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2002 Oldsmobile Bravada Problems and Recalls
Owners filed 238 complaints with NHTSA about the 2002 Oldsmobile Bravada, most often about the transmission (22% of complaints, typically around 49,000 miles). It is the most complained-about Bravada model year since 2000 and has 10 recalls.
Most common 2002 Oldsmobile Bravada problems
Transmission
53 complaints · 22%Half of these problems showed up before 49,000 miles. Parts named most often: automatic transmission, transfer case (4-wheel drive), driveline, axle assembly.
2002 olds Bravada SUV. Rear differential failure at 41k miles. Dealer and gm unwilling to cover under any type of warranty. This component will normally out last the vehical. Additionally the dealer tried to sell me a complete differential assembly rather than repairing the unit for a cost of $3200.00. The unit was…
Dt: caller complained about a transmission problem. The vehicle shuttered, surged and would not shift properly. The dealer could not duplicate the problem therefore could not fix it. The manufacturer was contacted about this problem. This is an ongoing problem. Caller stated the problem happens at all speeds, and even…
Engine
51 complaints · 21%Half of these problems showed up before 26,500 miles. Parts named most often: engine, cooling system, exhaust system.
While driving 55 MPH it was difficult to steer the vehicle. Service engine light illuminated, and the engine stalled. Dealer could not duplicate or determine the cause of the problem. 2002 Oldsmobile Bravada experienced problems with vehicle being difficult to steer. The service engine light illuminated on the dash…
While driving 50-55 MPH in traffic vehicle stalled. Dealer was contacted, and informed the consumer that this vehicle was not covered under any recall.
Electrical
47 complaints · 20%Half of these problems showed up before 37,000 miles. Parts named most often: wiring, ignition, instrument cluster/panel, horn.
The vehicle had few recalls including inoperative windshield wipers. The back wiper stopped altogether, when making turns the vehicle makes noises and the gauges on the dashboard had gone out and the tail light flickered. Recall campaign #04v046000. The passenger seat belt was inoperative.
Vehicle stalls (8) when under power. This has occurred at random, 3 occurring while on interstate at 60 - 70 MPH. The failure at this speed causes quite a safety concern to my spouse and I. Luckily we have been able to maneuver to the shoulder without incident so far. I've tried to resolve with gm but to no avail.…
Visibility and wipers
30 complaints · 13%Half of these problems showed up before 19,000 miles. Parts named most often: rearview mirrors/devices, windshield wiper/washer, power window devices and controls, windshield.
2002 Oldsmobile Bravada. The mirrors are adjustable to suit individual drivers. This occurs automatically depending on whether key #1 is used or key #2. The problem is the mirrors do not return to the set positions. This is extremely dangerous when entering high speed traffic from an on ramp. Incident date is daily. I…
Olds Bravada stalled while driving at highway speeds (50-55 MPH), lost of steering and brakes. Engine would not start for approx 20 minutes. Tried calling olds 1 800 number for assistance and number out of service that day (sunday). Vehicle was partially on roadway. This is one of many problems with the auto, mirror…
Suspension
21 complaints · 9%Half of these problems showed up before 101,500 miles. Parts named most often: front, rear.
Electronically controlled air suspension does not work. The ride is rough and bouncy. There is no suspension on the back end as a result which could cause a severe accident on the highway.
Airbag suspension releases air unevenly as you are driving, causing the vehicle to swerve back and forth, feeling like it is going to flip. The airbags should not release air at all while you are driving. My vehicle is unsafe to drive over 30 MPH. And sometimes upon starting the vehicle, they won't air up at all…
Body and structure
15 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 18,000 miles. Parts named most often: body, frame and members.
Door blew open, 37 MPH wind gust, bent door post at upper and lower hinges. Both doors at open position flex door post. Obvious factory defect. Door post not stiff enough. Repair does not fix problem. Doors will fail in future!
Front bumper design is dangerous. Gm indicated to me that the clearance of the truck's plastic bumper is eight inches. Bumper fell off backing out of 6-8" of snow on driveway surface. Dangerous driving on winter roads with low front bumper clearance. Other: transmission vibration. Evident when vehicle puchased on…
Seat belts
15 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 35,000 miles. Parts named most often: front, rear/other.
Consumer's vehicle was rear ended. Consumer slipped through/under the shoulder/lap belt. Consumer sustained minor injuries. Dealership was notified, but did not resolve the problem.
