← New search

2003 Chevrolet Silverado 1500

Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations

Similar to other model years

Owner complaints for the 2003 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 525.

About this comparison →

When problems were reported

Mileage at the reported incident

726 reports with mileage · 79 unknown

NHTSA’s mileage field refers to the reported incident, not necessarily the filing date. This shows report counts, not the likelihood of a failure.

What to inspect

Issues worth paying extra attention to based on owner reports.

  • Service Brakes. Review the 273 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Electrical System. Review the 195 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
  • Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 151 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →

NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.

26 crash reports7 fire reports8 injury reports

What owners actually said

805 reports
70,890 miles · Sep 7, 2014
Service Brakes

8/21/14- LEFT WORK AT 5PM, APPROACHING AN INTERSECTION TO MAKE A RIGHT TURN, TRAVELING APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH, APPLIED BRAKES AND PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR. SAFELY TURNED, PULLED OFF THE ROAD AND STOPPED VEHICLE. FOUND BRAKE FLUID POOLING ON THE ROAD UNDER BED OF PICKUP. FOUND A BADLY RUSTED AND BLOWN OUT REAR BRAKE LINE. HAD TRUCK…

Read full complaint

8/21/14- LEFT WORK AT 5PM, APPROACHING AN INTERSECTION TO MAKE A RIGHT TURN, TRAVELING APPROXIMATELY 20 MPH, APPLIED BRAKES AND PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR. SAFELY TURNED, PULLED OFF THE ROAD AND STOPPED VEHICLE. FOUND BRAKE FLUID POOLING ON THE ROAD UNDER BED OF PICKUP. FOUND A BADLY RUSTED AND BLOWN OUT REAR BRAKE LINE. HAD TRUCK TOWED HOME, REPLACED ALL OF THE BRAKE LINES WITH AFTERMARKET STAINLESS STEEL PRE BENT LINES AS EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM WAS RUSTED. I ALSO HAD TO REPLACE BOTH FRONT CALIPERS AS THEY TOO WERE SO RUSTED THAT THE BLEEDER SCREWS BROKE OFF AS I TRIED TO OPEN THEM. TOTAL COST FOR ME DOING ALL OF THE REPAIRS WAS OVER $500.00 HOW CAN GM CONSIDER THIS PROBLEM "NORMAL ROUTINE MAINTENANCE" ? BELT'S ,HOSES, LIGHTS, BRAKE PADS, THEY ARE NORMAL ROUTINE MAINTENANCE ITEMS, NOT BRAKE LINES. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10631353

97,500 miles · Sep 5, 2014
Service Brakes

BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO FLOOR IN PARKING LOT AND "CHECK BRAKE SYSTEM " WARNING LIGHT CAME ON. WAS ABLE TO STOP USING PARKING BRAKE. FOUND ALL BRAKE LINES SEVERELY RUSTED AND BRAKE FLUID LEAK UNDER DRIVERS SIDE DOOR. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10630963

88,000 miles · Sep 4, 2014
Service Brakes

ALL SIX BRAKE LINES ROTTED AWAY, LOST 2 LINES WHILE DRIVING HOME AT NIGHT, NO WARNING, THANK GOD I WAS CLOSE TO HOME, 2 FRONT CALIPERS ROTTED SO BAD, I COULD NOT BLEED THE LINES... ALL THIS AFTER THE HEADS LEAKED ANTIFREEZE INTO THE OIL AT 40,000 MILES. I WAS TOLD CHEVY NEW ABOUT THE DEFECTIVE HEADS, BUT DID NOTHING ABOUT IT. IN…

Read full complaint

ALL SIX BRAKE LINES ROTTED AWAY, LOST 2 LINES WHILE DRIVING HOME AT NIGHT, NO WARNING, THANK GOD I WAS CLOSE TO HOME, 2 FRONT CALIPERS ROTTED SO BAD, I COULD NOT BLEED THE LINES... ALL THIS AFTER THE HEADS LEAKED ANTIFREEZE INTO THE OIL AT 40,000 MILES. I WAS TOLD CHEVY NEW ABOUT THE DEFECTIVE HEADS, BUT DID NOTHING ABOUT IT. INSTRUMENT CLUSTER BULBS BLEW, GAS GAUGE CLUSTER FAILED, PASSENGER DOOR WILL NOT UNLOCK WHEN SHIFTED BACK INTO PARK. SERIOUS FRAME RUST SHOWING.....AND THE HITS JUST KEEP ON COMING!!!!!! *TR

NHTSA ODI #10630824

Mileage unknown · Sep 2, 2014
Service Brakes

I WAS LEAVING MY PARENTS HOUSE SUNDAY NIGHT AUGUST 24, 2014 AND WHEN I APPLIED THE BRAKES FOR THE STOP SIGN MY BRAKE PEDAL WENT CLEAN TO THE FLOOR BEFORE I FELT ANY BRAKING ACTION. MY BRAKE LIGHT/ALARM WENT OFF INSIDE THE CAB OF MY TRUCK AT THIS TIME SAYING I NEED TO SERVICE MY BRAKES. THANK GOODNESS IT WAS LATE AT NIGHT AND T…

