NHTSA complaint: 1999 CHEVROLET SILVERADO 1500 — SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC
I HAVE HAD NOTHING BUT TROUBLE WITH ROTTED ROTORS, PADS THAT DON'T WEAR RIGHT, BRAKE LINES THAT ROTTED AND RUSTED AWAY THAT THEY NEEDED TO BE ALL REPLACED IN JULY OF 2006. A SIX YEAR OLD MOTOR VEHICLE SHOULD NOT HAVE TO HAVE ALL THE LINES REPLACED. THE BILL WAS $1,200. NEXT A ABS FRONT WHEEL SENSOR RECALL WAS DONE AT BEST CHEVY, HINGHAM, MASS. THE ABS LIGHTS CAME ON AND OFF AT THEIR OWN PACE. I HAD NEW FRONT BEARINGS INSTALLED, HAD MY MECHANIC CHECK FOR CODES. NOTHING. THE BRAKES JUST NEVER FELT RIGHT SOMETIMES. I WORKED AS A AUTO MECHANIC FOR NEARLY 25 YEARS, NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE THIS BRAKE PROBLEM. BY THE WAY I TOOK GOOD CARE OF MY VEHICLE, GM MUST OF USED SUB STANDARD BRAKE TUBING, NEVER SEEN ANYTHING SO DECAYED AFTER 6 YEARS. ON APRIL 29, 2011 I WAS DRIVING HOME AND HAD STOPPED AT A TRAFFIC LIGHT ABOUT 1/4 MILE FROM MY HOME. THE LIGHT TURNED GREEN, I ACCELERATED UP TO ABOUT 30 MPH AND WITHIN A FEW HUNDRED FEET THE ABS LIGHT CAME ON. HERE WE GO AGAIN. AS I NEARED THE ENTRANCE TO MY STREET SOME 300 FEET AWAY , I TOOK MY FOOT OF THE GAS AND THE TRUCK BEGAN TO SLOW. AT ABOUT 200 FEET I BEGAN TO DEPRESS THE BRAKE PEDAL, IT SEEMED OK BUT AS I GOT NEARER TO THE STREET I FOUND MYSELF NEEDING TO PUSH DOWN MORE AND MORE. I WAS AT 15 MPH AND READY TO BEGIN MY TURN AND FELT SOMETHING WAS WRONG. MY LEFT FRONT TIRE HAD BEGUN TO LIGHTLY SKID. THE PEDAL WENT TO THE FLOOR, WAS DOWN AT ABOUT 10 MPH AND BEFORE I COULD GET MY LEFT FOOT ONTO THE EMERGENCY BRAKE AND APPLY IT, THE LE
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration — Office of Defects Investigation