BRAKES FAILED COMPLETELY WHILE DRIVING ON STREET NEAR HOME. LINE FROM PROPORTIONING VALVE TO ABS UNIT HAS PIN HOLES, I HAD TO REPLACE ALL UNDER CHASSIS BRAKE LINES LAST YEAR, BUT LINES IN THE ENGINE COMPARTMENT REALLY? THE PLASTIC SECURING CLIPS ACT AS A CONTAINER FOR MOISTURE AND ROT THE LINE.
2004 Chevrolet Silverado 1500
Owner reports · Recalls · Investigations
Similar to other model years
Owner complaints for the 2004 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 do not stand out strongly from the model-year median of 525.
About this comparison →How this year compares
Owner complaints by model year
Compare all Silverado 1500 years →Counts vary with age, sales and reporting. They are not failure rates.
What owners reported most
All reported categories
Tap a category to read its complaints. One report may name several components.
When problems were reported
Mileage at the reported incident
700 reports with mileage · 97 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.
- Electrical System. Review the 267 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes. Review the 229 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
- Service Brakes, Hydraulic. Review the 100 owner reports in this category and discuss these concerns during a pre-purchase inspection. Read reports →
NHTSA owner reports · September 18, 2026 snapshot.
Service Brakes complaints
229 reportsTL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 8 MPH AND DEPRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL, THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKES ENGAGED AND MADE AN ABNORMAL NOISE WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 89,000. UPDATED …
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 8 MPH AND DEPRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL, THE ANTI-LOCK BRAKES ENGAGED AND MADE AN ABNORMAL NOISE WITHOUT WARNING. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT DIAGNOSED NOR REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT MADE AWARE OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 89,000. UPDATED 10/07/16*LJ *TR
WHILE DRIVING TO THE GYM WITH MY 2 SONS WITH ME, I LUCKILY STOPPED AT THE DUMPSTER IN MY CONDO COMMUNITY TO DROP OFF SOME TRASH. WHILE ATTEMPTING TO STOP WHEN APPROACHING THE DUMPSTER I LOST ABOUT 90% OF MY BRAKE PEDAL TRAVEL AND NOTICED A HUGE MIST OF FLUID BY MY DRIVERS SIDE DOOR. LUCKILY I WAS ABLE TO STOP AND THEN RETURN TO …
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WHILE DRIVING TO THE GYM WITH MY 2 SONS WITH ME, I LUCKILY STOPPED AT THE DUMPSTER IN MY CONDO COMMUNITY TO DROP OFF SOME TRASH. WHILE ATTEMPTING TO STOP WHEN APPROACHING THE DUMPSTER I LOST ABOUT 90% OF MY BRAKE PEDAL TRAVEL AND NOTICED A HUGE MIST OF FLUID BY MY DRIVERS SIDE DOOR. LUCKILY I WAS ABLE TO STOP AND THEN RETURN TO MY PARKING SPOT IN FRONT OF MY CONDO WITHOUT INCIDENT. UPON PARKING MY TRUCK IN THE PARKING SPOT THE REMAINING BRAKE FLUID EMPTIED OUT. WHEN I LOOKED FOR THE CAUSE I QUICKLY DISCOVERED THAT MY BRAKE LINES WERE SO BADLY CORRODED THEY LOOKED LIKE THEY CAME FROM THE SUNKEN TITANIC. I HAVE LIVED IN 2 STATES THAT GET SNOW IN THE WINTER BUT AFTER EVERY SNOWFALL I'VE TAKEN THE TRUCK TO THE LOCAL CAR WASH AND USED THE UNDERBODY WASH FEATURE. I'VE DRIVEN 1987, 1988, AND 1994 VEHICLES IN SNOW STATES AND HAD NO BRAKE LINE ISSUES SO MY 2004 VEHICLE I'D EXPECT NO ISSUES EITHER. THIS IS A HUGE SAFETY RISK, NOWHERE IN THE OWNERS MANUAL DOES IT WARN YOU TO CHECK YOUR METAL BRAKE LINES FOR CORROSION. FILTERS, PADS, FLUIDS ETC ARE ROUTINE MAINTENANCE THAT THE OWNERS MANUAL INCLUDES BUT METAL BRAKE LINES ARE NOT AND SHOULDN'T BE, NOT WHEN AFTERMARKET CORROSION PROOF BRAKE LINE KITS COST $100. LUCKILY MY FAMILY OR NO ONE ELSE'S FAMILY WERE HURT IN MY INCIDENT BUT THE LONGER GM REFUSES TO RECALL THESE BRAKE LINES OTHERS MIGHT NOT BE AS LUCKY.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AND DEPRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL, THE BRAKES FAILED TO RESPOND. THE BRAKE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE BRAKE LINES HAD EXPERIENCED SEVERE CORROSION AND NEEDE…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AND DEPRESSING THE BRAKE PEDAL, THE BRAKES FAILED TO RESPOND. THE BRAKE WARNING INDICATOR ILLUMINATED. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE BRAKE LINES HAD EXPERIENCED SEVERE CORROSION AND NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS APPROXIMATELY 65,000. UPDATED 09/08/16*LJ UPDATED 06/18/18*JB
I WAS DRIVING TODAY WITH MY LAWN TRACTOR LOADED ON THE TRUCK OF THE BED. I CAME UPON TRAFFIC STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT. AS I PRESSED MY BRAKES TO STOP , THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR AND I ALMOST STRUCK THE VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME. LUCKILY I WAS NOT TRAVELLING AT HIGH SPEEDS AND THE VEHICLE MANAGED TO MOVE AND AVOID BEING REAR E…
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I WAS DRIVING TODAY WITH MY LAWN TRACTOR LOADED ON THE TRUCK OF THE BED. I CAME UPON TRAFFIC STOPPED AT A RED LIGHT. AS I PRESSED MY BRAKES TO STOP , THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR AND I ALMOST STRUCK THE VEHICLE IN FRONT OF ME. LUCKILY I WAS NOT TRAVELLING AT HIGH SPEEDS AND THE VEHICLE MANAGED TO MOVE AND AVOID BEING REAR ENDED BY ME AFTER I BEGAN HONKING MY HORN AS A WARNING. UPON INSPECTING THE VEHICLE, I DISCOVERED THAT A BRAKE LINE HAD RUPTURED, WHICH CAUSED THIS PROBLEM.
