IllustrationWHEN STARTING UP TRUCK I HEAR A CLICKING SOUND THEN IT GOES AWAY. HAPPENS ALL THE TIME. *TR
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 →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
560–25K
11025–50K
15450–75K
15275–100K
175100–150K
79150K+
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 reportsI WAS STARTING UP MY 2003 CHEVY SILVERADO THIS MORNING TO GO TO WORK WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL QUICKLY WENT TO THE FLOOR BOARD. AFTER ROLLING BACKWARDS FOR A LITTLE I WAS ABLE TO STOP THE TRUCK. AFTER THIS HAPPENED I RECEIVED THE "SERVICE BRAKE SYSTEM" MESSAGE ON THE CONTROL CLUSTER. LOOKING OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE, I COULD TELL A BRA…
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I WAS STARTING UP MY 2003 CHEVY SILVERADO THIS MORNING TO GO TO WORK WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL QUICKLY WENT TO THE FLOOR BOARD. AFTER ROLLING BACKWARDS FOR A LITTLE I WAS ABLE TO STOP THE TRUCK. AFTER THIS HAPPENED I RECEIVED THE "SERVICE BRAKE SYSTEM" MESSAGE ON THE CONTROL CLUSTER. LOOKING OUTSIDE THE VEHICLE, I COULD TELL A BRAKE LINE HAD BROKEN OR HAD A SIGNIFICANT LEAK AS THERE WAS A PUDDLE BY THE FRONT PASSENGER AXLE. I AM WAITING FOR A TOW TRUCK AND HAVE MISSED AT LEAST A HALF DAY OF WORK. READING THROUGH THE WEBSITE REPORTS, I AM EXPECTING A LARGE BILL FROM THE RUSTED BRAKE LINE REPAIRS THAT SEEM TO BE COMMON IN THIS CHEVY VEHICLE. BEING IN THE MILITARY MY TRUCK HAS BEEN DRIVEN IN A NUMBER OF STATES, BUT NOT IN ANY NORTHERN STATES OR ON SALTED ROADS. I UNDERSTAND THAT NO RECALL HAS BEEN ISSUED TO DATE BY CHEVY. *TR
TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THERE WAS SEVERE RUST ON THE FRAME AND REAR SHACKLES. THE INDEPENDENT MECHANIC STATED THAT BOTH THE FRAME AND THE REAR SHACKLES NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER W…
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TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHERE IT WAS DISCOVERED THAT THERE WAS SEVERE RUST ON THE FRAME AND REAR SHACKLES. THE INDEPENDENT MECHANIC STATED THAT BOTH THE FRAME AND THE REAR SHACKLES NEEDED TO BE REPLACED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 95,000.
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING INTO A PARKING SPACE, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY EXPERIENCED UNINTENDED ACCELERATION AND SURGED FORWARD. THE VEHICLE CRASHED INTO A PILE OF BRICK BOULDERS. THE DRIVER SUFFERED INJURIES TO THE BACK SHOULDERS, AND NECK. THE THREE YEAR OLD PASSENG…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE DRIVING INTO A PARKING SPACE, THE VEHICLE SUDDENLY EXPERIENCED UNINTENDED ACCELERATION AND SURGED FORWARD. THE VEHICLE CRASHED INTO A PILE OF BRICK BOULDERS. THE DRIVER SUFFERED INJURIES TO THE BACK SHOULDERS, AND NECK. THE THREE YEAR OLD PASSENGER IN THE REAR PASSENGER SEAT SUFFERED AN INJURED BACK. MEDICAL ATTENTION WAS NOT RECEIVED AND A POLICE REPORT WAS FILED. AN INVESTIGATOR WAS SENT TO THE HOME TO EXAMINE THE VEHICLE, BUT COULD NOT LOCATE A FAILURE. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 160,000. ..UPDATED 11/21/16 *BF UPDATED 03/07/17*LJ UPDATED 9/27/2017*CN
I WAS DRIVING MY 2003 CHEVY SILVERADO DOWN THE ROAD AND WHEN I WENT TO SLOW DOWN MY BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR AFTER GETTING PULLED OVER INTO A PARKING LOT I INSPECTED THE LINES AND SAW THAT THEY ALL HAD BUSTED AND WERE ALL VERY RUSTY I TOOK IT TO THE MECHANIC AND HE STATED IT WASN'T WORTH FIXING DUE TO THE EXCESSIVE RUST ON …
