Driving on a driveway (estimated speed 5-10 mph) when I noted that the driver side door didn't seem completely closed. I tugged on the door handle to shut it and instantaneously felt the driver-side side airbag deploy, scraping my left forearm, left ear, and rupturing the left eardrum. There had been no collision or accident involving the car or any other structure. The vehicle has not been in a prior accident, and has not had additional electric work performed to any of its systems since manufacturing. The vehicle is available for inspection, it has not been inspected yet by a manufacturer or dealer, and the airbag affected my safety by causing physical harm due to faulty deployment.
Chevrolet Venture door locks problems
65 of the 2,334 owner complaints about the Chevrolet Venture describe doors won't lock, open or latch, most of them for the 1997 model year.
- owner complaints
- 65
- worst model year
- 1997
- typical mileage
- 35,000
Is there a fix? There are 3 recalls for this area of the car. See below
By model year
Often reported together
Headlights 4Wipers 3Overheating 3Airbag light 2Won't start 1Water leak 1Stalling 1
What owners say
My wife took her chevrolet van in for service due to the interior light not functioning it was taken to mahoney chevrolet and blossom chevrolet. They told her it was corrosion causing the problem and did nothing to repair the problem as they said it was not covered. I being a certified mechanic and having an associates degree in electronics trouble shot the problem and found the body control module to be the cause of the problem. The module also caused the power windows,door locks,remotes and all other interior things to fail. I feel this is a very serious safety issue as there are millions of these vans on the road and these modules fail on this and all other models of this van such as the pontiac etc... In a panic situation such as an accident the driver would have to manually operate the locks or smash out a window if they were able to do so if there were a fire and it was urgent to get out of the van many may panic and not be able to get out. I contacted gm over this issue and they appeared to agree with me and gave me a service # of 71-1331263820. I have sent them numerous e-mails and phone calls but have gotten no response. I feel this is the same old gm and they wont repair an obvious defect unless ordered to or if there are deaths from the problem. I am hoping contacting you will force them to do the right thing and repair this problem before someone does die because they cant get out of their van or the module catches fire from an overheated chip that controls this module. Thank you and I hope to hear from you soon
Tl* the contact owns a 2005 chevrolet venture. The contact stated that the passenger side power door would not lock. The vehicle was taken to the dealer, who stated that the sliding door lock needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was not notified. The failure mileage was 145,000.
On 3, june, 2011, the right passenger sliding door on our 2001 chevrolet venture minivan would not latch on the back latch, resulting in the door only being partially, and dangerously latched by only the front latch. Sometimes it won't latch on the front latch either. This is not a power sliding door; but I've seen several recalls for failed latches on the power sliding doors. We have called, gone to junk yards to no avail, and dealerships say they do not have the parts to repair the latch. This is a safety concern, as the door could come off during travel, or worse, fly open during motion, placing the middle seat passenger at risk of falling out of a moving vehicle. For safety, door latches are something that should be fail safe in automobiles. One dealership said it would cost over $220.00 to repair, if they could get the parts. If??? The car only has 152k miles. In light of the recalls for the power sliding door latches failing, I would think gm would honor the failure of the door latches on the manual sliding doors. This just happened out of the blue, with no problems prior to the failure. It just quit latching. Thank you.
While the contact was driving 30mph the driver side rear door had suddenly slid open. The vehicle has not been diagnosed by the dealership and the contact noticed beforehand that the door would not open electronically. The current and failure mileage is 69250. Bml
The drivers side sliding door came off the hinge at the back. The door will not close properly now, and can not be used. The brake light burns out everytime it is replaced and looks like it melts the base of the bulb and the socket looks like it has been melted also. The middle section, drivers side seat belt will not release.
I bought my 97 venture a year ago, ended up getting a recall notice about 3 months later for the rear door handles. Brought to dealer to have fixed, to find out other recalls weren't fixed. I had the steering recall done. Well now not even a year later and it needs to be replaced again. I have 4 children under 6 yrs old and this vehicle is a safety hazard, im afraid to travel in it!! Every turn be it right or left I feel the steering kind of pop and stick its scary I think gm needs to reevaluate its so called family safe vehicle and reimburse all of us owners!!
The driver's side brake light on my 2002 chevy venture is always out. The bulb has been replaced numerous times, to no avail. Technicians at oil change businesses have told me that this is common problem with chevy ventures. I have seen other chevy ventures on the road with the same light out. I had my venture at the car dealer for a recall service on the door handles and asked them to also fix the brake light problem. They finished my sentence for me when I was describing the problem--they already knew that ventures have this problem. However, they did not fix it. I also believe that chevy trucks and suvs have been recalled for this very problem. I believe the venture should be recalled too.