Read full complaint

I WAS LEAVING MY PARENTS HOUSE SUNDAY NIGHT AUGUST 24, 2014 AND WHEN I APPLIED THE BRAKES FOR THE STOP SIGN MY BRAKE PEDAL WENT CLEAN TO THE FLOOR BEFORE I FELT ANY BRAKING ACTION. MY BRAKE LIGHT/ALARM WENT OFF INSIDE THE CAB OF MY TRUCK AT THIS TIME SAYING I NEED TO SERVICE MY BRAKES. THANK GOODNESS IT WAS LATE AT NIGHT AND THEY WASN'T ANY TRAFFIC. AFTER INSPECTING THE BRAKE LINES, THE REAR STEEL BRAKE LINE BURST ON THE DRIVE SIDE AND SPEWED ALL OF MY REAR BRAKE FLUID ONTO THE PAVEMENT. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10630049

160,000 miles · Sep 2, 2014
Service Brakes

JUST LEFT HOME AND WAS DRIVING ABOUT 1/2 MILE FROM HOME. CAME TO A TRAFFIC LIGHT AND WENT TO BRAKE FOR A RED LIGHT. THE TRUCK STARTED TO BRAKE AND THEN MY FOOT WENT DOWN TO THE FLOOR WHILE PRESSING THE BRAKE. MY PICKUP DID NOT STOP AND HAD TO GO THROUGH THE RED LIGHT. LUCKILY, I WAS ABLE TO HONK AND WARN THE OTHER CARS GOING THR…

Read full complaint

JUST LEFT HOME AND WAS DRIVING ABOUT 1/2 MILE FROM HOME. CAME TO A TRAFFIC LIGHT AND WENT TO BRAKE FOR A RED LIGHT. THE TRUCK STARTED TO BRAKE AND THEN MY FOOT WENT DOWN TO THE FLOOR WHILE PRESSING THE BRAKE. MY PICKUP DID NOT STOP AND HAD TO GO THROUGH THE RED LIGHT. LUCKILY, I WAS ABLE TO HONK AND WARN THE OTHER CARS GOING THROUGH THE INTERSECTION, THAT I COULDN'T STOP. I HAD TO DOWNSHIFT AND USE THE EMERGENCY BRAKE TO STOP AND PULL OVER. I FOUND THAT THE BRAKES RUPTURED IN TWO DIFFERENT SPOTS. BOTH FRONT AND BACK BRAKE LINES RUPTURED AT THE SAME TIME. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10630018

180,000 miles · Sep 1, 2014
Electrical SystemEngineSteering

REDUCED ENGINE POWER. THIS HAS BEEN OCCURRING OFF AND ON FOR ABOUT 9 MONTHS, HAVE TAKEN IT TO DEALER MULTIPLE TIMES AND REPLACED EVERYTHING THAT WAS SAID WOULD FIX THE PROBLEM. THE PROBLEM STILL OCCURS EVEN AFTER REPLACING: ACCELERATOR AND RECEIVER ON THROTTLE BODY AS WELL AS CHECKING WIRING HARNESS FOR ISSUES. ESSENTIALLY, …

Read full complaint

REDUCED ENGINE POWER. THIS HAS BEEN OCCURRING OFF AND ON FOR ABOUT 9 MONTHS, HAVE TAKEN IT TO DEALER MULTIPLE TIMES AND REPLACED EVERYTHING THAT WAS SAID WOULD FIX THE PROBLEM. THE PROBLEM STILL OCCURS EVEN AFTER REPLACING: ACCELERATOR AND RECEIVER ON THROTTLE BODY AS WELL AS CHECKING WIRING HARNESS FOR ISSUES. ESSENTIALLY, THE VEHICLE WILL LOSE THE FUNCTION OF THE ACCELERATOR WITHOUT WARNING AT ANY GIVEN TIME DURING THE USE OF THE VEHICLE. THE DEALER HAS TOLD ME THAT THEY DON'T HAVE ANY IDEA WHY IT STILL IS HAVING THIS ISSUE...THE OTHER DAY THE VEHICLE WAS BEING DRIVEN AND REDUCED ENGINE POWER MODE SET IN AND AT THE SAME TIME THE POWER STEERING WENT OUT. THOUGHT THE POWER STEERING GOING OUT AT THE SAME TIME WAS A ONE TIME DEAL BUT IT HAPPENED AGAIN THE VERY NEXT DAY. THE VEHICLE HAD THIS ISSUE ON THE HIGHWAY THE OTHER DAY AND NEARLY CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. IT IS SHOCKING THAT THERE ARE NOT THOUSANDS OF COMPLAINTS WITH THIS SAME ISSUE, IF YOU LOOK UP FORUMS ON THIS TOPIC THERE ARE OVER 200,000 THREADS ON THIS VERY ISSUES. THERE ARE THOUSANDS OF FORUM COMPLAINTS ABOUT REDUCED ENGINE POWER AND HOW PEOPLE HAVE SPENT $1000 PLUS AT THE DEALER AND THE ISSUE STILL PERSISTS. THE DRIVE BY WIRE FUNCTIONALITY INSTEAD OF USING A THROTTLE CABLE SEEMS TO BE HAVING ISSUES THAT EVEN GM DOESN'T HAVE AN ANSWER FOR. WOULD APPRECIATE ANY LOOKING INTO ON THIS SUBJECT. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10629811

