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2008 Chevrolet Tahoe Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 528 complaints with NHTSA about the 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe, most often about the air bags (44% of complaints, typically around 93,000 miles). It is the 3rd most complained-about Tahoe model year since 2000 and has 4 recalls.
Most common 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe problems
Air bags
233 complaints · 44%Half of these problems showed up before 93,000 miles.
Noticed two sizeable cracks in the dashboard, one of which is right near the airbag. I researched the issue and noticed there are several other Tahoe owners that are experiencing the same thing and that it is a defect in the dashboard. The cracks seem to be getting bigger and I'm concerned pieces of the dashboard will…
Takata recall. It's been two years and two months since I received this recall notice. The recall status says the remedy is not yet available. I been waiting too long for a repair of a potentially dangerous recall.
Other or unspecified
92 complaints · 17%Half of these problems showed up before 83,000 miles.
Dashboard is severely cracking above and around airbags putting passengers in harms way. This is a manufacturer defect as tens of thousands of owners have reported but gm has failed to recognize as of yet. Please please get someone to look into this as it is a major concern. I'd love to continue to buy american…
The dashboard has a cracked from the driver's side to the passenger side of the vehicle. The crack involves the passenger side airbag cover.
Electrical
87 complaints · 17%Half of these problems showed up before 63,000 miles. Parts named most often: wiring, ignition, instrument cluster/panel.
All of the indicators in the instrument cluster sometimes read '0' upon initial startup. Sometimes by turning the ignition off, withdrawing the key, and open/close the door then restarting the vehicle the problem corrects itself. However this procedure may be repeated up to 15 times before problem is corrected or…
Vehicle won't start, dashboard lights all activated randomly, battery not problem, all electrical not working, windshield wipers randomly activated. Vehicle towed to dealership. This is the second time this has happened in 2 months. Last time, battery was jumped and car worked for 2 months. Battery checked 2 different…
Body and structure
79 complaints · 15%Half of these problems showed up before 76,500 miles. Parts named most often: body, frame and members.
The contact owns a 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe. The contact stated that all four door handles detached from the vehicle as he attempted to open the doors. The dealer was notified of the failure who advised the contact that the door handles were not on recall. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The vehicle was…
I purchased my chevy Tahoe in july 2013. I was only the second owner. I did not notice right away but the dash board was cracked above the cluster. Since I purchased the card I have used a sun shade to protect the interior of the car. Since I purchased the car there has been another crack located at the passenger…
Doors and locks
60 complaints · 11%Half of these problems showed up before 38,000 miles. Parts named most often: doors.
2008 chevy Tahoe ltz (50000 miles). My drivers side door does not unlock/lock with my keyless remote. All of the other doors work. I have 7 co-workers with 2008 Tahoe's and they all have the same problem on various levels. I locked my doors with my remote and walked into to a diner to eat and looked out of the window…
Driver's side door lock will not work unless I push it down manually. If you don't lock the door manually and press "lock" on the key fob - when you try to open the door the alarm goes off.
Engine
29 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 89,500 miles.
Gas engine run away check engine light illuminated with p0069, p0430 (emissions codes) engine uncontrollably revved to maximum 6000 RPM (max throttle)while in drive gear from autostop resume.. Cruse control not enabled slight uphill grade required engine to be shut off with key same day as first event while in drive…
I purchased my Tahoe from the dealer brand new and always took it to get serviced at the same dealer. In 2015 I took it in for a check engine light and they said there was a misfire and they replaced the camshaft and machined the heads stating that the valves were leaking. Repairs cost nearly $3000. This year 2018 in…
Speed control
16 complaints · 3%Half of these problems showed up before 94,000 miles.
Around feburary of this year my vehicle begin to idle out of control and was attempting to gun off evertime I tried to put it in drive, according to gm they were already aware of the issues and said they had an extended warranty on the throttle body for my 2008 chevy Tahoe. My car did exactly what gm said it would do…
Gas engine run away check engine light illuminated with p0069, p0430 (emissions codes) engine uncontrollably revved to maximum 6000 RPM (max throttle)while in drive gear from autostop resume.. Cruse control not enabled slight uphill grade required engine to be shut off with key same day as first event while in drive…
Fuel system
14 complaints · 3%Half of these problems showed up before 98,000 miles.
