10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
5 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
4 / 0
Average Mileage:
28,303 miles

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problem #37

Apr 012015

Silverado

  • miles
2004 Chevrolet Silverado. Consumer writes in regards to brake failure due to rusted brake lines. The consumer was informed when the first line of the dual system failed, the second system received additional pressure which caused that one to fail too.

- Schuylerville, NY, USA

problem #36

Apr 242012

Silverado

  • 93,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado. The contact was driving 35 mph when the brakes failed and the vehicle crashed into the woods. The vehicle was not destroyed and the brake warning light illuminated after the failure. The vehicle was then towed to the contact's home. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The manufacturer was notified. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileages were 93,000.

- Jackson, NJ, USA

problem #35

Mar 072012

Silverado

  • 66,027 miles
2004 Chevrolet Silverado has severely rusted and corroded brake lines. Must be replaced. With all the emphasis on safety it is absurd that these vehicles do not have corrosion proof ( stainless steel brake lines). Repair will be very costly. I had three Ford pickups prior to this Chevrolet, kept them for a minimum of 10 years and never had a brake line problem. These are obviously inferior/defective and vehicle should be recalled and the brake lines replaced at Chevrolet's expense.

- Uniontown, PA, USA

problem #34

Dec 012010

Silverado

  • 85,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado. While driving approximately 15 mph, the driver depressed the brake pedal but the brakes would not respond. The vehicle eventually came to a stop after repeatedly applying the brakes. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic for diagnostics where the mechanic advised the contact that two of the brake lines were corroded and would have to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired but the failure later recurred. The vehicle was repaired a second time. The approximate failure mileage was 85,000.

- Wayne, NJ, USA

problem #33

Nov 112011

Silverado

  • 82,301 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado diesel. The contact stated that while the brake pedal was depressed and the gear selector was placed in drive, the vehicle emitted a loud banging noise and the brake pedal depressed to the floor. The contact inspected the vehicle and noticed brake fluid leaking and spilling over the engine. The vehicle was then towed to an authorized dealer for examination. The dealer stated that there was a power steering failure and a brake booster failure. The manufacturer was notified and a complaint was lodged. The dealer replaced the brake booster assembly and the vehicle was repaired. The failure mileage was 82,301 and the current mileage 82,600.

- Inglewood , FL, USA

problem #32

Oct 312011

Silverado 8-cyl

  • 40,000 miles
Ruptured brake lines, dealer said it is very common, wants $1500 for repair. My daughter has 2003 Silverado & the day before her line ruptured also!

- Califon, NJ, USA

problem #31

Sep 142011

Silverado 4WD 8-cyl Diesel

  • Automatic transmission
  • 80,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado. The contact stated that the brake lines failed and caused the contact to crash into a garage door while entering a residential driveway. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the contact was advised that the brake lines were rusted completely. The failure mileage was 80,000 and the current mileage was 80,988.

- Wilcott, NY, USA

problem #30

Jul 272009

Silverado 8-cyl

  • 64,246 miles
I was exiting freeway and applied brakes to slow down. Pedal went to floor. Luckily I got slowed enoughtostop. Called dealer and had vehicle towed. They replaced two brake lines from master cylinder prop. Valve tobrake pressure mod. Valve. Bad design on this vehichle. Replacement parts were udated without this design. I ask about this and was informed that they did away with the original design. 30,000 dollars rolling down the road looking for an accident. They weren't interested in my safety or correcting the problem at there cost, but were glad to relieve me of $536. Thank you

- Iuka, IL, USA

problem #29

Jul 022011

Silverado

  • 44,000 miles
Brake line rusted and burst

- Zion Grove, PA, USA

problem #28

Apr 272011

Silverado

  • 62,000 miles
Brake rotors deteriorated to put they had to be replaced, could not be resurfaced. Found many other people have had same problem. Seems to me GM has used inferior metal. Truck is used only for occasional hauling. Truck is 2 wheel drive - no off roading.

- Wilmington, DE, USA

problem #27

Apr 162011

Silverado

  • 70,510 miles
My wife and I were traveling down a steep hill with a stop sign at the bottom. I proceeded to begin pumping the brakes to slow down, as I was pumping the brake, the pedal kept going down further and further to the floor. It went all the way to the floor and a red warning light came on telling me to service the brake system. I used the emergency brake at the last minute to come to a complete halt. I got out and noticed some oil on the pavement that turned out to be brake fluid. I stopped at an auto place and bought a large bottle of brake fluid to fill the master cylinder. I then stepped on the brake and could see the fluid spewing out of one of the brake lines. The brake lines are very badly corroded. I towed the vehicle to my neighborhood mechanic and he informed me that another Chevy truck was there with the same problem. This near miss truly scared both me and my wife and we were both grateful we didn't have a serious crash. The vehicle is now at a Chevy dealer for repair and they will be starting the work on Thursday, April 21st. I did contact GM to complain about what I believe is a very serious safety issue, they have called me to ask for the details. I've researched this problem online and found that there are numerous Chevy truck vehicles with the same corroded brake lines so I decided to put in a complaint. The NHTSA has complaint #ODI 10358067 already in it's database and I suspect many others based on what I see online. Chevy brakes systems have 365 complaints noted at edmunds.com. And I question how many have not been reported. Just a note, I am an ex-engineer and believe the design is very poor and that the material chosen actually begs for failure. GM engineers should be ashamed of the design. Please contact me if you have questions. Thank you.

