Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (battery, alternator, wiring, ignition, instrument cluster, infotainment).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2005 Chevrolet Suburban owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Started with driver side heated seat randomly turning on and off. Going from high, medium, low. No way to turn it off just comes back on. Can hear clicking coming from under dash. Lift gate wiring that goes into body, ground wire burnt. (Replaced) but ground wire has power. (Wiring issue) so rear wiper doesn't work. "Reading" Lamps only work when door is open. After replacing life gate connector, says lift gate open. Started the repair, which leads to more wiring issues! Needs a recall! Unsafe
This defect pertains to gear indicator on the instrument panel. During the daylight hours the light indicating the gear the car is in (park, neutral, drive, etc.) is impossible to read. At night you can just barely read the gear indicators. The dimness of the lights behind this gear indicator gauge is a safety hazard because you cannot tell what gear you are in during the day. It is an expensive repair because the instrument panel needs to be removed to fix the problem.
Heated seats randomly turn on and off and goes thorugh the diffeent levels of heat and then off and then back on repeat for hours while driving and is very distracting as have to turn off every 10 sec and have almost crashed multiple times taking me eyes off the road but have to turn off as heat is too much in summer months, this is a known issue in almost ever suburban 01 to 05, how is this not a recall yet, there is massive amount of documentation of this issue online.
My 2005 Chevrolet Suburban has 79,985 miles and this week while driving route 95 (70 MPH highway in the south) from new jersey to south carolina my speedometer started showing a much higher speed then I was traveling. I was using my GPS at the time and it said I was doing 69 MPH while my gauge showed a constant climb till it reached 120 MPH and flat lined beyond that point. This was a 1600 mile round trip and if I had not had my GPS with me I would not know how fast or slow I was going. I was waiting for something else to go wrong. While in south carolina I went to recalls on the internet with 2005 GM SUV's and found a whole bunch of similar complaints, yet GM (Chevrolet) has not done anything that I could find. …
Attempted to lock the vehicle using the key fob - all four doors locked - the rear hatch did not - tried the key fob several more times with the same result - opened the driver's door and used the manual lock button - got the same result, the four doors locked but not the rear hatch - for my 2005 model, and for several model years other than my 2005, I read many complaints about the same problem on this website prior to sending this - and many complaints about the opposite problem, namely, the rear hatch door locks and cannot be opened - there is no key hole in the door, only the key fob operates locking and unlocking the door - obviously a design problem that you ought to issue a recall on - and, read many, many complaints about the instrument cluster over many model years - again, obviously a design problem - why don't you folks make GM fix these faults ? …
My oil pressure gauge started reading "0" in November 2008 but there is nothing wrong with my oil. (mileage approx. 49,000) I check it often and have the oil changed regularly. In February 2009 my speedometer started registering inaccurately. First, it would say I was going 40 MPH at a dead stop. Currently, it is past the 120 MPH mark and holding. (mileage 52,000) I took it to a Chevy dealer for diagnostic evaluation. I was told it was the dashboard circuit board and that it would be $500 to replace it. The service manager told me that this part had been recalled on the 2003-2004 models but not the 2005. That I could pay for the repair and if it was recalled I could be reimbursed. This is a huge safety concern especially with young teenage drivers. …
Driver side seat heater randomly comes on and goes off. Majority of the time the heater stays on constantly and becomes uncomfortable. This happens more especially in wet conditions and when you attempt to turn the heated seat off, the controls won't work. This issue happens when the SUV is started, continues while idling and while driving. Some days it is hours before it will go off. Other days it will not go off. The scary thing is you can hear the dashboard clicking when the heater turns on and off, constantly cycling though high to low, back of seat to bottom of the seat. Adjusting the seat in any way does not help. I think this is a concern due to the fact that it turns off and on and you can hear it cycle through. It's also a major concern because the heat stays on without any way to turn it off. …
I have had nothing but electrical problems ever since I bought this car. I didn't even have the car for a month and the dash lights and head lights would dim on and off brought the car in to where it was purchased from and had my car for a week and replaced control module car still proceed to do the same thing brought it in to another dealership told me that this was normal because car had PCM after 4 months of going back and forth with these dealerships car was finally fixed due to a recall in a screw and wire not being grounded correctly. Now my car is in the dealership with numerous electrical problems and are trying to say that car was hit by lighting car would not start burning smell came from underneath hood of car. Now car does not run over 15 MPH with dying out battery only hold charge of 10 volts.
My speedometer recently started malfunctioning. It read 20mph when I was driving at least 50mph, then it read 90+MPH when I was actually driving 30mph. Finally, my speedometer gave out and is "stuck" in the 120+MPH position. Thankfully, I have a GPS navigation system that has a gauge on it so I know my rate of speed. I contacted GM and they refused to remedy this "widespread" problem. They said that my "special coverage" has ended (referring to the 2008 class action suit that prompted it). I am very upset! I have read many, many forums and found that this is a very common issue. My mechanic says they replace them "all the time" and charges $700-$1,000 to fix it. In my opinion, there should be a recall on the instrument cluster panel. I just don't understand why GM won't step up and fix it free of charge.
Speedometer stayed at speed I was driving when I stopped the car. When I restarted the car it did not return to zero but started at last speed I was driving, then increase from there. Speedometer finally stayed at 100 MPH, it did not return to zero and I was unable to determine speed of car when driving. RPM also malfunction, it stayed at 1.5 when driving and didn't vary when I increased or decreased my speed. Had to have it replaced as I could not determine speed I was driving. No official recall, only a class action suit. My make/model/year was part of the cars affected in the suit, only I didn't qualify for reimbursement of repair because the problem occurred outside of the 7 year 80,000 mile parameter GM set up for reimbursement.
Electrical complaints in other Suburban years
Frequently asked questions
How common are electrical problems on the 2005 Chevrolet Suburban?
NHTSA has 36 complaints about the electrical system of the 2005 Chevrolet Suburban, 28% of the model year's 129 complaints. The component named most often is instrument cluster/panel (15 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2005 Chevrolet Suburban electrical problems?
No. NHTSA lists no electrical system recall for the 2005 Chevrolet Suburban, though it has 6 recalls for other components. If the problem is widespread, a repair may still be covered by an extended warranty or a manufacturer service bulletin — ask a dealer.
At what mileage do 2005 Chevrolet Suburban electrical problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 70,000 miles.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.