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Old 05-05-2018, 01:10 PM   #1
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Catastrophic brake failure.

I have a 2013 Freelander 29QB with 19,888 miles(Chevrolet 4500 express). I was traveling down the highway and noticed my brakes were a little spongy. When traffic slowed down, I put on the brakes and they went almost all the way to the floor. At the same time the service brake system warning light came on. I was near a Chevrolet dealership so I pulled in. The service tech and I looked underneath and noticed brake fluid dripping on the ground near the rear of the vehicle. He inspected the line and found that it had rusted through. Anybody experience anything like this (scary). I live near Charlotte, NC so it would not be a salt corrosion problem. Glad I didn't head off to Colorado like I had planned.
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Old 05-05-2018, 01:46 PM   #2
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This is not intended to be a Ford vs Chevy comment, just my experience.

I never had a brake line rust through on any of my Ford trucks, but on the Chevy I had, more than one line rusted through. Even the replacement (aftermarket) lines rusted and developed leaks. I had no idea why.

I got familiar with the feeling of loosing a brake line.

I’m in PA, so the salt was probably a factor.
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Old 05-05-2018, 01:49 PM   #3
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I had a similar thing happen on my TV while towing, For some reason Chevy runs the brake lines right on top of the frame rail from front to rear. The problem is that dirt and road grime collect on top of the frame around the lines, which keeps them moist and causes rust.
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Old 05-05-2018, 01:52 PM   #4
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15-20 years ago Chevy had brake line issues in their trucks. Haven't heard of any in recent vehicles such as yours. Maybe it got damaged and then rusted.
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Old 05-05-2018, 01:57 PM   #5
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Yeah, the Chevy was a 2001.
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Old 05-05-2018, 07:55 PM   #6
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This hole situation is bad. Wife doesn't trust the vehicle anymore, and I will worry, when driving through mountains, especially Colorado. Resale on these vehicles are close to nothing. Think I will unload somehow and just take the loss. Sad.
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Old 05-05-2018, 08:19 PM   #7
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Cagiva View Post
This hole situation is bad. Wife doesn't trust the vehicle anymore, and I will worry, when driving through mountains, especially Colorado. Resale on these vehicles are close to nothing. Think I will unload somehow and just take the loss. Sad.


Trust is a serious issue. I am very certain you could get stainless lines for it...that would eliminate most of the corrosion issues.
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Old 05-06-2018, 07:57 AM   #8
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Iwannacamp - I'll check into the possibility of installing stainless steel brake lines -thanks for the idea. Maybe I can sell the wife on that.
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Old 05-06-2018, 08:15 AM   #9
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Stainless lines are an option but I’d also suggest simply inspecting it regularly. It’s not a great design but now that you’ve seen what happens, you know what to look for.

Might be better than taking a loss on it.
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Old 05-06-2018, 09:49 AM   #10
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I would check this article out on brake tubing. I am a retired engineer who dealt with tubing and hydraulic components for large earthmoving equipment company. Most design criteria for brake lines in the industry required that the steel tubes be coated with a zinc-rich paint or Terne coating. This will prevent corrosion of the steel brake lines, but this will last only so, long.
The preferred method for anti-corrosion for a brake line is tube made out of copper-nickel material.
https://www.copper.org/applications/...ube/brake.html
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Old 05-06-2018, 10:01 AM   #11
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Cagiva, why not just replace all the brake tubing? Find a tech that does work on the side and put all new steel on it, you should be good for another 5 years, or I would just check it over good and replace only the very rusted lines. Probably the line kept getting wet in the l
Place it rusted through.
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Old 07-24-2018, 08:20 AM   #12
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My 2004 Silverado dually rusted through at the rear which luckily I detected before hitting the road with my Cardinal. Had to pull the bed off to reach the rusty line. Factory replacement kit ~$100 from GM dealer replaces all the lines. The kit lines appear to have a coating of some sort. My 2001 Ford Super Duty also rusted through in the same area as did my '93 Jeep. Brake lines should be high quality stainless or some rust resistant alloy but there is no law against cheap lines I guess.
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Old 07-24-2018, 08:28 AM   #13
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This happened to me about 10 years ago on a 1994 GMC Suburban.
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Old 07-24-2018, 08:29 AM   #14
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It's not just the brake lines, I had a 99' silverado (probably doesn't matter the manufacturer) fuel line rust out at about 9 years. That is the only vehicle that I owned where I had the brake and fuel line issue.
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Old 07-24-2018, 08:32 AM   #15
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I had this happen on my last TV about 2 miles from home while towing. The brake lines sit on top of the frame and salt, dirt and moisture collect around them . I had the lines replaced with copper/steel alloy line which was supposed to last longer.
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Old 07-24-2018, 08:53 AM   #16
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The only reason I have a relatively new personal truck and work truck is because of the brake lines

I had a 2004 gas 2500 as a personal truck and a 2005 diesel 3500 as my work truck. In 2014, the 2500 sprang its first rust hole leak in a brake line late one Saturday when I was in Lancaster County, PA, 130 miles from home. I was able to find a place that was willing to repair the line about 11 miles away. I was able to drive there carefully with no incident. The mechanic cut out the bad section of line and replaced it for $100.00 cash. I made it home and had that entire portion of brake line replaced. I had no more incidences of rust holes with that truck before I traded it later in 2014. One year after the incident with the 2500, my 3500 had the same problem, but I was only one block away from the shop that I always use, so the trip for the repair wasn’t so harrowing. I intended on getting all of the brake lines replaced this time, but ended up only getting the front brake lines done because of the astronomical cost of replacing the rear lines, which would involve removing the utility body for access. I drove that truck until 2016 and traded it.

I hope Chevrolet has done something to improve on this problem because I like the trucks I have now.

Bruce

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Old 07-24-2018, 01:22 PM   #17
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Had it happen on a 2000 Cadillac Deville that is in mint condition. Both rear brake lines rusted thru at the same time. $440 later to fix it. No sign of rust anywhere else on the vehicle.
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Old 07-24-2018, 01:32 PM   #18
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I'm seeing a trend here on the older Chevy's...My Sister who has a 1999 Silverado just had to replace the brake lines last year.
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Old 07-24-2018, 01:44 PM   #19
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Catastrophic brake failure.

We had same thing happen about 5 yrs ago hauling our previous fifth wheel....1998 chev k2500

Light turned yellow - hmmm - go for it then quickly red - hit the brake pedal and BOOM it goes all the way to floor right thru the stop light we go...

Had to manual use trailer brake to ease off road about 1/2 mile down to a gas station

Friends following towed fifth wheel to site and SIL came with flatbed to take old blue home....

On the other hand - we just had to replace the batteries in old blue yesterday - last ones were new in 2000 - yep, pretty sure new ones wont last 18 years ....besides old blue is rotting out from under us by the day but less than 185k on that diesel motor is enough for DH to use it as a work truck now - sure cannot hurt it anymore

We dont use it for towing the current rig either - didnt trust it any longer and got a new 2012 chev 2500hd instead that sits home unless towing - saving on miles
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Old 07-24-2018, 01:51 PM   #20
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