Bulletins
| Bulletin | Bulletin date | Replacement Bulletin | Item no. | Summary | Added |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SERVICE BRAKES, AIR | |||||
| 020526001B | 01/01/2005 | 020526001C | 10006115 | Rear parking brake shoe retaining spring clip service kit for drum-in-hat (dih) equipped vehicles. *tt update. *tt | 04/16/2004 |
| SERVICE BRAKES, AIR - ANTILOCK | |||||
| 020525006A | 12/01/2002 | 020525006 | 10000749 | Antilock brake (abs) activation at low speeds on various models including the 1995 and 1996 envoy. *tt | 03/28/2003 |
| SERVICE BRAKES, AIR - ANTILOCK - ABS WARNING LIGHT | |||||
| 3521 | 3521E | 10016711 | Anti-lock braking system (abs) light on speedometer may be erratic. diagnostic trouble code (dtc) c0055 c0235 c0236 or c0237 stored in the ebcm. *tt 1998-2008 all chevrolet, gmc, buick, and oldsmobile mid-sized trucks and utilities. 19 | 09/28/2005 | |
| SERVICE BRAKES, AIR - ANTILOCK - WHEEL SPEED SENSOR | |||||
| 040525009 | 09/01/2004 | 10011050 | Revised wheel speed sensor replacement. *tt | 12/27/2004 | |
| 01012004 | 01/01/2004 | 10008895 | Anti-lock braking system (abs) light on front wheel speed sensor diagnostic trouble code (dtc) c0221, c0222, c0223, c0225, c0226, c0227, c0229. *tt | 08/25/2004 | |
| SERVICE BRAKES, ELECTRIC | |||||
| 040525010 | 10/01/2004 | 10012738 | Replacement of wheel speed sensor. *eh | 03/14/2005 | |
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - ANTILOCK | |||||
| 020525006 | 01/01/2006 | 020525006B | 10000062 | Antilock brake (abs) activation at low speeds. *tt | 02/10/2003 |
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - FOUNDATION COMPONENTS - DISC - ROTOR | |||||
| 030523004 | 10/01/2003 | 10004718 | Revised brake rotor thickness measurement procedure. *tt | 01/02/2004 | |
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - PEDALS AND LINKAGES | |||||
| PIT-3665-A | 07/01/2008 | 10028790 | General motors: on all 1988-2009 full size chevrolet/gmc pickups, utilities and vans, the brake pedal will move down or self apply during full lock turns or near full lock turns. chevrolet astro and gmc safari vans; hummer 2 are included. | 05/29/2009 | |
Consumer Complaints
| Fail date | miles | occurences | Purchase date |
|---|---|---|---|
| SERVICE BRAKES | |||
| 08/13/2012 | 80000 | 1 | |
| Complete brake failure due to rusting brake lines. the previous day this vehicle was pulling a small trailer on a michigan interstate highway. the following day it was parked in my driveway and a wet area was visible on the concrete. it was brake fluid on the ground that had dripped from the rusted brake line and drained the master cylinder reservoir. i discovered this when moving the vehicle to try and determine the cause of the fluid leak. the brake line had completely rusted through! fortunately this did not happen the previous day as it could easily have been fatal. the vehicle was towed to the gm dealership. there are no replacement parts for the brake lines and none are available in the aftermarket. the dealer wanted over $1700 to replace the lines and said there may be more items to replace - possibly another $700 or more. plus, fuel lines were also rusting and they should be replaced too. this could easily have been a fatal incident or extreme damage as the brakes were completely useless in my driveway and i had to put the vehicle into reverse to stop it, even at a very slow speed. i have had other vehicles for a much longer time - including gm - and never had anything like this before. *tr | |||
| 08/13/2012 | 80000 | ||
| Complete brake failure due to rusting brake lines. the previous day this vehicle was pulling a small trailer on a michigan interstate highway. the following day it was parked in my driveway and a wet area was visible on the concrete. it was brake fluid on the ground that had dripped from the rusted brake line and drained the master cylinder reservoir. i discovered this when moving the vehicle to try and determine the cause of the fluid leak. the brake line had completely rusted through! fortunately this did not happen the previous day as it could easily have been fatal. the vehicle was towed to the gm dealership. there are no replacement parts for the brake lines and none are available in the aftermarket. the dealer wanted over $1700 to replace the lines and said there may be more items to replace - possibly another $700 or more. plus, fuel lines were also rusting and they should be replaced too. this could easily have been a fatal incident or extreme damage as the brakes were completely useless in my driveway and i had to put the vehicle into reverse to stop it, even at a very slow speed. i have had other vehicles for a much longer time - including gm - and never had anything like this before. | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC | |||
| 02/06/2009 | 173000 | 1 | |
