NHTSA Complaint #10905192 — 2004 CADILLAC SRX

DESIGN AND REPAIR OF DAYTIME RUNNING LIGHTS (DRL) IS SO POOR THAT ONE IS TEMPTED TO DISCONNECT THEM. THE DRL BULB IS THE SAME AS THE TURN SIGNAL BULB. EVIDENTLY, THE HOUSING FOR THIS BULB WAS DESIGNED IN PLASTIC, AS IS COMMON WITH MANY LIGHT HOUSINGS. HOWEVER, THE DESIGN FAILED TO CONSIDER THAT THE DRL IS ON WHENEVER THE CAR IS ON. OVER TIME, AND FREQUENTLY, THERE IS A PROBLEM WITH EITHER THE BULB OR THE HOUSING OR THE ASSOCIATED WIRING, DUE TO HEAT. THEN, ONE OR SEVERAL OF THE COMPONENTS MUST BE REPLACED. NOT SO BAD, EXCEPT THAT THE OVERALL LAMP HOUSING CAN ONLY BE ACCESSED BY REMOVING MULTIPLE ELEMENTS OF BODYWORK. THIS CAN BE DIFFICULT AND TIME-CONSUMING, THEN ONE GETS TO REMOVE THE ACTUAL HOUSING, WHICH IS AWKWARDLY PLACED FOR REMOVING THE RETAINING BOLTS. I HAVE OWNED MY 2004 SRX FOR THREE YEARS AND HAVE ENCOUNTERED MULTIPLE FAILURES OF THE DRL AND TURN SIGNALS. SOMETIMES THEY START WORKING AGAIN WITHOUT REPAIR, AND SOMETIMES REPAIR IS REQUIRED. THE SAFETY ISSUE IS THAT WE HAVE DRLS FOR A REASON, AND WE HAVE TURN SIGNALS FOR A REASON. THERE ARE MULTIPLE BLOGS CONTAINING SAD STORIES OF HOW HARD IT IS TO MAKE A BULB CHANGE, AND I PERSONALLY OFTEN SEE THIS MODEL BEING DRIVEN (AS I AM NOW) WITH ONLY ONE LIGHT WORKING. IN GENERAL, THIS SEEMS A VERY SAFE AND RELIABLE CAR; SEEMS THAT GM COULD HAVE DESIGNED THE BULB HOUSING OF A STURDIER MATERIAL.