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2005 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

More warning signs than most Avalanche 1500 years

Owner complaints for the 2005 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 are substantially higher than the model-year median of 38.

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When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

110 reports with mileage · 19 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Electrical System. Review the 47 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Power Train. Review the 17 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Steering. Review the 12 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

1 crash reports4 fire reports1 injury reports

What owners actually said

129 reports
115,000 miles · Oct 22, 2010
Power Train

THE SERVICE 4WD STARTED APPEARING IN THE DRIVER INFORMATION DISPLAY INTERMITTENTLY. TAKING THE VEHICLE IN FOR SERVICE GAVE NO RELIEF. THE VEHICLE STARTED ACTING ERRATICALLY, SLIPPING IN AND OUT OF GEAR INTERMITTENTLY. IT WASN'T SAFE TO DRIVE ANYMORE, IE STRANDED AT STOP LIGHTS OR AFTER SLOWING FOR TRAFFIC IT HAD NO ACCELERATION.…

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THE SERVICE 4WD STARTED APPEARING IN THE DRIVER INFORMATION DISPLAY INTERMITTENTLY. TAKING THE VEHICLE IN FOR SERVICE GAVE NO RELIEF. THE VEHICLE STARTED ACTING ERRATICALLY, SLIPPING IN AND OUT OF GEAR INTERMITTENTLY. IT WASN'T SAFE TO DRIVE ANYMORE, IE STRANDED AT STOP LIGHTS OR AFTER SLOWING FOR TRAFFIC IT HAD NO ACCELERATION. IT BECAME CLEAR AT THIS POINT THAT THE PROBLEM WASN'T GOING TO BE ABLE TO BE DIAGNOSED AT A REPAIR FACILITY, WITHOUT REPLACING PARTS NEEDLESSLY AND THEN TEST DRIVING THE VEHICLE UNTIL IT WORKED AGAIN . I STARTED CHECKING ON LINE AND FOUND MANY OF THESE VEHICLES EXHIBITING THE SAME BEHAVIOR AND TRACED THE PROBLEM TO A DEFECTIVE ENCODER MOTOR WHICH FIXED THE PROBLEM I FEEL THE WAY THE VEHICLE ACTED WITH THIS PROBLEM IS A VERY UNSAFE CONDITION AND SHOULD HAVE A FAIL SAFE BUILT INTO IT TO AT LEAST PREVENT COMPLETE LOSS OF ACCELERATION. AT THE VERY LEAST OWNERS SHOULD HAVE BEEN WARNED OF THIS POSSIBLE SITUATION SINCE THERE ARE TECHNICAL SERVICE BULLETINS OUT ON THIS CONDITION. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10361814

115,215 miles · Oct 16, 2010
Air Bags

SERVICE AIR BAG LIGHT ON AND MESSAGE IN THE DRIVER INFORMATION CENTER. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10360779

78,000 miles · Oct 3, 2010
Electrical SystemVisibility

DRIVERS SIDE A/C UNIT BLOWS VERY HOT AIR EVEN WITH A/C IS PROGRAMMED TO LOWEST SETTING. THIS IS A COMMON ISSUE ONCE RESEARCHING ON THE INTERNET. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10358905

35,000 miles · Sep 30, 2010
Electrical System

SPEEDOMETER GIVES FALSE READINGS AND STICKS. OTHER GAUGES (OIL PRES, TEMP) REDLINE AND ARE INACCURATE. GETS WORST WITH TIME. 41K MILES ON A 2005 AVALANCHE (CHEVY). *TR

NHTSA ODI #10358534

111,716 miles · Jul 23, 2010
Air Bags

THE SERVICE AIR BAG LIGHT STAYING ON IN MY 2005 CHEVY AVALANCHE. IT USE TO BE INTERMITTENT WHENEVER IT WAS RAINING OR WET OUTSIDE BUT NOW IT IS ON STEADY AFTER A RAINSTORM ON JULY 18/10. I HAVE BEEN DOING SOME RESEARCH ONLINE AND FOUND OUT THAT IT IS A VERY COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE CHEVY AVALANCHE, GM AS PUT OUT SERVICE BULLETINS…

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THE SERVICE AIR BAG LIGHT STAYING ON IN MY 2005 CHEVY AVALANCHE. IT USE TO BE INTERMITTENT WHENEVER IT WAS RAINING OR WET OUTSIDE BUT NOW IT IS ON STEADY AFTER A RAINSTORM ON JULY 18/10. I HAVE BEEN DOING SOME RESEARCH ONLINE AND FOUND OUT THAT IT IS A VERY COMMON PROBLEM WITH THE CHEVY AVALANCHE, GM AS PUT OUT SERVICE BULLETINS ABOUT THE WIRING BUT THEY WILL NOT COVER THE REPAIRS IF YOUR WARRANTY IS EXPIRED. I THINK THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT ISSUE FOR THE SAFETY OF ALL CHEVY AVALANCHE + OTHER MODEL OWNERS THAT SHOULD BE TAKEN CARE OF BY GM. THE WEBSITE THAT I FOUND MOST OF MY INFORMATION ABOUT THIS PROBLEM ON IS CHEVYAVALANCHEFANCLUB.COM IF THIS VEHICLE IS INVOLVED IN AN ACCIDENT THE AIR BAG SYSTEM IS MOST LIKELY TO FAIL WHICH MOST LIKELY WILL CAUSE EXCESSIVE BODILY DAMAGE OR EVEN DEATH OF THE PASSENGERS AND DRIVER THAT COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED IF GM WOULD OWN UP TO THEIR RESPONSIBILITY AND FIX THE PROBLEMS. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10344909

29,586 miles · Jun 1, 2010
Air Bags

"SERVICE AIRBAG" SENSOR LIGHT AND "IDIOT" LIGHT CAME ON AND WON'T GO OFF. I HAVE BEEN ON A FEW FORUMS ABOUT THIS AND THERE ARE LOTS OF PEOPLE WITH THIS SAME PROBLEM. MANY DIFFERENT IDEAS ON WHAT WILL FIX THE PROBLEM BUT GM SHOULD ISSUE A RECALL AND FIX IT FOR EVERYONE.

NHTSA ODI #10334011

56,898 miles · May 13, 2010
Electrical System

MY 2005 CHEVY AVALANCHE 1500 SPEEDOMETER IS HAVING PROBLEMS. THE GAUGE WILL READ FASTER THEN WHAT I AM DRIVE. THEN IT WILL STICK AT OVER 60 MPH, THE ARROW WILL POINT COMPLETELY DOWN. IF I TURN ON AND OFF ENGINE THE GAUGE WILL RESET IT SELF BACKWARDS 5 MPH EACH TIME I DO THIS. IT WILL WORK FOR TWO DAYS AFTER THAT THEN THE PROBLE…

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MY 2005 CHEVY AVALANCHE 1500 SPEEDOMETER IS HAVING PROBLEMS. THE GAUGE WILL READ FASTER THEN WHAT I AM DRIVE. THEN IT WILL STICK AT OVER 60 MPH, THE ARROW WILL POINT COMPLETELY DOWN. IF I TURN ON AND OFF ENGINE THE GAUGE WILL RESET IT SELF BACKWARDS 5 MPH EACH TIME I DO THIS. IT WILL WORK FOR TWO DAYS AFTER THAT THEN THE PROBLEM HAPPEN ALL OVER AGAIN!!!!!!!!!!!!! *TR

NHTSA ODI #10330365

51,000 miles · May 12, 2010
Electrical System

TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 CHEVROLET AVALANCHE 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE SPEEDOMETER WOULD INTERMITTENTLY BECOME STUCK ON ONE SPEED AND WOULD ALSO DISPLAY THE INACCURATE SPEED TRAVELED. THE SPEEDOMETER WOULD INDICATE THAT THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING 30 MPH, BECOME STUCK AND WOULD THEN IMMEDIATELY INCREASE TO 60 MPH REGARDLE…

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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 CHEVROLET AVALANCHE 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT THE SPEEDOMETER WOULD INTERMITTENTLY BECOME STUCK ON ONE SPEED AND WOULD ALSO DISPLAY THE INACCURATE SPEED TRAVELED. THE SPEEDOMETER WOULD INDICATE THAT THE CONTACT WAS DRIVING 30 MPH, BECOME STUCK AND WOULD THEN IMMEDIATELY INCREASE TO 60 MPH REGARDLESS OF THE ACTUAL SPEED DRIVEN. THE CONTACT WOULD HAVE TO SHUT OFF THE ENGINE AND RESTART IT IN ORDER FOR THE SPEEDOMETER TO RESET ITSELF. THE DEALER STATED THAT THE INSTRUMENT PANEL CLUSTER GAUGE WAS FAILING AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 51,000 AND THE CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 53,000.

NHTSA ODI #10330117

59,500 miles · Mar 8, 2010
Power Train

2005 CHEVY AVALANCHE WITH LESS THAN 60K MILES, HAS A TRANSMISSION FAILURE. NO WARNINGS OF ANY TYPE. VEHICLE WAS MAINTAINED ACCORDING TO MANUFACTURES SPECIFICATIONS (TRANSMISSION FLUID CHANGED AT 30K MILES). VEHICLE IS IN THE SHOP CURRENTLY BEING WORKED ON. 2ND AND 4TH GEAR CAUSE THE VEHICLE TO "COME OUT OF GEAR" CAUSING A LOSS O…

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2005 CHEVY AVALANCHE WITH LESS THAN 60K MILES, HAS A TRANSMISSION FAILURE. NO WARNINGS OF ANY TYPE. VEHICLE WAS MAINTAINED ACCORDING TO MANUFACTURES SPECIFICATIONS (TRANSMISSION FLUID CHANGED AT 30K MILES). VEHICLE IS IN THE SHOP CURRENTLY BEING WORKED ON. 2ND AND 4TH GEAR CAUSE THE VEHICLE TO "COME OUT OF GEAR" CAUSING A LOSS OF POWER. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10317649

38,000 miles · Feb 10, 2010
Engine And Engine Cooling

THE BODY MOUNTS HAVE GONE OUT TWICE ON MY AVALANCE. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10308312

Official recalls

1

06V289000 · Engine And Engine Cooling

Aug 3, 2006

ON CERTAIN TRUCKS EQUIPPED WITH AN 8.1L V8 (RPO L8-VIN G) ENGINE HAVE A CONDITION IN WHICH THE ENGINE FUEL RAIL PULSE DAMPER RETAINER CLIP MAY FRACTURE RESULTING IN INADEQUATE RETENTION OF THE DAMPER.

Consequence & remedy

Consequence: IF THE DAMPER COMES LOOSE, A FUEL LEAK MAY RESULT. FUEL LEAKAGE, IN THE PRESENCE OF AN IGNITION SOURCE, COULD RESULT IN A FIRE.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE ENGINE FUEL RAIL PULSE DAMPER RETAINER CLIP FREE OF CHARGE. THE RECALL BEGAN ON AUGUST 31, 2006. OWNERS MAY CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438 AND GMC TRUCKS AT 1-866-996-9463.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

0

No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.