NHTSA Complaint #10197098 — 1997 GMC SUBURBAN

THE WINDSHIELD WIPERS ON MY 1997 GMC SUBURBAN WERE NOT WORKING PROPERLY, CONSISTENT WITH NHTSA CAMPAIGN 03V159000. I CONTACTED GMC, AND AFTER A LENGTHY PHONE CALL TO COLLECT ALL RELEVANT DATA, THEY SET UP AN APPOINTMENT FOR ME AT MY LOCAL GMC DEALERSHIP. THE DEALERSHIP SERVICE DEPARTMENT INSPECTED THE WIPER ELECTRICAL SYSTEM AND INFORMED ME THAT THE FAILURE WAS INDEED DUE TO CRACKED SOLDER JOINTS ON THE WIPER CONTROL CIRCUIT BOARD. HOWEVER, MY SPECIFIC VIN NUMBER WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE RECALL. IF I WOULD HAVE HAD THE PROBLEM FIXED PRIOR TO 70,000 MILES ON MY VEHICLE, THEN THEY WOULD HAVE FIXED IT AT NO CHARGE UNDER A "WAIVER SYSTEM?", BUT NOW IT WOULD BE $120 TO FIX. I AM THE ORIGINAL OWNER OF THIS VEHICLE. ALTHOUGH GM CONTINUES TO SEND ME MARKETING MATERIAL TO TRADE IN THIS VEHICLE FOR A NEW ONE, THEY FAILED TO INFORM ME AT ANY TIME OF THIS SAFETY HAZARD RECALL. THEY ALSO WASTED SEVERAL HOURS OF MY TIME ON THE TELEPHONE AND ARRANGING TO LEAVE MY VEHICLE AT THE DEALER PRIOR TO TELLING ME THAT I WAS NOT ELIGIBLE FOR THE RECALL. HOW CAN THIS AUTOMAKER HAVE PUBLIC SAFETY IN MIND WHEN THEY DENY CONSUMERS A REMEDY TO A POTENTIALLY CATASTROPHIC SAFETY HAZARD BASED ON THE NUMBER OF MILES ON THEIR VEHICLE? THIS IS A $30 RETAIL PRICE CIRCUIT BOARD! APPARENTLY MY SAFETY AND THAT OF OTHERS AROUND ME IS NOT WORTH $30 TO GMC. THE "ICING ON THE CAKE" IS THE AMOUNT OF TIME THAT GM INVESTED TALKING ABOUT WHAT THEY WERE GOING TO DO, AND THEN BACK PEDDLING ON WHY THEY COULDN'T REPLACE THE CARD UNDER THE RECALL. WHAT WOULD THE COST BE IF I WAS CAUGHT IN A RAINSTORM DRIVING HOME FROM THE DEALERSHIP WITH MY UNREPAIRED VEHICLE AND HAD A CRASH? I HAVE PERSONALLY REPLACED THE DEFECTIVE PART WITH A REPLACEMENT THAT I PURCHASED AT AN AUTOMOTIVE SUPPLY STORE. *JB