2001 GMC DENALI User Comment / Complaint

I had a power steering failure that happened in a parking lot on sat. june4th shortly after turning on my air conditioning. i was attempting to leave a parking lot when i thought my engine had stalled because i had no power steering. had the timing in the loss of power steering been in a different situation it could have been tragic for me, my family and/or others !!! i took my vehicle into keller automotive in shelby township, mi. after i had caused jim causley pontic in mt. clemens michigan to find out if this item might still be under warranty. after i found out it wasn't i took it to kellers where they almost immediately knew what the problem was. i believe they stated that it was the shaft in the power steering pump that fails. though they did say they have not seen it often in my model they said it was seen in other light duty gm trucks that share the same power steering pump. they stated to me that gm has upgraded their pumps to have a heavier duty shaft which was $394 for the part alone. if this is a common problem i would definitely consider it a safety issue and expect gm to announce a recall regarding this issue. i will hold on to my receipt in hopes that gm would come to the table regarding resolving this issue or that the nhtsa could possibly force the issue if neccessary. if this is an isolated incident i'm sorry for wasting your time but i would hope that something could be done before the potential loss of life occurs if i am correct in understanding that this is not uncommon, thank you for your time and help !!, sincerely, perry m. houser