NHTSA Complaint #10514923 — 2011 CHEVROLET TRAVERSE

AROUND MAY 11, 2012, ON THE OHIO TURNPIKE, ACCELERATING TO 65 MPH, MY CAR BEGAN TO MAKE A LOUD REPETITIVE NOISE UNDER THE HOOD. AFTER A FEW MILES, A BATTERY SERVICE LIGHT CAME ON. THE CAR BEGAN TO OVERHEAT AND BECOME DIFFICULT TO STEER. AS I REACHED A PULLOVER, THE POWER STEERING FAILED AND EVERYTHING ELSE QUIT WORKING (RADIO, LIGHTS, ETC.) I TURNED THE CAR OFF AND COULD NOT TURN IT BACK ON. WHEN THE CAR WAS TOWED, WE FOUND THE BELT WAS SHREDDED AND DRAGGED BEHIND THE CAR. I WAS TOLD THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE WATER PUMP. THE CAR WAS ABOUT 11 MOS OLD AND HAD ABOUT 11,000 MILES ON IT. ON JUNE 2, 2013, DEJA VU. AS I LEFT A STORE AND ACCELERATED TO 45 MPH, MY CAR BEGAN TO MAKE A LOUD REPETITIVE NOISE UNDER THE HOOD. AS I ACCELERATED, THE NOISES WERE LOUDER AND FASTER. I DROVE ABOUT 5 MILES TO WALMART, THE NOISES CONTINUED, SO I DROVE HOME, ABOUT 5 MILES. IN THE MORNING, I DROVE THE CAR VERY SLOWLY BECAUSE I THOUGHT THE BELT WAS SHREDDING AGAIN, AND AS I DROVE MORE SLOWLY, THE NOISE (FROM THE PIECES OF THE BELT SLAPPING AROUND THE ENGINE) BECAME LESS AND I HOPED I COULD MAKE THE BELT LAST UNTIL I GOT TO THE DEALER. THE SERVICE BATTERY LIGHT CAME ON AND WHEN I TURNED LEFT AT AN INTERSECTION NEAR THE DEALERSHIP, THE CAR WAS VERY HARD TO STEER AND I COULD BARELY TURN INTO THE DEALERSHIP. THE DRIVER FOLLOWING ME SAID HE COULD SEE THE SHREDDED BELT DRAGGING. I LEARNED THERE HAD BEEN OTHER CARS ON WHICH THE BELT HAD SHREDDED AND THAT THERE WAS A SERVICE BULLETIN TO PUT A LINING IN TO PROTECT THE BELT FROM DAMAGE, NOT SURE IF THIS HAD BEEN DONE ON MY CAR I LEARNED THERE IS ALSO A RECALL RELATED TO THE WATER PUMP. IN BOTH CASES, I WAS FORTUNATE NOT TO BE IN HEAVY TRAFFIC, NEAR TRUCKS, OR PASSING ON A COUNTRY ROAD. THIS SEEMS VERY DANGEROUS TO ME. *TR