1988 Chevrolet Astro
Safety record from NHTSA: recalls, owner complaints, investigations and service bulletins.
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Vehicles › Chevrolet › Astro › 1988
These records cover every 1988 Chevrolet Astro. To see whether one car still needs a recall repair, decode its VIN or check it with NHTSA.
Recalls
5 recalls name the 1988 Chevrolet Astro. Newest first.
Certain ck motorsports combination headlights, clear corner, bumper, and side marker lights sold as replacement lamps for use on the passenger vehicles listed above. some combination lamps that are not equipped with amber side reflectors fail to conform to federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 108, lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment.
Risk and remedy
Risk
Without the amber reflectors, the vehicle will be poorly illuminated, possibly resulting in a vehicle crash without warning.
Remedy
Ck motorsport will notify owners and replace the noncompliant lamps free of charge. the recall began on july 1, 2006. owners may contact ck motorsport at 1-909-610-7211.
Certain replacement fuel filters, fram brand name p/n g3727, with date codes x52911 through x60801 sequentially or x600141 and a mexico country or origin marking on the fuel filter housing manufactured from october 18, 2005, through march 21, 2006, sold for use on the vehicles listed above and on certain school buses. (to see the school bus engine sizes…
Risk and remedy
Risk
This condition may cause an inadequate seal at the connection, potentially leading to a fuel leak. In the presence of an ignition source, a fire could occur.
Remedy
Honeywell will notify owners and replace the fuel filters free of charge. the recall began on october 18, 2006. owners may contact fram customer service at 1-800-890-2075 (option 1).
Certain pro-a motors corner lamps, turn signals, and headlights sold as replacement lamps for use on certain passenger vehicles listed above. some combination lamps that are not equipped with amber side reflectors fail to conform to federal motor vehicle safety standard no. 108, lamps, reflective devices, and associated equipment.
Risk and remedy
Risk
Without the amber reflectors, the vehicle will be poorly illuminated, possibly resulting in a vehicle crash without warning.
Remedy
Pro-a motors will notify owners and offer to repurchase the lamps. the recall began on april 3, 2006. owners may contact pro-a motors at 323-838-2988.
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.
Risk and remedy
Risk
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.
The seat belts for the front and mid-ship seats did not rest on pelvis as required by fmvss 209.
Risk and remedy
Risk
Seat belts may not restrain seat occupant, and couldinjure the seat occupant in the event of a sudden stop or accident.
Remedy
Relocate seat belt anchor bolts to adjust belts for seat locations.
Owner complaints
56 complaints5 involved a fire2 deaths
What owners report most
Latest complaints
- Engine and engine cooling › Engine
Fissure in the radiator
- Steering › Linkages › Arm › Idler and attachment
Consumer states idler arm tore off the frame, causing steering to the fail. Dealer notified. *Ak
- Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Gasoline
While driving at 35mph on flat surface and with no warning vehicle will shut off, but will be easy to start it back up. Dealer notified. *ak
- Electrical system › Wiring › Front underhood · Engine and engine cooling › Cooling system › Fan · Fuel system, gasoline › Delivery › Fuel pump · Interior lighting
Overheating of dome/instrument light dimmer switch and plug in front of it caught fire. burned parts replaced. happened twice more (without fire). overheating in this area persists when headlights are on. one headlight gets extremely hot. burned out front fan motor and a month later fuel pump burned out.
- Steering › Hydraulic power assist › Pump
Bolts that go through the power steering pump bracket into the engine have broken for the second time on a 4.3L engine. Dealer was notified. Feel free to provide any further information.*ak
- Power train › Automatic transmission · Power train › Automatic transmission › Torque converter · Vehicle speed control
After 1-2 hours of traveling transmission shifted very hard. Dealer has been contacted, and technician stated that torque converter and valve body needed to be replaced. *Ak consumer states when coming to a stop and then taking off, the vehicle would jerk very hard from 1ST to 2ND gear, when…
After 1-2 hours of traveling transmission shifted very hard. Dealer has been contacted, and technician stated that torque converter and valve body needed to be replaced. *Ak consumer states when coming to a stop and then taking off, the vehicle would jerk very hard from 1ST to 2ND gear, when vehicle cools off this does not happen, transmission specialist stated that the valve body and torque converter had been redesigned since this vehicle was manufactured. *slc
- Seats › Front assembly › Recliner
I was getting ready to back out of a parking space when the seat back immediately reclined. it IS a good thing that I was not driving at the time as I would of lost total control of the vehicle. I took the van into another dealership (medved chevrolet in arvada, co) as the original dealership was…
I was getting ready to back out of a parking space when the seat back immediately reclined. it IS a good thing that I was not driving at the time as I would of lost total control of the vehicle. I took the van into another dealership (medved chevrolet in arvada, co) as the original dealership was out of business. the service dept. Told me that there was only one recall for my vehicle and it was in 1993 for the seat track and not the bolt. they would not fix it under a recall. I know that when medved did the original recall repair/replacement, that the recall claimed that the drivers seat would immediately fall backwards and could create loss of control of the vehicle. thank you for your time on this.*ak
- Tires
The vehicle was involved in a fatal four vehicle accident due to possible failure and blowout of the firestone p 215/70r15 tire, prior to accident the consumer purchased all new tires (8-97), one was replaced one month prior to accident due to wire threads sticking out of the sidewalls. The family…
The vehicle was involved in a fatal four vehicle accident due to possible failure and blowout of the firestone p 215/70r15 tire, prior to accident the consumer purchased all new tires (8-97), one was replaced one month prior to accident due to wire threads sticking out of the sidewalls. The family of the driver of the astro van IS seeking an investigate regarding the possibility of the tire being the cause instead of the consumer, who IS now in jail. *mjs
- Steering › Hydraulic power assist system
Vehicle botom bolt to power steering bracket kept breaking. Been to dealer on one occasions, and unable to locate the cause. *ak the bracket broke again one year after being replaced. *yh
- Tires
Right rear tire, bearing and axel show extreme wear over a short period if time. have had two blowouts of the tire and four other tire failures in the right rear position. had to replace the axel and wheel bearing due to excessive wear. this IS the result of a design problem. the muffler has…
Right rear tire, bearing and axel show extreme wear over a short period if time. have had two blowouts of the tire and four other tire failures in the right rear position. had to replace the axel and wheel bearing due to excessive wear. this IS the result of a design problem. the muffler has been placed in too close proximity to the right tire and axel housing. heat from the muffler cause the tire to smell like overheated rubber after a high speed run. especially in hot weather and road conditions. the vehicle IS not a dual rear axel and when the tire blows loss of control may well kill passengers and collide with other vehicles. I have cured this problem in my vehicle by wrapping the muffler with header tape and enclosing it all in stove pipe held in place with large hose clamps. this works quite well. there are others on the road and the owners are not aware of the danger.
- Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Gasoline › Belts and associated pulleys · Steering › Hydraulic power assist › Pump
The one piece acessory mounting bracket cracks and fails which causes the power steering pumb to bend forward and the single serpentine belt to be thrown. the vehicle was previously owned by the county of san luis obispo and you could tell that one the bracket cracked, it put a strain on the loer…
The one piece acessory mounting bracket cracks and fails which causes the power steering pumb to bend forward and the single serpentine belt to be thrown. the vehicle was previously owned by the county of san luis obispo and you could tell that one the bracket cracked, it put a strain on the loer 2 mounting bolts and snapped the heads off the bolts. I previously owned another chevy with the 305 engine and that bracket also failed. I have also sen many of these brackets on used engins at salvage yards with cracks in the same place. when the bracket brakes, you lose all power assist which could put the vehicle and passengers at risk. I am an engineer by education and have also owned an auto repair garage. I have determined that the part needs an additional gusset welded so that it cannot flex and ultimately fail.
- Steering › Column
Tilt steering column became loose. On two occasions repair shop had to replace the streering column. Dealer/manufacturer were not contacted. *ak
- Unknown or other
No summary
- Power train › Driveline › Differential unit · Suspension › Rear
While driving vehicle there was a noise coming from the rear end, as if something was falling out. Differential has been replaced twice and problem still exists.
- Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Gasoline
Vehicle fire due to possible engine failure. (Ohio traffic crash report). Mjs
- Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Gasoline › Belts and associated pulleys
Serpentine belt continually comes off particularly when raining, causing loss of power steering ability.
- Steering › Hydraulic power assist › Pump
The defective plate that holds the power steering pump cracked, causing the steering belt to jump off, resulting in no steering ability. dealer cannot determine problem. *Ak
- Service brakes, hydraulic › Foundation components
Poor braking performance. stoping distance of vehicle IS longer than expected. with a full passenger load, vehicle doe not want to stop within resonable distance. has returned vehicle to dealer 3 different times, and every part except brake lines and proportioning valve has been replaced. van…
Poor braking performance. stoping distance of vehicle IS longer than expected. with a full passenger load, vehicle doe not want to stop within resonable distance. has returned vehicle to dealer 3 different times, and every part except brake lines and proportioning valve has been replaced. van brakes continue to under perform. dealer service manager of 10 years said that 1985 through 1988 astro's were well known for poor braking performance. I will not let anyone other than myself drive this vehicle.*ak
- Power train › Automatic transmission
Transmission failed.
- Unknown or other
Experiencing poor instrument panel visibility whenever sun IS facing consumer while driving. Driver unable to see speedometer . Dealer notified, says that it IS bad design. *ak
- Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Gasoline
Engine fire.(ohio police report).
- Seat belts
Front seat belts are hard to unlatch while exiting vehicle. Also, child restraints in rear of vehicle do not function properly. Cause unknown. *ak
- Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Gasoline › Belts and associated pulleys
Serpentine belt comes off approximately every 6 weeks, causing loss of power steering and overheating.
- Suspension › Rear › Springs › Leaf spring assembly › Leaf
While driving about 55 mph the right rear leaf spring broke causing the vehicle to swerve. owner has been in contact with the dealer. *ak consumer states fiberglass vehicle spring broke and felt like a blowout, consumer replaced spring and vehicle handles fine. *slc
- Engine and engine cooling › Engine › Gasoline
The plate that attaches to the front of the engine cracked, causing the power steering pump to become loose.
Defect investigations
NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened these reviews into vehicles including this one.
- Seat back bolt breakage
There is no summary currently available
- Driver seat back failure
There is no summary currently available
- Power steering failure
There is no summary currently available
- Spare tire carrier failure
There is no summary currently available
- Power steering failure
There is no summary currently available
- Rear axle seal failure
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- Rear a/c unit
There is no summary currently available
Service bulletins
Technical service bulletins and other communications the manufacturer sent dealers about this vehicle. Ask a dealer for the full document by its number.
- 10028790General motors: on all 1988-2009 full size chevrolet/gmc pickups, utilities and vans, the brake pedal will move down or self apply during full lock turns or near full lock turns. Chevrolet astro and GMC safari vans; hummer 2 are included. Updated 5/24/11.
- 10007838Diagnostic information for intermittent transmission downshift, slip, busy/cycling tcc or noisy cooling fan.
- 10007244Window regulator motor does not fit.
- 37942Transmission extention seal leaks.
Every Chevrolet Astro model year
Bars are owner complaints, dots mark years with recalls. Select a year to open its report.