The vehicle had few recalls including inoperative windshield wipers. The back wiper stopped altogether, when making turns the vehicle makes noises and the gauges on the dashboard had gone out and the tail light flickered. Recall campaign #04v046000. The passenger seat belt was inoperative.
Steering
14 complaints · 6%Half of these problems showed up before 60,000 miles. Parts named most often: rack and pinion, steering wheel/handle bar.
While driving,the steering wheel started rocking back and forth without warning. The driver applied the brakes,the pedal went to the floor. The driver was unable to maintain control of the vehicle and skidded into a concrete barrier head on. Both frontal air bags did not deploy. The driver and passenger sustained…
Engine stalls driving at highway speeds. Lost brakes, steering, no control of vehicle. Luckily was on small highway, able to coast to stop and have car towed. Mechanic unable to replicate problem after keeping and driving vehicle for 10 days. Searched issue online. Horrified to read hundreds of same complaint; same…
Complaints are owner reports to NHTSA, not verified defects. One complaint can name several components, so shares add up to more than 100%.
2002 Oldsmobile Bravada recalls
Lights: brake lights
Risk: An inoperative brake lamp will not convey the driver's intention of stopping to drivers in following vehicles, and an inoperative rear turn signal lamp will not convey the driver's intention to turn to drivers in following vehicles. Both of these failures can increase the risk of a crash.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the tail lamp/stop lamp assemblies, and if necessary, replace them. The recall began on november 22, 2004. Owners should contact chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, oldsmobile at 1-800-630-6537, buick at 1-866-608-8080, or gmc at 1-866-996-9463.
Full defect summary
On certain sport utility vehicles, vibration and heat may cause the tail lamp/stop lamp bulb to loosen in its socket. If this occurs, the bulb may flicker and eventually become inoperative.
Engine: engine and engine cooling
Risk: If the spike damages the PCM, the vehicle may not restart. If this happens while the vehicle is moving, a crash could occur without prior warning.
Fix: Dealers will install a wiring harness. The recall will begin on august 19, 2004. Owners should contact oldsmobile at 1-800-630-6537 or gmc at 1-866-996-9463.
Full defect summary
Some sport utility vehicles equipped with an electronically controlled air suspension (ecas) have a condition in which the ecas may produce a brief electrical spike while the vehicle is operating. This electrical spike can disrupt the powertrain control module (PCM) causing the vehicle to stall.
Seat belts
Risk: If this were to occur, the safety belt may not restrain the occupant as intended during a crash, and could result in injury to the occupant.
Fix: Dealers will inspect the driver and front passenger safety belt retractors, and replace them if necessary. Owner notification began on june 24, 2004. Owners should contact chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, gmc at 1-866-996-9463, or oldsmobile at 1-800-630-6537.
Full defect summary
Certain light duty pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles fail to conform to federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 209, "seat belt assemblies." one of the two sensors in the driver's and front passenger's seat belt retractors could be inoperative. The seat belt retractors will lock when the belt webbing is extracted during a crash; however, the mechanism that locks the seat belt retractor when the vehicle decelerates quickly, such as heavy braking, may not operate as intended.
Visibility and wipers: windshield wiper/washer
Risk: Depending on the occurrence and weather situation, driver visibility could be reduced, which could result in a crash.
Fix: Dealers will cover the windshield wiper module vent hole with a patch. Also, the wiper motor, circuit board, and electrical connector will be inspected to signs of water intrusion and/or corrosion and be replaced as required. The recall began july 6, 2004. Owners should contact chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438; oldsmobile at 1-800-630-6537; or gmc at 1-866-996-9463.
Full defect summary
Certain sport utility vehicles have windshield wiper systems that will not turn on, cease operation while in use, fail to turn off/on by themselves (moisture sensitive wiper system), or have continuous windshield washer pump operation because the presence of water within the wiper modules can either cause a short circuit or can lead to the corrosion of components within the module.
Equipment: owners/service/other manual
Risk: This does not meet the requirements of the standard.
Fix: Owners will be provided with a supplement for their owner's manual. This supplement describes and shows the location symbols for the child restraint anchors that are located in the vehicle and on the child restraint or booster cushion. Owner notification began august 18, 2003. Owners should contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, gmc at 1-866-996-9463, pontiac at 1-800-620-7668, or oldsmobile at 1-800-630-6537.
Full defect summary
Certain minivans, passenger and sport utility vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 225, "child restraint anchorage system." the owner's manual does not explain the meaning of the location symbols for the child restraint lower universal anchorage system.
Electrical: interior/under dash
Risk: These vehicles do not comply with the standard.
