In November of 2008, the U.S. District Court in Seattle approved a class action settlement for owners and lessees of certain 2003 to 2006 GM vehicles, which were alleged to have defective speedometers. The Chevrolet Silverado was one of these, and there have, indeed, been many instances of the instrument panel in these (and many other) General Motors vehicles developing problems.
The G.M. Special Coverage Adjustment issued in conjunction with the ruling required GM to replace these instrument panels at no cost to the consumer on vehicles within 7 years or 70,000 miles (110,000 km) of the date they were first placed in service. Panels on vehicles 7 years old or younger with 70,001 miles (110,001 km) to 80,000 miles (130,000 km) would receive replacements, but the owner or lessee was responsible for the cost of labor. Owners of vehicles that qualified but who had already paid for the repairs themselves could be eligible for reimbursement, up to the price the dealership would have charged, as long as proper proof could be provided.
According to the agreement, owners of vehicles older than 7 years or who had driven
More information on GM instrument cluster failure
Case Documents
* Settlement Agreement (PDF)
* Class Notice with Reimbursement Claim Form (PDF)
* Service Bulletin regarding “Special Coverage” (Complete) (PDF)
Of course, as of the end of 2013 or so, almost all of the vehicles affected were outside of the age limits for free replacement. But that doesn’t mean that the instrument panels were working. Unfortunately for the owners, the cost of repairing the instrument cluster at the dealership, and at many shops, could run as high as $600, even $800.
We at Dr. Speedometer don’t think that’s fair. Or reasonable. We know that these instrument clusters can be repaired for far less, and that is exactly what we do. Plus, we do it the day we receive it so that you can get back on the road fast, often within a week. We pay for you to ship the faulty panel to us and to ship it back good as new, and we guarantee our work for life. The parts we use are the same as the ones you would get at the dealership – with new OEM factory redesigned motors (X27.168), not old surplus or motors stripped from junkyard units that are likely to fail again. Every gauge will be refurbished, every meter motor replaced, whether it has already failed or not. We want you to have an instrument panel that works, and we don’t think you should have to sell the farm to get it.
Have questions? Give us a call (1-800-405-1056) or shoot us an email– we receive and answer each one personally. Ready to get things rolling? Visit our order page and print out your shipping label so you can get your panel in the mail today and get back on the road.
