2003 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 brakes problems

53 complaints (29% of all complaints for this car). Typical mileage when it fails: 105,000. 3 crashes reported.

owner complaints: 53
of this car's complaints: 29%
typical mileage: 105,000
crashes: 3
recalls: 0

Which part fails

Foundation components: hoses, lines/piping, and fittings
3
Antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip
2
Foundation components: disc: caliper
1

At what mileage

Complaints by mileage at the time of the problem.

0k-25k

25k-50k

50k-75k

75k-100k

100k-125k

125k-150k

150k-175k

175k-200k

200k+

Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 brakes problems in other years

Specific symptoms reported on the 2003 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 brakes

Phrases found in the owners' own descriptions, so one complaint can mention several symptoms.

Brake failure 19 ABS 7

Related recalls

No recalls on record for this model year.

Related investigations

Brake line corrosion failureOpened January 5, 2011, closed April 8, 2015

On January 11, 2011, ODI opened EA11-001 to investigate allegations of premature brake line corrosion failure in model year (MY) 1999 through 2003 General Motors (GM) full-size pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles sold or registered in the following region of the United States that the federal safety agency has viewed as salt states for investigations of corrosion related issues:Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia and Wisconsin.The subject vehicles represent the first five MY's of GM's GMT800 platform production, of which approximately 2,038,504 vehicles were sold in salt states (the subject vehicles).The GMT800 platform includes the following vehicles:1999-2007 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500 series pick-up trucks; 2000-2006 Chevrolet Suburban, Chevrolet Tahoe and GMC Yukon sport utility vehicles; and 2002-2006 Cadillac Escalade and Chevrolet Avalanche sport-utility vehicles.General Motors produced a total of approximately 10,427,062 GMT800 vehicles for sales in the United States, including almost 5 million that were sold in salt states.Although there are over 60 different brake pipe routing configuration used in GMT800 vehicles, with the exception of the rear crossover pipes in MY 200x-2007 vehicles that changed from rear disc to drum brakes, all of the vehicles use brake pipes from the same supplier with a common double-wall, brazed steel pipe design with a combination of hot dip Zinc-Aluminum corrosion protection coating and Aluminum paint outer layer known in the industry as AlGal (ASTM-B750). ODI analysis of field data regarding GMT800 vehicles identified a total of 3,645 complaints of brake pipe corrosion failures, including 107 alleging crashes, and 40 injuries.Though only 20% of total GMT800 production, due to age and region the subject vehicles account for a disproportionate share of the failure experience; with 2,702 of the complaints (75%), 88 of the crashes (82%) and 20 of the injuries (50%) reported in those vehicles.Analysis of the complaints showed strong correlations to vehicle age and region.For vehicles with less than 8 years of service, the complaint rates were minimal for all regions.In the salt states the failure rates begin to climb as the vehicles advance in age, particularly in the Northeast corner of the United States.The complaint rates in the salt states go from less than 0.1 incident per thousand vehicles (IPTV) at 7 years in service to over 1.0 IPTV after the 12th year of service for the subject pickup trucks and utility vehicles.Most of the failures reported to ODI occurred in vehicles with more than 10 years in service.ODI?s investigation did not identify any specific defect conditions that were causing or contributing to the brake pipe failures.Nor did the analysis isolate the problem to any subject vehicle sub-populations when analyzed by vehicle type or production range.The investigation found that vehicles experiencing brake pipe corrosion failures were likely to have general patterns of excessive corrosion on the majority of the brake pipe assembly and appear to be occurring due to expected wear out for the brake pipe coating material used in the subject vehicles and the environmental conditions in severe corrosion states.A safety-related defect has not been identified at this time.Accordingly, this investigation is closed.The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by the federal safety agency that a safety-related defect does not exist.The agency will monitor t

EA11001

What 2003 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 owners say

Most recent owner complaints, unedited.

Filed Apr 2, 2019 · Brakes · 90,000 miles · NY

Brakes went out with no warning, two different times. On a highway stopping for a red light.

Filed Sep 27, 2017 · Brakes · 95,000 miles · NJ

Was driving home and brakes failed. Massive holes in the lines, pedal down to the floor no brake warning light until it was too late. Thank god my wife and kids were not with me this time. Lucky I'm alive. I was not on a main highway. So far the cost is up to $2000.00 to replace all the lines. Also now the master cylinder seems to be faulty. Another $400.00. I have read way tooo many complaints about gm brake lines rusting out way too soon many with low mileage. Something has to be done about this in the form of compensation. Lives could be lost and some probably have.

Filed Aug 27, 2017 · Brakes · 176,000 miles · FL

I have read the federal safety agency # 05v37900 and see that addresses the brake problems with brake line that I am having problems where the brake goes to the floor with no warning that is the same as the 2002 that is included in your recall. It appears that the same brake lines were used on the 2003 model. So why was the 2003 model not included in the recall as losing the brakes not a safety hazard. I was driving down the road when the brakes went out and was lucky there was no other traffic in the area.

