80 problems related to brake hoses, lines/piping, and fittings have been reported for the 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Brake line burst while driving at 30mph. Had two brake lines replaced. Then three weeks later another brake line popped. Had two more brake lines replaced. Total cost $900.
Today while I was at a stop with my truck in gear and the brake pedal depressed with minimal pressure, I heard air release and my brake pedal fully depressed to the floor. My brake lines had ruptured causing brake fluid to spill out and my brakes barely worked at all. I had to push the brake pedal into the floor with excessive effort just to slowly roll to a stop at low speeds. Luckily I was just a mile or so away from home and I was able to make the rest of the trip without incident. However, just minutes before the failure I was traveling on the freeway at 65 miles per hour during rush hour. At those speeds it would have been impossible to stop quickly, or at all, if needed had the brake lines had ruptured then. This could have caused a multiple vehicle accident with potential injuries or fatalities. I may not have made it home alive if that were the case which is a very scary thought. This issue really should be addressed.
While coming to a stop the brake pedal went to the floor and no brakes were available. Luckily I was towing atrailer with brakes at the time which stopped the truck preventing a crash. A brief look to determine the cause revealed a failed brake line.
Brake lines severely rusted, causing a burst. Emergency brake failed to engage as it was too badly rusted to work.
Tl-the contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche. The contact stated that while driving approximately 20 mph and depressing the brakes, the brakes failed and the pedal abnormally traveled to the floorboard. The contact coasted through an intersection before applying the emergency brakes to stop the vehicle. The vehicle was later towed to an independent mechanic for diagnosis where they advised him that the brake lines were rusted and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired for the brake lines. The manufacturer was not contacted. The failure mileage was approximately 120,000. The current mileage was approximately 143,000. The VIN was unavailable. Kmj.
Approaching a traffic light and going about 35 mph, I was planning on stopping so I was coasting at a slow speed, however as I pushed on the brake pedal to begin braking the brake pedal went right to the floor and applied very little braking. I did stop in time however if there were a car in front on me I am certain that I would have rear ended that vehicle. Upon inspection it was determined that the left rear brake line broke and depleted the system. The break was caused by corrosion to the brake line. All the brake lines had considerable corrosion. The repair cost $1400 because all the brake lines had to be replaced. I feel that I am very lucky that this failure occurred where it did. I also feel that gm has a very serious problem on their hands and should be doing more to prevent this failure. I did call Chevrolet customer service and received no help what so ever. I have to hope that there is a recall to get any reimbursement. This problem has the potential to hurt or even kill people. I hope the NHTSA is paying close attention and can somehow take action sooner than latter. I am more concerned about preventing injuries than getting my $1400 back.
Getting ready to leave home and noticed a leak near the left rear tire. I crawled under the truck and noticed a drip from the brake line. At this time, my wife was going to move the vehicle from out in front of the garage and I advised her not to hit the brakes to hard as there was a leak. When she hit the brakes to start the vehicle the petal went to the floor and fluid sprayed everywhere. I feel fortunate it happened when it did versus out on the road.
Complete brake failure due to brake line rupture near rear left tire.
While backing out of driveway, I hit brakes, pedal went to the floor and I hit my dumpster. Found that a rusted brake line burst.
The contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche. The contact stated that while stopped at a traffic light with the brakes applied, the vehicle continued to move forward. The contact inspected the vehicle and discovered that the brake fluid reservoir was completely empty. The contact added more brake fluid to the vehicle and noticed later that there was an abnormal increase in stopping distance and time after the adding the brake fluid. The contact later discovered that the brake lines were rusted. The contact took the vehicle to a local mechanic to have the brake line replaced. The failure mileage was 115,000.
Driving the vehicle while towing a horse trailer, went to apply the brakes and didn't have any brakes the brake lines broke.
Rear brake line had completely rusted and caused brake line to rupture. Causing no brakes and had to put truck in ditch to stop vehicle. Rusted line was above frame rail just above left rear tire. Found other area where line was rusted severely.
I was traveling at 45 mph when the car in front of me slowed down to turn. I attempted to brake and the pedal felt soft then went right to the floor. I began pumping the brakes in order to slow the vehicle down. I was only able to stop the vehicle after manually shifting the transmission into 1st gear and pressing on the emergency brake. When I inspected the vehicle, the rear wheel and undercarriage were covered in brake fluid from a corroded steel brake line. Upon further investigation all of the brake lines in the vehicle that were installed in locations unable to be routinely cleaned were severely rusted.
As I was slowing to down to park at a bank, brake peddle went right to the floor with almost a complete lose of braking. Proceeded directly to a repair shop. I was informed that due to severe rust on underside of vehicle, all brake lines needed to be replaced as one had blown.
Steel brake line failure due to corrosion (rust). Upon inspection, all steel brake lines severely corroded (rusted).
The contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche. The contact stated that the brake lines were completely corroded. The vehicle was taken to the dealer who verified the failure and stated that all of the brake lines needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure who did not offer any assistance since the vehicle was no longer under warranty. The vehicle was not repaired. The VIN was not available. The failure and current mileage was 120,000.
Rusted brake line failure, drivers rear, passenger front, under radiatior.
The contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500. The contact stated that he attempted to brake, but the brake pedal depressed to the floor. The contact down shifted and the vehicle coasted to a stop. The vehicle was taken to a dealer and a five foot section of the brake lines was replaced due to corrosion. The contact was also informed that the remainder of the brake lines would need to be replaced due to rust and corrosion. The failure and current mileages were 52,000.
Brake line rusted through and lost braking at 50 mph.