Around feburary of this year my vehicle begin to idle out of control and was attempting to gun off evertime I tried to put it in drive, according to gm they were already aware of the issues and said they had an extended warranty on the throttle body for my 2008 chevy Tahoe. My car did exactly what gm said it would do…
When traveling above 30 MPH then decelerating, once the car gets to around 15-20 MPH it jumps forward. It's similar to when you drive a stickshift and take your foot off the clutch and the car jumps forward as if it might stall. It doesn't happen regularly. If I decelerate very quickly, then it does not do it. If I…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2008 Chevrolet Tahoe recalls
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on february 23, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on september 20, 2021. Owners may contact chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020, cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006, and gmc customer service at 1-800-462-8782. Gm's number for this recall is n212328780.
Full defect summary
General motors, llc (gm) is recalling certain 2009 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext, chevrolet avalanche, silverado 1500, silverado 2500, silverado 3500, suburban, tahoe, gmc sierra 1500, sierra 2500, sierra 3500, yukon, and yukon xl vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of arizona, arkansas, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, kansas, kentucky, maryland, missouri, nebraska, nevada, new jersey, new mexico, north carolina, ohio, oklahoma, pennsylvania, tennessee, virginia, and west virginia or "zone b." additionally, gm is recalling certain 2007-2008 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, and escalade ext, chevrolet avalanche, silverado 1500, suburban, tahoe, gmc sierra 1500, yukon, and yukon xl vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of alaska, colorado, connecticut, idaho, iowa, maine, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, mo
Air bags: inflator module
Risk: An inflator explosion may result in sharp metal fragments striking the driver or other occupants, resulting in serious injury or death.
Fix: Gm will notify owners, and dealers will replace the front passenger air bag inflator with an alternate one, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk were mailed on february 22, 2021. Second notification letters will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owner notification letters were mailed on march 1, 2021. Owners may contact chevrolet customer service at 1-800-222-1020; cadillac customer service at 1-800-458-8006; and gmc customer service at 1-800-462-8782. Gm's number for this recall is n212328760.
Full defect summary
General motors, llc (gm) is recalling certain 2007-2011 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext, chevrolet avalanche, silverado 1500, suburban, tahoe, gmc sierra 1500, yukon, yukon xl, and 2009-2011 chevrolet silverado 2500, silverado 3500, gmc sierra 2500 and sierra 3500 vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of alabama, california, florida, georgia, hawaii, louisiana, mississippi, south carolina, texas, puerto rico, american samoa, guam, the northern mariana islands (saipan), and the u.s. Virgin islands or "zone a." additionally, gm is recalling certain 2007-2008 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext, chevrolet avalanche, silverado 1500, suburban, tahoe, gmc sierra 1500, yukon, yukon xl vehicles originally sold, or ever registered, in the states of arizona, arkansas, delaware, district of columbia, illinois, indiana, kansas, kentucky, maryland, missou
Electrical: electrical system
Risk: It is possible for the heated washer module to ignite and a fire may occur.
Fix: Dealers will permanently disable and remove the heated washer fluid module. An updated page for the owner manual will be provided and inserted in the owner manual to document that the feature has been permanently disabled and removed from the vehicle. The safety recall began on june 11, 2010. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, saturn at 1-800-972-8876, gmc at 1-866-996-9463 and hummer at 1-800-732-5493 or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.
Full defect summary
Gm is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 buick, lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; model year 2008-2009 buick enclave; cadillac cts; model year 2007-2009 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl; saturn outlook; and model year 2009 chevrolet traverse vehicles equipped with a heated washer fluid system (hwfs). A recall was implemented in 2008 to add a fuse to the control circuit harness to address the potential consequences of a printed circuit board (pcb) electrical short. However, there have been new reports of thermal incidents on hwfs modules after this improvement was installed. These incidents resulted from a new failure mode attributed to the device's thermal protection feature. The significance varies from minor distortion to considerable melting of the plastic around the hwfs fluid chamb
Electrical: electrical system
Risk: This may cause other electrical features to malfunction, create an odor, or cause smoke increasing the risk of a fire.
