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10.0

really awful
Crashes / Fires:
8 / 0
Injuries / Deaths:
2 / 0
Average Mileage:
101,696 miles

About These NHTSA Complaints:

This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.

So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.

2003 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 brakes problems

brakes problem

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2003 Chevrolet Silverado 2500 Owner Comments (Page 5 of 8)

« Read the previous 20 complaints

problem #73

Jan 122014

Silverado 2500 8-cyl

  • 55,333 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

I was traveling in icy conditions (rain and 26 degrees) and was turning the corner to go into a local mall when I stepped on the brakes, the pedal went to the floor. There was no warning whatsoever and had to apply the brakes with both feet to coast to a stop. I added in a bottle of brake fluid into the master cylinder and had my son step on the brakes, and a gusher came out of the line right under the drivers door. In looking underneath the vehicle, all of the lines seem to run there and all look extremely rusted to the point where I can't tell which is bad. If this had happened 4 minutes before, I was traveling down an extremely steep grade and feel that both my son and I would have been killed. After searching the internet on this issue, it looks like this has been investigated by the NHTSA since 2010 with no findings whatsoever. This is absolutely in excusable. I'm not sure what I am looking for as far as repairs go but am really thankful that my son and I are still alive. What is it going to take to get a ruling on this" does someone have to die"

- Esko, MN, USA

problem #72

Sep 302009

Silverado 2500

  • 77,000 miles
I was stopped on boat ramp and started to back up when brake pedal went all the way to the floor.we were very lucky to not launch boat and truck into river at the same time. We then had the truck towed to our local garage and the brake line was repaired. The mechanic told me that the brake line was rusted.this has happened twice now.the second time I was stopping at a red light and the pedal went straight to the floor. Chevy says you don't lose complete braking but I would like to see the CEO have it happen to him. This problem will make me sell this truck.I will not be driving this vehicle again..I hope the nhtsb will make Chevy either address this problem or fix it before someone either gets seriously hurt or killed.

- Lanexa, VA, USA

problem #71

Dec 162013

Silverado 2500 8-cyl

  • 75,000 miles
2 problems. Anti-lock brakes pulsate intermittently. Engine 6.0L exhaust manifold bolts are broken. Causing emissions codes to set and exhaust gases into cab. I have found that this a common problem for 1999 to 2007 V8 engines. GM said there is no recall or warranty for this problem.

- Millbury, MA, USA

problem #70

Dec 142013

Silverado 2500

  • 97,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

Brake line rupture due to rust. I was backing up in my driveway to hook up a small trailer when I felt and heard a small pop and the break pedal went right to the floor. Service brake system appeared on dash panel.

- Deptfrod, NJ, USA

problem #69

Dec 092013

Silverado 2500 8-cyl

  • miles
Had stopped to put my granddaughter on the school bus. After the bus left went to put truck in gear pressed brake pedal and it went to the floor. Parked it till I got home and looked main rear line rusted through.

- Bloomingdale, IN, USA

problem #68

Nov 152013

Silverado 2500 8-cyl

  • 170,000 miles
Front passanger side brake line rusted out and failed while in a tim hortons drive thru, thankfully not moving when brake pedle suddenly went to the floor. The driver side line was replaced 1.5 years ago due to rusting out.

- Calis, ME, USA

problem #67

Nov 122013

Silverado 2500 8-cyl

  • 97,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

While hard on the brakes to avoid a vehicle, my rear brake line burst, and I lost all brakes. Luckily I was able to use the emergency brake to come to a stop. Now I have a $400 bill to replace rusted brake lines, that should have never rusted in the first place.

- Mooresville, IN, USA

problem #66

Jul 232011

Silverado 2500 4WD 8-cyl

  • 73,025 miles
I was driving home from having dinner with friends. Luckily for me and others on the road it was a late Saturday evening during a beautiful Florida summer. I was driving on ulmerton rd which is a 4 lane rd in pinellas county. I was driving at about 45 mph and the light turned red. I started to apply the brakes pretty softly as the light was some distance away. All of the sudden the brake pedal went to the floor and all the bells and whistles on the dash started going off. I realized I have no brakes. I start to panic and then decide I better try the emergency brake as I do not want to run the red light and get into a possible accident. I must emphasize the anger I felt at this moment as my wife usually drives this truck and there is no way she would have thought to use the emergency brake which is rather difficult to use in the first place in this truck as it is up and to the left a good ways. I used the emergency brake the rest of the way home. Applying the brake and then pulling the release which is not an easy task to do. My brake lines were so rusted they exploded doing 45 mph. This truck was purchased brand new by my father and was given to me when he passed away. He had free car washes at the dealership he bought it from and had the truck washed constantly. I am furious that this $30,000+ vehicle is completely rusting on the undercarriage. In my opinion GM sold us a lemon. They chose to put profit before the safety of its customers and if my wife was driving this vehicle during rush hour as this vehicle is used for daily driving to and from work could have been seriously injured or worse killed because of this not to mention the safety of any innocent people in her way. This report is being reported 2 years after the incident because I did not know this site existed and I just saw the same complaint on a forum which mentioned this site.

