Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (door latches, locks, hood and tailgate latches).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2005 Chevrolet Uplander owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
Tl* - the contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Uplander. The transmission failed at 11,000 miles. The mechanic repaired it instead of replacing, it and it continued to leak. The dealer replaced the transmission, and the new one from the manufacturer was also leaking. The vehicle was in the repair shop for 16 days, and the new transmission had to be resealed. When starting the vehicle the ignition was sticking in the start mode for 2 minutes after releasing the key. The passenger automatic sliding door did not latch shut, no warning indicator light appeared nor did it register with OnStar as the door was being un latched. When attempting to open the door it will not open because the latch did not engage. The dealer was unable to diagnose the failure. The contact was concerned about the safety risk involved. The contact filed a complaint with the bbb, and spoken to GM about all of the failures. …
Tl* - the contact called regarding the 2005 Chevrolet Uplander. The contact stated that the power sliding door opened and closed unexpectedly. The contact took the vehicle in to the dealer five times. The deale advised the contact that either they could not duplicate the failure or that they had repaired it. On one occasion, the dealer reinstalled a loose lock rod. On another occasion, the dealer reprogrammed the sliding door module. The failure mileage was 24,000. When the door malfunctioned the warning indicator was a bell alerting her the door opened, there were no other warning indicators. The front two tires were replaced at 14,000 miles due to excessive wear. The back two tires were replaced at 24,000 due to excessive wear. The contact stated at 37,000 miles, the vehicle needed four new tires due to wear. …
Rear electronic sliding door, primarily the left side, occasionally goes almost closed then just before it latches it goes back open. Usually happens once or twice per week. I cannot depend on it going shut so I have to stand there and watch it until it shuts completely and latches. Before I realized the extent of the problem I came back to the vehicle twice to find the door wide open with several hundred dollars worth of photo equipment on the seat and floorboard. I took it to the dealer numerous times but it never malfunctioned in the shop so they would not do repairs on the doors. I contacted Chevrolet division of general motors. The Chevrolet representative confirmed that they "have to recreate the problem in the shop" before they will work on it. Chevrolet gave me a problem number for future reference and said if it ever malfunctions in the shop they will work on it. …
This complaint covers many components of the Chevy Uplander that has spanned over the three years that we have owned the van. All problems are "unable to be diagnosed" by dealerships and Chevy refuses to help us. I have been in contact with Chevy from about the second time that the van went to the shop for electrical problems. We have had electrical problems that vary from the lights flickering to the fans output changing to the radio not allowing you to program in a station on one preset button, we are also currently having an ABS issue and have had a non GM mechanic look at the van and said it is OK. The passenger side auto sliding door does not always automatically open and sometimes does not close either, when you manually shut it will open by itself several times before it stays shut. …
Power sliding doors open / close by themselves at times (usually right door, but sometimes left). Sometimes, when the door has been closed it will reopen & have to be closed manually. At times the door will stay closed, but the 'dinging' noise will continue for the entire time I am driving. There have been occasions when it continued dinging well after the ignition was turned off. We have had it in the shop and 'fixed' a few times. The fix sometimes lasted a week or two. Sometimes, it only lasted a couple of days. We were never able to pinpoint or predict when the malfunction would occur. Finally, we have removed the fuse permanently and only operate the doors manually to prevent a serious injury from occurring to the children. In the rear (3rd) seat, the right seat belt has also retracted & will not release. This happened one day when I was trying to remove a child from the vehicle. …
The car intermittently tries to start the crank keeps turning but does not start. As well as I was traveling on freeway with a big rig on the side of me and the car stalled and steering locked. Thank god I managed to glide over to the exit lane. I was terrified as was my passenger. When I looked at the gauges I noticed I was out of gas, but I had just put in $20 . Chevy sent out tow truck to give me gas, but car still would not start. Finally hours later car was taken to Chevy. When Uplander was finished they said it was electrical short due to water in lines. Weather was great no rain or puddles anywhere. Uplander almost stalled on another night lights dimmed and tires stopped ,but then it worked fine. Strange very!!! Driver side sliding door opens or shuts when it wants. …
