Suspension complaints by model year
Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (struts, shocks, control arms, ball joints, springs).
Mileage when the problem started
What owners report
2 ball joints cost $122.40 2 hub and bearing assembly $904.00 front end alignment $49.95 labor $246.00 tax $70.84 total1401.69 my extended warranty covered all but $50.00 the warranty cost me $1600.00. Work done by stengel bros.inc.whitehall pa.18052. The vehicle was beginning to pull to the right when I first noticed it .thought the front end was out of alignment. After a week or so I bought a new set of tires, and went to have the front end aligned when I was told of the problem. The stengel bros. Are well known for outstanding work!they also told me it looked like water got in the hubs or bearings. Never used my Jimmy off road. And held maintenance every 4 to 5000 mi. At most. Also had a lot of trouble with it jumping in to 4x4 low. Had it repaired 4 times. Along with other minor problems. …
I have a 2001 GMC Jimmy with 37,000 mainly driven in the winter. I am the original owner of the car. Within the past month I heard a very loud sound in the front. When taken to the dealership was told that the right front wheel bearing was so bad that a few more miles and the tire would have come off. They said the left wasn't any better, but could go another month. I only had enough money that day to fix the right. When I called the customer relations of GM, they told me they would investigate and get back to me. I was later told that they would only repair the left, but that I had to pay for the one only fixed (even though it was the worst), because the car was so old! It is no longer under warranty. They told me the dealership was going to pay for the left repair, but when I called the dealership, they said it was the manufacturer. …
While driving heard a loud humming noise from front of vehicle. Dealer found front hub bearing needed replacement. Drivers side was replaced under warranty on 2/20/03 (note: I am the original owner and vehicle had 27,000 miles when problem first occurred). Same problem occurred on 3/15/04 that time on passenger side. Dealer replaced passenger side hub bearing on 3/15/04 and cost was split 50/50 with GM and myself (note: 46,000 miles on vehicle). Same problem recurred on 9/15/06 on passenger side hub bearing. Dealer states that hub bearing is bad and needs to be replaced again which is a $500 repair job. Furthermore this problem never occurred before with any other vehicle I have owned or any other non-Jimmy owners that I know of. From reviewing your complaints and talking to other Jimmy owners, this is a widespread recurring problem and a known defect that should be fixed by GM.
Started out with a wobble on the tire then my ball joints upper and lower left and right front along with my tie rods inner and outer left and right my left ball barring hub was replaced on the left side front also I still have to replace the stabilizing front bar which I will be purchasing this week of sept 1st. This all happened just these past two weeks and now I am forced to purchase 4 tires that I cannot afford after spending all that money to fix the front end. Please help me. I did not have any accidents that is just from driving to work and for pleasure.
My vehicle is a 1999 GMC Jimmy. It has 65000 miles and I am the original owner and primary driver. The front hubs/bearings have both been replaced in the last 9 months, one at 50,600 miles, and nowone at 65,000 miles. The problem was not fixed by replacing the hub/bearings units. I was told yesterday that both of the front lower ball joints and an idler arm need to be replaced in addition to the hub/bearing. The shop working on the vehicle indicated that this was not normal at 65,000 miles, and that the condition of the ball joints made the vehicle unsafe to drive. I called GM and got absolutely no support from the district service representative since all of my repairs were not done at a GM dealership. The reason I stopped going to GM dealerships was poor service, inflated prices and recommendations for work to be done that wasn't necessary.
I was just getting ready to leave the car wash. I pressed the brake padal to put the truck in gear, a second later the padal went to the floor, thought it was air in the line. Tried a few more times then got out of the truck to look for the leak, found (steel line) drivers side rusted. Had truck towed to shop, as I could not drive it. They found heavy rust on all brake lines in the front, the control arms also have heavy rust. Thank god I was not in traffic as I am sure I would have crashed. The shop is replacing all front brake lines and are going to inspect all other lines ie: all brake lines to back, all fuel lines. Parking brake failed as well. How did this truck pass nys inspection? Truck was purchased 3/30/2006 from dealer facility #7096646 a&a used car sales inc. 969 sunrise hwy,brightwaters,ny 11706 nys inspected by station 7099758
After getting an oil change I was informed of a leak in my oil pan, as I got home the next morning I noticed that my car leaked out all the oil in the car resulting from a fault o-ring seal, also now having problems with the suspension as my idler arm is about to snap at any moment resulting in the lose of steering for the car. The car was taken to a mechanic before I purchased it and only one bushing was replaced instead of all of them at the same time, also the mechanic improperly replaced the front shocks as instead of replacing the grease bearings the mechanic used bolts to assemble and hold them in place resulting in an annoying sqeak in the front end of the car since the shocks cant be properly greased as there are not grease fittings.
Purchased new tires and went to have the front alligned, and they advised they could not align due to the needed replacement of the lower ball joints. The vehile had around 64000 miles and I returned it to the dealer who said it did not nned the repair only allignment.prior to allignment the vehicle always drifted to the right side of the raod if the steering was released, it always seemed to be a strugle from drifting or pulling even with both hands of wheel to the right. The dealer alignment took care of the problem for about a month or two , but the problem has returned. Now I am wondering if the front end ball joints and arms are worn. This is a 1998 GMC Jimmy 4wd 2 door sport utility it now has 77,000 miles has there been similar complaints?
Related recalls (3)
Suspension › Front › Control arm › Upper ball joint
On certain sport utility vehicles originally sold in or currently registered in the states of connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, iowa, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, missouri, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, west virginia, and wisconsin, and in the…
Remedy: Dealers will replace both upper ball joints. Owner notification began September 4, 2001. Owners who take their vehicles to an authorized dealer on an agreed upon service date and do not receive the free remedy within a…
Suspension › Front › Control arm › Lower arm
Vehicle description: multi-purpose passenger vehicle equipped with 4-wheel drive or all-wheel-drive. One or both of the attaching nuts for the right-hand lower control arm are under torqued. This can allow the attachment bolt to loosen and subsequent break resulting in separation of the lower control arm from the frame.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect and retighten the right-hand lower control arm nuts to the proper torque specification.
Suspension › Front › Control arm › Upper ball joint
The upper ball joint nuts were under-torqued resulting in improper seating in the steering knuckle.
Remedy: Dealers will retorque the upper ball joint nut on both sides of the vehicle to the correct torque values.
NHTSA investigations
Upper and lower control arm ball joint
There is no summary currently available
Frequently asked questions
Which GMC Jimmy years have suspension problems?
By NHTSA complaints, the 1997 (54), 1996 (49), 2000 (39), 1999 (26) and 1998 (25) model years. Suspension complaints make up 20% of all complaints for the 1997.
Is there a recall for GMC Jimmy suspension problems?
Yes — 3 recalls, including 01V-200 (upper ball joint, Jun 28, 2001); 98V-053 (lower arm, Mar 9, 1998); 95V-080 (upper ball joint, Apr 24, 1995). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers; check a specific car with the VIN recall check.
At what mileage do GMC Jimmy suspension problems start?
Across all years, half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 67,000 miles; 29% happened before 50,000 miles.
What part fails most often?
Owners most often name the front › control arm › upper ball joint (63 mentions), followed by the front › control arm › lower ball joint (51).
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.