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I WAS DRIVING MY 2003 CHEVY SILVERADO DOWN THE ROAD AND WHEN I WENT TO SLOW DOWN MY BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR AFTER GETTING PULLED OVER INTO A PARKING LOT I INSPECTED THE LINES AND SAW THAT THEY ALL HAD BUSTED AND WERE ALL VERY RUSTY I TOOK IT TO THE MECHANIC AND HE STATED IT WASN'T WORTH FIXING DUE TO THE EXCESSIVE RUST ON THE FRAME AND GAS LINES IT WOULD COST MORE THAN THE TRUCK WAS WORTH. *TR
WHEN THE TRUCK IS CRANKED AND AT IDLE AND IN MOTION THE HEADLIGHTS AND ALL PANELS BLINK. THE LIGHT ON THE PANELS DO NOT COMPLETELY GO OUT BUT IT DIMS. THE HEADLIGHTS HAVE WENT COMPLETELY OUT A FEW TIMES WHILE IN MOTION. WHEN THE INTERIOR LIGHT IS ON IT ALSO BLINKS AND DIMS. AT TIMES THE RADIO GOES HAYWIRE AND STARTS GOING THROUG…
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WHEN THE TRUCK IS CRANKED AND AT IDLE AND IN MOTION THE HEADLIGHTS AND ALL PANELS BLINK. THE LIGHT ON THE PANELS DO NOT COMPLETELY GO OUT BUT IT DIMS. THE HEADLIGHTS HAVE WENT COMPLETELY OUT A FEW TIMES WHILE IN MOTION. WHEN THE INTERIOR LIGHT IS ON IT ALSO BLINKS AND DIMS. AT TIMES THE RADIO GOES HAYWIRE AND STARTS GOING THROUGH ALL OF THE STATIONS. THE HEADLIGHT CONNECTORS HAVE BEEN REPLACED AND WE NOTICED THAT THE WIRING THAT GOES TO THE HEADLIGHTS IS VERY BRITTLE AND WHERE THE CONNECTORS PLUG INTO THE BULB WERE BURNT AND THE PRONGS ON THE BULB WERE ALSO BURNT AND MELTED. THIS HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR SOME TIME AND WE CAN'T SEEM TO FIND WHAT IS CAUSING ALL OF THESE PROBLEMS. THE DRIVER SIDE WINDOW,DOOR, AND MIRROR PANEL ONLY HALFWAY WORK. SOMETIMES THE DRIVERSIDE WINDOW WILL GO DOWN AND SOMETIMES IT WON'T THE DRIVER SIDE PANEL WILL NOT CONTROL THE PASSENGER SIDE MIRROR, LOCK, OR WINDOW EITHER. THE PASSENGER SIDE WINDOW AND LOCK PANEL WILL NOT WORK EITHER. *TR
AS LUCK WOULD HAVE IT, I HAD JUST LEFT A VERY BUSY HIGHWAY AND PULLED INTO A PARKING LOT WHEN MY BRAKES FAILED COMPLETELY. THE BRAKE PETAL WENT DOWN TO THE FLOOR AND RATHER THAN RISKING A COLLISION WITH ANY CARS OR PEOPLE, I DROVE INTO A SNOW BANK. WHEN I GOT OUT OF THE TRUCK TO LOOK FOR THE PROBLEM, THE METAL BRAKE LINE HAD S…
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AS LUCK WOULD HAVE IT, I HAD JUST LEFT A VERY BUSY HIGHWAY AND PULLED INTO A PARKING LOT WHEN MY BRAKES FAILED COMPLETELY. THE BRAKE PETAL WENT DOWN TO THE FLOOR AND RATHER THAN RISKING A COLLISION WITH ANY CARS OR PEOPLE, I DROVE INTO A SNOW BANK. WHEN I GOT OUT OF THE TRUCK TO LOOK FOR THE PROBLEM, THE METAL BRAKE LINE HAD SPLIT AND WAS LEAKING FLUID. WHEN THE BRAKES FAIL ON YOUR CAR, IT ALWAYS HAPPENS WHEN YOU NEED THEM LEAVING YOU TO MAKE SPLIT SECOND DECISIONS, AND IN MY CASE THAT CONSISTED ENTIRELY OF NAVIGATION AS THERE WAS NO TIME TO THINK ABOUT USING THE EMERGENCY BRAKE. I CAN ONLY IMAGINE THE POSSIBLE OUTCOMES IF THIS HAD HAPPENED AN HOUR BEFORE OR AFTER WHILE DRIVING ON THE HIGHWAY OR FREEWAY. MY TRUCK IS WELL MAINTAINED, AND IS FREQUENTLY SERVICED BY A CHEVROLET DEALER WHERE I ALWAYS HAVE ANYTHING REPAIRED THAT THEY SUGGEST FIXING. AS THIS TRUCK CARRIES BOTH FAMILY AND EMPLOYEES, SAFETY IS OF THE UTMOST IMPORTANCE AND THIS IS A FRIGHTENING PROBLEM THAT SHOULD RESULT IN A RECALL. I AM HAVING ALL OF THE BRAKE LINES REPLACED TODAY...IT IS GOING TO COST ME ALMOST $2000 AND THAT IS BECAUSE MY CHEVROLET DEALER IS NOT CHARGING ME FOR THE TOW, OR LABOR. *TR
