Eight problems related to brake fluid leak have been reported for the 2001 Chevrolet Suburban. The most recently reported issues are listed below.
Complete break failure. Break pedal went to floor and almost killed my family. Noticed leaking break fluid coming out of rusted break line under vehicle.
Driving approx 50 mph on 4 lane highway. When slowing for red light ahead, noticed brake pedal going closer to floor than normal. Vehicle was not slowing as normal, and brake pedal was staying close to the floor. Got stopped and pulled to side of road. Check of master cylinder revealed brake fluid level to be approx. Half full. Upon checking under vehicle, I saw brake fluid pouring out from the gas tank shield.
While driving through downtown bethesda, brake pedal lost pressure all the way to the floor, resulting in extended stopping distance through an intersection. Pulled over and noted fluid leakage under front right side of car. Drove car to dealer at 5mph; identified extensive rust through brake lines. Car was not driveable. I was charged $430 for parts and $2351 for labor to 'completely rebuild brake lines manually' because gm stopped making the kit. Total $2808 and nine days out of service.
The contact owns a 2001 Chevrolet Suburban. The contact stated that the rear brake failed to engage while driving 40 mph. The contact was able to stop the vehicle by using the front brake. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection where the contact was advised that the rear brake lines were corroded and leaking brake fluid. The rear brake lines were replaced. The VIN was not available. The failure and current mileage was 165,000.
Brake pedal went to the floor when applied in a parking lot. Parked vehicle. Upon return large puddle of brake fluid under drivers side front and brake line had failed. All brake lines are very corroded on this 12 year old vehicle. In addition, fuel lines are also very corroded but have not yet failed.
Brake pedal went almost to floor when approaching a stop sign. Stopping ability was very poor. We were close to home, so we returned home. Upon inspection brake fluid was dripping down frame rail under drivers seat, where about five brake lines enter the abs valve unit. The brake lines were all severely rusted to the point one failed. Very bad location for the abs valve, as the brake lines follow the frame rail from the front left wheel to the abs unit and are prone to collecting road salt spray. Service access is limited and awkward. This same failure occurred on my 2001 silverado pickup in August 2010.
After entering the parking lot of the local shopping center I applied the brake pedal to park in the marked space but the truck did not stop, the pedal travel all the way down but no breaking effect at all, fortunately that section of the lot was mostly empty and I let the truck roll to almost a stop, push the brake pedal again and did not stop so ended up using the parking brake to stop the truck. No warning light ever came on so I went to check the rubber hoses and brake lines under the truck finding a brake fluid dripping from the area under the driver's seat, close to a big rubber " doughnut " ( chassis mount ). I pushed the brake pedal and fluid sprayed again from that area. There are several brake pipes running to and from a sensor or equalizing valve mounted on the chassis in that area. After towing the truck home I went under it and follow the tubing leaving from that area to the front and the rear of the truck, and it is all rusted with the exception of the flexible hoses going to the calipers. I own two other cars ( not chevy's) that are older and used under the same conditions as the Suburban and the brake piping looks like new on those, so I'm inclined to think this condition is particular to Suburbans or Chevrolet in general. Would this incident had not occurred in a parking lot it would have ended in an accident or a fatality. I'm calling the local chevy dealership Monday to check for any outstanding recall for my truck but never received a recall notice. This truck was bought new and have always been used in maryland, the winters are not extreme here and my only theory for the excessive rusting is that the brake lines are too cheap. Truck will be parked indefinitely and available for inspection if requested.
I was driving my Suburban in town at low speed when the brake pedal went to the floor as I tried to stop the truck. Fortunately it was not a complete brake failure and I was able to stop it after a much longer than usual stopping distance. The truck was brought to a local Chevrolet dealer and the advisor noted that the brake lines were very rusted and leaking fluid. All the break lines had to be replaced at a significant cost to me. I have taken good care of this truck and the brake lines should not have failed due to excessive rust as they did. Chevrolet should have treated the steel brake lines or used a different metal to make them when the vehicle was manufactured to avoid this problem and possible serious and fatal accidents due to it.