2003 Isuzu Ascender problems

What is wrong

Certain sport utility vehicles have a rear side closure latch that may not latch or unlatch due to corrosion caused by road splash, such as water and road salt. These vehicles were originally sold in or currently registered in the following states: connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, wisconsin, and the district of columbia.

Risk

If the door is not latched properly and it goes unnoticed, it may open while the vehicle is in motion. If an unbelted occupant fell out of the vehicle, personal injuries could occur.

Remedy

Dealers will install a seal along the lower part of the rocker panel to prevent intrusion of corrosive material, and inspect the rear side closure latches. Functional latches will be cleaned and lubricated. Non-functioning latches will be replaced. The recall began on february 24, 2006. Owners may contact chevrolet at 1‑800‑630‑2438, gmc at 1‑866‑996‑9463, or isuzu at 1‑800‑255‑6727.

Recall number 05V494000 · Recall details

What is wrong

On certain trucks and sport utility vehicles, the driver wishing to signal a turn by moving the directional signal lever, (up or down) may cause the front marker/turn lights and rear turn lights to flash in a manner similar to hazard warning, rather than flashing on the desired side only.

Risk

The driver may not be able to clearly signal their intentions to turn, change travel lanes, or potentially warn others of an impaired vehicle operating condition increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will replace the suspect flasher modules with a new flasher module designed with sealed relays and more durable contact material inside of the relays free of charge. The recall began on august 4, 2005. Isuzu began mailing owner letters on august 4, 2005. Owners may contact chevrolet at 1‑800‑630‑2438, gmc at 1‑866‑996‑9463, isuzu at 1‑800‑255‑6727, buick at 1‑866‑608‑8080, and oldsmobile at 1‑800‑630‑6537.

Recall number 05V198000 · Recall details

What is wrong

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.

Risk

Depending on the occurrence and weather situation, driver visibility could be reduced, which could result in a crash.

Remedy

Dealers will repair the windshield wiper system assembly. The recall began on july 15, 2004. Owners should contact isuzu at 1‑800‑255‑6727.

Recall number 04V061000 · Recall details

What is wrong

Certain 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 lower universal anchorage system.

Risk

This does not comply with the standard.

Remedy

Owners will be provided with a supplement for their owner's manual. It describes and shows the location symbols for the child restraint anchors that are located in the vehicle. Owner notification began august 15, 2003. Owners should contact isuzu at 1‑800‑255‑6727.

Recall number 03V269000 · Recall details

What is wrong

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.

Risk

These overrides are not permitted unless the vehicle has a locking steering column.

Remedy

Dealers will eliminate these conditions by disabling the overrides. Owner notification began june 13, 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 isuzu at 1‑800‑255‑6727.

Recall number 03V213000 · Recall details

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 vehicles concerning the headlights and the HDM that controls them.Under normal electrical load and environmental conditions, the HDM can overheat inside the Underhood Electrical Center (UEC). This can cause the module to fail and result in a simultaneous loss of both low beam headlights and both daytime running lights (DRLs), often with no warning or prior detectability to the driver. This failure can be intermittent or permanent. No other exterior lights are affected. High beams, turn signals, brake lights, and reverse lights are still operational.General Motors addressed this issue with 2 recalls (14V755 & 15V519) and a special coverage program (N172091910). In view of the recalls and special coverage program implemented by GM and the vehicle high beams continuing to operate, ODI has tentatively concluded that the actions taken by GM mitigate any unreasonable risk to safety posed by HDM failure in the subject vehicles.Accordingly, the investigation is closed. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by the federal safety agency that a safety-related defect does not exist. The agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by new circumstances.The ODI reports cited above are available for review online at under the identification numbers in the attached document.

RQ17002

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 fuel pump leading to small pinholes appearing on the fuel lines.fuel may leak and collect on top of the module and/or spill onto the ground.the data evaluated under this investigation reflect a relatively low frequency of occurrence that largely arises in salt belt states.gm has extended the warranty on the subject component to ten years or 120,000 miles.further use of agency resources does not appear to be warranted at this time; accordingly, this investigation is closed.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by the federal safety agency that no safety-related defect exists.the agency reserves the right to take further action if warranted by the circumstances.for additional information select document search.

EA07009

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 rainsense automatic moisture sensitive wipers).water enters the windshield wiper module causing the electrical components on the control circuit board to corrode and short out, thus rendering the wiper motor/module inoperative.in november 2002, gm introduced into vehicle production a redesigned windshield wiper assembly referred to as the ?global? Design module (p/n 15094704 base, p/n 15094705 for vehicles equipped with rainsense) to better control water intrusion.odi has received a total of 1,179 non-duplicative owner and field reports alleging windshield wiper failure on vehicles originally equipped with the ?family? Design module.by letter dated february 2, 2004, gm has notified odi that it will conduct a safety recall (the federal safety agency recall no. 04v‑046).accordingly, this investigation is closed.

EA04002