U.S. public vehicle records

1989 Gmc SUBURBAN: complaints, problems and recalls

Explore the records behind recurring owner reports.

Key facts

9 owner complaints analyzed

2 distinct recall campaigns

13,982 mi median reported failure mileage

Scope: 1989 model year. Data snapshot: 2026-09-12 (September 12, 2026). 1 complaints include usable failure mileage.

Owner-reported patterns

Most common problems

Tires is the most frequently named component, appearing in 2 of 9 complaints (22.2%). A complaint can name multiple components.

Recurring terms in complaint narratives
Topic	Matching reports	Share of complaints
Steering behavior	1	11.1%

Topic matches use published keyword rules. They describe mentions, including negations or comparisons, and do not confirm a diagnosis. Read the matching rules.

Component breakdown

Number of unique complaints naming each component. Top eight shown.

Tires

Engine And Engine Cooling

Seat Belts

Seat Belts:Front

Seat Belts:Front:Buckle Assembly

Seat Belts:Front:Retractor

Seat Belts:Rear/Other

Seats

Tires: 2; Engine And Engine Cooling: 1; Seat Belts: 1; Seat Belts:Front: 1; Seat Belts:Front:Buckle Assembly: 1; Seat Belts:Front:Retractor: 1; Seat Belts:Rear/Other: 1; Seats: 1

Reported problems by failure mileage

Complaint counts in mileage bands. These are not failure rates per vehicle or mile.

Under 25,000

25,000 to 49,999

50,000 to 74,999

75,000 to 99,999

100,000 to 149,999

150,000 and above

Under 25,000: 1; 25,000 to 49,999: 0; 50,000 to 74,999: 0; 75,000 to 99,999: 0; 100,000 to 149,999: 0; 150,000 and above: 0

Under 25,000 miles has the most reports with usable mileage (1). 8 complaints have missing, zero or invalid mileage.

Complaints over time

Year the complaint was filed, not the vehicle model year or incident year. The snapshot year is partial.

1995

1996

2002

2003

2004

1995: 3; 1996: 2; 2002: 1; 2003: 1; 2004: 2

Pattern summary

Tires leads the component reports. Steering behavior appears in 1 complaint narratives. Use these patterns to inspect individual reports and prepare questions for a mechanic.

Calculated from recorded counts. An AI narrative has not been published for this selection.

Examples from the source records

Examples provide context, not a representative sample or a verified diagnosis.

Owner report 10021904 · 2003-05-30 (May 30, 2003)

THE RIGHT REAR TIRE BLEW OUT. STEELTEX RADIAL LT TIRES. *AK THE TIRE PRESSURE HAD RUN LOW, BUT NEVER MORE THAN 2 PSI HIGH. (NEVER ANY IMPACT) THE BLOWOUT HAPPENED ON A SMOOTH ROAD AT A LOW SPEED. THERE WERE NEVER ANY REPAIRS DONE TO THE TIRES. THE BLOWOUT HAD A "T" SHAPED 4-5" EDGE OF TREAD, WITH A LEG OF "T" THAT EXTENDED FROM THE TREAD NEAR THE BEAD. FIRESTONE CONSIDERED THIS IMPACT DAMAGE AND WOULD NOT REPLACE. *SCC *JB

Owner-reported narrative. 13,982 miles reported. Look up ODI 10021904 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10070498 · 2004-01-15 (January 15, 2004)

WE PURCHASED A 1989 GMC SUBURBAN IN FEBRUARY 2003. AT THAT TIME THE PERSON WE HAD PURCHASED THE VEHICLE FROM TOLD US THERE WAS A POSSIBILITY THE PAINT HAD BEEN RECALLED, BUT HE HAD NEVER CHECKED INTO IT. UPON US TAKING DELIVERY I BEGAN TO SEARCH ON THE WEB AND CAME UPON YOUR INFORMATION AND TOOK THE ADVICE OF CONTACTING OUR LOCAL SERVICE MANAGER AT OUR CHEVY DEALERSHIP. THEY TOLD ME IT WAS TOO OLD AND THE RECALL HAD EXPIRED. TODAY 6-31-03 I CALLED THE GM SERVICE CENTER AND WAS GIVEN A SERVICE # OF 1-1-146-15140, AND TOLD TO CALL A DIFFERENT …

