NHTSA Complaint #10019278 — 1995 CHEVROLET TAHOE

DRIVER'S SEAT FAILURE ON A 1995 CHEVROLET TAHOE. THE DESIGN OF THE SEAT PLACES THE FRONT LEFT SEAT FASTENER ON A THIN PIECE OF SHEET METAL RATHER THAN ON THE RE-ENFORCED CORNER OF THE SEAT FRAME. IT APPEARS TO BE SOME KIND OF DESIGN ERROR. THE THIN PIECE OF SHEET METAL SPLIT APART, ALLOWING THE FASTENER TO COME FREE, AND THE SEAT THEN ROCKED BACK, ALMOST TOUCHING THE REAR SEAT BEHIND IT; THE DRIVER WAS LEFT LOOKING UP AT A 60 DEGREE ANGLE AT THE INSIDE ROOF OF THE VEHICLE, AND HOLDING ONTO THE STEERING WHEEL FOR SUPPORT. THIS FAILURE OCCURRED IN THE DRIVEWAY AS THE DRIVER WAS BACKING UP. I SHUDDER TO THINK WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED HAD MY WIFE AND TWO CHILDREN BEEN IN THE CAR AND IN TRAFFIC WHEN THIS OCCURRED. GM SHOULD BE FORCED TO FIX THIS, AS IT IS CLEARLY A SAFETY HAZARD TO THE OCCUPANTS OF THE VEHICLE AS WELL AS TO OTHER VEHICLES ON THE ROAD. IN MY CASE, A CALL TO THE LOCAL DEALER GENERATED A "NEVER HEARD OF THAT" RESPONSE; I ULTIMATELY DISASSEMBLED THE SEAT AND HAD MY LOCAL WELDING SHOP STITCH IN A 1/8 INCH PIECE OF STEEL ACROSS THE ENTIRE FRONT OF THE SEAT FRAME STRUCTURE SO THAT THE RE-ENFORCED CORNERS ARE CONNECTED BY MORE THAN THE FLIMSY PIECE OF SHEET STEEL (THIS IS WHAT GM SHOULD HAVE DONE WITH THE ORIGINAL DESIGN OF THIS SEAT). *NLM