Which parts fail
Components named in complaints (service brakes, ABS, rotors and pads, parking brake).
Mileage when the problem started
Owner reports
Selected complaints filed with NHTSA by 2000 Chevrolet Silverado owners, lightly cleaned up (personal details are redacted by NHTSA).
When returning home my brakes failed when entering my driveway causing me to strike a tree. There was minor damage to the grill of my vehicle. The cause was a ruptured brake line. There was no warning of the loss of brakes.
Chevy Silverado z71 4x4 in November 2005, I had an accident due to the ABS not functioning correctly, while pulling into a parking space lightly applying my brakes the ABS started to chatter and I could not stop fast enough and hit a light poll with the right side fender and bumper. I got out to look to see why I slid, but the surface was clean and dry. I was puzzled, on the drive home it happened again this time coming to a stop and again lightly applying the brakes the ABS shuttered, this time stopping into cross intersection traffic. I was now scared and the slower I drove the worse it was, I approached a school zone in my neighborhood and a child ran accross the street and again I braked but I could not stop quick enough and struck this child, not seriously but enough to knock him down. I got home parked the truck and have not driven it since. …
I was traveling down a road at 20 MPH and went to apply my brakes as we were approaching a red light. The brake pedal went right to the floor without warning and I was involved in a 4 car accident caused by a total brake system failure. The vehicle was towed to the garage and a majority of the brake lines had to be replaced due to rusting. The brake lines rusted at the intersection to the brake module mid vehicle so when the front lines failed, the pressure boost to the rear lines caused them to also fail. So the concept of dual brake systems was defeated due to a single point failure problem. Also, the brake fluid saturated the rear brake rotors so the emergency brake was non functional. The vehicle was a 2000 Silverado which was a $35000 vehicle where the brake lines lasted 7 years. …
All of the rotors rusted and had severe corrosion prior to my truck having even 8000 miles. Yes that # of miles is correct only 8000. I was told by other general motor truck GMC, tahoe etc similar vehicles that this is normal due to the poor quality of materials used. I have purchased new after market rotors that are not corroding as the originals did. I have kept my original rotors to remind me of GM quality for my next truck purchase which turns out to be a Ford f250 2005. I really think that GM should be held responsible for the rotor problem, it is not because of our climate as I have lived in the virgin islands and have owned many different vehicles foreign and domestic and have never seen rotors deteriorate like on this 2000 Silverado. …
The ABS failed in my truck, causing me to hit a trailer parked in my driveway. While GM has already "repaired" this under a previous recall, their "repair" obviously doesn't work. They were unresponsive about my complaint, since my truck had already been "repaired". If someone would have been walking in front of my truck when the brakes failed, I would have killed them. It is one thing to have the radio quit working, it is an entirely different thing to have the brakes totally fail. GM needs to do something about this besides cleaning a couple sensors. There were no warning lights, no indication whatsoever of the impending failure. I backed up and the brakes worked fine. Still no warning lights. I spoke with the dealership and their answer was "there isn't anything we can test for this intermittent problem. We can try to get it to fail and go from there". …
There were no unusual events leading up to the failure of the anti-lock braking system in my truck. The system would fail to operate properly at approximately 5 MPH when coming to a stop. The failure is that the system engages unnecessarily at low speeds, causing the vehicle not to stop when desired. It would happen several times daily, and the only crash I did not avoid was into a chain link fence, which did not cause damage. However, there were several near misses. The corrective action that I took was to remove the fuse for the anti-lock brakes. The corrective action that my dealer suggested was to spend $500 replacing the front wheel speed sensors. He said that this is a common occurrence on the Chevrolet Silverado, and that my problem would only get worse. GM has issued a TSB on this issue, but not safety recall. …
My ABS has been acting up, I.e. Engaging when it shouldn't. Tonight, I was forced to come to a fast stop and pushed the brake in. The ABS engaged, but then stopped and the pedal went to the floor, therefore I had no brakes. I rear-ended another car with a 17 year old girl driving. She ended up being taken to the hospital. I am curious to know if there are other cases such as this, including brake failure and ABS problems. My vehicle is a 2000 Chevrolet Silverado 1500. I have 106,000 miles on it and have had minute braking issues for the past year or so. I hope that is this is an issue that it can be addressed. That way no more seventeen year old girls get hurt, and no more 26 year old males (myself) have to worry about them or the safety of others due to this type of failure. …
Tl contact owns a 2000 Chevrolet Silverado. The contact has experienced brake line failures numerous times with the vehicle. The brake pedal extended to the floor when it was depressed. He took the vehicle to the dealer and they replaced the ruptured brake line, which corrected the failure for approximately one year. However, the failure recurred in the same manner. A mechanic replaced the ruptured brake line once again and this corrected the failure for only a few months. The failure recurred in November of 2008 and a crash occurred. While driving 25 MPH on an icy bridge, the brake pedal extended to the floor when it was depressed. The contact attempted to apply the emergency brake, but was unsuccessful. He struck the rear bumper of the preceding vehicle. A police report was filed. There were no injuries and the vehicle was eventually towed to the dealer. …
Anti lock brakes kick in when attempting to try to stop my Chevy Silverado 1500 pickup truck. After it had happened a few times I did not think anything of it and thought maybe the brakes had been exposed to greese or something. I eventually wound up rear ending a vehicle when attempting to park behind it in a mall parking lot. It cost my insurance company 600.00 and I am sure that this will impact my insurance costs. I recently heard that the gonvernment was looking into this issue and GM had done a recall in Canada for the same issue. I am frustrated with GM and currently have this truck for sale and will be contacting them to request that they fix it. If they are not willing to repair it then I will be considering taking them to court to recover the cost my insurance company and hopefully keep my insurance from increasing. …
Dt*: the contact stated the brakes where applied at 8-10pmh and the ABS engaged, resulting in the contact having a crash. To avoid a rear end collision, the contact left the road and hit an embankment on the passenger side of the vehicle. The police did not take a report at the scene and no injuries were sustained. After the accident the contact received a recall 05V379000, concerning the antilock brakes. The vehicle was taken to the dealer for inspection, the speed sensors were cleaned and it was determined the hydraulic pump needed to be replaced. However, the dealer was not able to determine whether the brake failure and accident were caused by the ABS sensor or the hydraulic pump. The contact felt the pump should have been included in the recall campaign. Additionally, the brake rotors were replaced, due to corrosion, after only 4,000 miles.