126,000 miles · Aug 29, 2014
Service BrakesCrash

GOING OUT OF DRIVE BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO FLOOR. LATER TURNED OUT TO BE A BRAKE LINE RUPTURED FROM BEING CORRODED. TRUCK ROLLED BACKWARDS AND STRUCK A TREE CAUSING MINOR DAMAGE TO THE BUMPER. NOT REPORTED TO INSURANCE BECAUSE DEDUCTIBLE HIGHER THAN DAMAGE. THIS FAILURE OF THE BREAK LINE HAPPENED ONCE BEFORE IN 10/2009. LUCKILY…

Read full complaint

GOING OUT OF DRIVE BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO FLOOR. LATER TURNED OUT TO BE A BRAKE LINE RUPTURED FROM BEING CORRODED. TRUCK ROLLED BACKWARDS AND STRUCK A TREE CAUSING MINOR DAMAGE TO THE BUMPER. NOT REPORTED TO INSURANCE BECAUSE DEDUCTIBLE HIGHER THAN DAMAGE. THIS FAILURE OF THE BREAK LINE HAPPENED ONCE BEFORE IN 10/2009. LUCKILY NO INJURIES BUT THE NUMBER OF THESE INCIDENTS POINT TO A HAZARDOUS FLAW THAT GM SHOULD ADDRESS. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10629504

145,000 miles · Aug 25, 2014
Service Brakes

BRAKE LINES RUSTED SEVERELY. NO FLUID LEAKS OR FAILURES YET, BUT I WENT AHEAD AND BOUGHT NEW BRAKE LINES FROM GM DEALERSHIP TO REPLACE BEFORE THE LINES FAIL. SEVERE RUST, APPROXIMATELY HALF OF THE THICKNESS OF THE LINES IS GONE DUE TO RUST. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10628019

71,415 miles · Aug 24, 2014
Service Brakes

I APPLIED THE BRAKES TO STOP AT A STOP SIGN IN A PARKING LOT. THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR. I WENT THROUGH THE STOP SIGN. ANOTHER VEHICLE HAD TO SLAM ON ITS BRAKES TO AVOID HITTING ME. THE EMERGENCY BRAKE IS USELESS FOR STOPPING THE VEHICLE IN THIS TYPE OF SITUATION BECAUSE ITS FOOT PEDAL IS POSITIONED SO HIGH YOU CANNOT ST…

Read full complaint

I APPLIED THE BRAKES TO STOP AT A STOP SIGN IN A PARKING LOT. THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR. I WENT THROUGH THE STOP SIGN. ANOTHER VEHICLE HAD TO SLAM ON ITS BRAKES TO AVOID HITTING ME. THE EMERGENCY BRAKE IS USELESS FOR STOPPING THE VEHICLE IN THIS TYPE OF SITUATION BECAUSE ITS FOOT PEDAL IS POSITIONED SO HIGH YOU CANNOT STEP ON IT IN TIME. THE PROBLEM WAS CAUSED BY FAILURE OF A RUSTED THROUGH STEEL BRAKE LINE THAT RAN FROM THE ABS MODULE TO THE REAR OF THE VEHICLE. IT PROVIDED THE HYDRAULIC PRESSURE FOR BOTH REAR BRAKES.THE POINT WHERE IT RUSTED THROUGH IS ABOVE THE GAS TANK COVER AND NOT VISIBLE FOR INSPECTION. I REALIZE THAT THE TRUCK IS 11 YEARS OLD AND HAS BEEN USED IN THE NORTHEAST BUT IT DOES NOT HAVE ANY SERIOUS BODY RUST AND HAS RECEIVED REASONABLE CARE. IT ALSO HAS RELATIVELY LOW MILEAGE. THE "DUAL DIAGONAL BRAKE SYSTEM" DID NOT FUNCTION TO PROVIDE ADEQUATE BRAKING ACTION. IT PROVIDED NO NOTICEABLE BRAKING ACTION. THIS IS ABOUT AS SERIOUS A SAFETY DEFECT AS I CAN IMAGINE. I AM LUCKY IT HAPPENED AT LOW SPEED AND I WAS NOT INVOLVED IN A COLLISION. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10627910

