NHTSA Complaint #10102285 — 2000 GMC JIMMY

I AM WRITING TO ADVISE THE NHTSB OF A POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS DEFECT IN THE GM 4L60-E TRANSMISSION AND TO REQUEST THE NHTSB OPEN AN INVESTIGATION TO IDENTIFY AND RESOLVE SAID DEFECTS. MY REQUEST IS IN REFERENCE TO THE REACTION SUN SHELL, A PART WITHIN THE 4L60-E TRANSMISSION PRONE TO CATASTROPHIC FAILURE. I OWN TWO GMC JIMMY 4X4 SUVS. MY FIRST JIMMY IS A 2000 WITH 60000 MILES AND THE SECOND IS A 2001 WITH 50000 MILES. WITHIN THE LAST 2 MONTHS, THE REACTION SUN SHELL IN BOTH OF THE VEHICLES HAS FAILED, RESULTING IN SEVERE DAMAGE TO THE 4L60-E TRANSMISSIONS. THE FAILURES OCCURRED DURING THE OPERATION OF THE VEHICLES AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS. IN BOTH CASES, THERE WAS NO WARNING OF A PENDING FAILURE. BOTH SUVS EXPERIENCED A SUDDEN LOSS OF 2ND, 3RD, OD, AND REVERSE GEARS, RESULTING IN SIGNIFICANT DEGRADATION IN THE PERFORMANCE OF THE VEHICLES AND DRASTICALLY REDUCED THE OPERATORS ABILITY TO CONTROL THE VEHICLES. FAILURE OF A SINGLE TRANSMISSION IN ANY VEHICLE CAN BE ATTRIBUTED TO A VARIETY OF CIRCUMSTANCES. HOWEVER, IDENTICAL FAILURES IN MULTIPLE 4L60-E TRANSMISSIONS STRONGLY INDICATE A SYSTEMATIC FAULT IN DESIGN AND/OR QUALITY. BOTH VEHICLES EXPERIENCE ONLY LIGHT DUTY OPERATION AND ARE VERY WELL MAINTAINED. GMC HAS BEEN MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURES VERBALLY AND IN WRITING. THUS FAR, GMC HAS REFUSED TO ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE FAULT IN DESIGN AND/OR QUALITY AND HAS STATED IT IS UNWILLING TO CORRECT THE PROBLEM. HOWEVER, GMC IS AWARE OF THE PROBLEM AND ITS MAGNITUDE AS EVIDENCED BY GMC TSB 00-07-30-022. ANY TIME THERE IS A SUDDEN AND DRASTIC CHANGE IN THE OPERATING CHARACTERISTICS OF A MOTOR VEHICLE, THE OPERATOR IS PRESENTED WITH A DANGEROUS SITUATION THREATENING THE SAFETY OF THE OPERATOR, PASSENGERS, AND FELLOW DRIVERS. WITH THIS IN MIND, IT IS MY HOPE THAT THE NHTSB WILL INVESTIGATE THE GRIEVANCE I HAVE PRESENTED, IDENTIFY THE FAULT AS A SYSTEMATIC FAILURE ON THE PART OF GMC, AND ISSUE THE APPROPRIATE RECALL NECESSARY TO ENSURE THE SAFETY OF EVERYONE ON OUR HIGHWAYS. *AK *SC