Hydraulic Power Assist Steering System Problems of Chevrolet Silverado - part 1

On 12/24/06 I started having trouble with steering and braking, on 12/26/06 I lost the ability to steer or to brake. On 12/28/06 I took the truck to parks Chevrolet in charlotte, nc---I was told that the truck was unsafe to drive unless I replaced the brake hydrd-booster, I agreed to at a cost of $784. 81.

See all problems of the 2004 Chevrolet Silverado 🔎.

I noticed at about 29,500 miles that the power steering was not functioning normally at park or low idle speeds. Also there is a clunking in the steering column at low speeds and while turning.

See all problems of the 2005 Chevrolet Silverado 🔎.

I have owned my 2004 chevy Silverado since sept. Of 2004 without any problems. Just recently, however, my power steering is failing at speeds below 10 miles per hour. I have taken it to the dealer and have been informed that this is common for the car and that there is nothing they can do. I was presented with a bulletin stating as much. I believe that power steering loss at any speed poses a significant risk to me, pedestrians, and property. I would like to see this problem resolved. My understanding is that there are many Silverado owners experiencing this problem. Failure is now a daily occurrence. Please advise.

The power steering stops working at low speed or parked. I have contacted gm several times regarding this and they say there is no fix at this time. Dealership has witnessed and documented the problem. I feel this is becoming a safety issue, as it gets worse. . Ie. Make common, every day.

On July 3 2005 while driving the vehicle lost power steering and driver had a hard time steering. Had to use two hands to steer. There was no warning from the vehicle that a problem would occur. Vehicle was taken to the dealership, and owner was informed that it would cost $700 to replace steering pump.

See all problems of the 1999 Chevrolet Silverado 🔎.

: the contact stated while driving 5 mph coming out of a parking space the steering system started making noises. The vehicle was taken to the dealership who ordered the part to resolve the problem. Three months later the part arrived and the vehicle was repaired. After driving the vehicle for two months the noise reoccurred worst because it occurred at any speed. The vehicle has been taken four times to different dealerships but none of them has been able to correct the problem.

I own a 2001 Chevrolet Silverado 2500hd pickup truck that I purchased used in June 2003 with approximately 36,000 miles at the time of purchase. Until recently, the truck had proven to be very safe and reliable. The truck currently has 58,000 miles on it. On July 18, 2005, my wife loaded our five-month-old daughter into her car seat and then proceeded to get in to drive. Upon starting the truck, she pressed on the brake to shift. She then shifted into drive only to have the truck drift forward despite her braking effort. At that time, she also noticed that she could not turn the steering wheel at all. After significant effort, she was able to stop the truck from its very low speed. We towed the truck to a local Chevrolet dealer to have them diagnose the problem and problem and provide a repair cost estimate. The dealer diagnosed that the power steering pump (pump) failed. The power brakes are hydraulically assisted by the pump rather than using engine vacuum assist. The dealer stated that the input shaft to pump had sheared in half. The dealer required me to pay a core charge since the pump was so severely damaged that they would not be able to return it for a core themselves. The repair total cost $356. The pump is located deep within the engine compartment. There are no means to externally damage the pump suggesting a material or manufacturing defect within the pump. The purpose of this letter is to call attention to a problem that could have resulted in the severe injury or death of my wife and daughter had the problem occurred while traveling at higher speeds. This power steering pump problem, if systemic rather than isolated, could pose a serious safety risk to the owners of these trucks and other people on the roads. I ask that you investigate the severity of this problem and how many trucks it affects, taking further action if necessary.

See all problems of the 2001 Chevrolet Silverado 🔎.

Contact stated there was a steering problem. He examined the truck and found there was a bend in the center link of the power steering. He contacted the manufacturer, who told him the problem stemmed from the 20 wheels and tires he had on the vehicle. The contact thought the bend was a factory defect based on his personal inspection of other similar vehicles.

See all problems of the 2003 Chevrolet Silverado 🔎.

When at low idle the power steering is inoperable. I have taken this to my dealer @ told it is normal . I do not feel that a car that is extremely hard to turn at low idle is considered normal.

The truck loses power steering assist in slow turning maneuvers there were no events leading up to the failure. The failure occurred at about 2000 miles and has persisted to 20,000 miles. I have had the vehicle serviced over 25 times. The dealership has replaced the steering gear 2 times, the power steering pump, the hoses for the power steering pump, the hydraulic vacuum assist 2 times and then placed a manual vacuum assist the third time which is not original equipment, they have replaced the electronic control for the vacuum assist 3 times and most recently replaced the electronic fuse control for the vacuum assist.

While driving 15 mph, vehicle suddenly lost power steering. Vehicle was not able to be controlled. Had the vehicle towed. At the dealership, the mechanic repaired/replaced the power steering pump.

