2004 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 2500 Complaints

MY WIFE, DAUGHTER, AND I WERE TRAVELING DOWN A TWO LANE HIGHWAY AT THE 55 MPH SPEED LIMIT. A ONCOMING VEHICLE PULLED OUT TO PASS ANOTHER VEHICLE. WHEN I STEPPED ON THE BRAKE PEDAL TO AVOID A COLLISION, THE PEDAL WENT ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR. THANKFULLY, THE ONCOMING VEHICLE WENT BACK TO THEIR LANE AND WE WERE ABLE TO COAST TO A STOP. UPON EXAMINATION, ALL FOUR BRAKE LINES ON THE FRONT HALF OF THE TRUCK WERE BADLY RUSTED AND LEAKING. THE UNDERCARRIAGE ON OUR 2004 CHEVY SILVERADO IS EXTREMELY RUSTED. FUEL LINES. TRANSMISSION COOLER LINES, BRAKE LINES, FRAME, BODY PANELS ALL HAVE LARGE AMOUNTS OF RUST. WE PURCHASED THIS VEHICLE NEW IN 2004. IT HAS NEVER BEEN IN A FLOOD. *TR

COMING OUT OF MY DRIVEWAY, WHICH IS APPROXIMATELY 1200 FEET LONG, I HIT THE BRAKE PEDAL WHICH WENT STRAIGHT TO THE FLOOR, WITHOUT EVEN SLOWING THE TRUCK FROM 15 MPH (IT IS VERY SLIGHTLY DOWNHILL NEAR THE VERY END). I CROSSED THE ROAD AND WAS HIT BY AN ONCOMING VEHICLE APPROACHING MY DRIVEWAY. FORTUNATELY, THE VEHICLE WAS A FRIEND SLOWING TO ENTER MY DRIVEWAY AND THE COLLISION WAS MINOR. DESTROYED MY REAR BUMPER AND DAMAGED THE LEFT REAR QUARTER PANEL. HAD THE ONCOMING VEHICLE BEEN TRAVELING AT A NORMAL RATE OF SPEED FOR THIS ROAD, IT WOULD HAVE BEEN MUCH WORSE. LIKELY WITH INJURIES. IT IS A RURAL ROAD WITH A 35 MPH SPEED LIMIT AND PEOPLE GENERALLY DRIVE IT AT 40-45 MPH. *TR

EXHAUST MANIFOLD BOLTS BROKE ON BOTH SIDES OF ENGINE, 6.0 LITER ENGINE, RESULTING IN EXTREME NOISE, POOR GAS MILEAGE, SERVICE ENGINE LIGHT BLINKING AND SMELL OF EXHAUST ENTERING CAB. WHY ISN'T THIS A RECALL ITEM SINCE SO MANY PEOPLE ARE HAVING THE SAME PROBLEM WITH CHEVY AND GM TRUCKS AND SUV'S? THE COST OF REPAIR BY A GARAGE IS ASTRONOMICAL AND IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO DO IT OURSELVES. THE TRUCK NOW HAS ROUGHLY 112,000 MILES SINCE WE HAVE TO USE IT AT TIMES. *TR

STEPPED ON BRAKE AND PUT VEHICLE IN DRIVE. DROVE TO END OF DRIVEWAY AND STOPPED. THE PEDAL WENT TO FLOOR AFTER STOPPING. UPON INVESTIGATION I NOTICED THE BRAKELINE RUNNING FROM FRONT TO BACK OF VEHICLE BROKE. SAME TIME I ALSO NOTICED THAT THE ENTIRE BRAKE LINE SYSTEM WAS RUSTED AND FALLING APART. *TR

WHILE DRIVING IN HEAVY DENVER, COLORADO TRAFFIC LATE AFTERNOON HOURS OF 07/18/2014, MY 2004 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 2500 HD, DURAMAX LLY HAD A "SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION OF ENGINE POWER". GM WAS AWARE OF THIS AS EARLY AS AUGUST 17, 2009, AS PER THEIR BULLETIN # 09-06-04-034. THIS BULLETIN STATES THIS MAY BE CAUSED BY THE FUEL INJECTOR WIRE HARNESS RUBBING AGAINST THE BRACKET AND CHAFING THE WIRE INSULATION. THIS OCCURRED ON MY VEHICLE CAUSING ONE WIRE TO SHORT AGAINST THE BRACKET. THIS IMMEDIATELY SHUT DOWN THE AFFECTED CYLINDER BANK RESULTING IN AN IMMEDIATE REDUCTION OF ENGINE POWER. I FEEL THIS COULD BE A SAFETY CONCERN. FORTUNATELY I WAS ABLE TO GET TO THE SIDE OF THE ROADWAY WITHOUT INCIDENT. I HAVE SENT THREE EMAILS TO [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