BAD RUSTED BRAKE LINES ABOUT TO FAIL. I SEE ON LINE THAT GM USE BAD STEEL LINES.
POURING RAIN I WAS TAKING MY MOTHER TO SEE MY DAD AT THE HOSPITAL. I STARTED DOWN THE STREET AND WENT TO STOP. PEDAL SUNK TO THE FLOOR. I CAME TO A STOP PART WAY INTO THE INTERSECTION. THANK GOD, FOR GOD AND MY GUARDIAN ANGEL THAT I WASN'T ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN THIS HAPPENED. WE HAD IT TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP AND IT WAS CORROD…
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POURING RAIN I WAS TAKING MY MOTHER TO SEE MY DAD AT THE HOSPITAL. I STARTED DOWN THE STREET AND WENT TO STOP. PEDAL SUNK TO THE FLOOR. I CAME TO A STOP PART WAY INTO THE INTERSECTION. THANK GOD, FOR GOD AND MY GUARDIAN ANGEL THAT I WASN'T ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN THIS HAPPENED. WE HAD IT TOWED TO THE DEALERSHIP AND IT WAS CORRODED BRAKE LINES. IT'S A 2004 WITH 80,000 MILES ON IT. NEVER BEEN OFF-ROAD. WHY HASN'T GM AND THE TRAFFIC SAFETY COMMITTEE ISSUED A RECALL. HAD THIS BEEN THE NIGHT BEFORE COMING HOME FROM THE HOSPITAL WE WOULD BE AT A FUNERAL. IT WAS FORTUNATE WE WERE DOING MAYBE 10MPH.
BRAKE SYSTEM COMPLETELY FAILED WHILE IN MOTION. FURTHER INSPECTION REVEALED THE BRAKE TUBE LEADING TO REAR AXLE HAD RUPTURED. THE TUBE WAS SEVERELY CORRODED.
DRIVING LATE AT NIGHT, ALL OF A SUDDEN WITH NO WARNING A COMPLETE LOSS OF BRAKES AND ALL FLUID. BRAKE LINES RUSTED AND BROKE.. WAS ABLE TO GEAR DOWN TO SLOW AND USE PARKING BRAKE THANKS TO NO TRAFFIC LATE NIGHT. THIS IS NOT NORMAL AS THE LINES ARE NOT VISABLE WITHOUT CRAWLING UNDER VECHICLE WHERE THEY ARE UP IN THE FRAME. ONLY H…
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DRIVING LATE AT NIGHT, ALL OF A SUDDEN WITH NO WARNING A COMPLETE LOSS OF BRAKES AND ALL FLUID. BRAKE LINES RUSTED AND BROKE.. WAS ABLE TO GEAR DOWN TO SLOW AND USE PARKING BRAKE THANKS TO NO TRAFFIC LATE NIGHT. THIS IS NOT NORMAL AS THE LINES ARE NOT VISABLE WITHOUT CRAWLING UNDER VECHICLE WHERE THEY ARE UP IN THE FRAME. ONLY HAD 41,000 MILES ON TRUCK. THE COST FOR REPAIR WAS $600.00 WHICH I BELIEVE SHOULD BE BORNE BY CHEVROLET. IF THIS HAD HAPPENED IN TRAFFIC, IT WOULD DEFINITELY WOULD HAVE CAUSED AN ACCIDENT. THEY ARE NOT LOCATED IN A PLACE WHERE THEY CAN BE SEEN EASILY.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT 55 MPH, THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED TO THE FLOORBOARD BUT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO STOP. THE CONTACT THEN DEPRESSED THE EMERGENCY BRAKE IN ORDER TO STOP THE VEHICLE AND AVOID CRASHING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WH…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2004 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING AT 55 MPH, THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED TO THE FLOORBOARD BUT THE VEHICLE FAILED TO STOP. THE CONTACT THEN DEPRESSED THE EMERGENCY BRAKE IN ORDER TO STOP THE VEHICLE AND AVOID CRASHING. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DIAGNOSED THAT THE BRAKE LINE NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 51,000. THE VIN WAS NOT AVAILABLE.
Official recalls
0No 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
0No exact-year investigations in this snapshot.
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