1996 Chevrolet Astro problems
Owners have filed 345 complaints about the 1996 Chevrolet Astro with NHTSA. Suspension accounts for 18% of them — narrowly the most common, ahead of visibility at 17.7%.
Complaints345
Crashes22
Fires1
Injuries18
Deaths0
What owners report breaking
Suspension 18.0% · 62
Visibility 17.7% · 61
Service brakes, hydraulic 11.3% · 39
Fuel system, gasoline 6.1% · 21
Power train 6.1% · 21
Engine and engine cooling 5.8% · 20
Structure 4.9% · 17
Steering 4.6% · 16
Severity
Of those complaints, 22 describe a crash, 1 describe a fire and 18 report an injury.
Reading the numbers
Across the 11 model years of the Chevrolet Astro in this data, 1996 sits 4th by complaint volume. 1995 draws the most.
Filings have fallen off, 4 in the last three years against 6 in the three before. That is normal as a generation leaves the road.
The median odometer reading at the time of complaint was 95,690 miles.
In owners' own words
The consumer sat in the driveway, the left side torsion bar snapped. The front left side of the vehicle was sitting on the left front tire. The part was only available through the dealer. By coincidence the right side was sent as well and was sold by the pair. The parts were redesigned and a new but different bracket was included. Gm forced the repair of both sides at the expense of the consumer. *Jb *scc Suspension · reported at 95,690 miles
As consumer was pulling out of driveway, he heard driver side tire rubbing on the wheel well, consumer drove vehicle back into the garage and upon inspecting the suspension, he found that the torsion bar on the driver side of the vehcile had sheared in half, consumer contacted manufacture and was advised that they would not assist with repairs because vehicle was out of warranty. Suspension
Consumer attempted to start vehicle and left front torsion bar broke, causing vehicle to drop. Different dealership informed consumer that these parts were kept in stock because this was a problem with this make/model of vehicle. Consumer had to replace both front torsion bars. Suspension
Verbatim from NHTSA filings. Complaints are unverified owner reports.
Safety recalls
Checking NHTSA for open recalls…