Windshield wipers stopped working
Chevrolet Suburban wipers problems
399 of the 8,048 owner complaints about the Chevrolet Suburban describe windshield wiper failure, most of them for the 1994 model year.
- owner complaints
- 399
- worst model year
- 1994
- typical mileage
- 90,000
Is there a fix? There are 4 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
Often reported together
ABS 9Jerking 5Grinding brakes 4Loss of power 3Door locks 3Whining noise 2Transmission failure 2Power steering loss 2
Trouble codes mentioned
U160F 1U1561 1U152B 1U0146 1U0131 1U0101 1C1500 1
What owners say
Vehicle mileage is approximately 45,000 miles. While driving in the rain the front windshield wipers stopped moving and were stuck in the down position. They would not activated with auto, manual, or wash commands. Rear wiper still functioned. This happened while driving down the interstate which resulted in having to slow my speed in heavy traffic and go out of driver position to see through a clear spot in the windshield, took exit 1 mile later and tried to find gas station, approximately 1 mile after exiting the wipers started to work again. This also happened at approximately 35,000 miles on the vehicle and the wipers did not work for multiple days, even with vehicle turned off for 12 hr period. Took to dealership and by that time they were working again and the dealership could not find anything wrong. Both instances happened on weekends so could not take directly to dealership while issue was present.
The contact owns a 2020 Chevrolet Suburban. The contact stated that the vehicle experienced electrical failures that caused several safety and powered components to turn off and on. The contact stated that the vehicle occasionally lost power steering or windshield wiper functionality and would start functioning without having been engaged manually. The contact stated that the instrument cluster occasionally went black. The contact took the vehicle to a local dealer, who diagnosed the vehicle and advised the contact of Technical Service Bulletin: 18-NA-161, which addressed the electrical failure. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of the failure. The contact stated that the electrical failure described in TSB: 18-NA-161 should have been a national recall due to the safety factors of the systems affected. The failure mileage was approximately 85,000.
My 2023 Chevy Sububan Z71 wipers sometimes does not working when I driving on raining days since I bought it new and took it to dealers many times can not fix it
For the past 2 years my windshield wipers will fail randomly while using them during a rain storm. I will have to pull over and completely turn the vehicle off turn back on and they may start working again or restart a couple more times. I’ve taken it to the dealership twice over it and the one time it was when they didn’t work and no codes showed up. It just happened again while on the turnpike during a rain storm. It’s very scary because some roads you can’t pull over right away and It’s very hard to see when the windshield is completely covered and the wipers won’t work. A major safety issue. I wanted to take a video but it’s not safe when I’m driving and trying to see out the window. I have 2 little kids and currently pregnant so this is very scary with my kids in the car.
Yesterday marked the 2nd time that the front windshield wipers on my 2021 Chevy Suburban (58k miles) randomly stopped working while driving down the highway in a rainstorm. They would not come out of the resting position regardless on what setting they were put to on the wheel switch. They continued to not work for the hour drive back to my house. The last time this happened all fuses, motor, etc were checked and tested good. The wipers started working again a day or so later, using the windshield wiper fluid button to test. This marks the second time my family has been put in a situation driving on the highway in a rainstorm with the wipers randomly stopping to work and having to navigate to safety with extremely limited visibility. This appears to be a fairly common issue with newer GM vehicles with the auto sense technology, found plenty of forums with the same experience. The major concern I have is that when this happens the wipers don’t work at all in any mode. Even trying to run in manual mode rather than auto sense the wipers will not move from the resting position. It leaves a driver with zero way to clear rain and see when this randomly occurs.
Wipers quit working while driving through a rain episode. We tried to have the car to "reset", stopped at a gas station, stopped the car, we all got off and locked the car for at least 5 minutes. Still no wipers.
