Three problems related to brake antilock wheel speed sensor have been reported for the 1997 Chevrolet Tahoe. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
For about a year I have noticed that the abs braking system activates intermittently on dry pavement at slow speeds, making it difficult to stop the vehicle. The issue has become increasingly problematic, activating nearly every time I apply the brakes (many times even if I don't apply the brakes!) and I am not comfortable driving the vehicle for fear that I may not completely stop before making contact with the vehicle in front of me. Although there is a recall regarding the failure of the abs system on chevy Tahoes, it does not include vehicles manufactured in 1997. I researched the problem and found that the NHTSA web site had posted a remedy: remove the wheel speed sensor and clean the wheel speed surface, grease the mounting surface, reinstall the wheel speed sensor and check the peak-to-peak output voltage to ensure the wheel speed signal is within specifications. I took a copy of the remedy to my mechanic, who promptly followed the instructions and notified me that the remedy failed to fix the problem. I contacted an NHTSA customer service representative and asked if an investigation has been launched regarding this defect and was informed that there is no investigation as of yet. With all of the complaints I have been reading regarding this problem, my question why hasn't this issue of abs system failure in 1997 Tahoes been addressed? if the problem is occurring in vehicles (regardless of the year model) and the recall has been limited to only a few year models, does this mean that the abs system failure on the 1997 Tahoe is no cause for concern regarding safety? I am requesting the board to look again at the abs complaints and initiate an investigation so that gm will take financial responsibility for the repair or replacement of the abs system. Thank you.
Speed sensors failing on my 1997 Chevrolet Tahoe.
No accident yet. My 1997 Tahoe is exhibiting the same symptoms as described in the media for 1999 and newer gm trucks regarding the wheel speed sensor for the antilock brakes. Stopping from speeds under 5 mph, the brake pedal chatters, the antilock brake unit moans, and the truck is slow to completely stop. This started sporadically last winter and has gotten worse, now about 30% of the time. I called Chevrolet's customer service today (10/13/2005) at 11:10, spoke to bagaya bonner who told me the recall affected 2000-2002 Tahoes. Mine would not be included, and if I had the problem fixed, it would be at my expense (gm would not reimburse since there was no recall on my vehicle). I am using today's date as the incident date, but the problem began late fall 2004 and is ongoing.