Total Complaints
6 filings
CHEVROLET SUBURBAN 2500 · model year
6 NHTSA complaints, 1 crash report for this specific cohort.
NHTSA overall rating
Not crash-tested
New Car Assessment Program
The 2005CHEVROLETSUBURBAN 2500 carries 6 consumer safety complaints in NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation database for this specific model-year cohort. Within that volume, owners reported 1 crash, 1 fire, 1 injury, and 0 fatalities. No NCAP 5-star crash-test rating is available for this model year in the federal database.
Component-level analysis is where model-year complaints become actionable: the top complaint category for the 2005 SUBURBAN 2500 is tires with 2 filings, followed by engine and engine cooling:exhaust system (1) and steering (1). Concentration in one or two component groups is the classic signature of a systemic defect; a flat distribution usually reflects normal aging, warranty complaints, or isolated build-plant variability.
NHTSA currently has 57 investigation files overlapping the 2005 SUBURBAN 2500, and 2 remain open. Owners comparing this cohort against neighboring years should pair the counters above with the complaint-by-year trend on the parent model page — a spike in a single year often tracks to a platform refresh, a new transmission supplier, or an updated ECU calibration. Use the related-complaint feed below to read raw owner narratives before deciding whether any pattern here affects your specific use case.
Total Complaints
6 filings
Crashes Reported
1 reports
Source
NHTSA ODI
Federal complaints database
At or below the fleet median complaint volume.
| Component | Count |
|---|---|
| TIRES | 2 |
| ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING:EXHAUST SYSTEM | 1 |
| STEERING | 1 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM: INSTRUMENT CLUSTER/PANEL | 1 |
| ELECTRICAL SYSTEM | 1 |
UNIROYAL LIBERATOR . THE TREAD SEPARATION OCCURRED ABOUT 11AM ON SATURDAY JULY 15, 2013 ON EAST BOUND I-10 JUST EAST OF OZONA, TEXAS. SPEED WAS ~79 MPH AS PART OF A BOY SCOUT CONVOY RETURNING FROM A HIGH ADVENTURE OUTING. VEHICLE WAS A 2005 K2500 SUBURBAN, LIGHTLY LOADED WITH MYSELF, 4 SCOUTS AND TWO BACK PACKS. WEATHER WAS OVERCAST AND 76 DEGREES F. NOT TOWING. TIRE PRESSURE WAS CHECKED AT 80 PSI BEFORE THE TRIP STARTED AND THE TIRE CASING WAS STILL INFLATED WHEN REMOVED TO PUT ON THE SPARE. *TR
Mileage: 16,903
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN 2500. THE CONTACT INSPECTED THE VEHICLE AND DETECTED A SHORTAGE WITHIN THE CIRCUITS UNDER THE DRIVER'S SIDE DASHBOARD, WHICH RESULTED IN THE WIRES BECOMING MELTED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED AND RECOMMENDED THE VEHICLE BE TAKEN TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER FOR DIAGNOSIS. THE VEHICLE HAD NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 107,000.
Mileage: 107,000
THE SPEEDOMETER READS ERRONEOUSLY HIGH AND OFTEN EXCEEDS 100 MPH READINGS WHILE MY GPS READS AT 70MPH. THERE IS NO TIME AT WHICH INDICATED SPEED READINGS CAN BE TRUSTED. *TR
Mileage: 106,389
2005 CHEVROLET SUBURBAN STEERING GEAR FAILURE X5. THE STEERING GEAR AND INTERMEDIATE DRIVE SHAFT HAS FAILED 5 TIMES SINCE 2006. VEHICLE HAS 85K MILES ON IT. *LN
Mileage: 84,000
EXHAUST MANIFOLD BOLT HEAD BROKE OFF. 1ST BOLT INITIALLY THEN SECOND BOLT NEXT TO IT BROKE AS WELL. NO WORK HAS BEEN DONE TO MOTOR OR AFTERMARKET PARTS ADDED THAT WOULD AFFECT THIS PART AND CREATE FAILURE. EXHAUST GAS ENTERS THE UNDERHOOD AREA . THE EXHAUST MAKES A BLACK PLUME UP SIDE OF MOTOR. CONCERNED THAT THE LEAK COULD WORSEN LEADING TO EXHAUST FUMES ENTERING PASSENGER COMPARTMENT. I DO NOT KNOW IF THE ESCAPING HOT EXHAUST GAS COULD LEAD TO FIRE. IN ADDITION, I WOULD THINK THE EPA WOULD BE CONCERNED ABOUT EFFECTS ON VEHICLE EMISSIONS. THE LEAKING EXHAUST GAS IS NOT PASSED THROUGH THE CATALYTIC CONVERTER. THE LEAKING GAS IS ALSO NOT SAMPLED BY THE OXYGEN SENSOR AND COULD EFFECT THE SENSORS INPUT TO THE VEHICLE COMPUTER. I SEE BY DOING SIMPLE INTERNET SEARCHES ON THIS TOPIC THAT THE BOLT FAILURE AND LEAKING EXHAUST MANIFOLD PROBLEM IS WIDESPREAD. I HAVE NOT REPAIRED THE BROKEN BOLTS YET. *TR
Mileage: 68,000
ROLLOVER ACCIDENT OF 2005 CHEVY SUBURBAN. RIGHT REAR TIRE SEPARATED TREAD AT HIGHWAY SPEED. TIRES WERE BIG O PATHMAX LT245/75R16. TIRES HAD 10,465 MILES OF USE AT TIME OF ACCIDENT. THE TREAD ON REMAINING INFLATED TIRES SHOWED BELTS BETWEEN TREAD EVEN THOUGH THE TREAD ITSELF LOOKED OK. DRIVER WAS INJURED, VEHICLE WAS TOTALED. *TR
Mileage: 36,321
Loss of motive power due to engine failure
Loss of Motive Power due to the Battery Energy Control Module
Electric Vehicle Battery Fires
Outboard Front Seat Belt Anchor Cable Failure
Fuel Line Leak
Data as of 2025. Sources: NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) complaints database, NHTSA recall campaign API, NHTSA NCAP crash-test ratings, and NHTSA FARS for fatality cross-reference.
Read our methodology — how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.