Just sitting in my garage, my 1996 AWD Chevy Astro Van's front end suddenly fell. A driver side broken torsion bar was the culprit.
Repair was $1200.00, but that wasn't the problem. With only 65,500 miles on the van, this repair was out of the warranty window. I had it fixed at the dealer, and there was a long wait due to so many other Astro's with the same exact problem waiting to be fixed. Then I found out that the part was on national back order due to so many other Astro's with the same problem.
The worst part was that Chevy knew there was a problem and hadn't recalled it.By the time I went to get the torsion bar repaired, Chevy has already redesigned the part due to knowledge that this part was defective. The new design required both front torsion bars to be fixed, even though the passenger side wasn't broken, which doubled the bill from $600.00 to $1200.00.
Chevy isn't paying a dime on the repair despite the mechanic at the dealer telling me that if i'd been driving, the van would have likely rolled and potentially killed the occupants of the car. This is the same model that had problems with the fire risk that was recalled. C'mon Chevy, time to own up to your mistake.
My advice to all is to not buy an Astro van. Not if you value your life or pocketbook because Chevy won't help you!
Matt
minneaplis, Minnesota
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