91,122 miles · Aug 24, 2014
Service Brakes

I WAS TRAVELING EAST ON A ROADWAY IN THE TOWNSHIP WHERE I LIVE, AT APPROXIMATELY 45 MPH. WHEN I WENT TO APPLY MY BRAKES ON MY 2003 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500 PICK-UP TRUCK AND THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR AND " I HAD NO BRAKES!" I NEARLY CRASHED INTO ANOTHER VEHICLE THAT WAS TRAVELING THRU THE INTERSECTION. I WAS …

Read full complaint

I WAS TRAVELING EAST ON A ROADWAY IN THE TOWNSHIP WHERE I LIVE, AT APPROXIMATELY 45 MPH. WHEN I WENT TO APPLY MY BRAKES ON MY 2003 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500 PICK-UP TRUCK AND THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR AND " I HAD NO BRAKES!" I NEARLY CRASHED INTO ANOTHER VEHICLE THAT WAS TRAVELING THRU THE INTERSECTION. I WAS NEAR MY HOME AND WAS ABLE TO TRAVEL SLOWLY HOME AND DISCOVERED THAT THE DRIVER'S SIDE BRAKE LINE, NEAR THE REAR (BED AREA) OF THE TRUCK HAD EXPLODED DUE TO A HIGH VOLUME OF RUST IN WHICH I DISCOVERED THAT ENTIRE BRAKE LINE WAS COMPLETELY RUSTED. BRAKE FLUID HAD SPEWED EVERYWHERE. I FEEL THAT THIS DEFINITELY IS A MAJOR SAFETY ISSUE AND THAT PEOPLE COULD BE INJURED OR KILLED DUE TO THE ISSUE. I HAVE BEEN DOING SOME RESEARCH AND HAVE LEARNED THAT THIS IS BECOMING A HUGE ISSUE WITH GM TRUCKS AND LIGHT DUTY TRUCKS. THIS SHOULD NOT BE A "NORMAL WEAR ISSUE" FOR A 2003 MODEL. *TR

NHTSA ODI #10627887

Official recalls

0

No recalls in this snapshot.

Model-level recall history does not show whether a particular VIN is affected or has received a repair. Check a VIN with NHTSA ↗

NHTSA investigations

3

EA11001 · Brake Line Corrosion Failure

Opened Jan 5, 2011 · Closed Apr 8, 2015

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Service Brakes, Hydraulic; Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:hoses, Lines/piping, And Fittings

On January 11, 2011, ODI opened EA11-001 to investigate allegations of premature brake line corrosion failure in model year (MY) 1999 through 2003 General Motors (GM) full-size pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles sold or registered in the following region of the United States that NHTSA has viewed as salt states for investigations of corrosion related issues:Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin.The subject vehicles represent the first five MY's of GM's GMT800 platform production, of which approximately 2,038,504 vehicles were sold in salt states (the subject vehicles).The GMT800 platform includes the following vehicles:1999-2007 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500 series pick-up trucks; 2000-2006 Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon sport utility vehicles; and 2002-2006 Cadillac Escalade and Chevrolet Avalanche sport-utility vehicles.General Motors produced a total of approximately 10,427,062 GMT800 vehicles for sales in the United States, including almost 5 million that were sold in salt states.Although there are over 60 different brake pipe routing configuration used in GMT800 vehicles, with the exception of the rear crossover pipes in MY 200x-2007 vehicles that changed from rear disc to drum brakes, all of the vehicles use brake pipes from the same supplier with a common double-wall, brazed steel pipe design with a combination of hot dip Zinc-Aluminum corrosion protection coating and Aluminum paint outer layer known in the industry as AlGal (ASTM-B750). ODI analysis of field data regarding GMT800 vehicles identified a total of 3,645 complaints of brake pipe corrosion failures, including 107 alleging crashes, and 40 injuries.Though only 20% of total GMT800 production, due to age and region the subject vehicles account for a disproportionate share of the failure experience; with 2,702 of the complaints (75%), 88 of the crashes (82%) and 20 of the injuries (50%) reported in those vehicles.Analysis of the complaints showed strong correlations to vehicle age and region.For vehicles with less than 8 years of service, the complaint rates were minimal for all regions.In the salt states the failure rates begin to climb as the vehicles advance in age, particularly in the Northeast corner of the United States.The complaint rates in the salt states go from less than 0.1 incident per thousand vehicles (IPTV) at 7 years in service to over 1.0 IPTV after the 12th year of service for the subject pickup trucks and utility vehicles.Most of the failures reported to ODI occurred in vehicles with more than 10 years in service.ODI?s investigation did not identify any specific defect conditions that were causing or contributing to the brake pipe failures.Nor did the analysis isolate the problem to any subject vehicle sub-populations when analyzed by vehicle type or production range.The investigation found that vehicles experiencing brake pipe corrosion failures were likely to have general patterns of excessive corrosion on the majority of the brake pipe assembly and appear to be occurring due to expected wear out for the brake pipe coating material used in the subject vehicles and the environmental conditions in severe corrosion states.A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor t