JUST FINISHED A 300 MILE TRIP TOWING A 24 FOOT RACE TRAILER. NEXT MORNING LEFT TO PUT THE TRAILER IN STORAGE AND THE PEDAL WENT TO FLOOR ON THE WAY OUT OF THE SUBDIVISION. LUCKILY THE SPEED WAS SLOW AND THE TRAILER HAD BRAKES SO I COULD GET STOPPED BY USING THE OMG SWITCH ON THE BRAKE CONTROLLER. THERE WAS CROSS TRAFFIC THAT WOULD HAVE RESULTED IN A BAD ACCIDENT HAD I ENTERED THE INTERSECTION. JUDGING BY THE NUMBER OF COMPLAINTS OF RUSTED BRAKE LINES ON THIS VEHICLE IT IS ONLY A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE SOMEONE IS KILLED. FURTHER INSPECTION OF THE VEHICLE SHOWS THAT ALL THE LINES NEED TO BE REPLACED. THIS TRUCK IS MAINTAINED IN LIKE NEW CONDITION AND BRAKE LINES SHOULD GO MANY MORE YEARS THAN THIS. *TR

ON SATURDAY, AUGUST 11, 2012 I EXPERIENCED A BRAKE FAILURE. AFTER LOOKING UNDERNEATH MY 2004 CHEVY SILVERADO 2500HD BRAKE FLUID WAS DRIPPING FROM A RUSTY BRAKE LINE BELOW THE DRIVER SEAT AREA. IT APPEARED I LOST THE REAR BRAKES SO I WAS ABLE TO GET THE TRUCK TO THE CHEVY DEALERSHIP THE FOLLOWING MONDAY AUGUST 13, 2012. THIS TRUCK ONLY HAD 49,364 MILES ON IT AND WAS APPROXIMATELY 8 YEARS OLD. THE CHEVY DEALER LATER CALLED ME WITH THE BAD NEWS THAT ALL OF THE BRAKE LINES WERE BAD AND NEEDED REPLACED. THEY ALSO DISCOVERED THE FUEL LINES WERE RUSTY AND NEEDED REPLACED TOO. THEY LATER NOTIFIED ME THE CALIPERS WERE RUSTY AS THEY COULD NOT BLEED THE BRAKES PROPERLY SO THESE ALSO HAD TO BE REPLACED. THE TOTAL OF THIS AUGUST 21, 2012 INVOICE WAS $2,772.28 AND THIS WAS WITH A 10% DISCOUNT. PLEASE NOTE THE REAR BRAKES WERE JUST REPLACED 1207 MILES EARLIER ON APRIL 30, 2012 FOR MY REQUIRED STATE VEHICLE INSPECTION. DURING THIS STATE INSPECTION (MILEAGE 48,157) IN APRIL 2012 THEY ALSO HAD TO REPLACE A SPEED SENSOR AS THE TRUCK WAS GOING INTO ABS AT LOW SPEEDS. THE INVOICE STATES THIS SENSOR ?CAME APART? AND THEY ALSO HAD TO CLEAN THE OTHER ONE. THERE IS WAS NO INDICATION OF RUSTY BRAKE LINES OR FUEL LINES BROUGHT TO MY ATTENTION DURING THE APRIL 2012 STATE INSPECTION AND ON AUGUST 11, 2012, JUST OVER THREE MONTHS LATER I EXPERIENCED TOTAL REAR BRAKE FAILURE. I CERTAINLY FEEL THIS WAS A SUDDEN LOSS AND COULD CERTAINLY LEAD TO FUTURE COLLISIONS, INJURY OR POTENTIALLY DEATH IF SOMETHING IS NOT DONE TO TRY TO CORRECT THIS BRAKE LINE CORROSION PROBLEM. I AM THANKFUL I WAS NOT TOWING A HEAVY TRAILER WHEN THIS OCCURRED AND THAT NO ONE GOT HURT BUT IT COULD HAVE BEEN MUCH WORSE. I?M GLAD THEY FOUND THE FUEL LINE PROBLEM AS THIS COULD HAVE CAUSED A VEHICLE FIRE OR A HOUSE FIRE IF THE TRUCK WAS PARKED IN THE GARAGE IF THIS FUEL LINE CORROSION WAS NOT CORRECTED. THANK YOU FOR LISTENING. *TR

