2002 Chevrolet Suburban 2500 problems
NHTSA has received 39 complaints about the 2002 Chevrolet Suburban 2500, and 56% of them involve engine. Next are brakes (15%) and electrical system (15%).
At a glance
- Complaints
- 39 filed with NHTSA
- Most reported
- Engine 56% of complaints
- Crashes and fires
- 1 and 0
- Injuries and deaths
- 0 and 0
- Typical mileage
- 81,000 miles 37 complaints with mileage
Source: NHTSA owner complaints
Where the complaints are
Share of this model year's complaints by the part of the car involved. One complaint can name more than one part, so the shares can add up to more than 100%.
When problems show up
View the numbers
| Mileage | Complaints |
|---|---|
| 0k to 20k miles | 0 |
| 20k to 40k miles | 2 |
| 40k to 60k miles | 2 |
| 60k to 80k miles | 13 |
| 80k to 100k miles | 9 |
| 100k to 120k miles | 3 |
| 120k to 140k miles | 1 |
| 140k to 160k miles | 4 |
| 160k to 180k miles | 3 |
| 180k to 200k miles | 0 |
| 200k+ miles | 0 |
What the data shows
Of the 37 complaints that include odometer readings, half describe a problem before roughly 81,000 miles. For engine specifically, the median reported mileage is about 76,000 miles (21 complaints with mileage).
Safety-related details: 1 complaint mentions a crash. Its complaints are less severe on average than those of 94% of model years in our database.
What owners wrote
A few complaints as filed, shortened and with personal details removed. The first ones are among the most serious reports for this model year; the rest are typical.
The vehicle in question is a 2002 chevrolet 2500 4x4 suburban. The vehicle was traveling down the road and without touching the brake pedal the front brakes lock up and the vehicle shakes and is almost uncontrollable to stop. The vehicle is currently at the chevy dealership. They are replacing the speed sensors in the hubs but they are stating that they have never seen this problem.
2002 chevy suburban with 8.1l motor randomly shuts down at highway speeds or in traffic without warning which causes loss of steering and braking. I have had 3 separate dealers look at it and the "codes" never reflect what happened. I even read the current NHTSA action pe06016 description to the service tech (as I write this my vehicle is in the shop for "engine losses all power and dies at highway speeds or no start and stalling conditions") and described these exact symptom and he said the codes don't reflect…
Crank position sensor failure resulting in sudden engine stall while driving in certain GM vehicles equipped with 8.1l engines. In some cases, the complainants alleged that as result of the engine shutting down, the vehicle lost power steering and power brakes at highway speeds.
I have a 2002 chevrolet suburban 2500 4 wd with an 8.1 liter engine with 67,000 miles on it. It has stalled out 5 times over the last 6 months, nearly causing a serious crash on the second to last one on interstate route 80 outside of sparta, new jersey. The engine just stops and I have no control over the vehicle. I have taken it to two mechanics who have not been able to repair it. I am afraid to drive the vehicle. What should I do and where should I go to get this fixed.
I have had several incidents in two weeks that nearly caused serious accidents. I would be driving at various speeds, slow and interstate driving, where the engine would suddenly lose all power and the battery light would come on. I would have to struggle to have the vehicle glide to the service lane without causing an accident. These happened all times of day and all weather conditions and caused hazardous close calls.