Related recalls
Service brakes, hydraulic › Antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip
Certain pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles May experience unwanted antilock brake system (ABS) activation. This condition is more likely to occur in environmentally corrosive areas.
Remedy: Dealers are to remove the wheel speed sensor and thoroughly clean the wheel speed sensor mounting surface on the bearing, apply rust inhibitor to the cleaned surface, grease the mounting surface, reinstall the wheel…
Parking brake
On certain pickup trucks equipped with manual transmissions and built with either pbr parking brake systems or trw parking brake systems, the parking brake friction linings May wear to an extent where the parking brake can become ineffective in immobilizing a parked vehicle.
Remedy: Dealers will install a low-force spring clip retainer for vehicles equipped with a pbr parking brake system. On vehicles equipped with the trw parking brake system, dealers will install a redesigned parking brake cable…
Service brakes, hydraulic › Foundation components › Hoses, lines/piping, and fittings
Vehicle description: light duty pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles. Some of these vehicles have a clearance condition between the front right-hand brake pipe and the body cross sill that could decrease to the point of allowing contact during the life of the vehicle.
Remedy: Dealers will inspect the front right-hand brake pipe for wear. If there are signs of wear, this section of the brake pipe will be replaced with a new designed brake pipe section.
Service brakes, hydraulic › Antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip
Vehicle description: light duty pickup trucks equipped with 4-wheel disc brakes. Some of these vehicles have an antilock brake system (ABS) motor containing an out-of-specification spring clip. This clip could allow the motor bearing to become misaligned. If misalignment occurs, eventually the ABS would be non-functional.
Remedy: Dealers will replace the brake pressure module valve assembly.
NHTSA investigations
Brake line corrosion failure
The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received Defect Petition DP10-003 on March 2, 2010, requesting the investigation of model year (MY) 2003 Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD 4WD pickup trucks for corrosion failures of the vehicle brake lines.DP10-003 was granted and on March 30, 2010, Preliminary Evaluation PE10-010 was opened on more than six million model year 1999 through 2003 light trucks and sport utility…
Unwanted low-speed ABS activation
In a letter dated August 29, 2005, GM notified odi that it was recalling certain model year 1999 through 2002 c/k pickup trucks and sport utility vehicles to correct a problem with anti-lock brake system (ABS) wheel speed sensor corrosion that May result in unwanted ABS activation and extended stopping distances during low-speed braking (recall 05v-379).GM's recall covers approximately 804,000 vehicles currently…
Parking brake failure
Odi opened pe03-057 to assess parking brake ineffectiveness in the subject vehicles.these vehicles are equipped with four wheel disc brakes that incorporate a single-shoe drum-in-hat parking brake independent of the service brakes.complaint and warranty data indicate that the parking brake linings tend to wear out early in the life of the vehicle (at an average of 24 months in service), reducing the parking brake…
Brake line corrosion failure
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 NHTSA has viewed as salt states for investigations of corrosion related issues:Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia,…
Hydraulic pump failres
GM is conducting a recall on all subject vehicles build between May 1999 and October 14, 1999.significant changes were incorporated into production in early October 1999, and vehicles built after that date have lower warranty failure rates.the complaint and warranty data appear to support the effectiveness of these changes.
Parking brake failure
In a letter dated April 20, 2005, GM notified NHTSA that it had decided that defects that relate to motor vehicle safety exist in certain model year (my) 1999-2002 c/k 1500 series (pbr parking brake system) and my 2001-2005 c/k 2500 and 3500 series (trw parking brake system) pickups with manual transmissions.according to GM, some of these vehicles May have conditions that cause the friction linings to wear to an…
Parking brake failure
Odi's review of complaint data received since the close of ea04-011 revealed no indication that the investigation should be re-opened.more details can be found in the federal register notice enclosed in the dp05-009 public file.odi reserves the right to reopen the investigation in the future should conditions warrant.
Brake complaints in other Silverado years
Frequently asked questions
How common are brake problems on the 2000 Chevrolet Silverado?
NHTSA has 607 complaints about the brakes of the 2000 Chevrolet Silverado, 47% of the model year's 1,305 complaints. The component named most often is antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip (262 mentions).
Is there a recall for 2000 Chevrolet Silverado brake problems?
Yes — NHTSA recall 05V-379 (antilock/traction control/electronic limited slip, Aug 29, 2005); NHTSA recall 05V-161 (parking brake, Apr 22, 2005); NHTSA recall 00V-345 (hoses, lines/piping, and fittings, Oct 30, 2000). Recall repairs are free at authorized dealers.
At what mileage do 2000 Chevrolet Silverado brake problems start?
Half of the complaints with a recorded mileage happened before about 57,000 miles, and 9% before 25,000 miles.
Is it dangerous?
Owners linked 71 crashes, 0 fires and 15 injuries to brakes problems on this model year. If you notice symptoms, have the car checked before driving further.
Source: U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) — owner complaints through October 20, 2026, recalls and defect investigations; fuel economy from the EPA. Complaints are unverified reports and are not proof of a defect. How we rate model years.