2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Door Lock & Latch Problems

Which parts fail

• Doors › Latch
  3

Components named in complaints (door latches, locks, hood and tailgate latches).

Mileage when the problem started

• Under 25k
  721%
• 25k–50k
  1339%
• 50k–75k
  824%
• 75k–100k
  39%
• 100k–150k
  26%
• 150k+
  00%

Owner reports

Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).

Prelude to this event, involving my 2008 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 (approx 16,200 miles), was the warranty replacement for the failure of all 4 power door lock actuators. The actuators failed one at a time and each time an actuator would fail, the vehicle would shock the driver when touching the metal door while exiting the vehicle. The last actuator was replaced by the dealership on September 18th, 2009. On September 19th, 2009, after engaging my vehicle into reverse gear, the dashboard electrical went dead. Gauges went dark and radio began to blink. Within 5-10 seconds, smell of burning electrical came into the cab of the vehicle. I popped the hood and my passenger immediately identified a fire near the transmission on the passenger side. The fire was extinguished before engulfing the vehicle. …

2008 Chevrolet Silverado. Consumer writes in regards to recall notice 16v-381 replacement parts and states dealership found bad connection in airbag wiring located behind seat. The consumer stated the air bag light illuminated on June 13, 2012. Also, the cruise control and passenger door lock did not work.

Drivers side door lock not working properly. This vehicle equipped with auto locks which can be remote operated. The device that makes the lock work stopped working. As a result the door does not automatically lock or un lock. Also with the device being broke the remote locks do not work either. This lock failure going un noticed can leave the people in the vehicle a false sense of security. What if it failed at a passenger door where a child was sitting? What if you locked the truck, walked into the store, walked back out to your truck and someone got in while you were inside? What if you were at a red light and someone came to attack you and the lock failed. This issue could have severe consequences. It gives you a false sense of security. …

The problem has been occurring over several months, it is as follows: the door locks activate to the on position then relock. Following that, all electronics shut off, the vehicle lurches, then everything comes back on and you continue on the way. It is especially dangerous at night because all lighting goes off and you are left in the darkness while driving at a high rate of speed. The vehicle has been into the Chevrolet dealer an several occasions and they have been unable to find the reason for the problem. The dealer's service manager stated that the vehicle was unsafe and agreed provide me a vehicle, however that was two weeks ago. I have had to purchase another vehicle to drive at night for fear of injuring myself or someone else during one of the episodes. The vehicle is a 2008 Chevrolet Silverado crew cab with 4 years remaining on the warranty. …

Door lock on drivers side will not lock or unlock. When pressing the remote fob to lock/unlock the truck it tries to move but will not fully go up or down all the way. The same thing happens when using the lock/unlock button from the inside of the truck. I have been locking my truck and walking away with a false sense of security. You can walk up and open my door due to this defect. The alarm will sound but entry has already been made to the vehicle. Even worse what if you needed to lock the door from the inside to avoid someone trying to gain access to you through your vehicle. You would have to remember to hit the lock knob itself because the lock/unlock button does not work. This is bad because GM knows they have chronic problem with this. Just go to the internet and type in "2008 Silverado door lock actuator" and see what comes up. …

Three of the four locks on my 2008 Chevy Silverado no longer work when using the remote. They quit working right after the 36,000 mile factory warranty expired. The dealer told me it would cost $700 to have them replaced. I contacted Chevy directly and they told me they have not had any other complaints about this problem. They wanted me to pay for a diagnosis from a Chevy dealer so they could evaluate the problem. It is very inconvenient, and frustrating, to have paid for automatic door locks and they quit working two years after I have the vehicle. You have to manually lock/unlock each door when it should be as simple as pushing a button. It is also a safety issue the locks don't work while the truck is being driven. Now, the rear windows don't operate from the controls on the rear doors. …

24 nov 2008: bought new 2008 Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck from local dealer. Discovered that the inside door handles, being located below the arm rest (as opposed to being above the arm rest in our trade-in 2007 GMC pickup truck) could not be operated without extreme pain and effort by my wife who has carpal tunnel syndrome in both arms. 25 nov 2008: asked the dealer to take this truck back and return my trade-in truck to me. Dealer refused. Contacted manufacturer. Manufacturer refused. This design could trap my wife inside the vehicle in the event of an accident. Of special concern is an accident involving a fire in which she would need to exit without delay. I am forced to sell this vehicle at a great loss after driving it only a few miles due to this serious design safety defect.

I have had two problems with this truck - one the driver door locks clicker stopped working and I had to have the Chevy dealer replace the automatic door locking part - now the brakes are a problem - I have 17,000 miles on this truck and the front rotors had groves in them and had to be turned - the pads have been replaced with heavy duty pads - my regular tire and brake shop in town said they would never have put the heavy duty pads on this truck. Four days after the first fix it started squeaking and I had to take it bake to the dealer and he said they had to keep it and check the brakes were getting hot, they got me a rental car for four days while they took the brakes apart and put them back together and said they must have put them together the first time wrong!

Doors do not lock/unlock when alarming or unalarming truck. It occurs daily and not sure how long this has been going on. I happened to get out of my truck and open the back door which would not open. With further investigation, I realized that the lock was not working properly. I wonder how many other owners of this vehicle have no idea that this is happening? I have alarmed my vehicle, then checked the back door to see if it locked with the alarm going off, because the lock had failed! I wonder how many people actually check to see if their truck locked and alarmed properly. I checked with the dealership and it'll cost $100 for them to just look at it because it is past the 3 yr. Warranty. I think this is unfair.

Approximately 2000-4000 miles after the warranty term (but still well under the 36 month limit) I began to notice my power locks weren't working correctly. When I took my truck in to the dealer, the service rep told me that that was a very common problem. After determining I was over warranty mileage limit, he said all he could do is maybe "help me out" on the repair costs. My main concern is how the manufacturer hasn't been more proactive in correcting this problem since, from what my research has revealed, it is a very common issue. I would think that Chevrolet would be a little more concerned about the safety and security of their customers and vehicles.

Door Lock & Latch complaints in other Silverado 1500 years