Additional source detail variants (2)

Service Brakes, Hydraulic:foundation Components:hoses, Lines/piping, And Fittings

On January 11, 2011, ODI opened EA11-001 to investigate allegations of premature brake line corrosion failure in model year (MY) 1999 through 2003 General Motors (GM) full-size pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles sold or registered in the following region of the United States that NHTSA has viewed as salt states for investigations of corrosion related issues:Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin.The subject vehicles represent the first five MY's of GM's GMT800 platform production, of which approximately 2,038,504 vehicles were sold in salt states (the subject vehicles).The GMT800 platform includes the following vehicles:1999-2007 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500 series pick-up trucks; 2000-2006 Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon sport utility vehicles; and 2002-2006 Cadillac Escalade and Chevrolet Avalanche sport-utility vehicles.General Motors produced a total of approximately 10,427,062 GMT800 vehicles for sales in the United States, including almost 5 million that were sold in salt states.Although there are over 60 different brake pipe routing configuration used in GMT800 vehicles, with the exception of the rear crossover pipes in MY 200x-2007 vehicles that changed from rear disc to drum brakes, all of the vehicles use brake pipes from the same supplier with a common double-wall, brazed steel pipe design with a combination of hot dip Zinc-Aluminum corrosion protection coating and Aluminum paint outer layer known in the industry as AlGal (ASTM-B750). ODI analysis of field data regarding GMT800 vehicles identified a total of 3,645 complaints of brake pipe corrosion failures, including 107 alleging crashes, and 40 injuries.Though only 20% of total GMT800 production, due to age and region the subject vehicles account for a disproportionate share of the failure experience; with 2,702 of the complaints (75%), 88 of the crashes (82%) and 20 of the injuries (50%) reported in those vehicles.Analysis of the complaints showed strong correlations to vehicle age and region.For vehicles with less than 8 years of service, the complaint rates were minimal for all regions.In the salt states the failure rates begin to climb as the vehicles advance in age, particularly in the Northeast corner of the United States.The complaint rates in the salt states go from less than 0.1 incident per thousand vehicles (IPTV) at 7 years in service to over 1.0 IPTV after the 12th year of service for the subject pickup trucks and utility vehicles.Most of the failures reported to ODI occurred in vehicles with more than 10 years in service.ODI?s investigation did not identify any specific defect conditions that were causing or contributing to the brake pipe failures.Nor did the analysis isolate the problem to any subject vehicle sub-populations when analyzed by vehicle type or production range.The investigation found that vehicles experiencing brake pipe corrosion failures were likely to have general patterns of excessive corrosion on the majority of the brake pipe assembly and appear to be occurring due to expected wear out for the brake pipe coating material used in the subject vehicles and the environmental conditions in severe corrosion states.A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor t

Service Brakes, Hydraulic

On January 11, 2011, ODI opened EA11-001 to investigate allegations of premature brake line corrosion failure in model year (MY) 1999 through 2003 General Motors (GM) full-size pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles sold or registered in the following region of the United States that NHTSA has viewed as salt states for investigations of corrosion related issues:Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin.The subject vehicles represent the first five MY's of GM's GMT800 platform production, of which approximately 2,038,504 vehicles were sold in salt states (the subject vehicles).The GMT800 platform includes the following vehicles:1999-2007 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500 series pick-up trucks; 2000-2006 Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon sport utility vehicles; and 2002-2006 Cadillac Escalade and Chevrolet Avalanche sport-utility vehicles.General Motors produced a total of approximately 10,427,062 GMT800 vehicles for sales in the United States, including almost 5 million that were sold in salt states.Although there are over 60 different brake pipe routing configuration used in GMT800 vehicles, with the exception of the rear crossover pipes in MY 200x-2007 vehicles that changed from rear disc to drum brakes, all of the vehicles use brake pipes from the same supplier with a common double-wall, brazed steel pipe design with a combination of hot dip Zinc-Aluminum corrosion protection coating and Aluminum paint outer layer known in the industry as AlGal (ASTM-B750). ODI analysis of field data regarding GMT800 vehicles identified a total of 3,645 complaints of brake pipe corrosion failures, including 107 alleging crashes, and 40 injuries.Though only 20% of total GMT800 production, due to age and region the subject vehicles account for a disproportionate share of the failure experience; with 2,702 of the complaints (75%), 88 of the crashes (82%) and 20 of the injuries (50%) reported in those vehicles.Analysis of the complaints showed strong correlations to vehicle age and region.For vehicles with less than 8 years of service, the complaint rates were minimal for all regions.In the salt states the failure rates begin to climb as the vehicles advance in age, particularly in the Northeast corner of the United States.The complaint rates in the salt states go from less than 0.1 incident per thousand vehicles (IPTV) at 7 years in service to over 1.0 IPTV after the 12th year of service for the subject pickup trucks and utility vehicles.Most of the failures reported to ODI occurred in vehicles with more than 10 years in service.ODI?s investigation did not identify any specific defect conditions that were causing or contributing to the brake pipe failures.Nor did the analysis isolate the problem to any subject vehicle sub-populations when analyzed by vehicle type or production range.The investigation found that vehicles experiencing brake pipe corrosion failures were likely to have general patterns of excessive corrosion on the majority of the brake pipe assembly and appear to be occurring due to expected wear out for the brake pipe coating material used in the subject vehicles and the environmental conditions in severe corrosion states.A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by NHTSA that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor t

