Why would any automotive company use brake lines, which are located in the underbody of the truck, subjected to all type of road conditions including salt in the northern winters, made from corrosive metal material??? This is unbelievable!!! Would the Chief Engineer for General Motors 2001 GMC Yukon XL or Chevrolet Suburban please stand up and respond to this post? Allow me to explain that brakes are a rather important part of any vehicle. People rely on brakes more than anything on an automobile. To use a metallic material that corrodes in salt spray conditions is irresponsible. Two weekends ago I was towing my son's furniture in a 20' trailer from E. Lansing, Michigan, to Cleveland, Ohio. Thankfully the brake lines did not fail during this trip... it could have been disastrous... even deadly. Double thankfully, my other son was driving the Yukon XL yesterday and was able to pull into a parking lot where he called me. I came and assessed the situation. Early Sunday morning, with minimal traffic, I was able to limp the Yukon XL home. I'll find out tomorrow how much this will cost me when my neighborhood repair shop will inform me of the cost. Based on what I've read on the web it won't be cheap.

Again, I reach out to the Chief Engineer at GM that was responsible for this decision to use corrosive metal material on brake lines. How much did this save your budget? Have you read all the problems of this issue on the web? I'm certain you are well aware of the problem. Do you have children? Do you sleep well at night?

I need for you to take a stand. You will be pressured into these type decisions by your exec management no more. You need to take this stand so we, as Americans, can truly say we are making superior automobiles versus our overseas competitors. Yes, GM and Ford, and Chrysler products are better today than 10 years ago. But so is the competitions'. I have driven my Toyota for 255,000 miles with no issues. My General Motors Yukon XL at 181,000 miles has performed okay (10 -20 years ago it was a huge achievement for a GM automobile to exceed 100k miles), but there have been a few problems in addition to this corrosive brake line issue. They seem to cost between $600 and $1,000 each time.

I suppose this has been good therapy to write this blog. I can only hope someone from GM in a position to make a difference reads this and takes it to heart. Please take GM to the next level and avoid design blunders like this corrosive brake line. America's future does depend on you. I know the engineers at GM are better than this. Thank you for taking the time to read this.

ON JUNE 11, 2011 I DROVE MY 2001 GMC YUKON XL FROM CARLE PLACE NY TO SUMMIT NJ. THE TRIP CONSISTED OF MAINLY HIGHWAY MILEAGE. EVERYTHING SEEMED FINE UNTIL I REACHED MY DESTINATION. I MADE A LEFT INTO A PARKING LOT AND THE BRAKE PEDAL BECAME UNRESPONSIVE. I PULLED INTO A SPOT AND JAMMED ON THE BRAKES. THE VEHICLE ROLLED AND HOPPED THE CURB AND BUMPED INTO A FENCE. I BROKE A FEW BOARDS. I PUT THE TRUCK IN NEUTRAL, ROLLED BACK INTO THE SPOT, AND USED THE PARKING/EMERGENCY BREAK TO STOP. I GOT OUT, OPEN THE HOOD AND SAW I WAS LOW ON BRAKE FLUID. I LOOKED DOWN AND THERE WAS A LARGE PUDDLE OF BRAKE FLUID UNDER MY VEHICLE. I LOOKED UNDER AND SAW BRAKE FLUID DRIPPING OUT. I REACHED UNDER TO SEE WHERE THE DRIP WAS COMING FROM. IT APPEARS THE LINE BURST. CALLED AAA AND HAD THE TRUCK TOWED BACK TO NY. UPON FURTHER INSPECTION, I NOTICED ALL THE BRAKE LINES COMPLETELY RUSTED. IT WAS A MATTER OF TIME THE OTHER LINES WOULD FAIL. IF I DROVE ANOTHER MILE IN NJ I WOULD HAVE BEEN IN AN ACCIDENT. THANK GOD I WAS NOT ON THE HIGHWAY WHEN THIS HAPPENED. THIS DEFINITELY NEED TO BE INVESTIGATED. THERE SHOULD BE A HIGH STANDARD WHEN IT COMES TO BRAKES. STOPPING A VEHICLE IS MORE CRITICAL THAN MAKING IT MOVE. I CALLED GMC AND THEY SAID NO RECALLS EXIST FOR MY VEHICLE. THEY'RE SOLUTION IS TO VISIT A SERVICE CENTER FOR REPAIR. VISITED THE GMC SERVICE CENTER. THEY WANT 2K TO FIX THE LINES. I COMPLAINED. LONG STORY SHORT, IT WAS GOING TO BE 2K OUT OF MY POCKET TO FIX THEIR PROBLEM. I, INSTEAD, WENT HOME AND SEARCHED ONLINE FOR PREBENT STAINLES STEEL BREAK LINES. I PURCHASED A WHOLE SET FROM CLASSICTUBE.COM. I WILL BE INSTALLING THEN THIS WEEKEND. SO FAR MY EXPENSE WENT FROM 2K TO 300 BUCKS. I WOULD SUGGEST IF YOU HAVE THIS VEHICLE FROM THIS YEAR, TO CHECK THE BREAK LINES. IF THEY'RE RUSTED THROUGH, EITHER BUY STAINLESS STEEL AND REPLACE THEM OR HIRE SOMEONE. ITS A MATTER OF TIME YOUR LINES WILL FAIL