NHTSA Complaint #10116114 — 1999 ISUZU VEHICROSS

I OWN A 1999 VEHICROSS BY ISUZU. I BOUGHT IT TWO YEARS AGO AND HAVE ONLY 469 MILES ON IT. A FEW MONTHS AGO THE POWER WINDOW MECHANISM ON THE DRIVER'S SIDE HAD TO BE REPLACED DUE TO A FAILURE OF THE TRACK ALIGNMENT. *AK IT COST ME $800 TO FIX. UPON COMING IN CONTACT WITH AN ORGANIZATION OF SEVERAL HUNDRED VEHICROSS ENTHUSIASTS I DISCOVERED THAT THIS TYPE OF WINDOW FAILURE IS EPIDEMIC WITH THIS MODEL CAR. SOME OF THE OWNERS HAVE HAD MULTIPLE FAILURES -- I.E., THE WINDOWS HAVE BEEN FIXED ONLY TO FAIL AGAIN, SOMETIMES THREE OR FOUR TIMES. AT THE MOMENT I HAVE 29,000 MILES ON THE CAR AND NOW THE PASSENGER'S SIDE WINDOW IS BEGINNING TO FAIL. I HAVE CONTACTED ISUZU BUT THEY DENY THERE IS A PROBLEM. ON THE OTHER HAND I UNDERSTAND THERE ARE OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS BY ISUZU THAT DO RECOGNIZE THIS PROBLEM. SINCE THERE WAS A LIMITED DISTRIBUTION OF THIS PARTICULAR MODEL CAR -- SOMEWHERE IN THE AREA OF 4000 PLUS OVER A FOUR YEAR PERIOD -- IT APPEARS THE WINDOW FAILURE RATE IS A HIGH PERCENTAGE OF THAT TOTAL NUMBER. I WOULD ASK THAT THE DEPARTMENT INVESTIGATE THIS PROBLEM, INCLUDING INVESTIGATION OF THE INTERNAL ISUZU DOCUMENT MENTIONED ABOVE. IF THERE IS, AS IT APPEARS, A DESIGN FLAW IN THE WINDOW MECHANISM, THEN THERE ARE HUNDREDS OF VEHICROSS OWNERS WHO HAVE IMPROPERLY BEEN CHARGED TO REPAIR IT, SOMETIMES MULTIPLE TIMES.