My 1999 chevy z71 loses the power steering when turning left there was a recall on some cars in Jan 04 but my truck was not included my daughter had a minor accident that could have been very bad chevy first said my truck would be included but now they say it will not be fixed and I can not get them send me any info on how to fix the prblem my dealer says they dont even know how to correct the problem.

I was backing out of my garage and my 2000 Silverado 2500hd didn't steer and I couldn't steer it . There was power steering oil on my garage floor I have 31800 miles on the 6 liter engine.

See all problems of the 2000 Chevrolet Silverado 🔎.

Power steering fails when turning, hesitates and then catches up causing a lag in the power steering system. I've had the idler arm as well as the pitman arm replaced, failure still occurs.

See all problems of the 1998 Chevrolet Silverado 🔎.

While driving the power steering fluid leaked which made the vehicle difficult to steer. The brake pedal also went to the floor and the brakes did not respond. The consumer believes the power steering failure caused the brakes to fail.

I was south bound on one way street 30 mph into green light intersection. A west bound car failed to stop and struck rear panel behind drivers rear wheel. This started a spin and threw me against drivers window. I blacked out for a second and the tried to regain control. I hit brakes hard, but wheel continued to spin at 30 mph which caused me to spin in donut fashion. This threw me against a curb and broke off the left front wheel as the trucked skipped onto the sidewalk, spun across and sheared off a small 3" diameter tree. The truck continued to spin in donut fashion towards a boy scout building, I was finally able to take my hands off of the wheel long enough to throw into neutral and stop. The engine idles down to normal after shifting into neutral. All of the accident was in a direction to the southeast of the original impact, not to the southwest as would be expected. I feel the damage would have been slight if the throttle would not have stuck, probably just the rear panel of the truck. Instead there was damage to all panels and doors on both sides of the truck, plus my injuries. The good thing is that no boy scouts were in the parking lot!!.

Vehicle turns fine to the left. Power steering fails every time you turn to the right. There is a "whining" noise inside the cab when you turn to the right.

Power steering sensor (evo) failed erratic/unpredictable steering. Gm indicated not a safety concern! dt.

Below is a copy of the e-mail I have sent to the dealership here in auburn al. I did not get an e-mail back so called a few days late. I was told that the replacement part would be $240 . I think that this is something that has occurred in many cases and should be recalled. I know of 4 gm trucks within 1997-1998 range that have had the same problem. This problem is very dangerous! at this time nothing has been done to fix the problem and I hope that an accident is not caused because of it. Dyas, I have a "97 Silverado ext cab 2wd 1500 with a 350 vortex. Dyas has done recall work for me in the past (wipers). I have another problem that will come and go every few weeks this has been going on now for about two years. It has to do with the steering. Difficult to explain, but I will do my best. It will seem to surge in turning power while turning in either direction, causing you to have to steer in the opposite direction while in a curve to adjust course. It can be very nerve-racking for me and for someone that is unaware of the problem I can see where it could easily lead to an accident. My father was actually unaware and has insisted that I have it fixed because of safety concerns. It becomes even more dangerous at higher speeds. I have heard that there was a recall on some type of control module that is associated with the power steering on these trucks. . ? which has led me to inquire now about a recall / repair for the problem. Being a college student a costly repair may not be an option, but I would like to know what needs to be done to fix the problem regardless of cost.

See all problems of the 1997 Chevrolet Silverado 🔎.

While driving at highway speeds steering wheel became loose, causing poor vehicle control. Dealer has been contacted, stated power steering assist accelerated to full power, causing driver to oversteer. Please provide further details.

Bent and twisted fingers mr. Ulatowski owns a building supply company and wears out a pickup truck every year or two because of the extensive driving. Mr. Ulatowski's fingers are crippled from holding the steering wheel. The index, middle and ring fingers of both hands are bent over the baby fingers. Information submitted on the behalf of mr. Ulatowski by mike tomich 989-665-2311 mr. Ulatowski wishes his identy be held confidential. Dt.

The steering wheel position sensor (swp, mounted on the steering column above the brake pedal) sends an input to the power steering control module (pscm) which in turn then controls power steering pump fluid flow based on vehicle speed and steering wheel position. This electrical steering control system is causing a very serious intermittant steering problem only during a right hand turn. This has twice almost caused an accident as the natural reaction to this failure (which manifests itself as a loss of steering control) is to jerk the steering wheel further to the right to regain steering control. In both near accident situations there was a car on my right side which I came close to hitting. The problem is worse the faster you go and at low speed not much of a concern but at highway speed it is serious. This malfunction occurs at all speeds. Dealer, which has been courteous and helpfull, tells me they have had two trucks in the last two weeks in for the same trouble (swp sensor) and a CO-worker also has the same trouble, so this is a common failure affecting other gm vehicles including suburban, tahoe, yukon and sierra. I have not had it repaired at this time but plan to replace the swp sensor myself quite soon as the dealer says my warranty expired at 36,000 miles. Estimated dealer repair cost is 160. 00. I feel this is a serious safety concern and is the first time in some 30 years of driving I have encountered a malfunction of this type, when it happens at freeway speed it gets your attention very fast! and has the potential to cause roll over as well should the driver jerk on the wheel to hard to correct it. I feel Chevrolet is aware of this trouble and should do something to fix this regardless of warranty coverage as law suites as a result of an accident/s will cost them much much more.