Rear passenger automatic side door does not close, pops open when its suppose to latch shut. A child safety seat is beside the automatic door. Door opened while my 9 year old son was sitting beside door and the vehicle was in motion. Luckily I was only going about 15 miles and hour in a residential zone. Door was taken in to dealership for inspection, because vehicle is no longer under warranty, no step were taken to repair door due to financial restraints.
Dt: the contact stated airbag light illuminated intermittently, and the power door lock on the driver's side stopped working. He took the vehicle to an independent repair shop who performed a diagnostic test. No codes were found by the diagnostic test. Upon further inspection, condensed water from the air conditioning had leaked around the wiring and under the carpet on the front floor. The mechanic determined the water had shorted out the power door lock and affected the airbag wiring as well. The mechanic replaced the wire for the door lock assembly, however no repairs were made to the airbag wiring at that time. *ak updated 12/27/05.
Related recalls
Latches/locks/linkages: doors: latch
- What is wrong
- On certain minivans equipped with second-row bucket seats or captain's chairs and a power sliding door on the passenger side of the vehicle, a passenger using the interior handle to open the power sliding door could be injured.
- Risk
- If a passenger uses the interior handle to open the power sliding door and holds onto the handle while it is being opened by the motor, the passenger's arm may be pushed into the seat back or armrest and a wrist or lower arm injury may result.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the power sliding door interior handle on the passenger-side. If the vehicle is equipped with a power or manual sliding door on the driver-side, the interior handle will also be replaced for appearance reasons. Note: before the vehicle is serviced, gm advises owners to not use the interior door handle to open the door. The driver can open and close the door from switches at the driver's position or by using the remote key fob. The driver should tell passengers to use the switch located in front of the door to open or close it. The driver should use the override switch to prevent operation of the power door by children or by others who are not familiar with its use. The owner notification letter mailing will be conducted in phases with the first phase beginning on may 31, 2005. The second phase mailing began on july 18, 2005. The recall began on may 31, 2005. Phase 2 began on july 18, 2005. Phase 3 (final phase) began on august 24, 2005, to all remaining customers. Owners should contact chevrolet at 1‑800‑630‑2438; pontiac at 1‑800‑620‑7668; or oldsmobile at 1‑800‑630‑6537.
Recall number 04V597000 · Recall details
Latches/locks/linkages: doors: latch
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: 1997-2001 chevrolet venture, pontiac montana/transport, and oldsmobile silhouette mini vans equipped with passenger side power sliding doors that were serviced in campaign 01013 (01v‑067) from april to august 2001. Also 2001 chevrolet venture, pontiac montana, and oldsmobile silhouette mini vans equipped with passenger side power sliding doors assembled in january through april 2001. These vehicles have inadequate front welds. If a front weld fails, the actuator can jam in the unlatched position and, when the sliding door closes, it will not be latched.
- Risk
- If this happens, the power sliding door can open while the vehicle is in motion, particularly when the vehicle ascends a hill, makes a turn, or travels over a rough road surface. An unrestrained occupant could fall out of the van and be injured.
- Remedy
- Dealers will inspect and, if required, install a new power sliding door unlatch actuator assembly. Owner notification began on october 22, 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, pontiac at 1‑800‑762‑2737, or oldsmobile at 1‑800‑442‑6537.
Recall number 01V264000 · Recall details
Latches/locks/linkages: doors: latch
- What is wrong
- Vehicle description: minivans equipped with passenger side power sliding doors. The door closes but may not be latched. If this happens, the power sliding door can open while the vehicle is in motion, particularly when the vehicle ascends a hill, makes a turn, or travels over a rough road surface.
- Risk
- An unrestrained occupant could fall out of the van and be injured.
- Remedy
- Dealers will install a new un-latch actuator assembly to the power sliding door. This recall has been continued under safety recall 01v‑264. 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, pontiac at 1‑800‑762‑2737, or oldsmobile at 1‑800‑442‑6537.
Recall number 01V067000 · Recall details
Questions about the Chevrolet Venture door locks
Which Chevrolet Venture years have doors won't lock, open or latch problems?
The model years with the most reports are 1997 (14 complaints), 1998 (11 complaints) and 2000 (8 complaints).
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