This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
In rainy, wet or snowy weather the brakes on my 1996 Chevrolet Blazer fail to work. When I put my foot on the brake pedal it is very stiff and it feels like the brakes aren't going to work at all. Then finally the vehicle does stop but it takes a very long time to happen. Also in other times with the same weather conditions the brakes will be very touchy. So much so that when I put my foot on the brake it jerks me forward and stops very abruptly.
Applied brakes while two car lengths behind another car in traffic on freeway, going about 25 mph. Brake pedal went to floor, car did not stop until it hit car in front of us. While braking on wet pavement, or rr tracks, or uneven pavement the ABS fails and pedal goes to floor. At my expense I took car to GMC dealership to check brakes. I was told car had no open recalls. They looked at ABS and said there were no errors coming up. GMC said brake pads were worn - they were replaced 6 months ago, and then again about 30 days prior to accident. Mechanic took us on test drive over uneven pavement, we tried to brake, and ABS went to floor, stopping was extremely delayed. We were told that was "normal". he also said that if we had GMC brake pads then we would have been able to stop better. Opened call with GMC and was told that due to mileage of car there was nothing they could do. How can a car be considered safe to drive if the brakes don't work? GMC recall 99I006000 describes this exact problem we experienced. I was told my car had this recall performed. I will take car to 3rd party for opinion, and then will seek legal representation. Car will sit in garage until then. It's too unsafe to drive.
I was on my way to my sister's house, I came up to a stop sign, and the brakes went to the floor and the vehicle would not stop. I tried pumping the brakes, but nothing, so I tried holding them to the floor and still nothing. The road dead ended and I had to turn the vehicle, at which time I lost control of the vehicle, and it went in the ditch and rolled on it's side. The brakes worked up til this point, I had made 5 stops prior to this one. There were no skid marks, because there were no brakes. When the vehicle was pulled out of the ditch, and the brakes were tested, they seemed to work again. I was very lucky, I found out later, that my boyfriend had driven the car, earlier that month and the brakes had done the same thing to him, he checked the brake pads, but there was nothing wrong with them, and the brakes seemed to work after that. I have talked to several people and found out this problem has happened to a lot of people. I have talked to a person, who had worked for GM for over 20 years and he knew about this problem, and told me they never did a recall, but there were a lot of people who brought their cars in for this same problem, the brakes would randomly fail. I can not believe a recall has not been done, I was very lucky, someone else may not be.
Brakes failed/skipped when I tried to slow down to exit off major highway. I was going below the speed limit which was 55 mph, I was going 50 mph. As I proceeded to slow down to exit off the highway. I pressed the brakes, the brakes skipped and the car began to spin 1-2 times. Then proceeded to flip over four times. No fatalities, but driver who was myself was seriously injured and required left arm and hand surgery due to degloving of hand and lacerated triceps and serious glass damage. The car was totalled out. Driver side roof was caved in and passenger side roof was completely caved in. Brakes seemed like they tried to grasp the tires failed to do so therefore skipping and causing the car to go out of control.
First problem occurred Jan 97 while driving in reno Nevada it began to snow lightly and four wheel drive was engaged but this driver could not feel or sense a change in traction. The braking system did not adjust to changing weather conditions and we eventually skidded off the road as conditions worsened and another vehicle rear ended me. I suffered right rotator cuff tear and had a disc removed from my neck. My passanger has had two back surgeries due to disc injuries. On at least two other ocasions the brakes nearly caused me to rear end someone because of a slow responce.
I have had two major problems with this vehicle since it's purchase date. The transmission has experienced two major failures and the dealer said he replaced them both times. I have continued to experience shifting problems and occassional lockup of the transmission when shifting from park to drive. The transmission dip stick and filler tube have had to be replaced twice for rust which leads me to believe that engine cooolant is getting into the transmission fluid. The second problem is naturally the ABS brake system. This is the sorriest excuse for brakes on a vehicle that I have seen. I must almost stand on the brake pedal with excessive pressure to get the vehicle to stop. I also experienced premature brake pad wear out on the front which damage the rotors. Chevrolet refused to fix this under warranty even though the vehicle only had 20,000 miles on it. The ABS system locks up sometimes when I push hard on the brakes. I have experienced several near accidents because of the poor braking system on this vehicle. I would appreciate any help you could be to leverage Chevrolet to correct these problems.
On 7/27 going down a grade and around curve - (10-15 mph) oncoming vehicle was on my side of the road. I blew the horn and with full force slammed on the brakes. My Blazer brakes made a rumbling sensation at the brake pedal and slid 10-15 feet before finally stopping. I almost hit the left rear fender of the truck with the front left fender of my vehicle. On 2/99 I encountered the same braking problem which resulted in a 3 car accident ($12,000) worth of damage.
Was traveling on the ramp to route 28 and applied brakes - two cars were awaiting entrance to highway and they stopped at the end of the ramp. I applied brakes with a good 20-25 ft distance between my vehicle and the car in front of me (at speed of approx. 15 mph) and vehicle brakes made rumbling sound, vehicle slide on road surface and failed to stop causing rear end collision to 2 cars in front of mine. When applying the brakes - fully depressed to the floor - brakes rumbled, seemed to lock and car seemed to slide, and veer to the right but did not stop. I mentioned to officer M. bowser, state police, that there was a problem with the brakes. I received a citation for careless driving although I tried to stop the vehicle) - was advised one should have control of vehicle at all times regardless of situation. Also received 3 points.
In 15 mos. This car has left me more than all others together !!! have lost thousands of dollars in income. Most unreliable unsafe car I've ever owned. I see hundreds of people in my feild of work and I tell them all not to get a Blazer !! it can't stay on the road and the co. Is unwilling to help. Very unhappy with the product and handling of complaint. Read E-mail sent to get the jest of problems this car has had. If my daughter or I die as a result of this faulty car you can be assured you will be sued !!! I've tryed to let someone know since 1-2 mos. After purchase that it was a problem. To no avail Chevy does'nt care !!!!!
The ABS system makes a loud groaning noise when having to stop on any surface with loose stones, wet surface or anything which allows the vehicle to slide. The noise sounds like the mooing of a cow. When this occurs, the system allows the vehicle to free wheel for a matter of a seconds before the ABS system starts to pulsate under your foot. In the time before the pusating starts, the vehicle is on the steepest part of the hill and due to the heaviness of the vehicle it manages to pick up a great deal of speed. The vehicle stops, but unfortunately on many occasions I end up in the middle of the intersection. As I live in a rural area dominated by large steep hills, this causes quite a problem. I live at the top of a large hill causing me to travel this decline every day and sometimes more than once a day. The steepest part of the hill is the lowest portion at the bottom of which is a stop sign. There is usually loose fine stones on the hill causing the vehicle to slide as you are constantly braking. As soon as the wheels slide, the ABS system kicks in. I have had the car back to the dealer on at least four, maybe 5 occasions. The last time, the dealer kept it a whole day to evaluate it, reporting back to me that the loud mooing sound is the ABS pump. My husband took the service manager for a ride to the area in which we live, showing him the reaction of the ABS system, at which time the dealer decided to keep it for the day to evaluate it. The dealership reported that it functions the way it was designed and they will not do anything to correct the problem because right now it is Chevy's problem. If the dealership would do anything to correct it, it would become their problem. I have had far too many close calls, the most recent occurring this week at the bottom of the hill close to our home. There are leaves on the roadway which caused a wheel to slide which kicked in the ABS system on the steepest portion allowing me to end up over half way
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Bradford, MA, USA