| I was driving approximately 30 miles per hour along slightly snow-covered road towards stopped traffic at red light on a slight downgrade. i stepped on the brakes gentle, as required by the conditions, but the abs system started to shudder and the vehicle did not brake at all. i hit a stopped vehicle at the intersection and even with a relatively slow speed impact, our vehicle was written off and the other was towed away because it could not be driven. our van was drivable, but just barely, and was subsequently written off by the insurance company. i was charged with careless driving which was absolutely not the case. we have another vehicle of the same year and similar model and it does the same thing occasionally but so far this has not resulted in any further collisions. we have owned astro vans since they were first marketed in 1985 and this is the first one to act like this. we purchased 1985, 1992, 1998, and 2003 models (2). i am asking my wife, rose, who is also the registered owner of the vehicle to submit this report on my behalf. please respond to her with any resolutions. we purchased the salvage from the insurance company so it is still in our possession although not on the road. *tr | |||
| 05/20/2009 | 31346 | 1 | |
| Vehicle: 2003 chevy astro van defect summary: factory design directs leaked battery acid to drip down on a steel brake line. details: the (+) battery terminal spontaneously broke off this vehicle | |||
| 01/01/2009 | 145000 | 1 | |
| The brake line rubbed up against the power steering pump, eventually rubbing through. i lost braking power and nearly caused an accident. within minutes, i went from having brakes to having to push the brake peddle to the floor to stop. i had a local mechanic fix the problem at a substantial cost. *tr | |||
| 05/01/2008 | 95000 | 1 | |
| On several occasions over the past few months, the abs light on my van has been coming on and when i apply the brakes, the van jerks around on the road and pulls to the left. i have almost hit other cars on many of these occasions. i had my mechanic look at it recently and he said he checked out the braking system and can see no visible reason for this happening. *tr | |||
| 06/05/2005 | 40000 | 1 | 12/12/2004 |
| My wife and i were driving along when the brake system went completely out. we had just purchased the van about 4-5 months before it happened. i had the van looked at by james martin chevrolet in detroit michigan. the repairs came up to $1400.00. the van only had about 40,000 miles on it. *nm | |||
| 04/29/2005 | 1 | 01/10/2004 | |
| After ball joint recall, i have had nothing but problems with steering, braking and suspension. front left side continually pops and grinds, shock boot was replaced twice, the shocks have been replaced 3 times. the third time may have fixed it, just got the van back today. brakes are intermittent. heard loud bang from rear end, dealership tightened backing plate. transmission slips, shudder is felt from rear end at 30+ mph. dealership put balances on torque converter and the drive shaft, had to cut the rear springs to do this. service manager stated the problem was not gone, but livable. vehicle runs rough at idle, almost stalling, service manager experienced the problem as well. said fuel injector port was fill with carbon, but cleaning it did not fix the problem. check engine light came on during a trip, stayed on for the 6 hour drive home, there was no heat at all, service manager said he could not get the computer to reproduce the code, but replaced the thermostat, water pump and two clamps.*ak | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - ANTILOCK | |||
| 01/01/1901 | 1 | ||
| 2003 chevrolet astro with brake problems. consumer states that gm will not reimburse her for the repairs made on her vehicle. *kb the consumer stated while braking at low speeds, the vehicle lunged forward. also, the abs light illuminated. the consumer had to pay to have the sensors replaced. *jb | |||
| 04/25/2007 | 80000 | 1 | 02/15/2004 |
| Abs light on with multiple codes and abs brakes are activating at slow speeds on dry pavement when the shouldn't be, causing an increasing stopping time and near miss accident.*ak | |||
| 05/02/2007 | 67800 | 3 | 05/01/2007 |
| Shudder and/or abs activation during low speed turns, mainly to the left. vehicle is an 03 astro van awd with 67k miles. vehicle pulls pretty sharply left when this occurs. *jb | |||
| 03/29/2007 | 100000 | 1 | |
| I am complaining of the safety issues regarding the abs computer system. i have put my vehicle in the shop to be checked out by a few car repair facilities and all have said the same thing my abs cpu. my van is hesitating terribly and causing the van to not accelerate properly. i have nearly been in three accidents since the problem has been occurring. i have also done some research on this issue via internet and found that many people are having the same problem across the usa. and gm is blaming it on the weather conditions in the north but the problems are happening to astro vans(2003) across the entire us. this is a problem that should be addressed as soon as possible.. *jb | |||
