Driver side window switch caught fire shortly after use (several hours). A light rain storm came while the windows were down. Some rain entered the inside of the vehicle, some water likely got into the switch assembly. This all happened while vehicle was parked on the curb and ignition was off. I toweled off the interior and switch assembly off, it didn't appear much water entered the switch. The vehicle was parked and "off" this whole time. I turned ignition on to roll windows back up, and promptly turned the ignition back off. Some hours later, the switch assembly caught fire and the vehicle was a total loss. This fire wasn't discovered until the next day as it self-extinguished. The battery was not discharged after the fire, so it was not a dead short in the wiring. I believe the auto-down circuit board or the electric mirror switch was the cause. After the fire, the pass side mirror was fully extended away, at some point the contacts were closed causing the mirror to move, despite the ignition being "off". This happened either during the fire, or the switch was the cause of the fire. The ignition was only "on" for about 30 seconds that whole day prior to the fire, just long enough to roll up the windows.
1998 Chevrolet Tahoe: fire, smoke or burning smell
5 of the 263 complaints about the 1998 Chevrolet Tahoe describe fire, smoke or burning smell.
- owner complaints
- 5
- of this car's complaints
- 2%
- recalls
- 0
Fire, smoke or burning smell by model year
What owners say
Outside temp below freezing so I heated up my 1998 chevy tahoe (including heated leather seats on low setting) and when I returned to my vehicle less than 5 minutes later, driver's seat was on fire. Vehicle has less that 90,000 miles and has not been mistreated. I happened to have a drink in my hand so I poured it on the seat to put it out. Had I actually been sitting on the seat, I could have been seriously burned.
While traveling consumer smelled a burnt odor coming from inside of the vehicle. Consumer pulled over, and driver's side door caught on fire. Consumer called the fire department to extinguish the fire. No injuries reported. Vehicle was towed, and totaled by the insurance company.
Consumer had stopped for gas and was starting to get out of vehicle when he noticed smoke coming out of the drivers side door, flames were coming out of the button around the side view mirror, claim 14-1248-364.
Consumer had stopped for gas and was starting to get out of vehicle when he noticed smoke coming out of the drivers side door, flames were coming out of the button around the side view mirror, claim 14-1248-364.
Service bulletins that may apply
Related recalls
No recalls on record for this model year.
Questions about the 1998 Chevrolet Tahoe fire or smoke
Is fire, smoke or burning smell a common problem on the 1998 Chevrolet Tahoe?
5 of 263 owner complaints about the 1998 Chevrolet Tahoe (2%) mention fire, smoke or burning smell. The model year with the most reports is 2007.
Is there a recall or service bulletin for this on the 1998 Chevrolet Tahoe?
There are 0 recalls and 4 service bulletins for the same area of the car. Check them below with your VIN.
Other symptoms on the 1998 Chevrolet Tahoe
Wipers 46ABS 29Brake failure 8Fuel pump 8Pulling 8Jerking 7Power steering loss 6No deployment 5Fuel leak 5Hesitation 5
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 1998 Chevrolet Tahoe?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history