EA04011 · Parking Brake Failure

Opened Apr 9, 2004 · Closed May 10, 2005

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Parking Brake; Parking Brake:conventional; Parking Brake:conventional:mechanical; Parking Brake:conventional:mechanical:linkage And Cable

IN A LETTER DATED APRIL 20, 2005, GM NOTIFIED NHTSA THAT IT HAD DECIDED THAT DEFECTS THAT RELATE TO MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY EXIST IN CERTAIN MODEL YEAR (MY) 1999-2002 C/K 1500 SERIES (PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM) AND MY 2001-2005 C/K 2500 AND 3500 SERIES (TRW PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM) PICKUPS WITH MANUAL TRANSMISSIONS.ACCORDING TO GM, SOME OF THESE VEHICLES MAY HAVE CONDITIONS THAT CAUSE THE FRICTION LININGS TO WEAR TO AN EXTENT WHERE THE PARKING BRAKE CAN BECOME INEFFECTIVE IN IMMOBILIZING A PARKED VEHICLE.GM'S ACTION COVERS AN ESTIMATED TOTAL OF 142,585 VEHICLES.DEALERS WILL INSTALL A LOW-FORCE SPRING CLIP RETAINER FOR VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM AND INSTALL A REDESIGNED PARKING BRAKE CABLE ASSEMBLY ON VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE TRW PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM. A TOTAL OF 58 NON-DUPLICATIVE COMPLAINTS WERE RECEIVED BY ODI AND GM CONCERNING THE APPROXIMATELY 59,000 MY 1999-2002 C/K 1500 SERIES PICKUP TRUCKS WITH THE PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM.THESE INCLUDED 22 ALLEGED ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS, RESULTING IN A RATE OF 38.5 ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS PER 100,000 VEHICLES.ODI IS AWARE OF 24 COMPLAINTS REGARDING THE MY 2001-2005 C/K 2500 AND 3500 SERIES MANUAL TRANSMISSION TRUCKS RECALLED BY GM, INCLUDING 5 ALLEGING ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS.THOUGH THE CONDITIONS DESCRIBED IN GM'S LETTER ARE ALSO PRESENT IN THE C/K TRUCKS WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS, THE ROLLAWAY RATE IN THOSE VEHICLES WAS SIMILAR TO THOSE OBSERVED IN PEER VEHICLES STUDIED BY ODI IN THIS INVESTIGATION.THIS ENGINEERING ANALYSIS IS CLOSED. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, SEE THE ATTACHED CLOSING REPORT.

Additional source detail variants (4)

Parking Brake:conventional

IN A LETTER DATED APRIL 20, 2005, GM NOTIFIED NHTSA THAT IT HAD DECIDED THAT DEFECTS THAT RELATE TO MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY EXIST IN CERTAIN MODEL YEAR (MY) 1999-2002 C/K 1500 SERIES (PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM) AND MY 2001-2005 C/K 2500 AND 3500 SERIES (TRW PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM) PICKUPS WITH MANUAL TRANSMISSIONS.ACCORDING TO GM, SOME OF THESE VEHICLES MAY HAVE CONDITIONS THAT CAUSE THE FRICTION LININGS TO WEAR TO AN EXTENT WHERE THE PARKING BRAKE CAN BECOME INEFFECTIVE IN IMMOBILIZING A PARKED VEHICLE.GM'S ACTION COVERS AN ESTIMATED TOTAL OF 142,585 VEHICLES.DEALERS WILL INSTALL A LOW-FORCE SPRING CLIP RETAINER FOR VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM AND INSTALL A REDESIGNED PARKING BRAKE CABLE ASSEMBLY ON VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE TRW PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM. A TOTAL OF 58 NON-DUPLICATIVE COMPLAINTS WERE RECEIVED BY ODI AND GM CONCERNING THE APPROXIMATELY 59,000 MY 1999-2002 C/K 1500 SERIES PICKUP TRUCKS WITH THE PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM.THESE INCLUDED 22 ALLEGED ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS, RESULTING IN A RATE OF 38.5 ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS PER 100,000 VEHICLES.ODI IS AWARE OF 24 COMPLAINTS REGARDING THE MY 2001-2005 C/K 2500 AND 3500 SERIES MANUAL TRANSMISSION TRUCKS RECALLED BY GM, INCLUDING 5 ALLEGING ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS.THOUGH THE CONDITIONS DESCRIBED IN GM'S LETTER ARE ALSO PRESENT IN THE C/K TRUCKS WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS, THE ROLLAWAY RATE IN THOSE VEHICLES WAS SIMILAR TO THOSE OBSERVED IN PEER VEHICLES STUDIED BY ODI IN THIS INVESTIGATION.THIS ENGINEERING ANALYSIS IS CLOSED. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, SEE THE ATTACHED CLOSING REPORT.

