2008 Chevrolet Tahoe Electrical System Problems
Owners have filed 87 complaints with NHTSA about electrical system problems on the 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe, 16% of all complaints for this model year. Half of the reports with a mileage happened before 63,000 miles. The words owners use most often: “door locks” (22% of reports).
- 87electrical system complaints
- 63,000median miles at failure
- 0mention a crash
- 0mention an injury
- 2related recalls
- 44%of reports with a speed happened at 50+ mph
What owners describe
Phrases that appear unusually often in these complaints compared with complaints about other cars.
- Door locks: mentioned in 19 of 87 complaints (22%)
- Lock actuator: mentioned in 6 of 87 complaints (7%)
At what mileage do electrical system problems happen?
Based on 65 complaints that reported the odometer reading.
How serious are the reports?
Of 87 complaints, 2 a fire.
Chevrolet Tahoe electrical system complaints by model year
| Model year | Electrical System complaints | Share of that year | Median miles |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 Tahoe | 8 | 16% | — |
| 2024 Tahoe | 14 | 21% | 15,769 |
| 2023 Tahoe | 38 | 17% | 15,000 |
| 2022 Tahoe | 38 | 20% | 60,000 |
| 2021 Tahoe | 56 | 12% | 37,000 |
| 2020 Tahoe | 12 | 21% | 60,000 |
| 2019 Tahoe | 16 | 15% | 39,000 |
| 2018 Tahoe | 13 | 12% | 8,350 |
| 2017 Tahoe | 20 | 11% | 50,000 |
| 2016 Tahoe | 31 | 12% | 58,500 |
| 2015 Tahoe | 135 | 21% | 59,500 |
| 2014 Tahoe | 15 | 17% | 54,000 |
| 2013 Tahoe | 17 | 7% | 89,867 |
| 2012 Tahoe | 13 | 7% | 80,000 |
| 2011 Tahoe | 17 | 4% | 62,704 |
| 2010 Tahoe | 16 | 5% | 64,176 |
| 2009 Tahoe | 33 | 12% | 72,500 |
| 2008 Tahoe | 87 | 16% | 63,000 |
| 2007 Tahoe | 142 | 12% | 80,000 |
| 2006 Tahoe | 24 | 21% | 123,000 |
| 2005 Tahoe | 126 | 43% | 65,500 |
| 2004 Tahoe | 214 | 46% | 68,000 |
| 2003 Tahoe | 193 | 38% | 73,500 |
| 2002 Tahoe | 30 | 7% | 91,500 |
| 2001 Tahoe | 20 | 4% | 60,813 |
| 2000 Tahoe | 11 | 4% | 74,451 |
| 1999 Tahoe | 47 | 9% | 89,339 |
| 1998 Tahoe | 20 | 8% | 87,000 |
| 1997 Tahoe | 21 | 5% | 125,000 |
| 1996 Tahoe | 34 | 12% | 98,500 |
| 1995 Tahoe | 35 | 14% | 117,500 |
When owners reported it
Related recalls (2)
Electrical system
Problem: Gm is recalling certain model year 2006-2009 buick, lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; model year 2008-2009 buick enclave; cadillac cts; model year 2007-2009 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl; saturn outlook; and model year 2009 chevrolet traverse vehicles equipped with a heated washer fluid system (hwfs). A recall was implemented in 2008 to add a fuse to the control circuit harness to address the potential consequences of a printed circuit board (pcb) electrical short. However, there have been new reports of thermal incidents on hwfs modules after this improvement was installed. These incidents resulted from a new failure mode attributed to the device's thermal protection feature. The significance varies from minor distortion to considerable melting of the plastic around the hwfs fluid chamber.
Risk: It is possible for the heated washer module to ignite and a fire may occur.
Fix: Dealers will permanently disable and remove the heated washer fluid module. An updated page for the owner manual will be provided and inserted in the owner manual to document that the feature has been permanently disabled and removed from the vehicle. The safety recall began on june 11, 2010. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080, cadillac at 1-866-982-2339, chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438, saturn at 1-800-972-8876, gmc at 1-866-996-9463 and hummer at 1-800-732-5493 or at the owner center at www.gmownercenter.com.
Electrical system
Problem: Gm is recalling 857,735 my 2006-2008 buick lucerne; cadillac dts; hummer h2; my 2007-2008 cadillac escalade, escalade esv, escalade ext; chevrolet avalanche, silverado, suburban, tahoe; gmc acadia, sierra, yukon, yukon xl, saturn outlook; and my 2008 buick enclave vehicles equipped with a heated wiper washer fluid system. A short circuit on the printed circuit board for the washer fluid heater may overheat the control-circuit ground wire.
Risk: This may cause other electrical features to malfunction, create an odor, or cause smoke increasing the risk of a fire.
Fix: Dealers will install a wire harness with an in-line fuse free of charge. The recall began on september 12, 2008. Owners may contact buick at 1-866-608-8080; cadillac at 1-800-982-2339 or http://www.cadillac.com; chevrolet at 1-800-630-2438; saturn at 1-800-972-8876 or http://www.saturn.com, gmc at 1-866-996-9436; or hummer at 1-800-732-5493; or through their website at <a href=http://www.gmownercenter.com>http://www.gmownercenter.com</a> .
What owners report
Short excerpts of recent complaints, with personal details removed. Full reports are on NHTSA.gov.
The battery energy control module GM Part # 84442220 located inside the HV battery assembly caught fire. The harness that was most affected was the battery cell voltage sense wires. The way the battery voltage sense circuit is manufactured seems dangerous as there is no fusible link between the…
We were sitting in a parking lot with the engine running and heard an explosion in the vehicle. Later we discovered that the left rear, side curtain air bag had deployed. Horn has been inoperable for months cruise control hasn't worked in years steering wheel radio controls don't work. No…
Was Delivered. Took for a test drive. Stalled at stop sign. Restarted went down the road stalled and slammed into park. Contacted company was told to take to local GMC/Chevy, (said they did a bunch of research and this part should work) basically guessing had my vehicle for 9 months replaced some…

Frequently asked questions
Do all 2008 Chevrolet Tahoes have electrical system problems?
No. NHTSA has 87 owner complaints about electrical system for the 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe (16% of the 528 complaints for this model year). Complaint data shows that the problem is reported, not how many of all cars sold are affected.
Was there a recall on the 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe electrical system?
Yes: 2 safety recalls list electrical system. Check your VIN on NHTSA.gov to see whether the fix was done on your car.
At what mileage do electrical system problems start?
The median reported mileage is 63,000 miles: half of the reports with a mileage came before that.
What do owners say about electrical system problems on the 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe?
The most frequent phrase is “door locks”, in 19 of 87 complaints, followed by “lock actuator” (6).
Other 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe problems
See all 2008 Chevrolet Tahoe problems or electrical system problems across all Tahoe years.