Fix: Dealers will install a wire harness with an in-line fuse free of charge. The recall began on september 12, 2008. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080; cadillac at 1-800-982-2339 or http://www.cadillac.com; chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438; saturn at 1-800-972-8876 or http://www.saturn.com, gmc at 1-866-996-9436; or hummer at 1-800-732-5493; or through their website at <a href=http://www.gmownercenter.com>http://www.gmownercenter.com</a> .
Full defect summary
Gm is recalling 857,735 my 2006-2008 buick lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; my 2007-2008 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl, saturn outlook; and my 2008 buick enclave vehicles equipped with a heated wiper washer fluid system. A short circuit on the printed circuit board for the washer fluid heater may overheat the control-circuit ground wire.
Recall repairs are free at any franchised dealer. Enter your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which recalls are still open on your car.
NHTSA defect investigations
Desiccated air bag inflator rupture
Summary
From 2000 through 2017, takata produced millions of air bag inflators using two types of phase-stabilized ammonium nitrate ("psan") propellant -- propellant 2004 and propellant 2004l. After prolonged exposure to high temperature cycles and humidity, inflators using propellant 2004 can degrade, causing the propellant to burn too quickly when ignited. The rapid burning can cause the inflator to rupture during deployment, potentially causing serious or even fatal injury to vehicle occupants. See 2016 blomquist report at www.NHTSA.gov/sites/NHTSA.gov/files/documents/expert_report-hrblomquist.pdf.consequently, all frontal inflators using propellant 2004 that do not contain a "desiccant" (a substa
Interior door handle laceration risk
Summary
The statistical data regarding problem experience in the table above are net counts for unique vehicles.review of information in this pe discloses that while accounting for approximately two-thirds of the total population, my 2007 subject vehicles are cited in more than 90 percent of the consumer complaints, injury reports, and warranty claims, respectively.in addition, improvements in the door handle manufacturing process during the my 2007 production resulted in a decline in the occurrence of peeling/flaking of the thin chrome plating.other environmental factors were also identified that may have influenced the occurrence of the condition which poses the alleged safety risk.additional anal
Non-crash engine compartment fires
Summary
In a letter dated august 27, 2008, general motors corp. (gm) notified NHTSA that it will conduct a safety recall (NHTSA recall number 08v-441) to address a safety relateddefect that can result in engine compartment fire in approximately 850,000 vehicles equipped with a heated windshield washer fluid option.the subject vehicles of this investigation comprise over three-quarters of the recall population. According to gm, a short circuit on the printed circuit board for the windshield washer fluid heater module may overheat the control-circuit ground wire. This may cause other electrical features to malfunction, create an odor or cause smoke and in rare cases it may cause a fire.as a remedy, gm
Non-crash engine compartment fires
Summary
In response to an information request letter sent by the office of defects investigation(odi) during preliminary evaluation pe08-010, gm provided odi with 41 allegations of non-crash engine compartment fires including 16 allegations of fires originating with the ignition in the off position.one of the fires was determined to be caused by an arson event.odi has also received 5 reports, 4 of which are of duplicative of reports provided by gm, alleging non-crash engine compartment fires in the subject vehicles.in total, odi is aware of 41 non-crashengine compartment fires in the subject vehicles that are unrelated to arson.eight of the 41 fire allegations also allege property damage as a result
Questions about the 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe
- What are the most common problems with the 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: air bags (233 complaints, typically around 93,000 miles); other or unspecified (92 complaints, typically around 83,000 miles); electrical (87 complaints, typically around 63,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe have?
- 4 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from February 5, 2021 (air bags). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2008 a bad year for the Chevrolet Tahoe?
- It is the 3rd most complained-about Tahoe model year since 2000, with 528 complaints. Complaint counts are not adjusted for how many cars were sold, so popular years collect more of them, and the newest years have had less time to.