Just one quick question:
Why didn't the dealership tell me about the problem with the column lock mechanism? This is not an insignificant little detail and can cause a major problem, so why did I have to learn about it on this Forum? What is going on with GM? Don't they feel any responsiblity in reporting these problems to their customers, or am I being unreasonable?

RJ

'04 Coupe
Borla Stinger Exhaust Pipes
Sweeet!

 

Heres some information I gathered, and it looks like the recall had been issued 2/9/2004.
Usually they send out the recall bulletin to the original owners. I agree with you, definately not something that should be taken lightly, and don't think we are being unreasonable at all.



Selected vehicle: 1998 CHEVROLET CORVETTE V8 5.7 Liter FI


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All recalls for this vehicle: 02/09/2004:STEERING 04/28/2000:SEAT BELTS


File Date 2/9/2004
Mfr. Involved GENERAL MOTORS CORP.
NHTSA Campaign # 04V060000
Mfr. Campaign # 04006

Component Affected STEERING:COLUMN LOCKING:ANTI-THEFT DEVICE

# Vehicles Affected 126624
Defect ON CERTAIN PASSENGER VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH ELECTRONIC COLUMN LOCK SYSTEMS (ECL), WHEN THE IGNITION SWITCH IS TURNED TO “LOCK,” THE ECL SYSTEM PREVENTS TURNING OF THE STEERING SYSTEM. WHEN THE VEHICLE IS STARTED, THE ECL UNLOCKS THE STEERING SYSTEM. THE VEHICLE IS DESIGNED SO THAT IF THE COLUMN FAILS TO UNLOCK WHEN THE VEHICLE IS STARTED AND THE CUSTOMER TRIES TO DRIVE, THE FUEL SUPPLY WILL BE SHUT OFF SO THAT THE VEHICLE CANNOT MOVE WHEN THE VEHICLE CANNOT BE STEERED. IF VOLTAGE AT THE POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE IS LOW OR INTERRUPTED, HOWEVER, THE FUEL SHUT OFF MAY NOT OCCUR AND THE VEHICLE CAN BE ACCELERATED WHILE THE STEERING SYSTEM IS LOCKED. ALSO WHEN THE CONTROL SYSTEM SHOWS THAT THE ECL IS UNLOCKED AND THE VEHICLE IS BEING DRIVEN, THE LOCK PIN LOCATION CAN VARY. DEPENDING ON THE LOCATION OF THE LOCK PLATE RELATIVE TO THE SWITCH TRANSITION POINT, THERE COULD THEN BE CONTACT BETWEEN THE LOCK PLATE AND PIN CAUSING THE STEERING TO LOCK WHILE DRIVING .


Consequence IF THIS OCCURS, A CRASH COULD OCCUR WITHOUT WARNING.


Corrective Action ON VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH AN AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION, THE DEALER WILL DISABLE THE STEERING COLUMN LOCK BY REMOVING THE COLUMN LOCK PLATE. WHEN THE IGNITION KEY IS REMOVED, THE TRANSMISSION SHIFTER WILL LOCK BUT THE STEERING COLUMN WILL NOT LOCK. ON VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH A MANUAL TRANSMISSION, THE DEALER WILL REPROGRAM THE POWERTRAIN CONTROL MODULE, PERFORM A DIMENSIONAL CHECK OF THE COLUMN LOCK AND, IF NECESSARY, REPLACE THE LOCK PLATE. THE STEERING COLUMN ON THESE VEHICLES WILL CONTINUE TO LOCK WHEN THE KEY IS REMOVED. OWNER NOTIFICATION TO OWNERS OF 1997 VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS BEGAN ON APRIL 26, 2004. OWNERS OF 1998 THROUGH 2004 VEHICLES (EXCEPT 1997-1998 MANUAL TRANSMISSION VEHICLES) WILL BE NOTIFIED BEGINNING ON AUGUST 2, 2004. THE REMAINING OWNERS (1997-1998 MANUAL TRANSMISSION VEHICLES) WILL BE NOTIFIED LATER IN 2004, WHEN PARTS ARE AVAILABLE. OWNERS SHOULD CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-630-2438.

 

Oh yeah, they did a recall on it. Better have it looked after.

 

I would take care of this ASAP. I got lucky and mine locked up at work in the parking lot. Of course I did have to suffer through the taunting of my co-workers who saw my baby being towed. It was like Christmas in July for those Honda, Ford, Nissian driving you know what's.

Save your self from totally your car and better yet from giving the import and Mustang guys ammo.

 

Thanks everyone, my vette's going in first thing tomorrow morning. I'm just wondering if the original owner already took care of this. Guess I'll find out tomorrow. Even if he did, the service manager said they were doing one kind of fix in the beginning, then went to another method, and now finally a 3rd method that does the job. Guess my guardian angel has been working overtime . . . good thing she can fly real fast.

Thanks again.
Stay safe.
Rita

 

My column lock actuator lasted approximately 1500 cycles. A cycle is every time the locking pin extends (to lock) or retracts (to unlock). You can get an idea as to how long yours would last based upon this observation.

The first recall allowed the dealerships to disable only automatic C5s. The manual C5s' programming was updated, but the column lock assembly was left unchanged. (I know, because I tried to get the dealership to remove the whole dang thing and they refused.) More than one year later, GM supposedly authorized the dealerships to remove the mechanism in manual C5s. However, I have long-since installed a column lock bypass.

By the way, you can tell if your C5 has the OEM mechanism in-place by hearing the Bzzzzt every time you turn the key to the "on" position. A failed column lock results in a "Remove key and wait 10 seconds" message, followed by a "Service column lock" message. At that point, your car will not run for more than a few seconds after you try to drive off. Sometimes, jiggling the key, while applying torque to the steering wheel will free up the locking pin. It didn't work for me and I had to have my car towed to the dealership.

Dave

 

Oh, gosh, I get sick when I read stuff like this. Dave, you know so much about cars that this is just a hassle for you, but for me, and other people whom do not know as much, it is a major problem. I just dropped off my car at the dealership and they said it shows in the computer that my car had been done when the recall first came out, but there is now something else that needs to be done to correct this problem. I only pray they are being truthful and not trying to crank out more money by doing some warranty work.

Thanks again for all your help.
Rita

 

Hi, Rita.

You might want to ask them if they will be completely disabling the column lock assembly. Better yet, they should remove it and install a blocking plate (I believe).

A software update will NOT fix this issue.

Good luck.

Best regards,

Dave

 

The service shop just called and said they did not have to do anything because there is no locking mechanism; it had already been removed. Apparently, the info in the computer had not been updated, so they didn't know until they got in there. I asked them if a blocking plate had been installed and they said it wasn't necessary. Thanks, Dave.

Thanks again to Dave01 for alerting the Forum to this potential problem.

Stay safe.
Rita

'04 Coupe
Borla Stinger Exhaust Pipes
Sweeet!

 

UPDATE: When I picked up my vette they told me that when GM realized there was a problem with the column lock mechanism they stopped installing them starting with a certain VIN. It just so happens that my vette was built after they stopped, so I never had a CLM to disable or remove. Too bad they couldn't tell me that before they had my baby for 5 hours. Again, makes me think they were just looking to make some money from warranty work. Oh, well, she's home and I am happy.

Take care, stay safe.
Rita