Parking Brake:conventional:mechanical

IN A LETTER DATED APRIL 20, 2005, GM NOTIFIED NHTSA THAT IT HAD DECIDED THAT DEFECTS THAT RELATE TO MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY EXIST IN CERTAIN MODEL YEAR (MY) 1999-2002 C/K 1500 SERIES (PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM) AND MY 2001-2005 C/K 2500 AND 3500 SERIES (TRW PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM) PICKUPS WITH MANUAL TRANSMISSIONS.ACCORDING TO GM, SOME OF THESE VEHICLES MAY HAVE CONDITIONS THAT CAUSE THE FRICTION LININGS TO WEAR TO AN EXTENT WHERE THE PARKING BRAKE CAN BECOME INEFFECTIVE IN IMMOBILIZING A PARKED VEHICLE.GM'S ACTION COVERS AN ESTIMATED TOTAL OF 142,585 VEHICLES.DEALERS WILL INSTALL A LOW-FORCE SPRING CLIP RETAINER FOR VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM AND INSTALL A REDESIGNED PARKING BRAKE CABLE ASSEMBLY ON VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE TRW PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM. A TOTAL OF 58 NON-DUPLICATIVE COMPLAINTS WERE RECEIVED BY ODI AND GM CONCERNING THE APPROXIMATELY 59,000 MY 1999-2002 C/K 1500 SERIES PICKUP TRUCKS WITH THE PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM.THESE INCLUDED 22 ALLEGED ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS, RESULTING IN A RATE OF 38.5 ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS PER 100,000 VEHICLES.ODI IS AWARE OF 24 COMPLAINTS REGARDING THE MY 2001-2005 C/K 2500 AND 3500 SERIES MANUAL TRANSMISSION TRUCKS RECALLED BY GM, INCLUDING 5 ALLEGING ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS.THOUGH THE CONDITIONS DESCRIBED IN GM'S LETTER ARE ALSO PRESENT IN THE C/K TRUCKS WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS, THE ROLLAWAY RATE IN THOSE VEHICLES WAS SIMILAR TO THOSE OBSERVED IN PEER VEHICLES STUDIED BY ODI IN THIS INVESTIGATION.THIS ENGINEERING ANALYSIS IS CLOSED. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, SEE THE ATTACHED CLOSING REPORT.

Parking Brake:conventional:mechanical:linkage And Cable

IN A LETTER DATED APRIL 20, 2005, GM NOTIFIED NHTSA THAT IT HAD DECIDED THAT DEFECTS THAT RELATE TO MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY EXIST IN CERTAIN MODEL YEAR (MY) 1999-2002 C/K 1500 SERIES (PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM) AND MY 2001-2005 C/K 2500 AND 3500 SERIES (TRW PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM) PICKUPS WITH MANUAL TRANSMISSIONS.ACCORDING TO GM, SOME OF THESE VEHICLES MAY HAVE CONDITIONS THAT CAUSE THE FRICTION LININGS TO WEAR TO AN EXTENT WHERE THE PARKING BRAKE CAN BECOME INEFFECTIVE IN IMMOBILIZING A PARKED VEHICLE.GM'S ACTION COVERS AN ESTIMATED TOTAL OF 142,585 VEHICLES.DEALERS WILL INSTALL A LOW-FORCE SPRING CLIP RETAINER FOR VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM AND INSTALL A REDESIGNED PARKING BRAKE CABLE ASSEMBLY ON VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE TRW PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM. A TOTAL OF 58 NON-DUPLICATIVE COMPLAINTS WERE RECEIVED BY ODI AND GM CONCERNING THE APPROXIMATELY 59,000 MY 1999-2002 C/K 1500 SERIES PICKUP TRUCKS WITH THE PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM.THESE INCLUDED 22 ALLEGED ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS, RESULTING IN A RATE OF 38.5 ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS PER 100,000 VEHICLES.ODI IS AWARE OF 24 COMPLAINTS REGARDING THE MY 2001-2005 C/K 2500 AND 3500 SERIES MANUAL TRANSMISSION TRUCKS RECALLED BY GM, INCLUDING 5 ALLEGING ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS.THOUGH THE CONDITIONS DESCRIBED IN GM'S LETTER ARE ALSO PRESENT IN THE C/K TRUCKS WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS, THE ROLLAWAY RATE IN THOSE VEHICLES WAS SIMILAR TO THOSE OBSERVED IN PEER VEHICLES STUDIED BY ODI IN THIS INVESTIGATION.THIS ENGINEERING ANALYSIS IS CLOSED. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, SEE THE ATTACHED CLOSING REPORT.