Power steering malfunctioned. Dealer replaced the steering box and pressure hose. But problem recurred.

No summary listed for above vehicle.

Power steering went out/transmission rebuilt/ tires were wearing unevenly/rear springs had to be reinstalled the power steering pump failure resulted in a loss of power assist to brakes causing accident. There were no injuries but the passenger door caved in.

Power steering stops functioning intermittently. Wheel can only be turned with great effort when vehicle is sitting still. . Can occur at any time but most often if vehicle is facing downhill. Chevrolet say this is the nature of the beast and will not fix it. I lhad identical problems with a 98 truck and it was fixed by replacing the steering gear box with a heavy duty box from a 3/4 ton truck.

Steering was pulling to right after tire rotation with gradual progression and after 4 alignments and 3 front tire swaps it still pulls to right not as severely but noticeably different than before rotation. Also seems to have more play in the steering with about a 1/4 to 1/2" radius of no tire movement even though I am moving the wheel. Dealer kept the vehicle 2 days and said their machine was off but I had the job done the first two times and 1 front tire swap at another place and they also checked to see if the machine was off and it wasn't. Any suggestions. If I let go of the steering wheel I will almost immediately divert to the right. What is the standard for a vehicle after it is aligned-how far should you be able to travel in a straight line assuming the road is level?.

While driving on a "slick" road due to an earlier rain vehicle proceeded to go through a green light, and spun around at least twice. Then, it stopped and went straight through the light. Dealer was not contacted. Please provide further information.

Several times during long sweeping turns the power steering suddenly became more effective and a quick correction was needed to remain in my lane. As it was, the truck becomes slightly unbalanced due to the quick changes and this could be a real problem .

Power steering squeals when you turn to the left. This happens turning the wheel to the left from center, not when you hit the lock all the way to left. And, it only happens after the truck has warmed up. I have taken the truck back to the dealer and was told that this was the fifth one thay had seen with this problem. I was told that they could not repair the squealing and I would have to wait at least two months before gm would have a solution. I find this unacceptable. Please contact gm and push for a solution sooner than that. Thank you.

The vehicle power steering sometimes locks up or becomes very difficult to turn the steering wheel especially when making a left hand turn when your foot is braking the vehicle. At times it seems as if the power steering looses power. The local dealer has looked at the vehicle numurous times and has always stated they could not find anything wrong with with the power steering even after the service manager (at the time) had the power steering lock up while he was testing the truck.

In January 2004 the news reported a recall on Chevrolet cars with the exact probblem I have been having since 2000. The power steering will over-assist causing the steering wheel to jerk and hence the vehicle to suddenly steer right or left. It feels like the steering has a mind of its own. This will happen when on a curve or when driving in a straight line. This problem is unpredictable and has caused some near misses and scary moments, particularly when driving on slippery snow covered streets. The failure occurs frequently and lasts for a day or a week at a time then goes away for an undeterminable period. Before I purchased this vehicle I had the same problem while test driving other 1997 pickups. Since there is currently a recall for this problem on Chevrolet cars I feel it should be extended to the c/k, Silverado pickups as well. It is only a matter of time before an accident will occur.

Power steering erratic, switches from firm to super loose without notice. Most frequently at around 35 mph in gentle sweeping curve, causing quick pull in direction of turn. You gotta be alert.

I am glad to discover that I am not crazy, and that someone else has reported this problem. Shortly after purchasing this truck, the "gap" in steering developed, and after carrying back to dealer several times, part # 26064468 was replaced on 3/12/98, 38158 miles(had reported prior to 36,000 mile warranty running out). This stopped the problem for some time, and now it again is doing this same thing. I have been told part is very expensive, and have not paid to have fixed, not knowing how long it will last.

I feel this vehicle is unsafe to drive unless this problem is repaired. It dangerously pulls to the right all the time. On secondary roads if you let go of the steering wheel the truck will jump hard to the right. It has been back four times for repair with little results. The last time kahty steel at midway chevy (410-957-2222) told me that this problem cannot be corrected, it was in the design of the vehicle and nothing could be done, all the Silverado's will perform the same way. I am seeking legal help to get gm to repurchase the vehicle. ( dot number: 2314 tire size: p265/75r16 ).