The passenger side sliding door does not close properly. The problem began soon after we purchased the vehicle in jan 2006 but was not serious. The door would close and then reopen and need to be shut again. In November 2008 the door was stuck in the open position causing the motor to break. After paying for a new motor, not a week later did the motor break again. After this second motor, the door continued to not shut properly, often taking 10 -15 attempts to shut the door. You would push the button and the door would seem like it was closing but not close fully and reopen on its own. Another trip to the dealership, they adjusted the sensor, but the problem continued. We just purchased a new sensor and door latch to try to solve the problem. Thus far the door continues to be a safety risk as it opens when you shut it and does not close properly. …
We purchased a 2005 Chevy Uplander when it was 1 yr old with 10,000 miles on it directly from a Chevy dealer. One month later, the rear passenger sliding door started automatically reopening it after both the shut buttons by the driver seat and the button on the door itself were pushed to close. This van has now been back to the Chevy dealer 6 times for this problem within the 7 months we own it. The dealer has made it pretty clear to us that they can not find or fix the problem. They have now taken the stand of, "let's see if it works this time". I have a toddler and I am scared to drive this car. The door opens by itself. Also - there is not a safety mechanism on the door to reopen if something, like my daughter's arm or leg get in the way. I have parked the car, and gone into a store and watched the door close, to only cone out and find the door wide open. …
In purchasing the Uplander the salesman demonstrated the safety feature of the blocking of sliding side doors by sticking his arm in the path of the door (well before it shut) and the door stopping and retracting. In demonstrating this feature to my grandchildren I placed my hand in the way of the driver side sliding rear door and allowed it to close on my hand, the door did not retract and trapped me there with my hand in the door. It was painful to say the least and my grandchildren were the only ones that could push the button to open the door. I reported the mishap to the salesman at the Chevy dealers but nothing was ever done. The problem as I see it is that any small child trying to keep the door from closing would reach for the door and in doing so would place his hand in the door in the same position I was in when I demonstrated this "safety feature" to my grand children. …
Tl contact owns a 2005 Chevrolet Uplander. The sliding door on the rear driver side would not stay latched. The contact called the dealer and manufacturer and they stated that she was responsible for having the door repaired. The vehicle has been in the shop six times now for the latch failure and the door opening on its own. Each time the vehicle was retrieved from the dealer, they stated that it was repaired when it was not. When the button was pressed to close the door, it would begin to shut and an alarm would sound; however, it would not shut and flew open while driving. The instrument panel does not indicate that the door is ajar. The rear passenger side door is beginning to experience the same failure. Neither the weather nor the speed were factors. The current mileage was 51,800 and failure mileage was 49,043. …
NHTSA investigations
Power sliding door opening
Odi has received reports that the power sliding doors opened without command while the vehicle was in motion on model year 2005 and 2006 general motors minivans (Chevrolet uplander/venture, Pontiac montana sv6/montana, Buick terraza, and Saturn relay).some reports indicate that the door May not have been closed and latched before driving away causing the door to reverse (open) at low vehicle speeds.however, other…
Power sliding door
Odi evaluated general motors' (GM) data, conducted consumer interviews, inspected and tested my 2005-2007 GM minivans with regard to the alleged defect of a power sliding door (psd) opening while the vehicle is out of park.odi identified a high warranty claim rate.however, these claims are related to various problems associated with doors not properly opening or closing and not specifically to doors opening while…
Door Lock & Latch complaints in other Uplander years
Frequently asked questions
How common are door lock & latch problems on the 2005 Chevrolet Uplander?
NHTSA has 45 complaints about the locks & latches of the 2005 Chevrolet Uplander, 23% of the model year's 196 complaints. The component named most often is doors › latch (27 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2005 Chevrolet Uplander door lock & latch problems?
No. NHTSA lists no locks & latches recall for the 2005 Chevrolet Uplander, though it has 3 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 Uplander door lock & latch problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 24,000 miles, and 51% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 0 fires and 5 injuries to locks & latches problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
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.