I WAS DRIVING AND WENT TO STOP THE BRAKE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR. I PUT THE SHIFTER INTO LOW 1 AND HIT THE EMERGENCY BRAKE TO COME TO A STOP JUST SHORT OF HITTING THE HONDA CIVIC IN FRONT OF ME WITH THE BABY IN THE BACK SEAT. I PUT MY HAZARDS LIGHTS ON AND CHECKED THE TRUCK. UNDER THE BED WAS WET WITH BRAKE FLUID. THE BRAKE LINE WAS RUSTED THROUGH AND IS SNAPPED LETTING ALL OF THE FLUID OUT. SO, NO BRAKES! *TR

I WAS PLANNING ON HEADING UP TO THE MOUNTAINS TO MY CABIN TODAY (8/10/2014). I STOPPED FOR DIESEL AT KING'S QUICK STOP, ABOUT 3 BLOCKS FROM MY HOUSE. AFTER I FILLED UP, I PUT IT IN DRIVE AND THE BRAKES FAILED COMPLETELY. BY THE GRACE OF GOD I WAS ONLY GOING 5 MPH IN THE GAS STATION PARKING LOT OR I COULD HAVE EASILY HIT CARS OR PEDESTRIANS CAUSING INJURY OR LOSS OF LIFE. I DROVE HOME USING THE EMERGENCY BRAKE WHICH IS NOT IN A GREAT PLACE FOR EMERGENCY STOPPING. AFTER ARRIVING HOME I TOOK A LOOK AND DISCOVERED THAT THE BRAKE LINES IN ONE PARTICULAR SECTION WERE COMPLETELY CORRODED AND ONE OF THEM HAD BURST. THIS IS A VEHICLE THAT I FREQUENTLY DRIVE TO THE MOUNTAINS AND I CANNOT FATHOM HOW THIS COULD HAPPEN ON ANY TRUCK, LET ALONE A HEAVY DUTY TRUCK. NO WARNING LIGHT CAME OUT TO INFORM ME THAT MY BRAKE PRESSURE WAS LOW ALTHOUGH I FIGURED THAT OUT QUICKLY WHEN MY FOOT WENT ALL THE WAY TO THE FLOOR. AFTER DIAGNOSING THE PROBLEM, I DID SOME SEARCHING ON THE WEB AND DISCOVERED THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM IN THE SALT BELT STATES. BUT I LIVE IN NORTH CAROLINA SO THIS IS QUITE A SURPRISE. I WILL BE SCHEDULING REPAIRS TOMORROW BUT MY UNDERSTANDING IS THAT GM IS NOT ASSISTING IN ANY WAY AND THAT THE REPAIRS CAN RUN UP TO $2000. I'VE OWNED 20 CARS IN MY LIFETIME, MANY WITH EXCESSIVE MILEAGE AND HAVE NEVER HAD BRAKES FAIL BEFORE. SO THIS IS QUITE UNSETTLING AND CLEARLY GM HAS A FAULTY AND DANGEROUS DESIGN HERE. *TR

PULLING BOAT TRAILER UP OUT OF THE BOAT RAMP AND BRAKE PEDDLE WENT TO THE FLOOR AND LEAKED OUT ALL THE FLUID HAD IT TOWED TO GARAGE AND FOUND BRAKE LINE HAD RUSTED THROUGH ON ONE OF THE 4 OTHERS WERE IN BAD SHAPE LUCKY I WASN'T TOWING THE BOAT DOWN THE HIGHWAY AND HAD TO STOP I COULD HAVE KILLED SOMEONE OR MYSELF GM NEEDS TO ADDRESS THIS PROBLEM NOW I HEAR THERE HAS BEEN A LOT OF COMPLAINTS. *TR