Two problems related to brake disc have been reported for the 1997 Chevrolet Astro. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Upon MA state inspection the 2 front idler arms were found to be completely gone "typical of blazers and Astros" they said. Independant garage found that the arms were extremely worn for this milage. Also the front disk rotors are worn past the point of safty, and a deteration of the cooling and support fins is noted, this seems odd as the rotor pads show typical and even wear for the milage. The rotors are evenly worn, but excessivly deep cut. At 15000 miles the pedal went completely to the floor at a stop sign, ok on second pump, never occured again. I have heard of this and I am always cautious. Breaks sometimes act oddly but work ok. I still feel great about chev vans though my arm rest fell off ?.
Brakes didn't "fail" as much as they wore out, what I considered to be "prematurely". Vehicle had about 26000 miles when chatter started, indicating replacement needed. Vehicle driven almost exclusively on freeway in mostly rural area (blythe, CA. ) dealer stated I received almost twice the normal mileage as most Astrovan owners, about 18,000 miles. Front disc pads on my 1990 Jeep cherokee last over 60,000 miles per set, ie current mileage- 189,000 on originals and two sets of replacements. Near identical driving.