Filed Jun 9, 2017 · Brakes · 79,200 miles · WI

While braking for a red stop light the truck was stopping normally and was almost stopped when the brake pedal went nearly to the floor and braking action was severely affected causing a much delayed completion to the stop. When the brake pedal collapsed a chime came on and a brake failure light appeared on the dash panel. Luckily I was able to avoid hitting the car in front of me. I was able to drive the car slowly out of traffic going very slow and using the emergency brake. Upon initial inspection, brake fluid was observed leaking from somewhere under the truck. The truck was towed to a service garage where the initial diagnosis was a rusted out brake line.

Filed Apr 21, 2017 · Brakes · 105,000 miles · NJ

Tl* the contact owns a 2003 chevrolet avalanche 1500. While driving 25 MPH, the contact depressed the brake pedal and noticed that there was no brake functionality. The contact was able to coast the vehicle to the nearest fuel station. The brake warning indicator illuminated when the failure occurred. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic who diagnosed that the front brake line failed due to corrosion and the rear brake line also experienced severe corrosion and needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired. The dealer and manufacturer were notified of the failure. The failure mileage was approximately 105,000.

Filed Aug 17, 2016 · Brakes · 125,623 miles · OH

Lost total braking at red light at busy intersection,45 MPH with the grace of god avoided a broadside hit, just missed a child on a bike, this was caused by a rusted brake line. What happen to the safety back-up in this design ? This is wrong. In so many ways. In the USA we need to hold our safety to its highest. How many will die before this problem is resolved .

Filed Jul 2, 2016 · Brakes · 179,000 miles · NY

I lost the complete hydraulic braking system due to a line(s) burst due to rust. Thankfully I was just coming out of a parking lot so I was not going fast. My foot immediately went to the floor, the warning sound and indicator came on, but I had absolutely no brakes other than the emergency brake, which I used to pull over. It goes to the shop on tuesday so I will know then the extent of the damage. Had I been going 30 or 40 and coming to a crowed intersection, someone surely would have been hurt, there would have been absolutely no way for me to stop in time. I had no pre-warning of an issue, no low fluid indications, no brake warning lights, just my foot going to the floor. Pretty scary.

Filed Nov 22, 2015 · Brakes · 130,000 miles · MI

Driving 50mph coming up to a red light with cross traffic attempted to stop and peddle went down to the floor. Narrowly missed a possibly deadly accident. Found that the front brake line had rusted through. Very surprised since there is very little rust on the underside of this truck. It would have been nice to have known about this potential issue.

Filed Sep 21, 2015 · Brakes · 144,937 miles · OH

While driving my 2003 chevy avalanche to work during rush hour traffic, another driver hit their brakes abruptly in front of me. This happens often during rush hour traffic in the morning in columbus, oh. I hit my brakes and they went to the floor! After I pumped them a few quick time, I ran the truck off the road while looking for any additional safe exit strategies. I down shifted, and had a very small amount of brake approximately 1/2" of usable pedal just above the floor board. I have read about the brake line problems, and have been fixing things on the truck since I got it. My wife's toyota rav4 is 1 year newer (2004) and the underside of her car glistens compared to our chevy avalanche. The kicker: she drives her rav4 every weekday even during snowy weather, and I drive the avalanche only once a week! I own another vehicle (1997 buick) I usually drive. The under side of the avalanche is the epitome of rust - not just the brake lines but everywhere! When did brake lines become a wear part? I am pleading to your humane treatment of people over profit. This is exactly what this is; gm took extreme shortcuts, all parts under the truck are rusting badly more than any vehicle I have seen in my life. This isn't a northeast or snow belt problem, this is a gm problem. Will you please prevent this travesty from continuing before more people die unnecessarily? Split braking systems were made a requirement, and gm is hiding behind that requirement. Was that the federal safety agency intent to permit higher profits with the split braking systems? That is what gm is using it for and at the expense of peoples lives. Which is more important profit or lives? Have a nice day!

Filed Sep 8, 2015 · Brakes · 55,000 miles · IN

Primary master cylinder brake line burst lost brakes.

Questions about the 2003 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 brakes

Does the 2003 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 have brakes problems?

Owners have filed 53 complaints about the brakes of the 2003 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500, 29% of all its complaints.

At what mileage do 2003 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 brakes problems start?

The typical (median) mileage in owner complaints is 105,000 miles.

Was there a recall on the 2003 Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 brakes?

There is no recall for this problem on this model year.

What year does the Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 have bad brakes?

The Chevrolet Avalanche 1500 model years with the most brakes complaints are 2002 (96 complaints), 2003 (53 complaints) and 2004 (39 complaints).