While driving on the highway at night during rainy conditions the wipers stopped in the up position, and at the same time, the headlights turned off. After a few seconds they resumed normal operation. My headlights were in the auto position and my wipers were also in the automatic setting. Being as that I was on a highway at night, in the rain, and going approximately 65mph surrounded by traffic, this was an extremely dangerous situation to be in. Without headlights and windshield wipers, my windshield was immediately obstructed and I was unable to see the road without headlights. More so, other traffic might have had trouble seeing my vehicle. This problem has not been replicated by myself or a dealer. It has been random in nature. When the incident happened, there were no warning lights on the gauge cluster or anything else inside the vehicle that seemed to be affected.
at some point,we noticed that every time we crank it up, the engine would sounding weird, like it was low on engine oil, we checked the engine oil, and it was no less then 2 quarts low, that was realy weird, because we change the oil as needed and we definitly make sure that we add the amount recomended by GM, also this past weekend, it was rainy, we were out doing some shopping and on the way back home the windshield wipers stoped working, we could not take the vehicle out for the rest of the weekend until it stopped raining.
The contact owns a 2023 Chevrolet Suburban. The contact stated while driving at an undisclosed speed, the vehicle experienced phantom braking. Additionally, the windshield wipers were inoperable. On another occasion, while driving at approximately 70 MPH, the vehicle experienced phantom braking. There was no warning light illuminated. The vehicle was taken to the local dealer, where it was diagnosed that there was a loss of communication with the control module, steering, gateway module, engine, body control module, and brakes. The dealer retrieved DTC codes: U0101, U0131, U0146, U152B, U160F, and U1561. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was contacted, but no assistance was provided. The failure mileage was approximately 15,000.
Related recalls
Visibility: rearview mirrors/devices: exterior
- What is wrong
- General Motors LLC (GM) is recalling certain 2016-2017 Chevrolet Suburban HD vehicles. These vehicles were assembled with a convex right-hand outside mirror, instead of with a non-convex (flat) right-hand outside mirror. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rearview Mirrors."
- Risk
- If equipped with the incorrect right-side rear-view mirror, the driver may misjudge the distance of other vehicles, increasing the risk of a crash.
- Remedy
- GM will notify owners, and dealers will replace the convex mirror with a non-convex mirror and provide a new page for the owner's manual with the customer notification letter, free of charge. The recall began February 7, 2017. Owners may contact GM customer service at 1‑800‑222‑1020. GM's number for this recall is 17017.
Recall number 17V033000 · Recall details
Visibility: windshield wiper/washer
- What is wrong
- On certain minivans, pickup trucks, and sport utility vehicles with certain model-engine combinations, the windshield wiper motor may fail due to cracked solder joints on the controller circuit board. The windshield wipers could work intermittently or not at all.
- Risk
- If this were to occur during bad weather, driver visibility would be reduced, which could result in a crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the wiper motor circuit board and cover. Owner notification began on june 19, 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.
Recall number 03V159000 · Recall details
Visibility: rearview mirrors/devices: exterior
- What is wrong
- Certain sport utility vehicles, mini vans, and pickup trucks may develop a short circuit in the electric outside rearview mirror switch.
- Risk
- If this were to happen, it could result in an inoperative switch, heat damage to the driver's door, and/or ignition of components in the driver's door and a subsequent vehicle fire without prior warning.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install a fused jumper harness to the electric outside rearview mirror switch. Owner notification began on april 24, 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 or gmc at 1‑800‑462‑8782.
Recall number 03V093000 · Recall details
Visibility: windshield wiper/washer
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: light duty pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles, 2 and 4-wheel drive. Solder joints near the wiring harness connector can crack causing the windshield wipers to work intermittently.
- Risk
- This condition can result in inoperative wipers, reducing a driver's visibility, and increasing the risk of a vehicle crash.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the wiper motor circuit board and cover.
Recall number 98V150001 · Recall details
Questions about the Chevrolet Suburban wipers
Which Chevrolet Suburban years have windshield wiper failure problems?
The model years with the most reports are 1994 (151 complaints), 1993 (38 complaints) and 1996 (38 complaints).
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