The consumer routinely inspected the brakes in 11/02 and found no problems. On 06/03, while driving the consumer noticed the vehicle was pulling to the right. Upon inspection of brakes, the consumer discovered the left and right outside brake pads had a "chunk" missing. *ak the front outside pads on the passenger side separated from the metal shoe due to rivet hole wear, and had fallen apart in the consumers hands and the pads were not worn out. *scc
1997 GMC Suburban brakes complaints
Page 2 of 3: complaints 11 to 40 of 58, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Anti-lock brakes suddenly engaged, without notice or ap plication, while driving at 55 to 60 MPH. This action caused the vehicle to swerve violently, to skid @ 150 feet across driving lanes, spin 180 degrees and hit the opposite road easement. The vehicle then rolled over twice. The insurance company has deemed the vehicle a total loss.
While driving in rainy weather and when applying brakes vehicle will not stop. It will coast couple feet over the requested stopping distance. Has been in a collision as a result of brake failure.
When applying pressure to the brake pedal pedal will unexpectedly fall to floorboard, and brake system will fail to stop vehicle. Brake pads and shoes/ rotors, and lines have been replaced, which has failed to effectively remedy the problem. Dealership has not examined vehicle for this problem. Please provide any additional information / documentation.
Ongoing problems with the fuel injection system causing the engine to hesitate and exhibit poor acceleration, dealer replaced fuel filter, fuel pump driver module, fuel injection pump, and added fuel conditioner.
1997 suburban,is experiencing brake failure,when tr ying to come to a stop.the brake pedal pulsates,whenchecked with the dealership they found 2 cracked front wheel hubs, they called gmc engeriners to report problem, iam the origernal owner ,no accidents and all maintence and service done by gmc, this vechicle has less than 60000 miles, and has been properly maintained I feel this is a defect that has yet to be recalled for safty reasons
We have had the brakes serviced four times in the 2 years we owned it, 50,000 miles. The steering is erratic at high speeds.
The brakes lock up at the slightest pressure. Seems to be worse when first starting out with vehicle cold or when the roads are wet, but occurs at anytime while trying to brake. When the brake is applied it pulls to the right and also the brakes lock up, the tires skid, and you hear a humming noise coming from something. (obviously in the braking component somewhere) I have taken it to a gmc dealership 3 times but they have failed to solve the problem. They say they can't duplicate the problem and can't find any problem with the brakes. I asked them specifically to drive the vehicle, especially one day while it was in their care and it was raining since it locks up more when wet. But I question whether they even drove it. I took it to an independent brake/tire center and they replaced the front brake pads checked the rear brakes and said I had a real axle seal leaking which was leaking on the rear brake shoes and probably causing the locking problem. So the next day I returned the vehicle to the dealership again who repaired the rear axle seal leak but denied again there was any problem with the brakes locking up. But they continue to do so, very dangerously I might add. The problem seems to be getting worse.today 5/2/01 the brakes locked and I almost slid right through a stop sign. What can I do now?
Both the sensors for the brakes need to be replaced including the hubs. The suburban doesn't feel like it is going to stop in time. I know someone who has the same year suburban as I do who just had to have this done. It was also done at the same place where mine is in for service. He was told that there is a manufactures defect in the sensors. When I required about this I was informed the other vehicle may have been assembled at a different plant. He has apporximately the same mileage as I do. I feel that this is a defect. No one can explain to me why both sensors would need to be replaced at the same time.
While traveling 75mph with speed control set driver attempted to deactivate speed contol by hitting switch and vehicle continued to roll. Driver applied brakes to stop, and the vehicle continued to roll. Vehicle had to be turned off to stop. Manufacturer has been notified.
While applying brakes in an emergency pedal went to floor, causing extended stopping distance, and resulting in a collision. Please give any further details.
When applying ABS brakes on dry pavement pedal went to the floor, causing extended stopping distance. Please give any further details.
Vehicle has been owned since new. Shortly after purchase took vehicle to dealer with complaint the vehicle had excessive stopping distances and it appeared ABS was malfunctioning. The dealer advised the brake performance was "normal". Having owned 30 vehicles of all types I do not believe same. Also took vehicle to dealer with a complaint the steering was extremely vague and would feel like it had a time delay. Again was advised steering was "normal". Dealer treated complainant like the proverbial village idiot. Now, three years later I have discovered I am not the only village idiot that owns a gmc suburban. I found numerous other complaints from owners with the exact same complaints I had. I just want to verify what they have reported. Recently the vehicle's cooling system has had numerous and sequential leaks. The delaer shrugs his shoulders when queried about the condition.
When applying brakes, pedal seems to pulsate as if anti-lock is kicking in, at any speed, and difficult to stop vehicle.
These problems did not occur from an accident, but rather the workmanship of the vehicle. We have tried every avenue to get gmc to stand behind their automobiles and products, but were told it was not their problem. We just want someone in authority to help us with a car that is a lemon and was a danger to drive because of all the mechanical difficulties. Including: steering wheel sensor went out on a curve at 45mph, brakes went out after only 6 months of ownership, 2 altenators and a battery that would have left my wife and two kids stranded, air conditioner quit functioning at 20,000 miles, transmission went out at 45,000 miles, o2 sensors went out after the transmission, altenator went out again for third time, this was supposed to be warranty work, but said that they could not warranty since it fixed under warranty the first and second time. As you can see we have a valid complaint. When we went to try and trade the car off the transmission went out a 2nd time and we could not trade the car, even though the dealership in oklahoma city had a buyer. They were afraid to buy a car with so many problems, so we are left with a car that does'nt run 90 % of the time and no way of getting rid of it. We can't even get the loan amount out of the auto. We really need some help figuring out what to do. Your time is greatly appreciated. Thank you. Ken sutton.