ATTEMPTED TO STOP VEHICLE, BRAKES FAILED (LATER FOUND TO BE DUE TO CORROSION) CRASHED INTO GARAGE. *TR
DRIVING MY '03 CHEVY SILVERADO 1500 (108,850 MILES ON THE VEHICLE) ON MY WAY TO GET MY OIL CHANGED, MY BRAKES SEEMED TO ALL OF A SUDDEN LOOSE MOST OF THEIR STOPPING ABILITY. I FIRST NOTICED IT APPROACHING A STOP LIGHT AFTER TRAVELING ON A STRETCH OF HIGHWAY AT 45 MPH. I HAD TO PRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL IN MUCH FURTHER THAN NORMAL. N…
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DRIVING MY '03 CHEVY SILVERADO 1500 (108,850 MILES ON THE VEHICLE) ON MY WAY TO GET MY OIL CHANGED, MY BRAKES SEEMED TO ALL OF A SUDDEN LOOSE MOST OF THEIR STOPPING ABILITY. I FIRST NOTICED IT APPROACHING A STOP LIGHT AFTER TRAVELING ON A STRETCH OF HIGHWAY AT 45 MPH. I HAD TO PRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL IN MUCH FURTHER THAN NORMAL. NO WARNING LIGHTS WERE ON INDICATING A PROBLEM. THE NEXT SET OF LIGHTS, MAYBE A 1.5 MILES DOWN THE ROAD, SAME THING, PUTTING THE PEDAL TO THE FLOOR TO STOP. THIS TIME A "SERVICE BRAKE SYSTEM" LIGHT FLASHED FOR A SECOND THEN WENT AWAY. I HAVE NOW TRAVELED ABOUT 6 MILES FROM THE FIRST INDICATION OF PROBLEMS TO WHERE I WAS GETTING MY OIL CHANGED. AS I PULLED INTO THERE PARKING LOT, VERY SLOWLY (LESS THAN 5 MPH), I ONCE AGAIN HAD TO PUT THE BRAKE PEDAL TO THE FLOOR TO COME TO A STOP. I LOOKED UNDER MY TRUCK TO NOTICE FLUID DRIPPING FROM THE BRAKE LINE UNDER THE DRIVER SIDE DOOR. THE MECHANICS THERE SAID THE LINE WAS SHOT AND RECOMMENDED NOT DRIVING IT TIL IT WAS FIXED. THEY WERE NOT SETUP TO WORK ON BRAKE LINES AT THIS SHOP, SO I HAD TO HAVE IT TOWED TO ANOTHER MECHANIC. MY BRAKE LINES WERE SEVERALLY RUSTED. THE THING THAT CONCERNED ME THE MOST WAS HOW QUICKLY THIS ALL HAPPENED WITHOUT ANY WARNING, AND BY THE TIME THE WARNING LIGHTS DID COME ON I ALREADY HAD NO STOPPING ABILITY IF I WAS TRAVELING AT NORMAL SPEEDS. GM REALLY NEEDS TO CONSIDER THIS POOR DESIGN IN THE MATERIAL THEY USE FOR THEIR BRAKE LINES, BEFORE SOMETHING LIKE THIS LEADS TO SOME ONES DEATH. VERY DANGEROUS!!! SPEND THE TIME AND MONEY TO PUT A QUALITY BRAKING SYSTEM ON YOUR VEHICLES, IT SHOULD BE THE FIRST THING YOU DO. *TR
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 60 MPH, THE VEHICLE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT HAD TO MANEUVER THE VEHICLE TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. THE VEHICLE RESTARTED AFTER APPROXIMATELY 20 MINUTES. THE VEHICLE WAS DRIVEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO STATED THAT THE IGNITION MODU…
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TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500. WHILE DRIVING APPROXIMATELY 60 MPH, THE VEHICLE STALLED WITHOUT WARNING. THE CONTACT HAD TO MANEUVER THE VEHICLE TO THE SIDE OF THE ROAD. THE VEHICLE RESTARTED AFTER APPROXIMATELY 20 MINUTES. THE VEHICLE WAS DRIVEN TO AN INDEPENDENT MECHANIC WHO STATED THAT THE IGNITION MODULE NEEDED REPLACING. THE VEHICLE WAS REPAIRED. THE FAILURE RECURRED NUMEROUS TIMES AFTER THE REPAIR. THE MANUFACTURER WAS NOT NOTIFIED OF THE FAILURE. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 75,000.
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
3EA11001 · 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.