Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (doors, hood, frame, rust, paint and trim).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2001 Chevrolet Venture owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
On 3, June, 2011, the right passenger sliding door on our 2001 Chevrolet Venture minivan would not latch on the back latch, resulting in the door only being partially, and dangerously latched by only the front latch. Sometimes it won't latch on the front latch either. This is not a power sliding door; but I've seen several recalls for failed latches on the power sliding doors. We have called, gone to junk yards to no avail, and dealerships say they do not have the parts to repair the latch. This is a safety concern, as the door could come off during travel, or worse, fly open during motion, placing the middle seat passenger at risk of falling out of a moving vehicle. For safety, door latches are something that should be fail safe in automobiles. One dealership said it would cost over $220.00 to repair, if they could get the parts. If??? The car only has 152K miles. …
July 16, 2005 I was driving my 2001 Chevrolet Venture along my local street smithtown ny when I heard a extremely loud bang. With great difficulty I pulled my car over and contacted my husband. When he opened the hood the engine had fallen out of the vehicle. Upon towing the vehicle to a licensed GM mechanic I learned that the cv knuckle and the rack and pinion steering system snapped when the engine fell. Upon contacting GM/Chevrolet customer service they offered to pay fifty percent of the repair costs, I feel this is unacceptable and they should pay one hundred percent of my repair costs. This vehicle is accident free. An engine should not fall out of a four year old car.
Dt: while driving 20 MPH then stopping at a red light there was a popping noise. The consumer thought there was a flat tire on the left front. Consumer pulled to the side of the road. Upon inspection he saw that the engine had dropped and was hanging from underneath the vehicle about 2 inches from the ground. Had the vehicle towed to GM dealer for repairs. Basically, the bolts that held the engine mount broke. The dealer suggested someone had done this to the vehicle because the engine completely broke off. The consumer kept vehicle garaged. The repairs were done at consumer's expense. GM offered no financial assistance or coverage.
Other part affected is the jack this style van rusts thru in front of the rear wheel well where the jack is supposed to be placed to replace the spare tire. There is no longer any structural support resulting in a dangerous condition where the van can fall off the jack if you attempt to put the spare tire on. As a matter of fact my Chevrolet dealer, at about 170,000 miles, crushed the whole area of my car while they put it on a lift to replace my transmission lines. I can never safely put the jack at that location. That is what alerted me to the problem whereas the rust was there very early in the life of the van!
Transmission slips after sitting when first starting out;horn honks occasionally while driving; power sliding door on driver's side won't open/close when activated by button or remote switches; hard starts after driving and sitting briefly (especially after highway driving--tried different gas stations gasses). Taken to two different dealers mostly about transmission and they claim unless the check engine light comes on, they can't do anything about it. Going to take back and have it stay there until they reproduce this week.
Have returned the vehicle 3 times, for water accumulating in the driver floor board soaking rug during rains, causing a hazard, ie. Foot slipping from the break petal due to the water, plus mildew odor. Current rain, today( 3-15-03) problem still exists, will be returning vehicle (3-17-03) to dealer to fix the problem, 4th time. Very upset. Fyi, dealer claims to have replaced 3 seals and state problem fixed. Untrue, please help. What should we do?
10 year old girl attempted to enter rear passenger sliding (non-automatic) door of 2001 Chevy Venture, when the bolts and tracking failed causing the door to fall to the ground cutting her bone in her big toe in half, leaving it hanging on by skin. Doctor's at children's hospital had to realign the bone and reattach her toe. General motors has been notified, but at this time, they are not willing to fix or replace the defective vehicle.
While closing the sliding door, it broke. When the consumer pulled the door handle to open the door, it had come back to the point that the consumer was unable to release it and the resistance did not make it stop, the consumer was still in her seat belt and due to such force not being able to release the door, the consumer broke her arm above the wrist. Pe04064.pco
Last week driver's side sliding passenger door (non-power) flew open while the vehicle was in motion. Today a child tried to close the driver's side sliding door. The door came off it's rear track and falling inward striking the child on the head (no injury). The sliding door was dangling by its upper and lower lead brackets.
Vehicle has an oning electrical problem that caused the automatic door locks and control panel cluster to malfunction. The vehicle has also stalled without warning. This could possibly be caused by water leaking into the vehicle through the luggage rack where it connects to the vehicle per a service dealer.
NHTSA investigations
Power-sliding door
Subject vehicles are available with an optional power sliding door.the interior handle is oriented in the vertical position in the door panel and lines up at the elbow level when the occupant is seated in the 2nd-row outboard position.if the occupant holds the interior handle in the thumb up position during power-assisted opening, the arm/wrist can be push back with force against the 2nd-row bucket seat or captain's…
Body complaints in other Venture years
Frequently asked questions
How common are body problems on the 2001 Chevrolet Venture?
NHTSA has 25 complaints about the body & structure of the 2001 Chevrolet Venture, 11% of the model year's 222 complaints. The component named most often is body › door (13 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2001 Chevrolet Venture body problems?
No. NHTSA lists no body & structure recall for the 2001 Chevrolet Venture, though it has 9 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 2001 Chevrolet Venture body problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 36,000 miles, and 15% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 0 crashes, 0 fires and 6 injuries to body & structure 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.