN ISSUE WITH THE ABS AND THAT GM HAS ISSUED A RECALL ON NEWER VEHICLES. I WANTED TO LET YOU KNOW THAT THIS ABS ISSUE IS OCCURRING IN VEHICLES OUTSIDE THE PARAMETERS OF THE GM RECALL (PRE 1998 VEHICLES) AND CONSTITUTES A SIGNIFICANT SAFETY HAZARD. I HAVE DISCONNECTED THE ABS SYSTEM UNTIL TOMORROW. AT THAT TIME I WILL HAVE MY MECHANIC ADDRESS THE PROBLEM AND RECTIFY IT. *TR

Equipment
Filed Sep 8, 200765,000 milesMO

AFTER THE VEHICLE HAS BEEN DRIVEN FOR AWHILE IT DEVELOPS A VERY SEVER SHAKING. IT IS TO THE POINT IT KNOCKS STUFF OFF THE DASH AND OUT OF THE CUP HOLDERS. I HAVE HAD THE TIRES CHANGED, ROTATED, BALANCED. THIS DOES NOTHING TO HELP. *TR

Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Foundation Components › Disc › RotorCrash1 injured
Filed Dec 27, 2006NH

CATASTROPHIC FAILURE OF RIGHT FRONT ROTOR (SEPARATED INTO TWO PIECES) CAUSED COMPLETE LOSS OF BRAKING TO ALL WHEELS AND SUBSEQUENT CRASH INTO REAR OF TRACTOR TRAILER ON HIGHWAY. VEHICLE WAS TOTALED.

Service Brakes, Hydraulic › Foundation Components › Disc › RotorCrash1 injured
Filed Jun 12, 2006119,000 milesNH

WHILE BRAKING TO STOP IN HIGHWAY TRAFFIC ON CLEAR DRY DAY, ABS MOMENTARILY ACTIVATED THEN RELEASED ALL BRAKES CAUSING VEHICLE TO REAR-END TRACTOR TRAILER. SUBSEQUENT INSPECTION REVEALED CATASTROPHIC FAILURE OF RIGHT FRONT ROTOR INTO TWO PIECES WITH FULL HUB SEPARATION. PEDAL REMAINED HARD BUT ABS PREVENTED ANY BRAKING. *NM

9 of 9 complaints, reproduced as filed.

Across model years

Worst on record: 2007
YearComplaintsRecallsFiresDeathsAssessment
202614300Do not drive
202530100Routine
20240100Routine
202317100Routine
20211000Routine
201180210Routine
201053100Routine
200955000Routine
2008101000Routine
2007190060Routine
200631220Routine
200594120Routine
2004182140Routine
2003175110Routine
2002120111Fatalities reported
200192140Routine
200067110Routine
199974000Routine
199814000Routine
199716010Routine
1996 — this page9000Routine
19958010Routine
19949000Routine

Compare every Suburban 1500 year →

Reading this record

No unusual pattern of severe incidents in the complaint record.

Complaint counts track how many cars were sold and how long they have been on the road as much as they track quality. A common model from 2013 has had a decade to accumulate reports; a rare one from last year has not. The signal worth weighing is in the severity columns, in whether the same component keeps appearing, and in whether the manufacturer eventually opened a recall for it.

Most recent recall on file: none. Source: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation.