IllustrationMY 2004 CHEVY SUBURBAN SPEEDOMETER IS MALFUNCTIONING, SOMETIMES IT WORKS OTHER TIMES IT DOES NOT MOVE OR IS INDICATING THE INCORRECT SPEED. *TR
2004 Chevrolet Suburban 1500
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
More warning signs than most Suburban 1500 years
Owner complaints for the 2004 Chevrolet Suburban 1500 are substantially higher than the model-year median of 53.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Suburban 1500 years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
60–25K
1925–50K
4050–75K
5075–100K
31100–150K
21150K+
167 reports with mileage · 15 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 84 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes. Review the 27 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Steering. Review the 13 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
2 crash reports4 fire reports2 injury reports
Electrical System complaints
84 reportsANOTHER 2004 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN SPEEDOMETER FAILURE. IT WENT TO 60MPH WHEN I WAS STOPPED, THEN PAST 120MPH AND STUCK THERE. NOW IS COMPLETELY INOPERABLE STUCK AT 120MPH. *TR
ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS ARE NOT WORKING. ODOMETER, FUEL GAUGE, OIL GAUGE, BATTERY GAUGE, TEMPERATURE GAUGE DO NOT WORK - THE ONLY GAUGE THAT DOES WORK IS THE SPEEDOMETER. LOOKING AT ALL THE COMPLAINTS, I SHOULD ASSUME THE SPEEDOMETER WILL BE GOING OUT. THE TEMPERATURE GAUGE COULD BE VERY DANGEROUS - IT READS 250 - 260 ALL THE T…
Read full complaint
ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS ARE NOT WORKING. ODOMETER, FUEL GAUGE, OIL GAUGE, BATTERY GAUGE, TEMPERATURE GAUGE DO NOT WORK - THE ONLY GAUGE THAT DOES WORK IS THE SPEEDOMETER. LOOKING AT ALL THE COMPLAINTS, I SHOULD ASSUME THE SPEEDOMETER WILL BE GOING OUT. THE TEMPERATURE GAUGE COULD BE VERY DANGEROUS - IT READS 250 - 260 ALL THE TIME. YOU DO NOT KNOW IF YOUR ARE RUNNING HOT OR NOT. THE GAS GAUGE NEEDLE IS TOTALLY UPSET DOWN - WE HAVE TO GO OFF OUR "HOW MANY MILES 'TIL WE RUN OUT GO GAS" SCREEN TO DETERMINE HOW MUCH GAS WE HAVE. I'VE REPLACED THE POWER STEERING PUMP - $775, THE CHIP FOR THE GAS PEDAL (WHEN OUT - YOU COULD NOT GO ANY FASTER THAN 10 MILES PER HOUR $800), THE DRIVER SIDE LEATHER SEAT STARTED TO WEAR DOWN @ 40,000 MILES - NOW HAS A TEAR IN IT, THE STEERING COLUMN MAKES A KNOCKING NOISE, THE DASH MAKES A POPPING NOISE WHEN THE AIR CONDITIONER IS ON, FRONT SEEM TO WEAR DOWN FAST, ETC. I COULD GO ON, BUT.......... IT SEEMS I GOT A LEMON. THIS WAS A $47,000 STICKER PRICED CAR - YOU WOULD THINK YOU WOULDN'T HAVE THIS MANY PROBLEMS. THERE SEEMS TO BE A LOT OF COMPLAINTS ON INSTRUMENT PANEL PROBLEMS - SEEMS CHEV SHOULD LOOK INTO THIS - DANGEROUS. THESE ARE FAMILY - CHILDREN VEHICLES!!! *TR
WHILE AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS, THE SPEEDOMETER STUCK AND GRADUALLY FADED TO 0. IT STARTED WORKING AGAIN ONCE THE VEHICLE HAD BEEN SHUT OFF. *TR
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN 1500. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A NOTICE FROM THE MANUFACTURER STATING THAT THEY WERE AWARE THAT SOME OF THEIR MODELS WERE EXPERIENCING SPEEDOMETER FAILURE. THEY FURTHER STATED THAT THE REPAIRS WOULD NOT BE FREE. SHORTLY AFTERWARDS, THE CONTACT'S SPEEDOMETER FAILED AND THE DEALER REFUS…
Read full complaint
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN 1500. THE CONTACT RECEIVED A NOTICE FROM THE MANUFACTURER STATING THAT THEY WERE AWARE THAT SOME OF THEIR MODELS WERE EXPERIENCING SPEEDOMETER FAILURE. THEY FURTHER STATED THAT THE REPAIRS WOULD NOT BE FREE. SHORTLY AFTERWARDS, THE CONTACT'S SPEEDOMETER FAILED AND THE DEALER REFUSED TO REPAIR IT FOR FREE. SHE BELIEVES THIS IS A SAFETY ISSUE AND A MANUFACTURER DEFECT. THE POWERTRAIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 84,000 AND CURRENT MILEAGE WAS 89,000.
SPEEDOMETER FAILURE. 30% OF TIME, SPEEDOMETER OUTPUT IS FALSE. NEEDLE STICKS IN VARIOUS POSITIONS THAT CAUSES FALSE READING. *TR
SPEEDOMETER FAILURE. SPEEDOMETER SHOWS 60MPH WHEN VEHICLE IS IN PARK, AND HIGHER SPEEDS IN DRIVE. *TR
SPEEDOMETER REGISTER GREATLY INCORRECT SPEED (OFF BY 20 TO 30 MPH). *TR
2004 SUBURBAN SPEEDOMETER MALFUNCTION. UNABLE TO DETERMINE SPEED. IT APPEARS TO BE A COMMON OCCURRENCE WITH GM REFUSING TO FIX. *JB
THE SPEEDOMETER FAILS IN MY 2004 CHEVY SUBURBAN, THE SPEEDOMETER BOUNCES BETWEEN SPEEDS AND STICKS AT ANY GIVEN SPEED. NO REAL SOLUTION OTHER THAN REPLACE THE INSTRUMENT PANEL . GM TAKES NO LIABILITY FOR THE PROBLEM. (9 OTHERS IN THE AREA HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM. *JB
Official recalls
0No recalls in this snapshot.
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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.