Brake failure @ 30mph unable to stop shuddering heard and brakes went to floor witnesses report hearing noises and seeing vehicle vibrate
The front brakes of the suburban has been replaced for the second time with raybestos (lifetime wear) brake shoes. My transmission started shifting very hard, as if someone had rearended the truck at a slow speed. I took it to aamco transmission's for repears. Aamco rebuilt the transmission, but did'nt fix the problem. After $2200.00 and the fifth attemt to fix the problem I took it to a gmc dealer and they actually fixed the problem the first time for $308.
Original gm battery (side post style) leaked acid onto steel brake line causing loss of braking system plus maximum corrossion of underside of truck..we were completely unaware of any problem until we tried to go to work in the truck and found no brakes,,had this happened on thhe highway at any great speed it would have been a major catastrophy..no one at the dealership or gm takes this serious plus we are out the cost of the repairs and the vehicle out of service..of
When driving on dry pavent and the brakes are applied, it's like consumer is braking hard, and the the brakes will grab for a second and release and the vehicle will continue rolling. The dealer has been contacted.
Was traveling 25-30 MPH and because of heavy traffic had stopped suddenly. Had applied brakes. Had no brakes. Could feel ABS kicking in, but nothing happening. Vehicle was not slowing down. Turned vehicle & jumped curb & hit light pole. Air bag deployed. Vehcle finally stopped.
While driving at night & applied the brakes. The ABS brakes felt funny. They failed to stop vehicle. Went over 40 foot embankment. The air bags failed to deploy when the front end nosed into dirt. Driver hit head on windshield. Was wearing seat belt.
Master cylinder had failed 3 times within 1yr. The ABS brakes failed to stop vehicle when applied. At dealership at least 8 times for problem. They fixed the brakes each time & they always failed. An ongoing problem. Brakes are still not working appropriately.
Design of the brake system does not stop efficiently, rear brakes are not making enough contract with the rear drums to aid in stopping, resulting brake fading and damage to rotors (warping). Mjs
The brakes have failed to stop the vehicle at slow speed 30 MPH or less when one tire was in water. I have had complete loss of brakes in wet conditions when a hard braking application caused the brake pedal to junp up and down. It would now appear that only the front brakes are working now as it takes a hard break pedal to stop the truck normally, and the front rotors seem to be warped because of excessive heat. When this information was given to the deler they said a rear brake adjustment was needed every oil change even though these brakes are self adjusting. I have other friends with suburbans with the same problems.
Ea95026, poor brake performance; when applying the brakes there is a clinking noise that comes from the system, like the motor is pulsating, it slows the vehicle down but will not stop. Tihs happens more when the roads are wet. The problem was reported to dealership. Dealer stated that this was a normal condition. Owner still experiencing problem with ABS. *ak
Battery ruptured, causing acid to leak down on the brake line, resulting in braking system failure. Dealer has been contacted.
The shaft in the power steering pump busted in two as my husband was driving into a curve @ 60 MPH. He was able to keep from crashing. But if I would have been driving it I wouldn't of been able to steer it. My husband walked in the house white as a ghost. The dealer wanted me to drive it in 10 miles on a curving road with no power steering. I tried to drive it impossible for me to do. The brakes wore out and were replaced a second time (front) @ 36000 miles. The rotors were replaced, had been 10,000 miles since last brake job. The rear brakes needed readjustment again at 43200 miles the pedal kept going to the floor and was soft. 11/98 began having more electrical problems with the rear fan blower would not turn off and will run the battery dead constantly. 1/99 both front and rear u-joints were bad, had replaced the car was wandering even worse than it used to they could not find cause. The front differential was leaking and front brakes need replacing again. 2/16/99 the transmission went out in the vechile at 53174 miles. I drove the car 3 miles into town the rpms started going up to 4000rpms wasn't shifting I stopped and parked I tried to back up it started whinning and clunking and wouldn't move. Three miles earlier I backed out of my garage with no hint of trouble 3 miles later I am stranded with two babys. My husband contacted gm they refused any assistance. I continued contacting gm through other avenues I called roy roberts one of the vp explained I had some safety concerns with the suburban. I was told he would return my phone call, no return call ever received. I finally found a factory rep. That is looking into the problem but I don't hold out much hope that gm will respond to our concerns. Every time I have talked to a gm rep. They tell me no one else has these problems, but according to your records lots of people have had similiar problems. I have all records and receipts and would love to go into more detail with you.
The child safety seats do not work with the seat belt system of the suburban. Only the front passenger seat will securely hold the seat. I contacted the federal safety agency twice and gmc customer service 3 times and many other places. Finally a gm engineer in the safety dept. Called me took my complaint. He tried to put a seat in a suburban and said yes they do not work right. They wanted to take care of problem in house. I have heard nothing more from them. The vechile pulled to the right from day one had it aligned problem continues to this day. The left rear door hinge on drivers side busted off. The door did not open and shut proper. Had problems with fuses blowing constantly. The brakes wore out at 26000 miles and every 10 to 15 since. The brakes after 10,000 miles wore through the rotors. The pedal will often go to the floor or the vechile will pull to the right worse than it already does. The egr valve also failed and had trouble getting it home. I have complained to the dealer many times they say they have never heard of any problems with the brakes on any other gm product. I talked to gm customer service and they said they didn't know why so many problems and they didn't care. They would not look into it. I am filling out another form with the continuation of safety problems.
Twice the vehicle has responded to emergency braking by the pedal going all the way to the floor and not stopping until crashing into something. Both occurances were at slow speed (25mph or less) and in both cases the anti lock pulsations in the pedal wer
The consumer has been experiencing problems with brakes. During rain it's hard to apply brakes. The manufacturer has yet to be contacted. Complies with investigation number ea95026.
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