| 09/05/2006 | 48000 | 3 | 04/14/2004 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while braking, the abs light illuminated and there was a pulsating effect with the brake pedal. the vehicle was taken to the dealer who determined the left hub and sensor had to be replaced. the problem recurred 5000 miles later. the vehicle was taken back to the dealer where the right sensor and hub needed to be replaced along with the control module of the whole abs system. the manufacturer was contacted and agreed to pay for half of the repairs. updated 11/09/06. *jb | |||
| 07/23/2006 | 68000 | 1 | 11/21/2003 |
| Dt: the contact stated the abs sensor became defective at 45,000 miles. while depressing the brakes at low speeds, the vehicle coasted. on one occasion the vehicle collided with the curb which could have caused a collision. during these incidents the abs light illuminated intermittently. the vehicle has been taken to two independent repair shops who confirmed that the abs sensor is defective. they also recommended replacement of the abs sensor. the contact expressed that the abs sensor failed long before what was reasonable. *nm | |||
| 04/19/2006 | 30000 | 10 | 01/06/2004 |
| While braking at low speed abs activates increasing stopping distance almost causing accident weather not a factor road condition not a factor also happens during parking lot maneuvers turning into parking spots abs activates and seems not to stop note: this is an 2003 all wheel drive astro van. *nm | |||
| 04/21/2006 | 62000 | 1 | 02/01/2004 |
| Dt*: the contact stated while applying brake pressure at 20mph or less, the abs activated with an increased stopping distance. the vehicle was seen by an independent repair shop. a diagnostic test was performed which indicated a failure in the right front wheel speed sensor. the mechanic determined the wheel speed sensor of the antilock brakes needed to be replaced. there is a nhtsa recall, # 05v379000, regarding the antilock brakes. the vehicle has the same problems as indicated in the recall; however it is not included in the recall due to the vin. | |||
| 08/01/2005 | 3 | 03/16/2004 | |
| Dt*:the contact stated while stopping in a parking lot the abs light illuminated and the brake pedal became hard to depress. once the vehicle began to accelerate a noise came from the abs. the noise ceased at approximately 20 mph. additionally, the abs light illuminated intermittently. the vehicle was taken to the dealership, they only ran the vin to check for recalls. it was also seen by a independent repair shop who determined there was no problem with the anti lock braking system. *ak | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - ANTILOCK - WHEEL SPEED SENSOR | |||
| 01/01/1901 | 1 | ||
| 2003 chevrolet astro with brake problems. consumer states that gm will not reimburse her for the repairs made on her vehicle. *kb the consumer stated while braking at low speeds, the vehicle lunged forward. also, the abs light illuminated. the consumer had to pay to have the sensors replaced. *jb | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - FLUID | |||
| 09/09/2005 | 30900 | 2 | 01/03/2003 |
| On september 9, 2005 my 2003 chevrolet astro van exploded and caught fire in a parking lot. the fire dept. arrived and put out the fire; the firemen disconnected the battery cable. the van was towed to huffines chevrolet in plano, tx. the cause of the incident according to the chevrolet mechanics is as follows: 1) every time the steering wheel was turned, the tie rods etc. would chafe against a bracket on the chassis that held down a battery cable. 2) eventually the bracket failed. 3) the battery cable arced against the brake line. 4) the brake line ruptured spraying hydraulic fluid over the hot engine manifold. 5) the ensuing fire burned through, among other things, the a/c hose carrying freon. 6) when the a/c hosed was severed, the freon gas escaped causing the loud explosion that we heard some distance away. 7) the smoke that we saw in the air was actually the escaping freon gas. all was supposedly repaired in three weeks. on november 8, 2005, the brakes failed while under way. the chevrolet mechanics stated that the cause of the brake failure was traced to a small pinhole caused by the arcing battery cable several weeks ago. eventually the entire brake line failed. if this story seems preposterous to you, it does to me too but this is the story we got from chevrolet. in my opinion, my 2003 chevy astro van suffers from a fatal flaw in design and/or manufacturer. it is unsafe and should be taken off the road forever. *jb | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - FOUNDATION COMPONENTS - DISC - CALIPER | |||
| 01/01/2005 | 21000 | 3 | 08/01/2004 |