Parking Brake

IN A LETTER DATED APRIL 20, 2005, GM NOTIFIED NHTSA THAT IT HAD DECIDED THAT DEFECTS THAT RELATE TO MOTOR VEHICLE SAFETY EXIST IN CERTAIN MODEL YEAR (MY) 1999-2002 C/K 1500 SERIES (PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM) AND MY 2001-2005 C/K 2500 AND 3500 SERIES (TRW PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM) PICKUPS WITH MANUAL TRANSMISSIONS.ACCORDING TO GM, SOME OF THESE VEHICLES MAY HAVE CONDITIONS THAT CAUSE THE FRICTION LININGS TO WEAR TO AN EXTENT WHERE THE PARKING BRAKE CAN BECOME INEFFECTIVE IN IMMOBILIZING A PARKED VEHICLE.GM'S ACTION COVERS AN ESTIMATED TOTAL OF 142,585 VEHICLES.DEALERS WILL INSTALL A LOW-FORCE SPRING CLIP RETAINER FOR VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM AND INSTALL A REDESIGNED PARKING BRAKE CABLE ASSEMBLY ON VEHICLES EQUIPPED WITH THE TRW PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM. A TOTAL OF 58 NON-DUPLICATIVE COMPLAINTS WERE RECEIVED BY ODI AND GM CONCERNING THE APPROXIMATELY 59,000 MY 1999-2002 C/K 1500 SERIES PICKUP TRUCKS WITH THE PBR PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM.THESE INCLUDED 22 ALLEGED ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS, RESULTING IN A RATE OF 38.5 ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS PER 100,000 VEHICLES.ODI IS AWARE OF 24 COMPLAINTS REGARDING THE MY 2001-2005 C/K 2500 AND 3500 SERIES MANUAL TRANSMISSION TRUCKS RECALLED BY GM, INCLUDING 5 ALLEGING ROLLAWAY INCIDENTS.THOUGH THE CONDITIONS DESCRIBED IN GM'S LETTER ARE ALSO PRESENT IN THE C/K TRUCKS WITH AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSIONS, THE ROLLAWAY RATE IN THOSE VEHICLES WAS SIMILAR TO THOSE OBSERVED IN PEER VEHICLES STUDIED BY ODI IN THIS INVESTIGATION.THIS ENGINEERING ANALYSIS IS CLOSED. FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, SEE THE ATTACHED CLOSING REPORT.

PE03057 · Parking Brake Failure

Opened Dec 8, 2003 · Closed Apr 9, 2004

Status: closed (inferred from source dates) · Parking Brake

ODI OPENED PE03-057 TO ASSESS PARKING BRAKE INEFFECTIVENESS IN THE SUBJECT VEHICLES.THESE VEHICLES ARE EQUIPPED WITH FOUR WHEEL DISC BRAKES THAT INCORPORATE A SINGLE-SHOE DRUM-IN-HAT PARKING BRAKE INDEPENDENT OF THE SERVICE BRAKES.COMPLAINT AND WARRANTY DATA INDICATE THAT THE PARKING BRAKE LININGS TEND TO WEAR OUT EARLY IN THE LIFE OF THE VEHICLE (AT AN AVERAGE OF 24 MONTHS IN SERVICE), REDUCING THE PARKING BRAKE SYSTEM'S TORQUE BELOW THAT NEEDED TO IMMOBILIZE THE VEHICLE.GM HAS ATTRIBUTED THIS ACCELERATED WEAR TO FOREIGN MATERIAL INTRUSION AND A FAILURE OF THE BRAKE SHOE TO PROPERLY SELF-CENTER WITHIN ITS BRAKE DRUM.EFFECTIVE WITH THE START OF MY 2003 PRODUCTION, A NEWER REDUCED FORCE HOLD-DOWN CLIP WAS INTRODUCED TO FACILITATE BRAKE SHOE DISENGAGEMENT FROM THE DRUM SURFACE.THIS PART IS ALSO AVAILABLE AT THE SERVICE LEVEL FOR THE MY 1999-2002 VEHICLES.GM HAS INDICATED THAT THE PAKING BRAKE IS INTENDED TO OPERATE IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE TRANSMISSION TO IMMOBILZE PARKED VEHICLES, AND THAT IN MANY CASES, ACCELERATED PARKING BRAKE LINING WEAR IS CAUSED BY ROUGH USE, VEHICLE MODIFICATIONS, AND DRIVING WITH THE PARKING ENGAGED. ODI HAS UPGRADED THE PRELIMINARY EVALUATION TO AN ENGINEERING ANALYSIS TO GATHER FURTHER INFORMATION CONCERNING PARKING BRAKE USAGE FACTORS AND THE CIRCUMSTANCES SURROUNDING THE SEVENTEEN REPORTED VEHICLE CRASHES.