I was driving down the intersate on my way to work, in my 2002 chevy Avalanche, going 65 when everyone in front of me slammed on their brakes. I followed to slam on my brakes but when I pushed the pedal it went straight to the floor, so in order to not rear end anyone I pulled onto the shoulder flying past the cars in front of me with my brake pedal pushed as hard as I could, thankfully no one was hurt. I drove off the rode and got my truck to the nearest garage. When the garage owner looked at my brakes he said my rear brake lines rusted out and that the front were about to do the same. He also said the brake lines are shoved so far into the truck frame he would have to remove the body from the frame to fix it properly.
@002 chevy Avalanche, rusted brake lines, brake line burst(failure), loss of braking.
07/12/10 brakes failed on 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche. . . Brakes went to the floor and left lane was free of traffic or I would have rear ended cars in front of me stopped at red light. Rusted brake line was replaced at brake specialist for $573. 55. 06/09/11 as I approached red light, brakes failed, pedal to the floor stopped just inches from stopped car in front of me. Took the Avalanche to repair shop TX. They currently have the Avalanche, four rusted brake lines. . . $1700 to replace. I have googled this "rusted brake issue with the Avalanches and it seems many other owners are having the same problem.
At 95,000 miles, transmission exploded, replaced. 1 year later, brake line exploded, lost all brake fluid, all 4 brake lines replaced as they were not made of stainless steel and had rusted. 6 months later, differential bearings all worn, affecting steering, differential and related parts all replaced. All explosions took place while driving on local roads, not on the highway, thank god! mechanic (friend of mine) says he never saw any car with as many bad parts as my Avalanche! I also thank god I bought it used. American engineered cars have such bad engineering design that I never buy them new.
2002 chevy Avalanche brake failure due to coresion of brake lines and loss of fulid.
Sudden brake failure while driving. Upon inspection 1 brake line burst the other 3 were severely corroded and about to fail.
I expeienced a brake line failure on my 2002 Chevrolet avalance 1500 4x4 while vactioning in florida. On Sunday, February 6, 2011, I noted that the brake pedal fely spongy. Upon investigation, I noted a leakage behine the driver side front tire. When I checked the brake fluid reservoir it was below the normal level. An inspection of the brake lines indicated severe rust and corrosion. I had to drive to the nearest repair shop and rent a car until the repair was complete.
I was driving down the highway and came up to a traffic light that changed just as I was getting to it. I had to hit the brakes a little harder than normal to make sure I stopped in time. Everything seemed fine at first but about 30 feet from the light the brake pedal went to the floor and I wasn't stopping. Fortunately, no one was in front of me and the cross traffic hadn't started to move yet. I ended up not being able to stop until I was well into the intersection. When I got the truck to the shop they found out that one of the steel brake lines that run along the frame had blown out. All of the metal lines on the frame rails are very rusty and need to be replaced. The repair is estimated at $1000. 00. Thankfully no one was hurt but this could have caused a very serious accident. These lines should be made out of noncorrosive metal like stainless steel to prevent this sort of thing from happening.
While travelling on interstate 95 I applied my brakes to slow the vehicle only to learn that the brake system had failed. This was caused by a leak in the ridge metal brake line which comes in contact with the cars frame. Upon investigating I have learned that this condition is a known problem for this vehicle. If I hadn't tried to apply the brakes on the open highway and had waited until exiting the highway this could have resulted in a very serious multi car accident.
Chevrolet Avalanche brake failures. . . The brake lines on Chevrolet trucks are made of a material that is not rust resistant and leads to brake failures such as it did on my 2002 Avalanche. . . Although my failure happened at low speed, it is a definite safety concern for owners of these gm products. Hundreds of complaints are listed on various web sites detailing this problem, one that gm will not hone up to because the repair bill to replace the entire break line system costs owners over $800. 00 at a gm dealer. Please look into this gm failure to put rust resistant materials on this very important part of any vehicle.
Truck sitting in yard and brake line failed.
The contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche. While driving 35 mph the contact applied the brakes and they would not respond, in order to stop the vehicle the contact had to apply the emergency brake. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic who stated that the hydraulic brakes lines were cracked due to rust. The vehicle was not serviced and there were no prior warnings. The current and failure mileages were 31000.
The contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche. While traveling at 35 mph, the contact applied the brakes yet they would not engage. In order to stop the vehicle, the contact had to apply the emergency brake. The vehicle was taken to a local mechanic where the brake lines were replaced. The mechanic advised that the brake lines had failed due to road salt erosion. There were no prior warnings of the failure. The current and failure mileages were 31,000. Updated 1/19/2010 the consumer stated after the brake failure, the frame and cross member rotted and the vehicle was scrapped. Updated 03/25/11.
On 07/27/2010 I was driving my chevy Avalanche, 2002, with 57000 miles on it. I came to a stop sign and the brakes failed. I investigated and the drivers side rear hard brake line had rusted through. I replaced both rear lines, bled the brakes drove the truck to test the brakes and the drivers front hard line blew out, it had an 1/8 inch hole rusted in it.
Frame corroded/buckled; brake failure(had a near accident) due to rust. 2002 chevy Avalanche, well cared for 48,000 miles. Never seen this on any other vehicle I have owned. $6,000 dollar repair. Gm won't look into/address problem. I have read numerous messages on this same problem with gm vehicles. It is not an isolated incident. Had to replace brake lines twice(rust) and now the frame!.
The contact owns a 2002 Chevrolet Avalanche 2500. The contact was driving 45 mph when the brake pedal traveled to the floor surface when pressure was applied. The emergency brake was engaged to stop the vehicle. There was a massive leak of brake fluid. The contact continued to drive with extreme caution. The contact noticed excessive rust within the brake line several months before the failure. The manufacturer was notified and they were unable to provide assistance. The vehicle was neither diagnosed for the failure nor repaired. The failure mileage was 49,123.