Two problems related to hatchback/liftgate hinge have been reported for the 2003 Chevrolet Trailblazer. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
About two years ago while I was trying to close the glass rear hatch on my 2003 Chevrolet Trailblazer it exploded in my face. I was cut on my hands, face, and got glass in my eyes. I went directly to the dealer (arrow Chevrolet, now called sunrise Chevrolet, in midlothian IL. ) the service dept. Looked at the damage and said they never saw anything like that, (I found out later that it is common) they sent the vehicle out to a "window repair shop" to have the glass replaced. When I got the car back, I noticed that the window was not aligned properly; the service dept. Looked at it quickly and told me that it was fine. Three weeks ago while driving down the interstate at 70 mph a loud vibration came from the glass window hatch, as I slowed down the high mount rear stop tail lamp assembly, which is a large fiberglass body piece as wide as the car and 3 feet across flew off my car striking a car in back of me. I pulled over and so did the other driver, the other driver was very shaken as so was I. Slight damage to the hood and the bumper of the other car and he said that it was ok since the car was old. My car now is missing a large piece of the body and the third brake light. It was run over by a truck. . . The window company that replaced the rear hatch window did not affix the panel properly to the window; I have seen may complaints on other web site that the factory install and the double face tape that is used malfunctions all the time, please help me, we are dealing with two issues here, the rear window exploding and injuring me and the faulty double faced tape that is used to secure outside parts to the car. In addition, the illinois state police stopped and told me that they could have given me a ticket for driving an unsafe vehicle but they gave me a pass and told me to write to you and send them a copy of my letter.
Hatch back/lift gate hatch back binds and back window explodes in the mechanics face knocking him to the ground. This lift gate mechanism has failed for the second time. This time there were potentially severe consequences. This time I attempted to open the hatchback and it started binding, so I immediately closed it and took it to the dealer. Since this had happened before, I knew immediately what was happening. A friend picked me up and drove me to work. One hour later the dealer called me and said that the window exploded when the mechanic opened the hatch back. He said it blew up in the mechanics face and knocked him to the ground. The dealer says this is an insurance claim and somehow tried to blame the whole thing on me. I was in shock. It will take a week to fix as it involves body work, etc. The dealer's body shop explained that the high mount stop light and trim are attached with double face tape and if they come loose they bind inside the hatchback. I don't feel it is my insurance company's responsibility to pay for something the dealer caused. First, I think they sent a rookie mechanic to look at my liftgate and he forced it open which caused the explosion of glass. Secondly, this is a very dangerous problem created by Chevrolet's poor design. Why haven't they done a recall on this. I have read other complaints about the same hatchback failure. Now the dealer is going to fix mine again with double stick tape and this problem is going to occur again. The glass could explode on me on my grandkids or another mechanic. I will be nervous everytime I open that hatchback and I will never, never buy a general motors car again. The dealership treated my husband and I terribly. They knew they had the upperhand in the situation and they knew there was nothing we could do.