NHTSA recall 03V117000
A recall listed here may apply to a vehicle of this year, make and model. Only the manufacturer can say whether it applies to one vehicle: check the VIN with the official lookups.
| Published by | NHTSA (United States) |
|---|---|
| Campaign number | 03V117000 |
| Manufacturer's number | 03020 |
| Manufacturer | GENERAL MOTORS CORP. |
| Reported | 2003-03-31 |
| Owners notified | 2003-08-08 |
| Component | SEAT BELTS:FRONT:BUCKLE ASSEMBLY |
| Units potentially affected | 312715 |
What is wrong
CERTAIN SPORT UTILITY VEHICLES WERE BUILT WITH A DRIVER'S SEAT BELT BUCKLE ASSEMBLY THAT CONTAINS AN ENERGY-ABSORBING LOOP. SUSTAINED LOADS OF SUFFICIENT MAGNITUDE AND DURATION ON THE BELT IN SEVERE CRASHES COULD FULLY DEPLOY THE BUCKLE ENERGY-ABSORBING LOOP, INTRODUCING A TOTAL OF 10 ADDITIONAL INCHES OF WEBBING INTO THE SEAT BELT SYSTEM. THE FREE FALLING LATCH PLATE USED IN THIS SYSTEM MAY ALLOW WEBBING TO DYNAMICALLY DISTRIBUTE BETWEEN THE LAP AND SHOULDER BELT AS THE DRIVER'S POSITION CHANGES DURING A MULTIPLE ROLLOVER EVENT.
What can happen
IF THE ENERGY-ABSORBING LOOP FULLY DEPLOYS IN A SEVERE MULTIPLE ROLLOVER CRASH, IT IS POSSIBLE THAT A BELTED DRIVER MAY EXPERIENCE PARTIAL OR EVEN COMPLETE EJECTION FROM THE VEHICLE.
The remedy
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE ENERGY-ABSORBING SEAT BELT ASSEMBLIES WITH ONE THAT DOES NOT HAVE THE ENERGY-ABSORBING LOOP. OWNER NOTIFICATION BEGAN ON AUGUST 8, 2003. OWNERS WHO TAKE THEIR VEHICLES TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER ON AN AGREED UPON SERVICE DATE AND DO NOT RECEIVE THE FREE REMEDY WITHIN A REASONABLE TIME SHOULD CONTACT CHEVROLET AT 1-800-222-1020, GMC AT 1-800-462-8782, OR OLDSMOBILE AT 1-800-442-6537.
Notes
GM RECALL NO. 03020.CUSTOMERS CAN ALSO CONTACT THE NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION'S AUTO SAFETY HOTLINE AT 1-888-DASH-2-DOT (1-888-327-4236).
| 1997 CHEVROLET BLAZER | Built 1996-03-01 to 1997-06-30. |
|---|---|
| 1997 GMC JIMMY | Built 1996-03-01 to 1997-06-30. |
| 1997 OLDSMOBILE BRAVADA | Built 1996-03-01 to 1997-06-30. |
A vehicle with no link is not in this site's catalog, which covers cars, multipurpose vehicles and trucks by model year. The campaign is from data as of 2026-10-19.
Bulletins for the same vehicles and component
| 01341A | 2003-11-20. Service bulletin. SUPPLEMENT TOOL - DRIVERS SAFETY BELT BUCKLE 03020. *TT |
|---|
A bulletin is the manufacturer's note to its dealers. It is not part of this recall.