Fix: Dealers will reprogram the instrument panel cluster. Owner notification began may 29, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact chevrolet at 1-800-222-1020, gmc at 1-800-462-8782, or oldsmobile at 1-800-442-6537.
Full defect summary
Certain sport utility vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standards no. 101, "control location, identification, and illumination" and no. 208, "occupant crash protection." these vehicles have an intermittent condition during vehicle start-up in which the instrument panel cluster may not properly power up, resulting in most of the displays, telltale lights, and functions (except the service engine light, turn signal indicators, and the instrument panel cluster backlighting) being inoperative.
Transmission: automatic transmission
Risk: These overrides are not permitted unless the vehicle has a locking steering column.
Fix: Dealers will eliminate these conditions by disabling the overrides. Owner notification began on may 29, 2003. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact chevrolet at 1-800-222-1020, gmc at 1-800-462-8782, oldsmobile at 1-800-442-6537, or hummer at 1-866-486-6376.
Full defect summary
Certain sport utility vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 114, "theft protection." these vehicles are equipped with a mechanical override that could allow the ignition key to be removed with the shift lever in a position other than park. In addition, these vehicles have an override that can allow the transmission to be shifted out of park with the ignition in the off position.
Fuel system: hoses, lines/piping, and fittings
Risk: If the fitting becomes disconnected while the vehicle is in motion, the engine would stop due to inadequate fuel supply and cause a loss of power steering assist. If an ignition source were present, fuel leakage from a disconnected fuel filter fitting could result in a fire.
Fix: Dealers will replace the fuel filter quick connect retainers. Owner notification began september 20, 2002. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact chevrolet at 1-800-222-1020. Gmc at 1-800-462-8782, or oldsmobile at 1-800-442-6537.
Full defect summary
On certain sport utility vehicles, a fuel filter fitting can become disconnected. If this were to occur while attempting to start the engine, a no-start condition would result and fuel would be pumped out the fuel filter onto the ground.
Air bags: frontal
Risk: Pieces of the inflator could strike and injure vehicle occupants and the air bag cushion would not inflate fully, reducing the capability of the bag to protect the driver.
Fix: Dealers will inspect, and replace, if necessary, the air bag module assembly on the driver's side. Owner notification began august 15, 2002. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact buick at 1-800-521-7300, cadillac at 1-800-458-8006, chevrolet at 1-800-222-1020, gmc at 1-800-462-8782, oldsmobile at 1-800-442-6537, or pontiac at 1-800-762-2737.
Full defect summary
Certain passenger, mini vans, and sport utility vehicles have an air bag inflator on the driver's side that could fracture at a weld during a deployment.
Suspension: lower arm
Risk: A separation could result in loss of vehicle control, resulting in a crash.
Fix: Dealers will replace the left and right front lower control arm brackets. Owner notification began by telephone on april 4, 2001. The followup letter to consumers was mailed may 3, 2001. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact chevrolet at 1-800-222-1020, oldsmobile at 1-800-442-6537, or gmc at 1-800-462-8782.
Full defect summary
Vehicle description: sport utility vehicles. Under certain circumstances the front lower control arm brackets may fracture. This fracture could result in separation of the front lower control arm from the frame.