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10070498 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 10090113 · 2004-08-31 (August 31, 2004)

WHILE AT A STOP VEHICLE JERKED FORWARD INTERMITTENTLY. DEALERSHIP WAS NOTIFIED, BUT DID NOT RESOLVE THE PROBLEM. *AK

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 10090113 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 484411 · 1995-07-28 (July 28, 1995)

DRIVERS CHAIR SLIPPED BACK WHILE DRIVING, CAUSING LOSS OF CONTROL/ACCIDENT/INJURY PRIOR TO RECALL.(93V187000) *DSH

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 484411 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 759713 · 2002-03-23 (March 23, 2002)

THE TIRE BLEW UP, CAUSING THE VEHICLE TO TURN IMMEDIATELY TO THE LEFT. THIS CAUSED A WRECK AND PHYSICAL DAMAGE TO THE DRIVER.*AK (TIRESIZE: LT26575R16)

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 759713 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 969512 · 1995-07-28 (July 28, 1995)

THE DRIVER AND THE REAR DRIVER SIDE SEAT LAP BELT BROKE . TT

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 969512 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 976864 · 1995-12-20 (December 20, 1995)

SEATBELT RETRACTOR ON BACK SEAT FAILED, REPLACED TWICE AND THE BUCKLE LOCKS UP. TT

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 976864 at NHTSA ↗

Owner report 979006 · 1996-02-12 (February 12, 1996)

THE DEALERSHIP SAID THEY WOULD ORDER THE PART AND WHEN THE VEHICLE WAS BROUGHT TO THE DEALERSHIP THERE WAS NO PART. PLEASE DESCRIBE. TT

Owner-reported narrative. Look up ODI 979006 at NHTSA ↗

Recall history

2 distinct campaigns affect this selection. Announcement dates below are different from vehicle model years. A campaign may cover multiple years.

93V016000 · Power Train:Automatic Transmission

Reported: 1993-02-01 (February 1, 1993)

UNANTICIPATED HEAT IN THE TRANSMISSION CAN FORCE THE TRANSMISSION FLUID OUT OF THE VENT TUBE.

Consequence: THE VENTED TRANSMISSION FLUID CAN CATCH FIRE IF EXPOSEDTO A SOURCE OF IGNITION.

Remedy: INSTALL A LONGER TRANSMISSION VENT HOSE ROUTED TO THE LEFT SIDE OF THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT OF THE VEHICLE.

NHTSA campaign record ↗

93V187000 · Seats

Reported: 1993-11-16 (November 16, 1993)

THE RECLINER MECHANISM AND THE SEAT FRAME MAY HAVE FOAM AND/OR VINYL BETWEEN THEM, CREATING A "SOFT" JOINT. THIS "SOFT" JOINT RESULTS IN LOWER THAN SPECIFIED BOLT TORQUE WHICH LEADS TO JOINT LOOSENESS, CAUSING BOLT FATIGUE AND EVENTUAL BOLT FAILURE.

Consequence: IF BOLT FAILURE OCCURS TO THE DRIVER'S SEAT, IT WOULDALLOW THE SEAT BACK TO SUDDENLY RECLINE, AND COULD RESULT IN LOSS OF VEHICLECONTROL AND A VEHICLE CRASH WITHOUT PRIOR WARNING.

Remedy: DEALERS WILL REMOVE THE FOAM AND/OR VINYL FROM BETWEEN THE RECLINER MECHANISM AND THE SEAT FRAME "SOFT" JOINT AND REPLACE THE RECLINER BOLTS.

NHTSA campaign record ↗