2002 Oldsmobile Bravada: ABS light or ABS activating

Filed Jun 9, 2004 · Brakes · 53,150 miles · OH

I wa driving in rush hour traffic and was going down a hill. I went to put on the brakes to slow down with the rest of traffic, no urgency, no suddenness, just normal slow down. When I pushed the pedal, it did not respond as usual. At first it sounded like the ABS were engaging, which really did not make sense, but instead the pedal went all the way to floor. There was no sponginess or softness, just to the floor to the point where I stood up. At this point, I was probably going 40-45 MPH and now accelerating down the hill. There was a a large pick-up truck in front of me. I was able to change lanes and fortunately prevent an accident. I let go of the pedal as I was changing lanes, and I as I was trying to figure out what to do next, I touched the brakes and they were normal again. This probably all took place in a matter of 20 seconds and, needless to say, my pasenger was as white as a ghost. I managed to drive the vehicle home about 6 miles and called service the next day. I did drive it to the dealer servicecenter about 20 miles away. I attempted to explain the problem and left the vehicle at the dealer's. I also would like to note that his was not the first time there were problems with my vehicle. In this latest incident, service has replaced the master cylinder because they could not find a code to relate to the problem. I might also add that they were unable to find specific codes for previous incidents. We are now at a standoff. My husband refuses to take the car back because he believes that the master cylinder was/is not the problem and told them they need to call gm to figure what the malfunction of this particular bravada is. Twice in may of 2003, the transmission disengaged while on the expressway at 70 miles an hour. In october of 2003, while driving home from the airport at midnite by myself, the engine cut out and service brake lights also came on. I once again had no kind of brake. It went to the floor.

Filed Mar 10, 2004 · Electrical · 30,709 miles · MD

Engine shut down (loss of power to gas pedal, power steering & brakes). First instance occurred on 9/10/03 at 24,000 miles. I was driving about 45 MPH when I noticed the gas pedal was not responding. I looked down and saw the ABS and brake lights came on so I coasted off the road and could not start the engine so I called roadside assistance. After about 20 minutes the engine started so I cancelled the tow and drove the car straight to the gm service dealer. They recalibrated the PCM. The second occurrence was on 2/15/04 at 30,000 while traveling at 60 MPH in the left lane of a major interstate highway. I immediately recognized the loss of power to the gas pedal once again and saw the ABS and brake lights on. Luckily again I had enough momentum to get off the road with an 18 wheeler close behind. This incident could have caused a fatal accident. I called roadside assistance again and I was not in a safe location with very little median and I was told it could take up to 90 minutes for a tow truck. After about 20 minutes I was able to start the engine again so cancelled the tow truck. I was many miles from home and it was after 5pm so I took it to the same service dealer the next day. This time they replaced the PCM and assured me they fixed the problem. In this case I think the gm service dealer did what they could do but I am not confident that this will not happen again and next time it could be fatal. I complained to gm and they were responsive about following up on the repair but as far as issuing a recall they said it was not a gm decision so I am writing to you. I found about 33 cases of this same problem reported on your website for the 2002 bravada but it is not clear any action is being taken for a life threatening defect. Based on some the complaints I see the PCM was replaced twice which tells me that there needs to be some action taken here.

Filed Jan 19, 2003 · Engine · 11,910 miles · OH · crash · 1 injury

Going about 50 MPH on interstate when engine lost power. Had multiple warning lights and messages, including ABS and service brakes. Pulled off on exit ramp and stopped on grass completely off travel lane. Tried to restart engine several times with no success. Before I could take other action, I was hit in the left rear by another car, which pushed my vehicle about 50 feet back into the travel lane. Damage to rear quarter panel, bumper, and tailgate. My vehicle had to be towed to dealer. Dealer was able to start on first attempt. No problem found with engine. Only ABS code in computer.

Filed Jul 14, 2002 · Brakes, Engine · WI

05/13/02, 6,000miles, going 65mph on interstate message center displayed 'service brakes now', engine shutdown immediately, coasted to side of highway.tried restarting,wouldn't turn over,all power gone.called onstar#1025168 for tow.restarted .5 hour later as tow arrived.ABS light remained on,car was towed.dealer replaced right rear ABS wheel sensor.service mgr indicated engine is designed to shutdown immediately when this fault appears.on 07/05/02, 8,175miles, while driving, 'low oil pressure' displayed on message center, engine immediately shut down,oil pressure went to 0, coasted to stop, tried to restart and oil pressure gauge remained at zero.called onstar. Onstar could not diagnose as car would not start needs to be running to diagnose.#10399689. Tried starting .5 hour later, oil pressure registered as key turned on,oil pressure guage fine, canceled tow, no loss of oil. Dealer could not duplicate.both incidents are related as the enigine shuts down immediately when these faults appear and car loses power.

Filed Apr 22, 2002 · Transmission · IL

While in motion, consumer noticed the ABS fail light come on, brake failure warning followed by immediate engine shutdown, vehicle lost power steering, brake pedal became very stiff,service tech could not duplicate the problem, the computer memory showed no fault or problem. Dealer replaced powertrain control module.