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
Loss of headlights
Summary
The subject vehicles are model year (my) 2002-2009 chevrolet trailblazer, gmc envoy, 2004-2007 buick rainier, 2003-2008 isuzu ascender, 2005-2009 saab 9-7x, 2002-2004 oldsmobile bravada, 2003-2006 chevrolet ssr, 2005-2009 buick lacrosse, and 2006-2008 pontiac grand prix. This scope includes the trailblazer/envoy variants: 2002-2006 envoy xl/trailblazer ext and 2004-2005 envoy xuv. The original scope of this investigation was expanded to include all vehicles equipped with the subject headlight driver module (hdm). The focus of the investigation was to determine whether actions performed by general motors adequately addressed any unreasonable risk to motor vehicle safety in the subject vehicle
Hazard light switch failure
Summary
On november 30, 2001, general motors (gm) conducted safety recall 01v-364 for the subject vehicles built between september 16, 1999 and august 28, 2001 to remedy a defective hazard switch that would cause a loss of hazard and stop lamp illumination.the hazard switch is contained within the vehicle multifunction switch.odi opened this investigation based on reports that some consumers were not notified of the original recall or that they had repairs done under 01v-364 but experienced subsequent multifunction switch failures.the multifunction switch supports the operation of cruise control, windshield wipers, exterior lighting and turn signals in addition to hazard and stop lamps. On may 21, 2
Fuel pump module leaks gasoline
Summary
During the course of this ea investigation, odi observed that the majority of the complaints (88%) and warranty claims (94%) were reported for vehicles that are registered for use in the salt belt region of the US.this area includes 20 states in the northeast, mid atlantic and the midwest regions and the district of columbia.consumers in the salt belt region reported to odi that they could smell fuel vapors in their vehicles while driving.upon further examination of their vehicles, they discovered that fuel vapors were coming out of the top of the fuel tank. This condition is caused by corrosion of the return and sender lines of the fuel pump module.water and road salt collect on top of the
Brake lamp failure
Summary
Gm states that some brake/tail lamp bulbs can prematurely become inoperative due to malfunctioning brake/tail lamp sockets.on march 2, 2004, gm initiated a 6-year/72,000 mile special policy for 989,487 subject vehicles to inspect and replace the rear brake/tail lamp bulb socket assemblies.on april 4, 2004, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened a preliminary evaluation (pe04-032) based on consumer complaints alleging brake lights not operating when the brake pedal is depressed.on august 3, 2004 odi upgraded pe04-032 to an engineering analysis (ea04-021).by letter dated october 27, 2004 gm notified NHTSA that it will conduct a safety recall (NHTSA # 04v527) covering subject vehicles
Windshield wiper failure
Summary
On september 17, 2003, the office of defects investigation (odi) opened a preliminary evaluation (pe03-042) to investigate alleged windshield wiper failure in certain model year (my) 2002 and 2003 chevrolet trailblazer and trailblazer ext, gmc envoy and envoy xl, and oldsmobile bravada vehicles.the investigation was upgraded to an engineering analysis on january 6, 2004, and the scope was expanded to include certain my 2003 isuzu ascender vehicles.all subject vehicles are built on general motors? Gmt360 and gmt370 platforms and were originally equipped with a windshield wiper assembly referred to as the family design module (p/n 15171306 base, p/n 15171307 for vehicles equipped with rainsens
Windshield wiper failure
Summary
The subject vehicles (chevrolet trailblazer (ext), gmc envoy (xl), and oldsmobile bravada) are built on the gmt360 and gmt370 platforms and were originally equipped with a windshield wiper assembly referred to as the ?family? Design module (p/n 15171306 base, p/n 15171307 for vehicles equipped with rainsense automatic moisture sensitive wipers).the windshield wiper assembly is located inside the plenum at the base of the windshield and is mounted on an incline approximately equal to the rake of the windshield.gm reports that vehicles are subject to a quality assurance water test at the assembly plant.the test exposes the vehicles to an amount of water that exceeds the plenum?s capability to
Engine stall
Summary
Model year (my) 2002 bravada and certain my 2002 envoy vehicles with optional electronically controlled air suspension (ecas) may be subject to engine stall caused by an errant voltage spike transmitted to the powertrain control module (PCM).in addition to engine stall, if the spike damages the PCM, the vehicle may not restart.on october 31, 2001 gm introduced into production a wiring harness containing an inductor that was added to the ecas wiring to reduce the magnitude of the voltage spike.on december 6, 2001 gm introduced into production a modified PCM with protection from errant voltage spikes and also ceased use of the wiring harness with the inductor.the office of defects investigatio
Engine stall
Summary
Of the 697 total complaints, 240 were received for theenvoy and 457 for the bravada.gm has identified about 5,000 warranty claims related to stalling in the subject vehicles.gm reports that a transient voltage spike generated in the ecas degrades the performance of the PCM resulting in engine stall.gm modified the ecas wiring bundle and the PCM for vehicles built after december 6, 2001 to address the stalling problem.
Fuel filter quick connect fitting
Summary
There is no summary currently available
Pincher/chafed wiring
Questions about the 2002 Oldsmobile Bravada
- What are the most common problems with the 2002 Oldsmobile Bravada?
- By NHTSA owner complaints: transmission (53 complaints, typically around 49,000 miles); engine (51 complaints, typically around 26,500 miles); electrical (47 complaints, typically around 37,000 miles).
- How many recalls does the 2002 Oldsmobile Bravada have?
- 10 recalls listed by NHTSA, the latest from November 1, 2004 (lights). Check your VIN at nhtsa.gov/recalls to see which ones are still open on your car.
- Is the 2002 a bad year for the Oldsmobile Bravada?
- It is the most complained-about Bravada model year since 2000, with 238 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.