2005 GMC Sierra 2500

THE HYDRAULIC BRAKE BOOSTER'S PRESSURE ACCUMULATOR CRACKED AND /OR SEPARATED FROM THE HYDRO-BOOST ASSEMBLY DURING NORMAL VEHICLE OPERATING CONDITIONS. THE PRESENCE OF THIS CRACK OR FRACTURED SURFACE ALLOWED THE HYDRAULIC FLUID TO LEAK FROM THE ACCUMULATOR CIRCUIT OF THE BOOSTER ASSEMBLY. THE LOSS OF FLUID CAUSED INCREASED STEERING AND BRAKING EFFORT. *TR

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 GMC SIERRA 2500 HD. THE BRAKE PEDAL HAD TO BE EXTENDED TO THE FLOOR IN ORDER TO STOP THE VEHICLE. THE VEHICLE HAS NOT BEEN DIAGNOSED BY THE DEALER. THE CONTACT ALSO NOTICED THAT THEY WOULD GRADUALLY NEED MORE BRAKING DISTANCE BEFORE COMING TO A COMPLETE STOP. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 39391.

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 SIERRA 2500 HD. AFTER STARTING THE VEHICLE AND TURNING THE STEERING WHEEL, THE SERVICE BRAKES LOCKED. WITHOUT WARNING, THE BRAKE PEDAL DEPRESSED AUTOMATICALLY WITHOUT ASSISTANCE. THERE WERE NO WARNING LIGHT INDICATORS ILLUMINATED ON THE INSTRUMENT PANEL. THE VEHICLE WAS TOWED TO AN AUTHORIZED DEALER FOR INSPECTION. THE TECHNICIAN STATED THAT THE FAILURE WAS RELATED TO THE HYDRAULIC BRAKE BOOSTER. THE VEHICLE IS INOPERABLE AND HAS NOT BEEN REPAIRED. THE CONTACT IS AWARE OF THE SAFETY RISK INVOLVED. THE FAILURE AND CURRENT MILEAGES WERE 92,000.

TL*THE CONTACT OWNS A 2005 GMC SIERRA 2500 HD. WHILE DRIVING 65 MPH, THE STOPPING DISTANCE INCREASED WHEN THE BRAKE PEDAL WAS DEPRESSED AND THE STEERING WHEEL LOCKED. AS OF NOVEMBER 19, 2007, THE DEALER HAD NOT COMPLETED THEIR INSPECTION TO DETERMINE THE CAUSE OF THE FAILURE. THE VIN WAS UNKNOWN. THE CURRENT AND FAILURE MILEAGES WERE 69,500.

TRUCK HAS BEEN IN DEALER NUMEROUS TIMES FOR SEVERE NOISE OF POWER STEERING PUMP, LOSS OF BRAKE BOOST AND STEERING ASSIST AT LOW SPEEDS. PUMP WAS REPLACED AND NOISED DISAPPEARED FOR JUST OVER 2 WEEKS AND STARTED AGAIN. DEALER EXPLAINED THAT GM IS AWARE OF PROBLEM, BUT IS ONLY TAKING CALLS ABOUT THE PROBLEM FROM ONE AREA CODE WHILE THEY TRY TO ISOLATE. DEALER THEN REPLACED THE STEERING GEAR WITH NO CORRECTION OF PROBLEM. AT A STANDSTILL, TURNING THE STEERING WHEEL ABOUT 3/4 TURN RESULTS IN COMPLETE LOSS OF STEERING ASSIST AND SOMETIMES BRAKE BOOST, PLUS EXCESSIVE PUMP NOISE. DEALER IS NOW TRYING TO TELL ME THIS IS NORMAL. THERE IS A TECHNICAL BULLETIN ON THIS PROBLEM. GM HAS INSTRUCTED DEALERS NOT TO REPLACE THE POWER STEERING PUMP. AS THEY HAVE RECEIVED TOO MANY PUMPS UNDER WARRANTY THAT APPEAR TO HAVE NO PROBLEM. DRIVING THE VEHICLE AT 1200 RPM AND STEERING RIGHT OR LEFT WILL GENERATE A GROANING NOISE THAT DROWNS CONVERSATION IN THE CAB AND AT TIMES RESULTS IN REDUCED OR FAILED BRAKE BOOST. THE SAME LOUD GROANING NOISE OCCURS WHEN SLOWING THE VEHICLE FROM HIGHWAY SPEEDS WITHOUT ANY TURNING OF THE STEERING WHEEL, AS THE ENGINE RPM FALLS THROUGH THE 1200 RPM RANGE. SOUNDS LIKE A HYDRAULIC SYSTEM WITH AIR IN THE SYSTEM, LOW FLUID OR BEING PUSH TO OVER-CAPACITY. GM IS NOT BEING RESPONSIVE TO THE EXCESSIVE NUMBER OF CUSTOMER COMPLAINTS. I KNOW OTHERS WITH THE SAME PROBLEM ON SEVERAL YEARS OF 2500HD DURAMAX TRUCKS. IT IS NOT AT ALL DIFFICULT TO FIND OTHERS WITH THIS EXACT SAME COMPLAINT. THE NOISE APPEARS TO BE AN UNDER CAPACITY HYDRAULIC SYSTEM FOR POWER STEERING AND BRAKE BOOST. GM IS EITHER IGNORING THE PROBLEM OR HOPING THE PROBLEM TRUCKS WILL EXPIRE WARRANTY. MORE OWNERS NEED TO COMPLAIN AND FORCE A RECALL TO REPAIR THIS DEFECT IN DESIGN. CONTRARY TO MY DEALER'S ASSERTION, THIS IS NOT NORMAL. I HAVE BEEN DRIVING LONG ENOUGH TO KNOW "NORMAL" AND A "PROBLEM DODGE" WHEN I SEE IT.

DT*: THE CONTACT STATED WHILE PARKED AND ATTEMPTING TO ACCELERATE, THE VEHICLE GRADUALLY MOVED. THE BRAKES AND STEERING WERE ALSO NOT WORKING. THERE WERE NO WARNING SIGNALS PRIOR TO THE INCIDENT. THE VEHICLE WAS TAKEN TO A SERVICE DEALER, HOWEVER THE CONTACT HAD NOT RECEIVED RESULTS FROM THE DIAGNOSTIC TESTING. THE MANUFACTURER WAS CONTACTED AND THE CONTACT WAS INFORMED THAT THERE WAS A PENDING RECALL. UPDATED 11/30/06 *JB