- Largo, FL, USA

problem #65

Jun 172013

Silverado 2500 8-cyl

  • 51,555 miles
I was driving down a hill when a car went through a stop sign at an intersection. I slammed on my brakes, in a panic stop, and my brake pedal went to the floor. I didn't have any brakes so I drove around the car almost hitting it. The other car didn't stop and I drove 5 mph to a parking lot where I looked and found a puddle of brake fluid under the driver side of the truck. I took it to my auto shop and he said I blew out two brake lines. I had all the brake lines replaced at the cost of $2,269.99.

- Wallingford, PA, USA

problem #64

Oct 072013

Silverado 2500 4WD 8-cyl

  • 135,000 miles
While on my way to work Monday morning the brake pedal went right to the floor. I was able to get the truck back to the house to inspect the problem. I found that the brake lines were completely rotted out. Thank god I was only a few miles from the house. I live in a rural area with steep and winding mountain roads and have to drive the interstate to get to work, thank god it didn't happen there. It happened with no warning, a few people I know have experienced the same problem with their Chevy pickups. The steel brake lines are a bad design, I live in pa. Where the brake lines are subject to salt they should be stainless steel. I'm sure someone is going to get killed if this problem is not resolved.

- Jefferson Township, PA, USA

problem #63

Sep 222013

Silverado 2500

  • 98,000 miles

A D V E R T I S E M E N T S

The contact owns a 2003 Chevrolet Silverado. The contact stated that while driving 40 mph, the brakes failed when engaged. In addition, the parking brake abnormally traveled to the floorboard. The vehicle was not repaired and the manufacturer was notified. The approximate failure mileage was 98,000.

- Okeana, OH, USA

problem #62

Jul 102012

Silverado 2500 4WD 8-cyl

  • 30,000 miles
Front brake line rusted through. Hard to understand how a vehicle manufacturer can produce a vehicle with stainless exhaust that lasts as long as the truck but still assemble vehicle with steel brake lines that rust through causing brake failure. There are better materials to make brake lines from and Chevrolet should be forced to use them.

- Patterson, NY, USA

problem #61

Aug 162013

Silverado 2500 4WD 8-cyl

  • 100,000 miles
Brakeline rusted out and complete brake line and hose had to be replaced. Failure would happen if not replaced.

- Biddeford, ME, USA

problem #60

Sep 072012

Silverado 2500

  • 110,000 miles
My rear steel brake line burst in a parking lot after applying the brake to shift into gear. The main line that runs from the ABS module to the rear differential was so rusted it burst unexpectedly.

- Williamsburg, OH, USA

problem #59

Aug 142013

Silverado 2500

  • 119,000 miles
I was driving my son home from football practice and had to brake hard for a car that stopped suddenly in front of me. My pedal went to the floor and I barely stopped in time. There was a puddle of brake fluid on the ground and one of the steel lines running under the vehicle (near the driver side door area) had burst.

- Williamsburg, OH, USA

problem #58

Aug 172013

Silverado 2500 8-cyl

  • 81,000 miles
I was drive on the interstate going about 70mph went to hit the brakes and it was like they were not there or just very weak so I limped the truck home when I got out of the truck there was brake fluid all over the driveway looked under the truck and seen that the brake line were rusted out.

- Hampton, VA, USA

problem #57

Aug 132013

Silverado 2500 4WD 8-cyl

  • 67,305 miles
Main hard line brake lines rusted through causing a leak in system resulting in brake failure while driving. Thankfully emergency brake worked to bring vehicle to a stop before accident or injury occurred. Thought Chevy was built " solid as a rock" they should have went with stainless steel brake lines instead of the cheap steel brake lines they used. Cut cost somewhere else, don't play with the lives of good paying consumers. I am disappointed with the quality of this 2003 Silverado, instrument cluster starting to act up with only 67000 miles on truck thinking about trading for Ford or Toyota.

- Lancaster, PA, USA

problem #56

Jul 142012

Silverado 2500 6-cyl

  • 115,000 miles
I was in a parked position. I pushed the brake pedal down to put the truck in drive. The brake pedal went to the floor and a alarm bell came on. Message on dash said have brake system looked at. I put the parking brake on and got out of the truck. I looked under the truck and saw brake fluid running on the ground. Had truck towed to repair shop. Mechanic said brake lines are rusted out and all of them need to be replaced. I know six other people that had the same problem with their GM. Trucks for 2003 year. I think their needs to be a safety recall on those years trucks!

- Baltimore, MD, USA

problem #55

May 162013

Silverado 2500 8-cyl Diesel

  • 69,057 miles
Chevrolet Silverado lt 3500 4WD crew cab we were on the way to go on a road trip and had my trailer hooked up to the truck. When I got out on my driveway the brake pedal went all the way to the bottom and it was no brakes left. It was no warning before and it was no brakes at all on the truck. All the brake lines were rusty and left front was broken. We replaced all the lines on the truck before we could drive it again.total cost $ 665 if this would have happened on the highway I probably had caused an accident.this time we were lucky.

- Parkton, MD, USA

problem #54

Aug 032013

Silverado 2500 8-cyl

  • 149,000 miles
This is the second incident(first time in 2011 on the rear brake line),applied brake to shift from park and pedal went to the floor! this time it was the front brake lines about a foot from ABS unit above the frame! thank god I was not moving on the road cause it might have been serious!! very poor design, should be a recall!!!

- Rising Sun, IN, USA

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