| Uneven wear of brake rotors due to frozen calipers. rotor becomes unevenly worn causing a pulse in brakes and reducing the effectiveness of the brakes. when examined further it is apparent that the caliper is not sliding properly and only the piston side of the brake system is being applied aggravating the problem further. problem was a primary cause for loss of control in a low traction incident in which the van spun during panic braking when one rear wheel locked and the other didn't. the vehicle has been back to the dealership several times for brake problems and each time the vehicle was returned only to redevelop problems within a month or two. dealer serviced vehicle one time as warranty but required payment for pads even though the premature wear was caused by this problem. this van is advertised with a towing capacity of 5000 lbs i would be scared to see what would happen if the problem manifested itself while towing a 5000lb trailer down a hill or moutain side. *jb | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - FOUNDATION COMPONENTS - DISC - PADS | |||
| 01/01/2005 | 21000 | 3 | 08/01/2004 |
| Uneven wear of brake rotors due to frozen calipers. rotor becomes unevenly worn causing a pulse in brakes and reducing the effectiveness of the brakes. when examined further it is apparent that the caliper is not sliding properly and only the piston side of the brake system is being applied aggravating the problem further. problem was a primary cause for loss of control in a low traction incident in which the van spun during panic braking when one rear wheel locked and the other didn't. the vehicle has been back to the dealership several times for brake problems and each time the vehicle was returned only to redevelop problems within a month or two. dealer serviced vehicle one time as warranty but required payment for pads even though the premature wear was caused by this problem. this van is advertised with a towing capacity of 5000 lbs i would be scared to see what would happen if the problem manifested itself while towing a 5000lb trailer down a hill or moutain side. *jb | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - FOUNDATION COMPONENTS - DISC - ROTOR | |||
| 12/15/2005 | 29000 | 1 | |
| Dt*: the contact stated while brake pressure was applied at 15mph, a grinding noise was heard coming from the brakes. the vehicle was taken to an independent repair shop for inspection. the mechanic determined the rotors had rusted due to the vehicle being in salt belt state. the rotors were replaced and the vehicle now operates normally. the mechanic stated the rotors were made with inferior metal. updated 05/02/06. *jb | |||
| 01/01/2005 | 21000 | 3 | 08/01/2004 |
| Uneven wear of brake rotors due to frozen calipers. rotor becomes unevenly worn causing a pulse in brakes and reducing the effectiveness of the brakes. when examined further it is apparent that the caliper is not sliding properly and only the piston side of the brake system is being applied aggravating the problem further. problem was a primary cause for loss of control in a low traction incident in which the van spun during panic braking when one rear wheel locked and the other didn't. the vehicle has been back to the dealership several times for brake problems and each time the vehicle was returned only to redevelop problems within a month or two. dealer serviced vehicle one time as warranty but required payment for pads even though the premature wear was caused by this problem. this van is advertised with a towing capacity of 5000 lbs i would be scared to see what would happen if the problem manifested itself while towing a 5000lb trailer down a hill or moutain side. *jb | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - PEDALS AND LINKAGES | |||
| 03/14/2006 | 21865 | 5 | 01/15/2004 |
| I have reported this before due to several other close calls that i had, but the same thing has happened to two others in the same vehicle. when depressing the brake pedal (because it is so small - 2x2.6) your foot can be on the edge of the pedal and it will slip off as you apply more pressure. this happens when you are nearing a stop or having to make a quick stop. we have had several near miss accidents, the last would have been a right angle collision with a dump truck right in the driver's door. the vehicle is a 2003 astro van with automatic transmission. foot space is limited only if it would be a stick shift requiring a clutch. the brake pedal is the smallest in our fleet and not much larger than the emergency brake pedal. the vehicle is now parked pending a safety review. *nm | |||
| SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC - POWER ASSIST | |||
| 12/19/2006 | 115819 | 2 | 02/01/2006 |
| Tl* - the contact has a 2003 chevrolet astro van which has been in the dealer service shop since december 19, 2006. when driving and turning the vehicle lost power in both the steering system and the brakes. the dealer ran the vehicle trough diagnostic tests, and could not determine the cause of the failure. the contact found recall information for vehicles with similar failures. on december 29 2006 they received a call from the dealer stating that they were checking to see if the problem was covered under the vehicle's warranty if not the cost of the repair will be $552.10. *ak | |||