- Vestal, NY, USA

problem #26

Nov 152006

Silverado

  • miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado. The contact stated that while driving at various speeds with the brakes applied they extended to the floor and the vehicle failed to come to a complete stop. The dealer was informed about the failure and stated that they could not find anything wrong with the vehicle. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure mileage was unknown. The VIN was not available. The current mileage was 70000.

- Dover , NJ, USA

problem #25

Sep 152010

Silverado

  • 42,000 miles
2004 Chevrolet Silverado. When decelerating to stop for a red light, the ABS system activated causing the vehicles deceleration to decrease, thus increasing the stopping distance, resulting in a near collision. The vehicle now does this consistently during every stop once the vehicles speed drops bellow 10 mph. There are no warning lights indicating anything is wrong with the vehicle, which is even more alarming. This problem seems to be identical to that in NHTSA campaign id number 05V379000. If there is an problem with speed sensing (as in NHTSA campaign id number: 05V379000), the system should be able to detect inconsistent sensor readings and render the ABS system into a passive mode as a fail safe measure.

- Shafer, MN, USA

problem #24

Mar 012010

Silverado

  • 79,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 hd. The contact stated while driving at approximately 40 mph and applying the brakes, the brakes were hesitant to engage. He had to depress the brake pedal into the floorboard in order to bring the vehicle to a stop. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic but the failure could not be duplicated. The dealer advised there were no recalls on the vehicle. The failure mileage was 79,000 and the current mileage was 80,000.

- Bakersfield, CA, USA

problem #23

Nov 152009

Silverado

  • 17,589 miles
Ongoing brake problems with rotors and pads. The initial failure of all rotors and pads were replaced by dealer 11,505 miles. Rear pads have failed again at 17,589 miles. This vehicle was in for a state safety inspection and failed so again I will be in contact with dealership.

- Pennsburg, PA, USA

problem #22

Aug 152009

Silverado 8-cyl

  • 23,150 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado. While driving at 45 mph he felt a pulsating sensation and all of a sudden he began to apply pressure to the brake pedal. The vehicle stopped but felt as if it did not come to a complete stop. He then pulled over and could not locate the failure. The vehicle was then taken to a dealer. The technician states there was normal wear and tear on the vehicle. The dealer stated they will not repair the failure due to no warranty on the vehicle. The contact states the vehicle had 23,000 miles and the brake in the rear rotted out including the rotors. The brake pads slid out from the rotors. A technician that located the failure stated that the brakes should have not gone out at 23,000 miles. The contact paid to have the vehicle repair. The failure mileage was 23,150 and current mileage was 23,200. Updated 10/23/09 the rotors were pitted and a piece of the rotor was missing. Updated 10/26/09

- Newton, NH, USA

problem #21

Oct 262008

Silverado

  • 32,000 miles
The contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado. The contact stated that the antilock brake sensor indicator illuminates immediately while attempting to stop from 5-10 mph. This is during a soft stop, not a hard stop; therefore, the sensor should not illuminate at that speed. The weather and speed are not factors. The contact paid $90 to have the vehicle diagnosed; however, the failure still persists. The failure mileage was 32,000.

- Willoughby, OH, USA

problem #20

Aug 222006

Silverado 4WD 8-cyl Diesel

  • Automatic transmission
  • 17,000 miles
- the contact owns a 2004 Chevrolet Silverado with an odometer reading of 27000 miles. The contact was driving at 25 mph in traffic under dry conditions when he had to come to a sudden stop. The contact's was unable to stop from about two car lengths away from hitting the vehicle in front of it. The contact's vehicle hit the other vehicle which caused $4400 worth of damage. The contact stated that the brakes were not an adequate size for this vehicle which caused it to crash, and complained to the dealer and manufacturer several times about the problem. The failure mileage was 17000. Updated 03/19/07.

- Newaygo, MI, USA

problem #19

Jan 092007

Silverado 4WD 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 30,419 miles
Noted grinding noise from the passenger side of the vehicle when the brakes were applied on a Friday evening. Notified the dealership asap on Monday. Vehicle was serviced on that Tuesday. They found that the rear brakes were grinding and the pads had dug into a rear rotor. They installed new rear rotors and pads as well as the left rear emergency brake shoe. There was no warning to this failure. I believe this to be another case of excessive rear brake wear and premature failure. Customer cost was $557.62 with vehicle still under warranty. The service mileage was 30,419 miles. See tsb 00-05-23-005B, NHTSA id#618104.

- Oswego, NY, USA

problem #18

Mar 062006

Silverado 4WD 8-cyl

  • Automatic transmission
  • 2,000 miles
: the contact stated the brakes on the vehicle feel spongy. The brake pedal must be depressed hard at 5mph and below before the vehicle stops completely. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection. The dealer stated after the inspection, part of normal maintenance would be to replace the brakes; however the contact did not replace the brakes.

- Homer, NY, USA

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