NHTSA Complaint #710367 — 1999 OLDSMOBILE BRAVADA

THIS MODEL HAS AN OVERHEAD CONSOLE WITH A READOUT THAT PURPORTS TO TELL THE OUTSIDE AIR TEMPERATURE. THE TEMPERATURE READOUT IS CONSISTENTLY 5-15 DEGREES WARMER THAN THE ACTUAL OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE. BASED ON THE READOUT, THE CONSOLE SHOWS AN "ICE" WARNING WHEN TEMPERATURES ARE RIGHT FOR THE FORMATION OF ICE. MY CONCERN IS THAT THIS READOUT MIGHT SUGGEST THAT TEMPERATURES ARE 10 OR 15 DEGREES ABOVE FREEZING, WHEN IN FACT ICE MAY BE PRESENT ON THE ROAD. OLDSMOBILE HAS ACKNOWLEDGED TO ME THAT THIS IS A DESIGN DEFECT, AND THEY DO NOT KNOW HOW TO FIX IT. IN TALKING WITH OWNERS OF "TWIN VEHICLES" (CHEVY BLAZER AND GMC JIMMY) OF VARIOUS MODEL YEARS, THEY REPORT THE SAME PROBLEM. THIS PROBLEM HAS APPARENTLY BEEN PRESENT ON THESE MODELS FOR AT LEAST A COUPLE OF MODEL YEARS.