NHTSA Complaint #10692068 — 2011 CHEVROLET EQUINOX

I WAS PULLING INTO A PARKING LOT AT A CONVENIENT STORE, COMING TO A COMPLETE STOP, THE "CHECK ENGINE" LIGHT CAME ON, AND THE INFORMATION STATION FLASHED THE WARNING "STABILITRAC / POWER REDUCED". A STRANGE SOUND AND VIBRATION WAS COMING FROM THE CAR. I TURNED IT OFF BECAUSE I THOUGHT THE TRACTION CONTROL CREATED THE PROBLEM BECAUSE IT HAD STARTED TO SNOW. ONCE I RETURNED TO THE CAR, IT DROVE OKAY FOR A FEW MINUTES AND THEN BOOM THAT STRANGE SOUND AND THE STRONG IDLING VIBRATION CAME BACK. I WAS STILL ABLE TO DRIVE THE SUV BUT WOULD NOT ACCELERATE PAST THE FIRST TRANSMISSION GEAR. SO A COUPLE DAYS LATER I WAS GOING TO TRY AND MAKE IT TO THE STORE BECAUSE ANOTHER SNOW STORM WAS COMING OUR TOWN'S WAY. AGAIN, STARTED OUT OKAY AND THEN BOOM THAT STRANGE SOUND AND THE STRONG IDLING VIBRATION CAME BACK. SO, INSTEAD OF TURNING AROUND TO GO HOME, I TOOK IT TO THE CAR DEALERSHIP WERE I BOUGHT IT FROM. AFTER RUNNING TESTS OR WHATEVER THEY DID, I DON'T KNOW BECAUSE I WASN'T BACK THERE; THEY TOLD ME IT'S THE THROTTLE BODY. THEY EVEN TOLD ME THEY JUST FINISHED PRICING ONE AND TOLD ME THE CRAZY HIGH AMOUNT TO FIX IT. I DON'T KNOW ABOUT ANYONE ELSE BUT I DON'T HAVE THIS KIND OF MONEY TO PUT INTO FIXING THIS. SO YEAH, I WAS WITHOUT A VEHICLE BUT YET WITH A VEHICLE PAYMENT. ACCORDING TO THE MASSIVE AMOUNT OF COMPLAINTS ABOUT THIS PART, IT HAS A VERY HIGH FAILURE RATE IN THIS VEHICLE. HOWEVER, CHEVY REFUSES TO COVER THIS PART AS PART OF THEIR POWER-TRAIN WARRANTY OR AT LEAST DO A RECALL ON IT. THE "POWER REDUCED" CONDITION CAUSED BY THIS PART FAILURE IS A VERY DANGEROUS THING TO HAVE HAPPEN TO YOU IF YOU ARE TURNING IN A BUSY INTERSECTION OR ON AN INTERSTATE HIGHWAY, AND IF SOMETHING IS NOT DONE, THERE WILL BE INJURIES OR FATALITIES BECAUSE OF IT. *TR